MOTOCROSS - Brothers ride the dream of making it big in Europe

Shortly after Mitchell and Damon Nield mastered walking they moved on to motorbikes. Since then they have progressed to the pinnacle of their sport to be among the best enduro riders in the country.
The brothers, Mitchell 20, and Damon, 17, make up Team Wicked Racing that annually travels about 50,000km from their Rawene base to ride their Husqvarnas in various offroad motorcycle events around the country.
"It's pretty much been our life for as long as I can remember, it's what we do ... almost all our weekends are taken up doing national enduro series, local motocross events or one-off cross-country events," Mitchell said.
The brothers are the guys who win the prizes but the team is a family affair with father Steven, a former enduro competitor himself, and mother Kiri responsible for getting the boys started and logistical support. Sister Cassidy, 13, has also started competing in junior events and is the family's next champion.
It is the less well known off-road sport of enduro riding that the brothers have chosen to specialise in. Both have been near the top in their class since they started senior riding. Mitchell now dominates the 250-400cc E1 class, winning his first national enduro title in 2006, as well winning gold at the Australian Four Day Enduro the same year.
It was Damon's turn for success this year winning the 125-250cc E1 class in the national series and more recently leading Mitchell home in the Dead Toad cross-country event two weeks ago to earn sibling bragging rights for a while.
The Dead Toad is one of the oldest cross-country races in New Zealand. The event, this year held in Woodhill Forest near Muriwai Beach, saw the brothers lead the field of 120 senior riders home after more than 3 hours on their motorbikes.
The pair are a part of new wave of young enduro riders that has emerged over the past few years in New Zealand.
"Enduro is a much more mind orientated sport, it's not just going wide open (throttle) for 10 or 15 minutes, you've got to judge what's around the next corner and be ready for anything," Damon said.
Enduro competitions consist of many different obstacles and challenges along a trail, with the individual's performance measured against the clock and rewarded with points.
It's hard to imagine a tougher sport on your body than enduro and cross-country but there are other risks to flying along at speeds up to 120km/h on forest tracks - accidents and injury are commonplace.
At the recent Tarawera 100 in the Bay of Plenty, Mitchell crashed and knocked himself out, ending his race - but it's just part of the sport he said.
"You don't get badly hurt but I've had - what is it? - five broken wrists, and Damon's done three and knocked himself out a couple of times," Mitchell said.
"Considering I've been riding since I was three and Mitchell was about four or five, that's not too bad. I think motocross and supercross is more dangerous because there are more jumps," Damon adds.
The demands of competition keep the Nields busy on the weekends.
"Events are spread all over the year and you could race every weekend if you want."
Husquvarna New Zealand sponsors them, along with a host of smaller sponsors and the boys' grandparents, the other main sponsors who allow them to compete on the scale they do.
Like motocross, there is a slim chance of making a living out of the sport.
"You'd have to put in a huge effort and head to Europe on your own money, which might cost you $100,000, to get your one shot at it," Damon said.
"For every rider that's succeeded and you've heard about, there 10 times that number who haven't made it."
The brothers have plans to compete in Europe or the United States if they can raise the funds but for now their focus is making Team Wicked Racing the best known brand on the national enduro scene.