BEAR HUNTING IN MAMMOTH

This last weekend we left to go to the 2x Promotion race in Mammoth Mountain.  When we got to Mammoth the first thing we have to do is figure out the jetting on my bike because the altitude is so high the bikes run completely different.  Since I had won the King Of The West Championship, I had new graphics for my bike with red backgrounds on my number plates. My bike looked really sick!

After working on the bikes, we tried to get used to the altitude.  We went for a walk and even had a friendly game of “who can throw the pinecone the farthest”  I got close, but I think a few of the other players may have cheated a little – Todd.

When I got to the track, I found out that I had my picture in the event program.

Then it was time to start practice.  Look at that bike…..RED, white, and BLUE!

Practice went well.  My Dad worked on fine tuning the jetting and the guys from Thousand Oaks Yamaha even helped get my bike running perfect.

The Mammoth race is a little different than any other race because there is so many racers in each class.

• We have two divisions and the finish of the division races determines your gate pick for the main event.
• If you don’t transfer from the division race they have an LCQ race to give you a second chance to get into the main.
• The main event is the finish for the day.
• We repeat the entire race day, the same way, the second day to get day two finishes.
• Then they give an overall finish for both days combined.

Day 1 I got 2nd and 1st in 85 9-12 and 4th and 4th in Mini Sr 1.  At the awards ceremony that night not only did I get the famous “BIG BEAR”

I also got my custom Americore SMX scooter for winning the King Of The West….  See there are two #71 scooters because I was able to get both championships.

Day 2 I got 1st in both my heat races but had bad luck in both of my main event races.  In one race my bike was not handling well enough to let me get through the corners as fast as I wanted to and I was only able to pull out a 3rd place finish.  In the other race I had my bike handling better and I was heading to the front and and the bike in front of me went down and my bike got stuck in his bike.  I was able to race back from last place to 12th place.  I finished with an overall 2nd and 6th place.

Off the track we had a lot of fun at the Americore SMX and Lucas Oil Bowling Tournament.

All my friends from the track bowled but we should all stick to racing dirt bikes because we didn’t do very well.

It was really cool to have a lot of my sponsors at the track to support me and cheer me on for each race.

And they were on the podium with me after the race to congratulate me.

All my friends and sponsors also showed me a lot of support on social media.  Here are just a few of the posts……

Thank you to all my sponsors who have supported me and continue to help me do what I love.  Now its time to get ready for Loretta Lynn’s.

MAMMOTH MOUNTAIN RACE

The Road to Mammoth race is always very busy and fun.  When we got to the hotel the first thing we had to do was get the dirt bikes out and re-jet them because the altitude at Mammoth is really high.  Several of us got together at the hotel before the race to work on bikes and make sure they are all going to run for the race.

 

Because there is not much parking at the race track we have to get in line at 5am and they park all of us at the track.  They pile everyone in and you are stuck until after the day and everyone leaves.

Practice was a little more of getting in line and wait….there were so many riders there that almost every class had to have heat races and LCQ’s just to get to the main event.  My Dad had my bike working good and my lap times were right with some of the top riders.  The track was amazing and practice day was a lot of fun.

After practice day Americore SMX scooters and Lucas Oil had a bowling tournament and my family went to help set up and play.  We hung banners inside the alley and when the event started I stayed out front on the microphone and interviewed riders as they came in.  I asked them all how their practice day was and what they thought of the track.  Then it was time to bowl…….I don’t think I will ever compete in bowling.  I know I am much better at racing, but we all had a lot of fun.

On race day I had 66 riders in the 9-14 class and 45 riders in the 9-11 class.  Only 40 riders could transfer to race the main event.  The first race of the day I picked a number out of a bucket and I had to start on whatever gate number I picked.  I picked numbers in the 30’s which meant that I had one of the gates farthest from the first turn.  I lined up on the gate and I was ready to race.

Even though I had a really bad gate pick, I was able to get an awesome start.  Both race days I got the best starts and was in the top 3 of all my starts this weekend.  I even got two hole shots and was up on the podium and won $100.00 of Lucas Oil money.

