Jess Gardiner (Yamaha MX Store Ballards Off Road Team) has earned her fifth Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship Women’s Championship title after Round 11 in Hedley, Victoria.
Much like Round 10’s unbelievable dance between Emelie Karlsson (Yamaha) and Emma Milesevic (Honda RideRed), Round 11’s Sprint format saw Gardiner and Karlsson push bike and body to the limit, with one second separating the duo throughout the day. Gardiner managed to remain steadfast in her campaign to take home glory today, clocking in the fastest total time for the Women’s, of 51:40.759.
Karlsson, in superb form over the weekend, finished Round 11 in second place with a total time of 51:46.906. Honda’s Milesevic fought hard all day in an effort to regain her stance from Round 10, but couldn’t meet the fire of Gardiner or Karlsson, settling instead of third.
The 2019 AORC Women’s Championship podium after the eleventh and final round sees Milesevic in second and Karlsson in third.
“Heading into today I was very hungry for the round win, after losing it yesterday,” explained Gardiner.
“I knew this weekend I just had to finish both days. However, I really wanted to finish on a good note. I let myself down a bit yesterday.
“Today I wanted to finish on the high note so I went out there pretty hungry. In saying that I was still careful to not go to crazy. I just rode the way I can. I managed to win every test, apart from the last one as I came off. I think not only myself but the rest of the girls were feeling pretty fatigued after the cross-country yesterday. So, I’m just so happy to be able to get through today and win my fifth AORC!
“All of my championships are pretty special, so it’s hard to put a pin point which one is more special that the others. In early days, my first title in 2010 was fantastic as it was my first year in AORC and I was battling close with Jemma [Wilson] all year. So, each year has been a battle. This year’s championship has been the most consistent year I have had. It does make a difference to win back-to-back championships. I am already itching to get going again in 2020.”
2019 AORC Women’s Round 11 Top 10 Provisional Results:
1. Jess Gardiner (Yamaha MX Store Ballards Off Road Team) 51:40.759
2. Emelie Karlsson (Yamaha) 51:46.906
4. Emma Milesevic (Honda RideRed) 52:30.594
5. Danielle Foot (Road & River Motorcycles) 54:43.303
6. Kellie Catanese 56:26.178
7. Ebony Nielsen 57:06.597
8. Lauren Dunstan (On Point Motorcyles) 58:25.151
9. Chloe Miles 59:20.014
10. Julie Denyer 1:02:08.955
11. Kasey Major (Rotaret) 1:04:39.429