IN FOCUS: CEITHA ANDREWS - THE 50-MILE MUM

The first girl to race the 50-Mile at the Burt Munro in over 10 years, Ceitha Andrews ticked another bucket list item off when she took on the grueling sand race at the 2023 event.

Name: Ceitha Andrews
Location: Ngakuru, Rotorua
Bike: KTM 250 XC-F 2022
Been riding for: 18yrs

How did you get into riding dirt bikes?

When my son was younger he was motorbike mad, he had a little XR50 at 3, then when he was 6 my father bought him a small wheel YZ 85. He wanted to give MX & trail riding a go but my partner at the time wasn't interested in taking him. So I thought bugger you, I'm going to get a bike so I can take him to some rides myself!

I knew a few ladies that rode at the time but it was honestly quite scary. Like, what the hell was I thinking? I even learned to back a trailer so I wouldn't look like a dick if I get into a tight spot at an event. So committed haha!

Anyway, I purchased a bike - I think late '05 - went to a skills riding day for women, rode around on the farm for a bit, and pretended I knew what I was doing. I think my son and I went on our first ride in mid-March '06 and then I was hooked.

Pulling into our first ride we needed some help with unloading the ute etc… We were both pretty green and knew nothing, but my son was buzzing and couldn't stop talking about how cool it was the whole way home. I think he thought I was the coolest mum in the world that day and it then became a regular thing for us - good mother-son bonding!

He's 24 now, not sure if he thinks I'm still cool. We don't ride together often at all but pretty sure he'd take me along to a trail ride if I asked him. He still rides and loves dirt bikes and currently, he's on YZF450 and can even flip a dirt bike. He's a bit crazy like that!

Tell us all about your first bike - how did you get it and why?

My first bike was a mid 90’s KLX250. At the time I thought it was just the bee’s knees, but the reality was it was so heavy, the kick start was a nightmare and so temperamental and not a good bike to start on when you've never ridden a dirt bike before in your life.

I remember my husband (we actually met at Kaingaroa rail ride - expensive day that was for him, seeing as we are now a family of five and four of us ride dirt bikes), taking me to my very first ever desert storm ride and it was so so wet and muddy. I must have stalled my bike 100 times in one loop and I was exhausted. Kickstart was not ideal but somehow I made it and it probably made me a better rider. I swore after that event I was getting an electric start and NEVER riding another wet trail ride!! ( have however been to many muddy rides since)

I purchased the KLX because it was the first bike my ex found and he reckoned it was sweet as - no wonder he's my ex haha! I rode it for a year then upgraded to a YZF250 with an electric start, and I've never looked back!!!!

What kind of riding do you enjoy doing the most?

I really enjoy trail riding - you won't really find me anywhere else. Nice wide open flowy tracks, I'm not into the goat track technical stuff, this old girl likes to just hang out on the trails and do my own thing. I'm not a super competitive person, I just like to push my own limitations, go fast and have fun. I probably should try flat track or something that would be fun! (you should - Chris)

We have an MX track here on the farm that the kids put in, sometimes I get out there with them as it's just good to get out on the bike. The jumps are just too much for me and I can’t get a good flow, so I'll stick to what I enjoy. But I love the sound of the bikes out the back of the house - nice to hear the kids out having fun.

So you entered the Burt Munro 50 Mile beach race. What was the motivation behind that?

My husband Chris has been in the bike circuit for many years ( motard, street races, trail events etc) and he's raced the Burt 50 mile, the street race and hill climb events quite a few times, but 2021 was the first time I was able to travel down with him. Honestly, watching is pretty cool, but all I could think was I wanna give that a go.

So when this year's event entries came up I thought ya know what I'm going to give it a crack, I think I added a bit of extra pressure to my husband by entering the 50 as he wasn't initially going to enter. But each lap he could see me still circulating, and even though he was exhausted he couldn't pull out of the race or I'd beat him!

I also entered the Clubman Class (shorter race before the big 50 mile) this year, so that was actually a really good warm-up for the 50. I really wanted to do this event, especially for a few reasons:

1. Because when I'd said I was going to do this event, a few thought I was crazy,"Really, you're doing the beach race?" "You’re bloody mad!" I think in general…very surprised. But, like really…why is it so surprising? What better way to show how crazy I am right?!

