The inaugural Oparau 8 Hour harescramble bore witness to a truly oneoff occurrence. You see, Brad Groombridge – New Zealand’s greatest cross country rider of all time, was looking for a teammate to contest the epic endurance event with (this would be the longest race in our country’s history) and Kawasaki just so happened to be looking to promote their newlyreleased KX450X, a dirt bike purpose built for the discipline. So they drafted in none other than Cody Cooper – New Zealand’s greatest motocross rider of all time! Surely this duo would be unstoppable… But 50mm of rain the day before threw more than a spanner into the works – Watch as they masterfully navigate the adverse conditions, keeping levelheaded in spite of multiple setbacks and manage the surprisingly staunch competition from James and Cooper Scott, Oparau locals who were extremely fast early on. Pay attention to things like line selection and throttle inputs – This is truly a masterclass in riding a muddy, slippery, rough and rutted racetrack!

RIDERS

Brad Groombridge 2023 Kawasaki KX450
  / @brad.groombridge  

Cody Cooper 2023 Kawasaki KX450X
  / @codycoopermx  

EDITED BY

Ash Sowman
‪@ashsowman‬