Christmas festivities were put on hold when Royce competed in the South Australian Historic Championships at Mount Gambier between Christmas and New Year, which attracted almost 180 entries.

Burford Racing invited Royce to ride a Suzuki TR750, but problems arose during testing before the event and the bike was withdrawn, so Doxboyz Racing offered their pristine 250 Yamaha for the Period 4 (1962-72) Championship.

The track had just been resurfaced in parts and all was set for a great weekend until the second session on Friday, when Royce hit loose gravel whilst overtaking another rider and the pristine Yamaha was left looking a bit second hand.

Despite turning very pale, Neil Watson of Doxboyz worked hard to fix the bike, but gear changing remained a problem all weekend due to the damage.

Nonetheless, Neil’s bike preparation and repairs paid off, with our two major rivals retiring, leaving Royce to push on and win the Championship.

One of few competitors not to be sporting a long grey beard, Royce said:

“After a three-year hiatus from two wheeled racing I was pretty keen for a fun weekend!

“Unfortunately not being able to ride Andy’s 750 which was a hoot last time, with 70’s music and 2 stroke oil in the air, Neil’s 250 became the main focus. With the tracks new resurfacing, there were reports of rubble in many places around the track. Only my second practice session in, I hadn’t fully taken this into account so whilst doing a normal overtaking manoeuvre I’ve done before around the outside of water tower, the bike just let go like it had hit marbles.

“Either that or I forgot for a second I didn’t have a third wheel attached! I was fine and luckily the bike hadn’t done too many cartwheels. After bending things back into shape with the help of Dad, Neil and Jess, we continued on trying to chase down Richard Metcalf on his Bultaco.

“Big credit to Neil for building a reliable bike that got us enough points to take the Period 4 250cc South Australian Historic state championship. Thanks to the crew who came down to support me including the wife Beth, Laura, Jess and Dad! With a busy schedule on the sidecar this year I hope I can get back out on the old bikes soon.”

The team now look ahead to 2025, in which we will attempt to compete in the Australian F2 Sidecar Championship beginning with Round 1 at Phillip Island this Australia Day long weekend, only a few short weeks away! There are still some minor adjustments to be made to the outfit in preparation, but the team are ready to give it a red hot crack this year!