The 21-year-old Wellington rider won the expert grade of the New Zealand motorcycle trial championships yesterday for the sixth consecutive year.
The sport involves motorcyclists wending their way over a marked course, balancing over obstacles and avoiding placing their feet on the ground. The national event was staged on rocky outcrops on two different properties near Alexandra.
Whitaker incurred no penalty points during the three days of competition, which meant he never lost his balance - a remarkable feat, championship organiser Graeme Hibbs, of Invercargill, said.
Whitaker said he loved the rocky terrain of the course.
"It's brilliant going over rocks like this for a change. Usually we're going through slippery courses, but this is something different and the rocks are so grippy so you can go anywhere.
"The first time I came here was for the first New Zealand champs held here in 2004, when I won the junior class, and I've loved it here ever since."
At times, the 53 riders taking part in the event climbed up what seemed to be vertical rock faces.
Whitaker said he was able to "relax a bit" during the final round of competition after the first two days went so well.
"It becomes more of a mental challenge ... physically, the course was very easy."
Hibbs said many of the top riders at the event had commented it was "a bit easy, but when you look at what they've just ridden over and how hard it is, how could you make it any harder without doing some damage to the competitors?"
He was delighted the weather had been fine for nearly all the competition.
Riders completed 10 sections of the course four times during a day's competition.
Karl Clark, of Nelson, was second in the expert grade and John Haynes, of Rotorua, was third.
The A grade was won by Liam Draper, the intermediate section by Daniel Clark, the president's grade by Stephen Oliver, the twinshocks section by Paul Jackson and the clubsman's grade by Francis Sydenham.
