Australian Safari Day 4
Jacob Smith, the Australian Safari’s youngest competitor, showed maturity and experience beyond his years yesterday in winning Day 4 of the gruelling rally event in the wilds of Western Australia.
Jacob Smith, the Australian Safari’s youngest competitor, showed maturity and experience beyond his years yesterday in winning Day 4 of the gruelling rally event in the wilds of Western Australia. The RMA Yamaha Safari team rider moved to fifth overall in the standings after another strong performance, capped off by a stage win in the last leg.
Mounted aboard the Sam Laws Motorcycles-supplied WR450F, Smith kept his cool as the course moved into unfamiliar and new terrain, having to negotiate long sandy stretches, rocky outcrops, numerous creek crossings and a section of rugged country that was extensively damaged by Cyclone George.
He revelled in the clear conditions, and puts himself in good stead for another strong run today.
Sam Laws, Dealer Principal of Sam Laws Motorcycles, said Jacob’s performance was impressive and was sure there was more to come. “The team had an excellent Day 4 of the Rally, capped off by Jacob’s solid performance, he is consistently up there with the frontrunners and still a good chance to chase down the lead,” said Laws.“The bikes were fantastic today and are really handling the varying conditions and terrain well.”
Day 5 gets underway this morning, with Smith to lead the pack away following his win yesterday.
Jonah Street is tucked in behind Smith in 6th outright, and is also confident of moving up the leaderboard as the conditions toughen.Both riders are looking forward to a tighter spread of terrain as the course continues south towards Perth.
Casey McCoy is rapidly closing in on the top 10 placings after a small mistake put him on the back foot earlier in the rally. Ross Mitchell is also faring well at this stage and is looking to make some good progress at the event’s half-way point.
The provisional results for the moto section are listed below. Organisers confirmed this morning that a 7 minute penalty will be added to the current leader’s time for a late arrival through a transition stage.
Top 10 bikes After Day Four, Australian Safari (Provisional)
1, A CHANNING (NSW), KTM 660 Rallye, 07:25:23
2, A COAKER (NSW), Honda CRF 450X, 07:30:46
3, B GRABHAM (NSW), Honda CRF 450X, 07:32:25
4, S DIENER (SA), Kawasaki KLX 450, 07:37:10
5, J SMITH (NSW), Yamaha WR450, 07:40:15
6, J STREET (USA), Yamaha WR450, 07:43:14
7, M FISH (VIC), KTM 525 EXC, 08:05:20
8, P NELLIGAN (NSW), KTM EXC 525, 08:11:58
9, A RIEMANN (SA), KTM 450EXC, 08:19:04
10. McCULLAGH (NSW), KTM 450 EXC, 08:32:11
