WINNING THE HARD WAY

I had a race at MMX in Marysville this last weekend. 

I love this track and always do well at MMX, but this weekend I did it the hard way….. MAKING A PASS ON MY 85 

Saturday I took a hard fall on my 65 during the first round of practice.  Going over a jump I went into the air and I landed hard on my back.  I hurt my back and got the wind knocked out of me, but thanks to all of my safety gear I was OK.  I took the rest of the day off to rest my back and didn’t get any practice.

I woke up Sunday and was still sore, but I wanted to race.  By the time I got going, I missed a practice and it was time to go racing.  I was not 100% and I wasn’t able to practice with all the other kids, but I was ready to give it my all. 

The first race was on my 65 and I was able to get the hole shot, but I went down in the whoop’s.  I was able to get up and get back to the lead and win the race.

The second race was the 85 race and I didn’t get the best start in that race.  I passed a couple bikes and when I was trying to pass another rider over a jump I crashed.  I went down hard but was able to get back up and race through traffic back to second place.

In the last races I was finally found my groove and was riding better.  I got good starts and raced up front the rest of the day.

WAITING FOR MY NEXT RACE

GOT GAS? ….I NEED STARTING BLOCKS

I HAD TO USE 5 GALLON GAS CANS AS MY STARTING BLOCKS!

A friend of my Dad’s let us use his Yamaha 85cc dirt bike.  My Dad picked it up Friday night and I rode it a couple of times Saturday at Club Moto in Livermore.  I love the bike, it is sooooo fun to ride.  On the last practice Saturday I was going over a jump and the chain broke off, the rear wheel locked up and I took a hard fall.  I was fine and I wanted to get back on the bike.

Sunday morning I talked my Mom and Dad into letting me try to race the bike.  As you can see by the picture I had to use gas cans as starting blocks and the other kids in my class were tall enough to hold up their bikes with no blocks.

I WAS THE SMALLEST KID OF ALL 8 RIDERS, NO ONE ELSE NEEDED BLOCKS!

In the first race, I rolled the clutch waiting for the gate to drop so I didn’t have a really good start.  I was in 7th place around the second turn and I worked hard to chase down the bikes in front of me.  I made a lot of passes and was chasing down the leader and was able to finish the race in 2nd place…..not bad for my second time on the bike.  🙂

The second race I had a better start, I got the hole shot and stayed out front the whole race.  I finished the race in 1st place and finished the day with a 1st place overall finish.

My Mom got mad at me because when I got the checkered flag I did a “no footer” over the finish line….I thought it was funny, but she didn’t.  lol

I also raced my KTM 65cc dirt bike and finished both of those races in 1st place.

1ST PLACE……LORETTA LYNN’S AMATEUR NATIONAL MOTOCROSS CHAMPIONSHIP AREA QUALIFIER RACE

 The world’s largest and most prestigious amateur motocross racing program is the AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship at Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in Tennessee.  The national qualifying program consists of 52 Area Qualifiers, and 12 Regional Championships, hosted at select motocross facilities across the country. The qualifying system all leads up to the National Final, the first week of August, hosted annually at the historic Loretta Lynn’s Ranch.  Nearly 25,000 racers attempt to qualify in 33 classes for the 1,400 available positions at the Nationals.  This National event serves as a launch pad for some of the biggest names in professional motocross and supercross, including Ricky Carmichael, James Stewart, Ryan Villopoto, and Ryan Dungey.

This last week was one of the area qualifier races in Marysville and riders travel from other states in hope to qualify for the Loretta Lynn race.  

Thursday night, March 31st, we loaded up the trailer and headed to Marysville for a shot at qualifying for this race.  We arrived late and went straight to bed to get rest for the Friday practice.  When I woke up Friday morning, April 1st, I told my Dad that I was not feeling well and I thought that I had the flu so we should go home…….APRIL FOOL’S!  I was excited to practice and see what other racers would be at the event.  Practice went well all day Friday and I was able to play with my friends Friday night and rest for the big Saturday race.

First Race 50cc:  I had a really good start and got the Hole Shot.  On the second lap I had a really hard fall and had a hard time getting my bike re-started.  By the time I got my bike going, I was really far behind and road like crazy to try to catch up with the other riders that had passed me.  With only two turns left in the race, I was able to pass the last bike and I was able to finish in 1st Place.  (Ya….that was a close one!)

Second Race 65cc:  My 65cc race was right after the previous 50cc race and I was soooooo tired and a little wounded.  We had several riders from other areas that were really fast, and they combined the younger and older kids together to make for a really large race.  I didn’t get the best start because I got pushed out by another rider.  I was in the middle of the pack and was able to work past a few riders.  I fell over in the deep sand section and lost a couple of spots, but I was able to get my bike up pretty quickly.  I had to ride hard again to work my way back up to 5th place.  

Third Race 50cc:  I had a long break before my third race, so I was well rested and ready to go.  I was able to get the hole shot again and I stayed up this time for another 1st place finish (I finished 1st overall and qualified for Loretta Lynn’s)

Fourth Race 65cc:  For the second 65cc race I had a bumpy start off the gate and again had to work my way through traffic.  I was able to muscle my bike through the sand section better in this race, but definitely don’t have the same strength that the older kids showed going through the sand.  I was able to work through the bikes and finished in 4th place. (I finished 4th overall and qualified for Loretta Lynn’s)

It was a great weekend and I was so excited to do so well at my first Loretta Lynn’s qualifier!

I got a #1 number plate/plaque for winning….it is way cool!

QUALIFIED 1st FOR THE MONSTER ENERGY ROAD TO MAMMOTH RACE

It has been raining a lot on and off and I have not been able to ride.  A couple of weeks ago we had a small break in the rain and I was able to race in the Monster Energy Road to Mammoth Qualifier race at Oatfield Raceway.  The sun was out and the track started out really good.  By the end of the afternoon the track got really rough and bumpy. 

It was really fun to be back at the race track and racing with a lot of my friends.  There was a lot of riders at the event because it was a qualifying race and the weather was perfect.  I was able to qualify 1st in both of my 50cc classes and 2nd in my 65cc class.  With the great finishes I had, I was able to qualify for the Road to Mammoth Race that is heald June 16 – 26th.

The Road to Mammoth race began in 1968 when Don Rake and some friends decided to put on a motocross race in Mammoth Lakes, California.  They built a world-class track 8,000 feet up in the Sierra Nevada Mountain range.  It is the oldest continuous running motocross event in the USA.  The track has changed a little over the years, but is brings in many great riders every year.  Riders like Ricky Carmichael, Jeremy McGrath, Rick Johnson, Johnny O’Mara, Broc Glover, Donny Schmitt, Steve Lamson, Gary Jones, Kevin Windham, David Bailey, Jeff Ward, Ron Lechien, Bob Hannah, James Stewart, Mike Bell, Donny Hansen and many more.

It has become one of the major amateur events in the country and a great event to see riders of tomorrow racing at Mammoth today.