CHAMPIONS: the Kio Kio School motocross team won their section at the King of the Schools event in King Country recently. Photo Anne Burdon
THE children at Kio Kio School love going fast.
So fast that most of their opponents struggle to keep up on the motocross track.
At the recent King of the Schools event at the North King Country Motocross track in Te Kūiti, a standout showing by the small King Country school saw them take top honours in the primary school section, also known as the mini grade.
All up there were 360 riders representing 37 different schools from as far north as Auckland to Taranaki, Waipukurau and everywhere in between.
Tate Burdon, who raced his way to second place in the 9-11-year-olds 65mx, said it was awesome. He enjoyed the track, did some great moves and worked hard to get second place.
Deklan Burton showcased his talents with victory in the 6-8-year-olds 50mx class, while Flynn Neutroski, who said it was fun and the track flowed well, and Zoe Burton, were second and third respectively in the 7-9 years trail section.
It was a day of fast racing and great competing, with riders battling to take home the coveted title of Leatt King of the School.
Victory was a massive achievement for the school, which finished seventh in the same section last year.
Others who represented the school included Kayden Eynon, Brody Pease, Maddox Robinson and Max Vera, and they performed admirably.
Overall, it was a stunning day, with a newly laid out and improved junior track with everything well presented and well run on the day.
Kio Kio principal Kevin Jones was delighted and proud with the riders’ win.
He said it was great to see how hard the riders had fought on the day to achieve such outstanding results.
Jones also thanked the commitments of parents in supporting their kids, and our local club for hosting such a great event.
North King Country Motocross Club secretary Krystle Legg, who had a big part in running the King of the Schools event, said it was great to be able to hold the event normally again.
“Last year, we had a lot of Covid-19 restrictions in place, and it made the day a lot different.
“While we had 500 kids last year, I think that was down to them wanting to get out and ride because there was nothing on for a chunk of last year.”
She said they always enjoyed hosting this event as it capped off a busy period at the track, which hosts a round of the Waikato Championships in December and club days throughout January, February and March, with closing day usually in April, although wet weather has seen the season extended.
“It was cool seeing a small rural school like Kio Kio do so well. In the high school division, your bigger schools shone but seeing a small school win was great for the event.”
Legg said the club really enjoys hosting the school’s event as it sees friendships formed.
“The vibe this year was so different, you see riders supporting each other and chatting to each other and moving round. It’s great to be back to normality with the event.”
She said the event would be back in 2024 and was incredibly thankful to the events main sponsor, Leatt.
