Chucky hosts the GASGAS MY24 launch before heading to the USA for Dakar testing and training.
Well that’s pretty much the year done and what a way to finish it. First off the last rounds of the Australian Supercross Championship and the WSX at Marvel Stadium. The organisers do such a great job to get that show up and running and it was better again this year. With so much action during the night and especially watching the back to back finals kept me on the edge of my seat all night.
For extra entertainment I had my mechanic Lewie and the one and only Fraser Higlett come down for the weekend. Such big days out catching up with everyone in town then after the event at Crown the Friday night and the pit viper after party on Saturday. I got to catch up with most of the riders and mates there which was a good vibe.
After that hectic weekend I was in for a big week out at home, GASGAS Australia got to do the 2024 launch at mine and we got lucky. After a month of solid sunshine and warmth we got slammed with a six day rain forecast. It was a little bit of a bummer after all the work I put in with my mates and Dad to make it as good as possible but we were blessed a little bit with the rain.
The riders for the Australia motocross team were released on Tuesday and media was due on Tuesday where they got to ride the new MTB track with a four minute descent. The following day they got to ride the motos, including the enduro and motocross range.
I washed everything up and prepared for Friday when the factory dealers showed up and got to ride the new red rockets. Friday cleared up and we got some good riding in, the dealers got to ride the e-bikes, mptocross and enduro bikes all out of the same spot. It was quite unique having this as an option and it worked really well working out of one pit.
My favourite bike to ride, although there were a couple I really liked, is the new MC 250 two-stroke. The power was unreal in the bush and had unreal traction and handling was pretty good too. Next was either the 500 enduro or 450 motocrosser. I just love the big bores and I can’t wait to start playing with them and setting them up for myself.
The e-bike was a lot of fun and the bigger the suspension the better it was for me. It was actually really great to have a lot of guys who hadn’t spent much time on pushies before actually ride the MTB track and learn to jump and flow without pedalling and noise. It’s a whole new window and fun to have.
It was such a good time and I’m sure everyone enjoyed it. The very next day I literally packed a bag and sent it straight to the airport to fly to the USA for my one and only test/training block before Dakar. It has gone really well and you legends will be reading this just as I’m starting the race.
My goal for Dakar 24? Pretty much the same as last year. I’d love to give you the confidence that I’m favourite and feeling really good and at 100%, but it’s not the case.
My femur had a lot of difficulties healing one part and it’s still not fully healed, so I’ll be taking it pretty easy throughout the race. I still feel I have a good chance of landing a podium if all goes smoothly but I’ll be lacking in some areas. I’ve done seven road books and about 30 hours of riding in 12 days in the USA. The body is adapting and I will be giving it everything on the 5th of Jan. I might even have another Aussie legend over there with me, but you’ll have to wait and see.