2. Because in January of this year, I celebrated my 10-year "cancerversary and I've exceeded my life expectancy" currently NED and thriving, something I'm always super thankful for because that just isn't far from your mind. Somedays I feel so fortunate to have dodged that bullet and other times so fearful because I've come so far, it must be time for it to pop back up again. So I'm just living life now and going to push myself where I can to enjoy all these fun things. I feel like I've wasted 10 years being so fearful, I've got some lost time to make up!

3. I wanted to prove to myself that I could stick it out to cross that finish line - I know it's quite a demanding event both on bike and machine so that in itself is an achievement.

Honestly, I haven't done a tonne of riding in the last 10yrs for obvious reasons, and weekend work commitments, so rides were few and far between.

I've also had a few surgeries with other bike injuries and have only recently been cleared to get back on the bike - probably shouldn't be risking my life at high speed, but it's a hell of a rush! I wanted to tick this off my bucket list because it's quite a unique event. It's not every day you get to be associated with the legend of Burt Munro and ride down the beach.

What preparation did you do for the race; to both yourself and the bike?

In the last 2 years, I've had both knee surgery, a rotator cuff repair and gained abit of excess "padding", so I've worked super hard to get the strength back up with intensive physiotherapy, and I've also chipped away to lose 20kgs by doing a shitload of walking. I've worn out 3 pairs of shoes in 2 years!

I unfortunately got covid-19 back in early December and it really kicked my ass. I've had a lot of shortness of breath until recently, so my fitness level definitely dropped in the lead-up to the event. Overall I'm thankful for what I had done prior to being sick as I'd retained some good strength and was able to stick it out to finish the race.

I actually purchased a new bike last March - however wasn't able to ride it until September (it actually sat in the bedroom for a few months hahaha. It’s a tradition in our house that when we get a new bike we put it in the room until we can ride it). So it's only currently done 10hrs. Pretty slack but I really couldn't push it and didn't want to re-injure myself and miss the Burt, so spent a lot of time off the bike getting ready, walking and small strength sessions in the home gym.

We didn't really do much to the bike to prepare - hubby geared the bike up for me to get more top speed so we switched the sprockets and went from 14-51 to 14-45.

Obviously, you can see what my fav color is, so I'd got my bike stickered up. Anyone who knows me knows that hot pink is my trademark color, but other than that my bike is standard as…we didn't even put any new tires on it.

Give us all a bit of a race report from start to finish.

We'd arrived at Oreti Beach at 6.30am for sign-on and if I'm being completely honest I felt so physically sick. I must have gone to the loo probably 15 times before the race I was so nervous.

I'm so glad I'd also entered the clubman class prior to our 50-mile event as it definitely calms the nerves and you get to check out the beach conditions. Kind of an extended look lap scenario. The 50 is the last race on the beach racing timetable and by the time it came around, there were literally thousands of spectators lined up on the beach and sand dunes cheering everyone on.

Rolling up to the start line with 28 other competitors, knowing you're the only woman is pretty daunting, then seeing all the spectators is extra daunting. Top that off with a bright pink bike and you're instantly second-guessing your sticker choices so you don't stand out hahaha.

I remember Neil Ritchie briefly mentioning my name while we were waiting on the start line over the speaker system and thinking OMFG, now everyone is going to be watching and I'd better be able to finish this race!

Once the ‘check your helmet’ sign goes up, the adrenaline gets pumping and the heart beats a bit faster. The bikes start to rev and then it's all go, literally once you leave that startline, you feel a huge sense of relief. The bikes are quite high geared so stalling is quite easy and ya have to keep the revs up to get off the line.

Once you leave the start line you do get pummelled by wet roost - it's like 100's of needles all at once hitting you and it bloody hurts and is a little eye-watering at times and by the time you've finished you’re left with multiple pin dots of bruises on top of bruises on your inner, upper arms, neck and chest. I learned quickly to position myself when someone passed me so I wasn't in the direct roost firing line haha - although the damage was already done. I had black and blue arms for a good few days afterward - but you just gotta suck it up because they are just another part of the story.

Racing down the beach, working your way through the gears, reaching speeds of up to 150km ( some were reaching 180 by the police radar at the end of the straight), is literally badass and the best feeling in the world. It's quite exhilarating and you feel such a sense of achievement.

I’d say I’m quite a cautious rider so very aware of my surroundings - I definitely did not wish to cut anybody off or cause any accidents for those who were racing to win, so I did stay out wide and just kept in my own lane so to speak. I was hell-bent on finishing the race and wasn't going to jeopardize that.

