27 years since the day he started the CDR Yamaha Monster Energy Team, Craig Dack is as excited about the 2019 motocross season as he was all those years ago in 1993.
The smell of race gas in the workshop, the team transporter loaded up ready for the season ahead, the freshly prepared race bikes sitting perfectly just waiting to hit the track in anger and the nervous tension building as the opening round of the MX Nationals fast approaches.
“I love this time of year,” Dack says with enthusiasm. “All the hard work over the off season from both the riders and the teams comes to the surface now and it’s time to go racing. This is why we do the work – to see how it plays out on the weekends.
“Having Appin as the opening round this year should make for a great start to the season as the track always turns on great racing and its well supported by the fans. Our team has a good history at the venue and we hope for that to continue this year.
“Both Luke and Kirk have had a great pre-season, and both are showing good form. Kirk has raced in New Zealand and showed plenty of speed and quickly adapted to the YZ450F while Luke has done a couple of local races and been successful at those, so I feel we are well placed heading into round one.”
With final preparations done for the season opener on March 17 at Appin, near Sydney, the team had a final shake down of the race bikes and a photo shoot for the 2019 season.
“This is our second full season on the current generation YZ450F and it’s a sensational bike with a great chassis and powerful motor. Our time isn’t spent trying to develop the bike a great deal but rather personalise it for the individual rider as the production platform is so good.
“Brad, Aiden and Gary are able to get the most from it and the riders respect the fact we have such high quality technical staff at CDR.”
Stability has been the key to CDR’s success and again the team remains with long term and loyal sponsors for the 2019 season. Companies like Fox, Pro Circuit, Dunlop, NGK, DID as well as major partner Yamaha have been with CDR Yamaha since the early days and the continued building of relationships with companies like Monster Energy, Kincrome tools and Renthal keep the CDR Yamaha Monster Energy Team at the front of the pack.
“We value the long term partnerships we have with the best companies in the industry,” Dack continues. “It takes a lot of support to run a team like CDR and I’m proud of the relationships we have built over the years,” Dack ends.
Round one action gets under way on March 17 at Appin Raceway, south west of Sydney. For more information, www.mxnationals.com.au
2019 CDR Monster Energy YZ450F Race Bike Specs
Motor
Head: GYTR
Piston: GYTR
Cams: GYTR
ECU: Vortex
Exhaust: Pro Circuit Ti6
Airfilter: Unifilter
Fuel: VP Roo 100
Spark Plug: NGK
Engine Covers: GYTR
Chassis
Fork: KYB
Shock: KYB
Linkage: Krooz R
Handlebars: Renthal Twin wall 996
Grips: Renthal Full Diamond
Levers: Yamaha
Tyres: Dunlop
Sprockets: Renthal
Chain: DID
Seat Cover: Top Line
Wheels: Kite
Rotor: GYTR
Graphics: Fleetwood Print group