Gordon Crockard celebrates comeback in Kester!
In so many words, the sympathetic Northern Irishman does not want to say it himself. Okay, so no real comeback, but a happy reunion for 35-year-old Crockard and Kesterheide! At the invitation of AMC Dworp and 24MX Honda Racing, Gordon will now be at the start on Sunday among a very strong field of participants with a lot of young talent.
Crockard himself is also not the best: four-time GP winner, three-time British champion and still a natural talent in terms of helmsmanship. In 2000, after the Belgian quarter-liter GP in Kester, he was on the podium together with Frédéric Bolley and Pit Beirer. Will he be the surprise of the 3?de Belgian Masters or MotoX round? As a Northern Irishman, Gordon is at least familiar with the role of underdog.
Crockard against the world's best
“Yesterday (Thursday) I trained with the 24MX Honda in Hélécine and Jeffrey herlings was there too. That boy drives so fast! Hopefully it will be a bit slower for him on Sunday with more ruts and potholes,” laughs Gordon. In addition to Herlings, Crockard must take into account stiff competition in Kester from Jeremy Van Horebeek, Kevin Strijbos, Davide Guarneri, Ken De Dycker, Marc De Reuver, Romain Febvre, Aleksandr Tonkov, José Butron, Petar Petrov and Damon Graulus. In short, a level that can safely be compared to a Grand Prix.
“I still ride the motorcycle a lot, do my physical training and I also have my own MX school. Actually, not much has changed compared to the past. I have raced at the highest level with the best equipment and against the best riders. I still want to ride at that level, because the passion is still there. Only now there are far fewer options for me.”
Thanks to his friendly personality and sense of humor, the 'Crockstar' won many fans in his heyday. Luckily he is still the same now. “Hey, I'm not going to fool myself! First of all, I think it's fantastic that I get this opportunity from AMC Dworp and 24MX Honda. I'm going for a top ten place. If I finish in the top ten or close to the top 10 twice, I'll mention it on Facebook, otherwise I think I'll just keep quiet. Or who knows, it could be a tough mud race and then anything is possible!”
The Ryan Hughes step-up
In the past, Gordon has regularly been at the start in 'Flanders most beautiful'. He has good memories of the Kesterheide: “Kester is a very beautiful circuit. A bit like Farleigh Castle in England but better. There are a lot of trees around, it's a circuit with a lot of character and the fans can get up close. Compared to a modern course there are not that many jumps, but that is not necessary. For me it is really perfect!”
Let Crockard loose and he can tell great stories for hours, both about the peaks and valleys of his career. About Kester then. “In 1999 Ryan Hughes rode GPs and it was also my breakthrough year. During training in the Kester GP I sat behind him and saw how he took the step-up jump. I think he was the first to do that. The next lap I passed him and did the same. I was of course very excited that I had succeeded, I slowed down a bit and Ryan pulled up next to me. A bit like a police car, he forced me to the side. 'Don't do that step-up man. Don't let anyone see that you can take it and save that jump for the competition," Hughes said. 'Okay, no problem. And we agreed between the two of us not to jump it. But in qualifying I took that step-up because it was just so much faster. Then everyone started doing it!”
It almost goes without saying that Crockard rides a Honda. He made it nice again CAS Honda, later also with the Wulfsport-Honda team of Roger Magee and PAR-Honda. He absolutely loves the quality and ease of use for which Honda is known. Now Gordon is also one of the driving forces behind the Honda 150 European Championship. Crockard also coaches the young riders, ages 11 through 14, in the championship. “We are doing well with the European Championship 150. The level is getting better and for a young rider it is actually an opportunity that you should not miss. Riding on a GP circuit, with a large audience, a lot of media interest and absolutely free of charge! The winner will also win a full season of European Championship MX2 on a Honda CRF250R.”
Tekst: Tom Jacobs
Photos: Bavo & CDS
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