CDR Yamaha Off Road enduro ace, Daniel Milner, will miss the coming round of the Australian Off Road Championship (AORC) this weekend, after injuring his ankle in a training incident last week.
It is a bitter blow for the reigning AORC champ and 2014 points’ leader who was just starting to hit full stride as the season heads toward the half-way point.
“I came up a bit short on a double jump I have at my house and instantly I felt some pain in my ankle,” Milner explains. “I tried to ride it out thinking it was just a good hit, but the swelling was pretty big when I finished training so I went and got it X-rayed and it confirmed there was a crack in my ankle.
“Myself and Craig (Team Owner, Craig Dack)then had a discussion about what we should do in the short term, race the next rounds of the AORC and risk further damage or sit it out and come back 100% at the following rounds and we both felt the later was in my best interest.
“It’s a shame as this coming round was a local one in Victoria at Corner’s Inlet and I like racing there and having my friends and family come along for the support. I will not be racing this weekend so I will be the guy cheering on my team and assisting where I can.
While disappointed that Milner won’t be racing this weekend, Dack concedes it was the best thing to do with Milner’s busy race calendar ahead.
“I would love to have Daniel racing this weekend but with a six week break after this round to the next AORC, plus high profile events like the A4DE and the International Six Day Enduro still to come, we thought this was the best plan. After lengthy discussions with Simon Maas from RaceSafe, the only option was to have the injury addressed and take a calculated approach to Daniel’s return to racing.
“He currently has his ankle in a moon boot but the issue was if he raced this weekend and did more damage, we would potentially turn a six week injury into a 12month injury requiring surgery and that wasn’t an option myself or Daniel would even consider as we both don’t want to risk any long term damage. Daniel has a big future in front of him in racing and taking the six weeks off now to heal is the right thing to do.
“He will be back for rounds seven and eight, so we look forward to Daniel getting back to 100% and having him back on track then,” Dack finishes.
Team mate, Chris Hollis will be the lone representative of the CDR Yamaha Off Road Team this weekend where he currently sits in sixth place outright on his WR450F.
