Off Road

Husqvarna hard man Kearney back on top

Posted:

Monday, April 11th, 2016

9:29 AM

Still carrying the effects of a triple-fractured shoulder blade from the Clipsal 500, to say nothing of the fused right ankle which hampers his braking, Husqvarna Enduro Racing Team Manager Glenn Kearney made a demonstrative return to the podium at the weekend‰Ûªs AORC rounds 3&4 at Portland New South Wales.

Kearney made it a double win for himself, the team, and for the Husqvarna FE 250 as he dominated the top step of the E1 podium in dusty, technical ‰Û÷old school enduro‰Ûª conditions.

And it wasn't just at class level where he made a dent, the veteran racer and multiple national champion taking fourth outright on Saturday before backing that up today by besting everyone except runaway championship leader Daniel Sanders, who took his fourth straight outright win.

‰ÛÏA really good weekend for the team. It was dusty and rocky, and the Oyster Bay club did a great job with the conditions they had," Kearney said.

"Yesterday Lachy, Greeny and I were all fighting for third outright, and Green pipped me for the outright podium by two seconds and Lachy was just behind me. Today Lachy was second in E3 and fourth outright. In the past he would have struggled a lot more in this technical, tighter stuff, but he's worked on all that and I'm really happy with how he rode. I was first in E1 and just got the better of Green for second outright. I knocked Lachy down one outright position on both days, but I've got to keep him on his toes!

"Krystal just taped my shoulder really tight so it couldn‰Ûªt move, and it was slightly painful but mainly just weak. The 250 was perfect all weekend. There were some seriously steep hills here, so to get second outright is a testament to the power of the Husqvarna FE 250."

Husqvarna Factory Support Racer Broc Grabham added to his tally of top-10 outright finishes. Photo: John Pearson

E3 rider and championship contender Lachy Stanford powered his Husqvarna FE 501 to another two runner-up finishes in the big-bore class, and added 5, 4 scores to his tally in the outright rankings despite toiling a little in the tricky conditions.

Ironically Stanford would have added to his double podium haul from the Queensland opener a month ago, were it not for the spectacular form of the boss (Kearney), who bumped Stanford from third to fourth overall!

‰ÛÏI‰Ûªm happy I suppose. On Saturday I couldn't get the flow I wanted to on the track, but we still got fifth outright and second in E3," Stanford said.

"Sunday‰Ûªs sprints were really rough and really hilly. I was running second outright initially but I ended up fourth. But I'm happy with my speed, considering how tough the conditions were, so thanks to Christian and Dave and Kevvy for working closely with me to get the absolute best out of the 501.

"It was a really good race for the team, we had me and Glenn both top five on both days, and we were the only team to do that. Our team is really confident and positive at the moment, so I think we‰Ûªre going to be in for a good year.‰Û

E3 rider and championship contender Lachy Stanford powered his Husqvarna FE 501 to another two runner-up finishes in the big-bore class

Victorian Lyndon Snodgrass powered his Husqvarna TE 300 to a pair of top-fives in the E3 category, while fellow Husqvarna Factory Support Racer Broc Grabham added to his tally of top-10 outright finishes in familiar local conditions.

The FC 450 rider‰Ûªs pair of 10th place overall finishes made it three such results from four rounds thus far, and was further boosted by two, fifth place finishes in the star-studded E2 category.

‰ÛÏIt‰Ûªs sort of my goal this year to be top 10 each round so I‰Ûªm pretty happy to have done that three times out of four now," Broc Grabham shared.

"The track was a lot rougher than what I expected but once you found a smoother line and got it to flow a little bit more it was good. It was the most enduro-style track I've seen since starting in the AORC in 2009, so I liked it. The Husqvarna FE450 was awesome here, I think some 250s struggled because it was so hilly, but the 450 was good fun - you just lean back and hold it on!‰Û