After proving itself on our trip to Finke, it was time for the Surron Hyper Bee to go racing again. This time it was the Frank Purcell Enduro with the Junior Trials Club, run in a sprint format, and the weather couldn’t have been worse. It bucketed down in the lead-up to the event and kept raining on race day, turning the track into one giant mud hole. It was exactly the sort of conditions that chew through bikes, clutches and riders.
Jax absolutely loved it. The day started with his first-ever prologue, where he surprised everyone by finishing third. After one of his mates, Tieds, crashed in the mud during the next sprint, Jax moved up into second and was riding with plenty of confidence. Then came sprint three.
Jax had a huge crash and Supermaned his way through the mud. I couldn’t get to him, so all I could do was watch as he picked the Hyper Bee up, put the magnetic lanyard back on and took off again. He was filthy with himself at first, but before long he was laughing about it. The crash dropped him all the way back to 12th, and I thought any chance of a podium was gone.
After the lunch break, though, he came out swinging. There were four more sprints to finish the day and, one by one, he picked riders off until he’d worked his way back into third overall. I was incredibly impressed. He wasn’t quite able to match Toby in first or Tieds in second, who simply had a bit more pace on the day, but Jax rode a smart race and comfortably held onto third.
To make things even tougher, the organisers combined the mini-wheel bikes with the 50cc class. A lot of the 110 riders were actually slower than the front-running 50s, so Jax had to thread his way through traffic every lap while trying to claw back positions. It made his comeback ride even more impressive.
The Hyper Bee was faultless all day. After seven muddy sprints it had only used 58 per cent of its battery and never missed a beat. Watching all the 50cc petrol bikes chew through clutches in the wet made me appreciate the simplicity of the electric bike even more. We finished the day knowing we’d only need a bit of chain lube and, eventually, some brake pads.
The only downside came after replacing the broken front brake lever from the Finke trip. Getting the old one off was fiddly enough, but the biggest shock was the price. Eighty bucks for a replacement lever is hard to swallow! Then again, when you’re not paying for clutches, top ends or regular engine servicing, so I suppose it all balances out in the end.
WARRANTY
12 months
DISTRIBUTOR
Surron Australia
SO FAR
TOTAL HOURS
26
MODS THIS MONTH
New front brake lever – $80!
MODS NEXT MONTH
None
