SOPHIE Kidd can vividly recall the time she beat her younger brother Jordan in a competitive motocross race.
The Terang siblings, born just 11 months apart, were locked in an 85cc battle in Warrnambool last year when she took bragging rights.
“It was pretty funny,” Sophie said.
“He said ‘Nah, nah, I had a bad start’ and I said ‘No excuses, mate’.”
The pair, who are close and spend time helping on their family’s dairy farm, are each others biggest competitors.
But they will be on the same side this weekend when they compete in separate 125cc classes at the annual Shipwreck Coast Motocross Club two-day open at Lake Gillear.
Sophie, 15, hopes they can put recent lessons on their new bikes to the test.
“We’ve had a few coaching sessions in Colac at Oates MX – (it’s helped with) corners, jumping, looking forward,” she said.
Jordan, 14, wants to perform well on his home track and is chasing a top-10 finish.
“It’s gotten better,” he said of the course.
“Before they changed it, we had clay and now it’s got sandy corners.
“It’s lose and the clay is pretty tacky.”
The brother and sister combination has separate pursuits away from the track.
Sophie takes dance lessons, learning everything from ballet and jazz to hip-hop, while Jordan plays table tennis. But motocross takes priority for both.
“(I like) the power, you meet new friends, it’s fun going around Victoria and (racing on) new tracks,” Sophie said.
Shipwreck Coast Motocross Club secretary Tracy Chilton said entries for the two-day open closed at 8pm on Tuesday with more than 250 riders from across the state expected to fill 13 categories.
She said it was hoped the girls’ 13 to under 16 class which Sophie was competing in would attract more numbers this year.
“We had it last year and quite a few people didn’t understand they could still race in classes they normally do too,” Chilton said.
“It just gives them an extra race to ride in. We have gone with it again this year hoping for more numbers.”
Chilton said the open would give Shipwreck Coast juniors a chance to compete against a high-quality field.
“We have quite a few new ones who have joined this year and they will be racing for the first time,” she said.
“Hopefully they will enjoy it. It will be big for them because it’s over two days and generally we only have one-day competitions.”
Preparations at the Lake Gillear track are in full swing.
“We hope to get the rain forecast on Thursday,” she said. “It will help because no rain means we would spend most of Friday watering the track.”
Story Source: The Warrnambool Standard