Ballard’s Beta Xtread Team | Official Announcement

Introducing the Ballard’s Beta Xtread Team:

Ballards Offroad on behalf of MXstore will be fielding a team with rider Ben Kearns onboard a Beta RR 390 RACING with the help of sponsors including Beta Motorcycles Australia, Liqui Moly, Trooper Lu’s Garage, Sidi Boots, Oakley Goggles, Bell helmets, and JTR supplying us with wheels.

The Ballard’s Beta Xtread team will be competing in the 2024 AORC Championship Series as well as the major national and regional off road racing events around Australia. Ben will play an integral part in the testing and development of Ballard’s Off-Road performance parts. Geoff Ballard will perform a key, hands on role in the bike setup, training and support throughout the year while Rod Kearns will take on the role of team operations and mechanic.

A statement from Geoff Ballard:

"I have known Ben and his family for many years and after his outstanding performance in this years A4DE taking an outright test win on Xtread tyres I decided to approach Ben to discuss his future plans and what goals he wanted to achieve in racing, seeing Ben’s enthusiasm, and after testing several bikes and setups we concluded that the Beta RR 390 Racing would be the right bike for the team. Our goal at MXstore and Ballard’s Offroad is to help Ben fulfill his dream of competing in a full season of national events and we see him as a great ambassador for us and our products, Ben’s skills as a test rider help us to evaluate and develop certain parts across our range."

A statement from Ben Kearns:

"Earlier this year I thought it would be fun to get back into the enduro scene after a few years away and head over to WA for the 4 Day. I entered the race with no expectations other than to ride well and enjoy myself! I was lucky enough to have GB offer me some of the new Xtread tyres to try out.

The tyres turned out to be pretty good! To go out and do as well as I did was a bit of a shock, I had a ball mixing it up with the guys at the pointy end to win a few tests in my class and one outright was a real bonus. After the event, it was back home to carpentry work as normal until GB approached me with the idea of going racing seriously in 2024.

I hadn't given this much thought but coming from GB I was interested in the idea straight up. To have the support and encouragement of Geoff with his very successful career both on and off the bike is a huge motivation for myself.

After initial testing, the bike feels great and I'm looking forward to being part of the team and getting racing and being a part of the Ballards Off-Road Beta Xtread Team I would also like to thank my sponsors Sidi Boots, Oakley Goggles and Bell Helmets!

Thanks, Ben Kearns!"

A statement from Patrick Lowry (Beta):

"We’re excited to support this new team with Ballards and MXStore. Geoff approached us to see if we’d be happy to let Ben test some bikes and the RR 390 Racing came out on top! Ben was impressed with the performance and is feeling more and more comfortable on the bike. We wish the team all the best."

Keep an eye out for Ben and the team in 2024, head over to Ballard's Socials for the latest content as we follow Ben's journey!