Image: MXN.

Motul MX Nationals regular, Kale Makeham, put on an impressive performance at round eight of the 2016 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) in Hedley, Victoria over the weekend.

The Victorian took the opportunity to contest the AORC event after early-season injuries forced him out of his main priority for 2016 – the MX2 title chase.

“I’ve wanted to give one a go for the last few years actually,” Makeham told MotoOnline.com.au. “As a junior I actually did three years of enduro and I did pretty well at it, but since then the MX Nationals have taken priority. Since I had an injury this season and missed a few rounds, I figured this would be a good opportunity to give it a go.

“It wasn’t ideal, I raced the Swan Hill Victorian titles on the Saturday, drove six hours with barely any sleep and raced again on Sunday. But it was definitely fun and it was worth it for sure, it’s probably the only chance I’ll get to do one so it was worth all of the effort I went to.”

Entering the event with minimal preparations, Makeham, using his regular motocross settings, battled for podium positions in the E1 category before a costly error pushed him out of the top five.

“I didn’t really have any expectations coming into the event,” he said. “I was on a full motocross setup and the other riders had ridden the circuit the day before – so I was at a bit of a disadvantage there. But result wise, I was battling for a podium position in the E1 class and then lost 40 seconds because I fell and got stuck under my bike and I ended up sixth overall.”

The Proformance Yamaha rider admits he surprised himself with a sixth overall in the E1 category and 20th place Outright and wouldn’t rule out a full-time switch to the off-road world in the future.

“For what it was, how I came into it and the preparation I had, it was just a spur of the moment choice, so I was actually pretty surprised,” he added. “I definitely would like to set up a bike and prepare for one properly, it would be a lot of fun. Racing enduro full-time is definitely something I would look into if the opportunity presented itself.”

Makeham will return to his regular Motul MX Nationals duties with the Proformance Yamaha squad at this weekend’s Shepparton round in Victoria.