Yamaha’s latest release.
With a cast on his arm and determination in his eyes, Yamaha’s Rodney Faggotter rode up to the start line for Day Six of the Australian Safari in attempt to complete an extremely challenging event.
Less than 24hours earlier, Faggotter dislocated his fingers and broke his wrist in a nasty fall yet he still summoned up the courage to make one last gasp at trying to finish the 2010 Australian Safari.
Unfortunately, the pain was too much for Faggotter and he was unable to hang on to his WR450F and had no choice but to withdraw from the event, where he was in line for a podium finish.
A desperately disappointed Faggotter rode his bike gently back to his work area, placed it on the stand and sat silently gathering his thoughts.
“This race brings out every emotion and over the week you ride a roller coaster of highs and lows. Right now I feel awful, not because of the pain, but because I was unable to finish and I didn’t get the result myself and the crew had worked so hard for.”
“My wrist isn’t good and requires surgery, but if I had the strength to hang on, I would have raced until I couldn’t. I was determined to get a good result here and the guys and I had put in the time and energy for it to happen.”
“I am disappointed for my great team of sponsors and everyone who has helped me to get to this point. I wish I could have given everyone a result to be proud of,” Faggotter laments.
Rodney’s effort in the 2010 Australian Safari was sensational. As the full time owner / manager of Centretune Motorcycles his work commitments come first and riding his dirt bike is more a hobby than a profession. In his younger years, Rod was a respectable A- grade motocross racer in Queensland but has really found his niche in Rallye or Enduro style events where he already has racked up a long list of victories including the 2010 Condo 750.
Before the Day five crashes, Rod was in a tight tussle for second place with Todd Smith and less than five minutes away from leader Ben Grabham.
When the topic changes to 2011, Rod said, “I will be back next year. The jobs not done and we have shown that we have the pace. I will get my wrist fixed and be back for 2011.”
Yamaha’s Motorsport Manager Ray Howard acknowledged the efforts of Rod and his support crew, “While Rodney is blaming himself for not finishing the Safari, no one else is and I can only congratulate him and his team for an excellent effort. The Safari requires not only guts, rider skill and concentration its requires a special determination to be there at the end. Rodney has all of these attributes, that’s why Yamaha are there with him. We believe he can win the Safari and that’s why we will be back again next year.”
