Honda backed Victorian policeman Rod Lay triumphed at the World Police and Fire Games held in Adelaide last week, taking home four gold medals in off road motorcycling events in his first attempt at the competition.
The Senior Constable claimed victory in the cross country, held in pine forests in the Adelaide Hills, then followed up two days later with three wins at the motocross event in the 250cc, 450cc and 4-stroke classes.
The cross country event challenged 89 competitors from all over Australia and countries as far flung as Iceland.
Organisers had set a tight and technical test in and out of the trees, with each rider racing the clock over four laps. A longer non-timed trail loop was also added to each lap.
"I‰Ûªve been training for the games solidly for over six months and was very happy with my fitness going into this event, but I didn‰Ûªt expect to do well in the cross country," said Rod.
"I often struggle on tight tracks and to complicate matters, I turned up on my trail bike, a 450, mistakenly thinking that my bike had to be registered!"
"When I saw others turn up on much lighter and more nimble 250‰Ûªs, I thought I‰Ûªd made a huge mistake, but my CRF450X proved to be easy to ride and despite a couple of small get offs, I finished at the front at the end of the day."
The motocross event was held two days later at the Gillman motocross track near the heart of Adelaide.
Rod knew that his choice to ride two bikes in three classes was a big ask.
"My motocross events were only five minutes apart. I would ride for 20 minutes; break for five minutes and then do it all again, three times in a row. My wife and daughter were on hand to help, and I couldn‰Ûªt have done it without such a well organised team and great support from sponsors."
Rod rode a Honda CRF250R to first place in the senior class of both motos, then used his trick Victoria Police 450R to dominate the other four races.
"My Hondas were well set up and easy to ride fast all day. The competition was stronger than I had expected and a few younger Australian and international riders made me push extremely hard," said the 40-year-old.
As well as racing, Rod performs off road motorcycle safety work on behalf of Victoria Police and Honda.
For five years, Rods‰Ûª bike has been decorated in blue and white Victoria Police livery, wearing .05 as a race number and bearing safety messages to complete the package.
"It is really important to educate young riders about the importance of bike safety and to encourage responsible rider behaviour."
"The bike is a great ice breaker with kids who all think it looks ace. When I heard that this year‰Ûªs games included motocross events my whole face lit up!," he said.
"It was very tiring but winning four gold medals made it all worth it. To compete against people from the United States, Europe, New Zealand and even Iceland was an amazing experience.‰Û
