TRAIL ZONE

PRESS RELEASE:

AJ ROBERTS RIDES RED AGAIN

One of the really great things about the Aussie dirt bike scene is the number of awesome people involved in the industry.

And when it comes to Aussie off-road racers, one bloke who ranks high on the TRAIL ZONE top bloke list is Queenslander AJ Roberts.

Why? Because we reckon AJ is one cool cat and back when we kicked off the magazine nearly five years ago, he took time out to come trail riding with Popgun and me up to Rainbow Beach on the Queensland sunshine coast for some stories in the mag.

AJ was racing Huskies for the Paul Feeney Group back then, so AJ tagged up with then PFG marketing man, Adam Forrester, and joined Aussie MX legend Glen Bell (another gun bloke!), Dr Phil and me for a lap of the beach on one of those ripper days that you wish could last forever – and that get etched in your memory bank as a top-shelf dirt bike riding good-time that you just want to do again one day.

Since then AJ has been around the world a few times (literally!), carving up the Aussie off-road and world enduro championship scenes in factory-backed rides with Husky, Yamaha and Honda.

Just lately racing a Honda in Australia has been like riding on shaky ground, as Big Red has been undergoing some major budget cut-backs in the wash-up from the gnarly GFC -- so we were wondering where AJ might pop-up in 2010.

Well, we're stoked to say the news is out and AJ is riding red again, and has launched his very own race team -- so go hard at it, son!

The press release announcing AJ's team follows ...

-- Clubby, via www.trailzone.com.au

AJ ROBERTS FORMS NEW HONDA TEAM

Anthony 'AJ' Roberts will be riding red again with the announcement that he has formed his own Team to take on the Australian Off Road Championships, Australian Four Day Enduro and other key events on the calendar.

"I'm excited to say that for 2010 I will be racing for the Force Honda Thor Michelin Off Road Team," AJ said.

"Honda Australia has given me a great opportunity to represent them at the highest level in Off Road Racing and along with major support from Force Accessories, Gas Imports and Michelin Australia, they are giving me the best opportunity to put together a great race season." AJ will also be contesting the Finke Desert Race under the guidance of former Finke Champion Michael Vroom, owner of Desert Edge Motorcycles in Alice Springs.

"This will be my first year racing Finke so there is a lot to learn, but riding under Michael's new DERT Team will give me the best chance I can get out there." The 27 year old rider will also take on The Australian Safari with the help of GHR Honda, who have backed numerous winners over the years.

"The Safari will be a priority of mine and with the help of GHR Honda, the long haul to Western Australia will hopefully be a trip to remember; it's definitely one of Australia's most gruelling events." AJ has launched a new website - www.aj36.com - including video of the multiple Champion taking out his 2010 CRF450R for its inaugural ride.

The website will also be kept up to date with race results and other news on a regular basis.

"The number 36 on the website address is the number I had for my first AORC in 2005, and it will also be my race number for the 2010 season."

"I'm looking forward to lining up on the start line of the first round of the AORC's in Port Macquarie, NSW on the 13th-14th of March," AJ said.