Brother Leader Tread KTM – National Cross Country Matatiele
After yet another eye-catching performance, Brother Leader Tread KTM’s Bradley Cox claimed his second consecutive victory since the return of national racing recently. Following the high of his National Enduro E1 Class win, the multi-disciplined star took top honours yet again at the National Cross Country event last weekend.
In what started as a misty day in Matatiele, KwaZulu-Natal, Cox set off with a blistering pace to establish himself as the fastest rider of the time trial. With an unmatched sense of confidence, he carried his winning momentum into the main race.
The rider certainly had a target on his back being tied not only for points in the OR2 Class but also overall. In what Cox describes as an “almost perfect day of racing”, he secured the class win and second overall.
“I was so happy to take the class win. It was almost a perfect day of racing to finish first in the time trial and in my class. I would have liked to have taken the overall win too, but there’s still a long season ahead so it wasn’t worth taking any unnecessary risks,” said Cox.
Also representing the orange team with a solid result was Jarryd Coetzee, who finished second in the prestigious OR1 Class and fourth overall. The rider started out with an impressive time trial result, setting himself up in a prime position to contend for the title overall. Having realized the speed and fitness he needed to ultimately take the win this weekend, Coetzee explained:
“I’m really happy to have had a solid weekend of racing with a good result. With that being said, I saw this weekend that there is plenty of room for improvement. After the time trial, I was in a prime position to fight for top honours overall. When the main race started, however, I didn’t have the intensity that the riders ahead of me had. It was awesome to finish on the podium in my class, but to win overall I’m going to need to work on my pace.”
He added, “I must compliment the event organisers on the route. There was everything from fast sections to technical trails and riverbeds. It was so well-marked and the route really raised the bar for how Cross Country races should look.”
Rounding out the Brother Leader Tread KTM team was Charan Moore, who had a challenging day in the saddle. An unfortunate crash in the time trial set the rider back, but he managed get back on the bike and push to finish as one of the top ten fastest riders.
With each passing lap of the main race, Moore settled into a rhythm and was able to secure a top five finish in his class and eighth place overall. He commented, “It’s time to get back to the drawing board after two back-to-back weekends of racing. I felt like towards the end of the race I found a really good groove, which is what I ultimately want to feel from the start of the race. I know what to build on for the next one to be ‘race ready’ and I’m keen to get back to work.”
Published by: Louwrens Mahoney
Photography by: Sage Lee Voges