adminCollin Matiza Sports Editor
OLD WAR-HORSE Phil Archenoul is the 2013 Bokomo Weet-Bix Motorcycling Series champion. A former motor rallying navigator, the 58-year-old Archenoul won the championship by five points from his nearest rival Gavin Randall after about eight rounds of competition this year.
In fact, the last round of the 2013 Bokomo Weet-Bix Motorcycling Series was recently held at Donnybrook Raceway in Harare and going into that round, Randall held a slender three-point lead over veteran rider Archenoul.
In Race One, Randall put the hammer down and opened up a lead on Archenoul and the former African motor rally navigator champion did all he could but finished second to the former in this opening race.
Graham Hill was placed third in Race One.
In Race Two, the roles were reversed as Archenoul took first place with Randall and Hill settling for second and third places respectively.
The last Handicap Race was the decider and Archenoul took advantage of Randall whilst moving through the field, beating his closest rival to the line thus making himself the 2013 Bokomo Weet-Bix Motorcycling champion.
Archenoul, who retired from motor rallying soon after helping Jamie Whyte to win back-to-back African Rally Championship (ARC) titles in 2009 and 2010, could not hide his excitement after adding another feather to his cap in his illustrious career in Zimbabwean motorsport.
“It was really good to win the Bokomo Weet-Bix Motorcycling title this year. It was close because I accumulated about 290 points and think I won it by five points from Gavin Randall.
“What makes all this interesting is that unlike me, Gavin doesn’t have much experience in motorbike riding but he put up a good fight throughout the series but we were first and second because (one of Zimbabwe’s top motorcycling riders) Shaun Whyte missed two rounds of this competition.
“We couldn’t have taken the first two places had Shaun taken part in the whole series because he is a far much faster rider than the two of us. But all the same it’s good for me to win this title because after having retired from motor rally, I needed something to fill a hole in my life and I found it in motorcycling . . . I really had fun during the whole series,” Archenoul said yesterday.
Archenoul is also into the exciting sport of drag racing and has been featuring regularly at this year’s Telecel Dragpro Club Drag Racing Series whose final round will be held this Saturday at Donnybrook.
Meanwhile, one of the organisers of the Bokomo Weet-Bix Motorcycling Series, Shaun Whyte, yesterday thanked the sponsors and the riders for making this year’s competition a huge success.
“We, as the organisers of this exciting competition, would like to thank Bokomo Weet-Bix for their support in the 2013 season. Without their input, the motorcycling series would not have been as exciting as it was.
“In fact, the Megelli 250 Class provided lots of action with a few new riders in the field — Alex and Arron — who were there for the first time out, mixing it with high class riders. We hope to see more of them (next year),” Shaun Whyte said.
Shaun Whyte is a former South African superbikes national champion and he quit competing in that country a few years back to concentrate on reviving motorcycling events in Zimbabwe.
Apart from running the Bokomo Weet-Bix Motorcycling Series, Whyte is also a member of the Bogwheelers Club who run motocross in this country.
In fact, Shaun Whyte and the Gary Grainger, the chairman of the Bogwheelers Club, have been behind the recent revival of the country’s premier motocross event — the Zimbabwe Summer Series — which is held annually during the second week of December.
Grainger and Whyte are ably assisted in running the sport by fellow Bogwheelers Club members such as Big “Bigs” Chitima, Kuda Mhene (Snr), Tawanda “Polycup” Muzinda, Lee Chigumba and Innocent Masimo.
Grainger and his team are currently busy preparing for the Southern Africa Motocross Challenge which is scheduled to take place at Donnybrook this coming Sunday.
Top motocross riders from Zambia and Botswana as well as those from Zimbabwe are expected to take part in this one-day event which the Bogwheelers Club would like to use as a dressrehearsal of the 2013 Zimbabwe Summer Series which will be held on December 7, 11, 13 and 15 at the same venue.
This Sunday’s Southern Africa Challenge will run simultaneously with the sixth and final round of the 2013 NetOne National Motocross Championship series.
The weekend starts with a Fun Day Supercross race under floodlights on Friday at Donnybrook commencing at 6pm.
Food and beverages will be available from the usual track outlets.
According to Chitima, top Zimbabwean motocross rider Jayden Ashwell may not particpate as he hurt his shoulder during training late last week.
“Young Big ‘BJ’ Chitima (Jnr)’s knee still playing up after last weekend crash and can’t take any jumps since then, hopefully he will be sufficiently recovered by Friday to keep the junior class competition alive. The Friday race is termed ‘Spring Series’. It’s a fun event just like the Autumn Series,” Chitima (Snr) said.
He also said a couple of top South African riders may show up at the weekend to grace the occasion and to prepare for the Zimbabwe Summer Series which starts on December 7 through to December 15.
Online Reporter