I was the only 250 to finish this race, as everyone else was riding bikes varying from 350cc up to 600cc. I could have possibly worked on my corner speed but again didn't wish to get in the way of those racing to win. I had literally run out of legs, my throttle was wide open and I couldn't get any more speed if I tried. Stoked is an understatement really as I'd achieved all I set out to.

I remember coming around the barrel and seeing the 10 laps to go sign and thinking holy shit I'm nearly there. Next minute the checkered flag is flying and the wave of an overwhelming sense of achievement was something I'll never forget. I may have had a few tears riding back into the pit area afterward.

Admittedly I completed only 31 laps. Only 2 competitors in the whole race did that and those out front are so fast and whizz by you at lightning speed. But it's a race about endurance at the end of the day and knowing I crossed that finish line in the top 20 alongside men who are sponsored riders, professional athletes, and bikes with more powerful engines is absolutely something to be proud of.

Something so very unexpected from this race was what happened afterward. I had ladies, young girls and men from the crowd come up to me wanting to congratulate me, shake my hand and take photos. Now, this is all very not me at all, so was a bit overwhelming, but at the same time it was so cool to have that sense of achievement cemented by them saying "bloody go on you, " good shit girlfriend" "congratulations you’re amazing" "wow that was so neat just to see a woman out there with the guys"!

I had some women say they would love to give it a go next year, so that's absolutely amazing. And all it took was to see me out there, giving it a go, which make me feel like I achieved much more than just finishing. There really is no better feeling than just racing down the beach at a high speed - just feeling free.

What did you learn from the race and what would you have done differently?

I learned that you really can achieve anything you put your mind to, chipping away at the small goals within a bigger goal is the best way to accomplish things. That stepping outside of your comfort zone is the only way for new growth and that it only takes one moment of self-sacrifice to be an inspiration for others.

I think over the next year, if I can work on conquering my fear of ruts and working on some corner speed I can return and hopefully improve my times and get a few more laps in. I'll be 45 next year so I'd better up the fitness to counteract the age factor. I can't see myself upping the cc rating so we may also look at some slightly different gearing, but I feel comfortable on my 250 and don't see the need for a bigger bike just for potentially a few more placings. I'm very happy with just trying to improve each year.

You also won Competitor of the Year! That is so cool. Describe that feeling.

Wow, you know I've never received any sort of trophy in my life, so was quite taken back, to be honest. In all fairness I certainly wasn't expecting any acknowledgment as I'm nobody special. Just a mum from little old Ngakuru in Rotorua who had lined up like everyone else. I just wanted to ride my bike and reach my goal, but to be noticed and be the recipient of such a prestigious award and be congratulated by so many of the riders that evening at prize giving was also quite humbling. There are some great names on that award and to have my name engraved on the little plague for 2023 is something I'll be proud of for the rest of my life.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to bring the award home with me, so I hope they can send me a replica - forever hopeful on that one. Neil had given a bit of a run down about why this trophy is being awarded and did not wish to give away the recipient in that description so at the end when he said my name I was actually very shocked. There are a multitude of events and competitors across the week of the Burt Munro Challenge and this trophy, in particular, is selected personally by Burt Munro's son John Munro, so that again is such an honour.

John had been at events across the week and at the beach race when we were racing, so he had selected me whilst watching the 50-mile (pays to probably have those pink stickers and stand out sometimes haha).

I was so unprepared for getting up to do any speech and was about 6 drinks in already. If I'd have known I'd probably have thanked so many people, all the competitors, event organisers, spectators, photographers, it's such a huge network of people to get this event organised and it really is amazing. So to anyone who hasn't been before you should come at least once in your lifetime, the whole town is buzzing and everyone is so, so supportive,

This award, it's something I'll forget in a hurry and all my friends are probably sick of seeing my posts already, lol, but hey celebrate all your wins, because life is too damn short not to!

Are you going to do it again?

Hell yes I'm doing it again, it's the most exciting race event in my calendar! I might even sort out some motard wheels, do a few track days and give the hill climb a go next year.

Any advice to other women on giving the Beach Race a go?

Honestly nothing other than just get out and have a go. You can go as fast or as slow as you wish, adjust the speed for your own ability, not what you think others expect of you, race your own race and just have fun, because it's such a cool event and to say you've raced the Burt Munro is something not many can say they have done…and get some good arm protection!

Images supplied by MJSmyth Images, Vanessa Adcock Photography & Darren Stanely photography.