The 2018 Motocross season has started with a bang for Ashley Seery, whose recent third-place finish in the second King and Queen of MX NSW State Qualifier at the Nowra Motorplex rewarded her with a golden ticket to the final later this season.
Having to qualify amongst the top six in points at any of the six qualifier events in order to earn an inclusion in the King and Queen of MX Final at Coonabarabran, which offers a hefty $10,000 payout for the winner, a lot was on the line for Seery heading into the meeting, which was her first visit to the Nowra Motorplex and also her first race on her new 2017 YZ250 Yamaha.
Making suspension changes in the morning just prior to the commencement of Saturday’s practice sessions, the 19-year-old rider was pleased with the performance of her new bike and although she knew she’d have to take things fairly easy while adjusting to the bike, she quickly set herself high expectations to come away with an overall top-three result for the weekend.
Contesting three 15 minute plus one lap races in the Women’s Unlimited class on Sunday, Seery showed great consistency on what she described as a challenging track, coming away with a trio of third-place finishes, which was enough to secure third place overall and the all-important golden ticket into the final later this season.
“I’m happy to have come away with third place and it definitely takes some of the pressure off in the lead up to the final,” commented the Young, NSW resident, who currently works for local motorcycle shop Wilder Motorcycles & Power Equipment, which is also one of her sponsors.
“I don’t have a track at home to practice on, so my aim was just to get some track time under my belt during the qualifier and get used to the new bike, as well as working on my race fitness ahead of the rest of the season, so to finish so strongly is definitely a bonus.”
For Seery, motorsport was in her blood from an early age, with her dad Andrew previously racing Motocross and some speedway sedans, before taking a break from racing to focus on his family and later stepping into the Wingless Sprints class two seasons ago after encouragement from 410 Sprintcar racers Jackson Delamont and Chris McInerney.
A third generation motorsport competitor, Seery’s grandfather Fred also competed in speedway, racing in Grand Nationals and other sedans throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, as well as racing NASCAR.
Prior to the King and Queen of MX Final at Coonabarabran on June 9-11, Seery plans to contest two more qualifier events in order to gain as much added track time as possible, while also participating in six club rounds on home soil in Young, the six-round Riverina Interclub Series, and potentially an Interclub Series between Canberra and Young throughout the season.
“My aim for the rest of the season is just to remain as consistent as possible, which will be the key in achieving a strong overall result in the point standings,” she added.
“I’m hoping to achieve top-three results at every meeting I contest, as well as coming away with a couple of wins, to keep me towards the top of the points throughout the season.”
For her next appearance, Seery will be competing in the fourth King and Queen of MX Qualifier at the Young Motorcycle Club on April 21-22, followed by the fifth qualifier at the Dubbo Dirt Bike Club on May 5-6.
Seery would like to thank the following 2018 season sponsors for their valued support and assistance at the track: Wilder Motorcycles & Power Equipment and Tyre Power – Young. Special thanks go to her mum and dad, Roseann and Andrew.
