By Staff Reporter
WINDHOEK
Local rider Tommy Gous won the Astra Moto Cross Competition at the not-so-pleasant Astra Race Track East of Windhoek, last weekend.
The veteran rider was in mean mood and walked away with a maximum number of 60 points including the treasured ASTRA-Trophy for his exploits in the “King of the Dirt” race where boys are normally separated from men.
Take nothing away from Gous, the man was absolutely phenomenal with his breathtaking riding style despite the notable absence of rival Rainer Becker.
Gous seized the opportunity and went onto win all his races bravely as he finally shook off the jinx of technical problems on his Zenner-Yamaha that has been the order of the day in previous races.
The organization by the Goldbeck family, owners of the ASTRA-track, once again exceeded all expectations with the track in mint condition, and to put the cherry on top of the cake – they have organised the big beer-tent from the Namibian Breweries, where a mouth watering ala carte containing farm food became the toast of the hundreds of moto cross enthusiasts who flocked to the modern track for full day of entertainment second to none for young and old.
In the meantime, the Namibian MX-sport finally entered into the 21st century: following the financial support from the FIM’s Development Aid Fund – making it possible to obtain a transponder system from the USA.
The cumbersome task of manually writing down the lap-results has now found her way into the dustbin of have beens.
Riders passing the time-control unit are listed electronically and the computer print out is capable of producing a complete list of results at the end of each race, including the time of each rider.
The international courier/logistics company DHL imported this system free of charge, for which the WMCC is very grateful. With the help of this new DHL-transponder system, the Namibian MX-sport is now prepared for bigger events.
In the Open/125cc Class, Animal Wise made tough contact with mother gravity after the front t wheel of his Kawasaki left the rut while the rider was in a comfortable position after the first heat on the west bent.
However, Wise continued the race from the tail and really needed to pull out all stops to catch up with the leading pack. He eventually proved his worth as he cruised passed a rider or two in every lap and relentlessly pushed himself to the front again, before finishing in 2nd place.
Ruhan Gous ended in third position, while Tommy Gous grabbed another hole-shot in the 2nd heat as he just flew over the track leaving Ruhan Gous on his Muxima Honda to battle it out with Henry O’Kennedy and Animal Wise.
Veteran rider Ronnie Adams had problems keeping up with the pace and dropped out of contention.
Wise crashed for the umpteenth time and was compelled to claw his way back to the top once more and defied the odds by finishing in 2nd place just ahead of Ruhan Gous.
The ASTRA-King of the Dirt race produced excellent highlights from the start to finish with Tommy Gous firmly in the driving seat.
The biggest surprise was Mark Sternagel, who shot out of the gate with his 85cc KTM in 3rd position.
And while Wise defended his 2nd place, the reigning champion in the Open-Class, Adams, was so frustrated that chose to concentrate on all his riding-virtues and after the half of the distance he got past Sternagel who stuck to Adams’ back wheel like an irritating lace.
The spectators’ turned their attention the spectacular battle in mid-field between Henry O’Kennedy, Ruhan Gous, and Jaco Loots on the Winners-Suzuki.
Mercilessly, the trio engaged in a triangular battle over the track, whilst the lead would exchange hands sporadically before O’Kennedy finished 5th ahead of Ruhan Gous and Loots.
Results ASTRA King of the Dirt:
1. Tommy Gous, Windhoek, Zenner-Yamaha, 20
2. Animal Wise, Windhoek, E.L. Sea Products-Kawasaki, 17
3. Ronnie Adams, Kapps-Farm, J?