Papakura Brothers Battle for Series Glory

Papakura Brothers Battle for Series Glory.

Papakura brothers Louis Carlyle, Ash Carlyle and brother in law Brad Brown are locked in a 3 way battle for internal and external glory heading into the 3rd and final round of the Counties Classic Off Road Racing Series at Colin Dale Park on February 27.

Hosted by Counties Manukau Off Road Racing Club at the Colin Dale Park in Puhinui, the Counties Classic is at the forefront of a resurgence in interest in off road racing. Right on the doorstep of Auckland, a brand new motorsport facility is quietly taking shape with the finished product set to provide family focused entertainment and excitement. Key to the development is an American style stadium race track featuring huge jumps and powerful V8 race trucks as well as the popular buggies and UTV’s. Regular race meetings are planned, providing the first weekend compliment to stockcars and speedway seen in decades.

While construction continues on the stadium track, a temporary track is in use for the Counties Classic, featuring traditional farm based terrain and jumps. The three round series features off road buggies, trucks , UTV’s and youth karts with plenty of motorsport action. The Puhinui venue has become increasingly popular with locals looking for family friendly inexpensive Saturday afternoon entertainment.

The Carlyle Motorsport brothers see the Counties Classic series as a stepping stone to stadium truck racing and have locked their sights on series glory in their Challenger class buggies. Led by Ash Carlyle who went into the January round leading the class, all 3 young men faced a tough battle against a strong field. Carnage reigned on the track with multiple rollovers in all classes, but the issues for the brothers were mainly mechanical. Ash Carlyle broke a rocker in the first race, forcing him to limp on 3 cylinders for the remainder of the day, whilst Louis Carlyle showed a clean pair of heels to the field before smashing a hub and retiring for the day. Brad Brown meanwhile made a strong start in the first race before retiring with motor issues.

While not able to continue his dominant form of the first round, Ash Carlyle managed to finish strongly enough to retain his lead in the class, but must now work hard in the final round if he is to capture the series win. The greatest disappointment of the day though was the internal battle according to Louis Carlyle, “We were really looking forward to beating each other and it never worked out that way as each of us battled our own issues. Brad gave me a big fright in the first race with his speed off the line before dropping out and Ash went off the pace so we never got to truly test each other. The track was spectacular but I’m afraid I pushed it so hard I broke the car.”

The young men are now feverishly rebuilding their cars before the final round on February 27 with Brad Brown facing the biggest challenge of a complete motor rebuild. All are still aiming at competing though and with the support of local business, are still focused on series glory.

ENDS

© Scoop Media