Question on everyone’s lips: can anyone stop May?
Is there anybody capable of stopping Auckland’s Callan May?
That’s the question being asked after May extended his cross-country race winning streak to five, a sequence that also represents an unbeaten run since he returned to the race scene after being sidelined with injury for eight months.
The 26-year-old electrician made it look easy as he took over the lead soon after the start of the Yamaha NZXC Cross-country Series race near Palmerston North just over a week ago. He won convincingly four minutes ahead of Adam Easton.
The two-hour race at the Taikorea Motorcycle Park near Himatangi was the second round of six in the NZXC Series. After winning the opening round of that too, May has a solid lead in the chase for the senior trophy.
May also took his Yamaha YZ250FX to win round two of the parallel-but-separate Dirt Guide Series cross-country competition in July, before dominating the second round of three in the separate Motomuck Two-man Series in the Woodhill Forest a fortnight ago.
May also won round one of the Motomuck Two-man Series and is on top of that series’ standings with just the final round left. Third best at Taikorea behind May and Easton, was Jake Whitaker (KTM 300 XC)..
“I’m a little surprised I won so easily at Taikorea. I’d been feeling under the weather with ‘man flu’ all week,” said May.
“I didn’t do any riding during the week and just rested. I rode conservatively at Taikorea and just tried to save my energy. I rode sensibly, but I still felt pretty tired afterwards.” It was interesting also to see schoolboy Ben Paterson take a new Yamaha WR250F to 17th overall at Taikorea.
The 16-year-old collected the bike only that morning and therefore had no time to set it up for racing, opting to tackle the tough off-road race with headlight, blinkers, number plate mount and side-stand still in place.
His result was good enough for him to finish overall runner-up in the intermediate grade and Paterson was quick to credit his trainer, former Kiwi international Paul Whibley, for the work he’d completed at the inaugural PWR academy earlier this year.
Meanwhile, the top finishers in the 90-minute junior race at Taikorea were Wil Yeoman (Yamaha YZ125), Hunter Scott (KTM 85 SX) and Jack McLean (Honda CRF250) The Yamaha NZXC Series continues at Muriwai on September 2, Matata on October 13, Woodhill Forest, on November 10, before it wraps up at Waimiha, in the King Country, on December 8.