The Napier Boys' High School boarder last night didn't mince words.
"I could have been fitter," Ben said, revealing the 90kg metal beast requires a fair bit of muscle power to tame on a circuit that became quite challenging after a hearty downpour overnight in a province that is renowned for rain.
Hitting the road for about 4km once a week and some weight training in the gym are the norm for him but he may revisit that.
"I'll be putting more time and effort into going to the gym," said the 50kg rider.
Ben also was competing in his first leg of of the seven-round series whereas the Cambridge champion had further strengthened his stranglehold on the junior grade crown.
"The race was wet but the weather was fine," said the year 11 pupil who had no qualms with the conditions because it suited him but, like many competitors, it was his first time on a "very sandy" circuit.
However, Ben said if he put his mind to it he could do anything so all those variables were merely hurdles to overcome.
For the record, he was the junior national champion in the 85cc-150cc grade last year after four rounds around the country.
He hasn't competed in the previous three rounds this year because of the time, travel and cost factor in what he considers to be the North Island-ranking series.
Ben does intend to rev up again for the last round in Pahiatua if everything goes according to plan.
His passion for the sport comes from his father, Glyn, who runs a sheep and cattle farm with mother Anna Paterson in Dannevirke.
"He was up there," he said of his father.
Ben enjoyed riding around the farm as a young boy but only started racing competitively in age-group meetings three years ago.
"I'm only home like two days a week so I'll probably go for a ride once every weekend," said the boarder who returns home every weekend but was mindful school exams were around the corner.
Ben said he wasn't "the brightest of students" but intended to do an apprenticeship, maybe as a diesel mechanic.
According to motorcycling media liaison officer Andy McGechan, Callum probably wouldn't have recognised the venue even if he had been there before.
However, it didn't take Callum long to power his Yamaha YZ125 into position to challenge Manawatu's Finlay Wistrand (KTM 125 SX) for the lead and, by about halfway through the opening lap of the 90-minute race, the champ was in front.
"Finlay was pushing me pretty hard and I crashed in the motocross section of the track. It was nothing major, just a front-wheel wash-out, but I took ages to get the bike re-started and he (Wistrand) got away from me a bit," he explained.
"I came into the pits for fuel at the end of lap two and dad (Trent) told me that I didn't need to worry about beating Wistrand because he wasn't doing the whole series and so he wasn't a threat. But that didn't stop me chasing hard anyway.
"I caught Wistrand again and got past and then it was comfortable for me after that. I just rode safe and made sure I didn't do anything silly."
Wistrand finished third, four seconds behind Ben.
In fourth place, nearly a minute further back, was Havelock North's Sam Lee (Yamaha), with another Havelock North rider, Warner Chittock (Yamaha), rounding out the top five.
Cambridge's Beau Taylor - Callum's main rival for the NZXC Series trophy - was a no-show which enabled Callum to build a 45-point gulf at the top of the standings.
Round five of the NZXC Series will be held at Matata on October 14, with round six in the Riverhead Forest on November 19, and it finally wraps up at Pahiatua on December 3.
