BAD luck plagued the qualifying stages of Ryan Shadbolt’s weekend at the motocross nationals, but didn’t prevent him from enjoying a rewarding experience.
On the first lap of qualifying Shadbolt experienced an mechanical problem that could not be fixed.
“I just went over a jump and all of a sudden the engine cut out and just wouldn’t restart,” he said.
“I was lucky I even qualified — because I didn’t get one lap of qualifying in I got put last ((in qualification order)).
“We had to change over the bike and it was all a bit of a hassle.”
But Shadbolt said he benefited from the experience.
“I was happy with how I rode despite that. It was a great experience, that’s for sure,” he said.
Shadbolt said the event gave him a number of areas to focus on as he develops his riding.
“Probably the biggest thing is that races are a lot longer in that class — 35 minutes compared to 25 minutes — so fitness and that sort of thing is a big thing to work on,” he said.
With a longer race is the requirement to be at a peak level of concentration for longer, something Shadbolt said he will improve with experience.
“I have got a few things out of it that I know I can work on now and I’m looking forward to stepping up to that class in the next few years,” he said.
The 17-year-old won’t be heading to Queensland for the next round of the nationals, but aims to improve his results in subsequent stages of the series.
Shadbolt will travel to Raymond Terrace near Newcastle for Round 8 of the nationals on August 3.