I rode really well on the track but had a couple of things in each race that kept me from getting the best finishes.  I lead 4 laps of one race and slid out in a turn.  I had some suspension issues that didn’t help me to get around the track in the later motos that prevented me from moving forward.  In one race I got a flat front tire and crashed hard.  The racing was awesome and I know exactly what I need to work on to get the podium finishes I want.

I was able to get good starts, race up front and put down some great lap times, just have to work on finishing up front…

9-14 Class (2nd, 8th, 6th, 25th)

9-11 Class (2nd, 12th, 2nd, 2nd)

Thank you to everyone for all your help.  Thousand Oaks Powersports, Yamaha Racing, 2X Promotions, 51 Fifty Energy Drink, Americore SMX, Fly Racing USA, My Lucas Oil, Von Zipper Goggles, DVS Shoes, United Moto X, Mika Metals, Bostard MX, FMF, and everyone who cheered me on at home…..

THE ROOTS MX DIGITAL MAGAZINE

The people at Lucas Oil have put together a really amazing digital magazine.  After the race at Mammoth Mountain I spoke with them and we discussed an article they were writing for the Mammoth issue.  The magazine is really awesome and the things you can do with the magazine is so cool!  Because it is online and digital you get way more from it than any traditional magazines.

The magazine has over 100 pages of pictures, articles, videos and information about everything dirt bike racing.  The pictures are awesome, the articles are really cool, they have videos you can watch right in the magazine, and links that can take you directly to other sites.  As you look through the magazine just run your mouse across the magazine and the links are highlighted that will take you to hundreds of different websites.  With the way they put in videos and links, the magazine is totally interactive.

In the last ISSUE #3 MAMMOTH MOTOCROSS they have a featured article about me.

Issue #3 on Page 84 and 85 is an article that I wrote for the magazine.  Although I won one of my other races at Mammoth, the article is specifically about the race I finished in second place and the pass/battle for the second place spot.

You have to check out TheRootsDigital.com to view all the past issues of the digital magazine.

To see my article go to HunterCrossArticle for issue #3 to read about my race at Mammoth on pages 84-85

On page 113 of issue #3 make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss the next issue of The Roots Digital Magazine!

Thank you My Lucas Oil for putting so much time into giving us the amazing digital magazine.  Can’t wait to see what is coming next.

LOOK WHO MADE THE NEWS……THE CYCLE NEWS

For the last 40 years, Cycle News has been America’s weekly motorcycle newspaper with circulation throughout the United States and the world.

Guess who made it in the July 7th edition? ME!
When I looked down the front page I saw my picture from Mammoth with a caption that said “Hunter Cross won the 65cc (6-8) division.”

You can see the digital copy online at:
http://www.cyclenews.com/articles/supercross_motocross/2012/07/05/photo-gallery-mammoth-motocross-2012/

MY….ROAD TO MAMMOTH 2012 (part 2 of 2)

Now that I was able to get to the track I was really excited to ride. Practice went well and I quickly learned the track. The track has a concrete start and right out of the gate you start a small climb that leads right into a huge up hill and then a really fast down hill. It was a really fast track and throughout the day it got really rough and I had to make sure I picked good lines.

Then it was time to race. Throughout practice my Dad worked hard to get the bike jetted correctly because of the high altitude. Although the bike got better, it wasn’t 100% and I struggled a little with top end power and then low end. I got really good starts and I was able to battle but with my motor not as good as the other riders I was able to pull out a fourth and a first in my class with gave me a second overall. In the open class, out of a full gate I finished fifteenth and thirteenth. My Dad spent the afternoon working on my bike and we know that I would be ready to go for day two.

The next day of racing my bike was running a lot better and I was ready to ride. My Dad and i worked on different sections of the track and i got ready to race.

In the first race I didn’t get the best start and I battled to the front and finished in a very close second. In the next race I made sure to make the pass to take the lead to finish in first and it gave me a first place overall finish in my age class. In the open race I finished in ninth and eleventh which gave me a tenth place overall finish. In all of my races I had pretty good starts, had great battles with really fast kids, and I was able to finish each race on two wheels

 
I finished the race in first place and as I was coming off the track I was stopped to give a TV interview. It was my first ever race interview and I was very excited to be able to thank my sponsors and tell them about my race. I was interviewed for TV twice during the races and it was really cool!

I was able to get to the podium four times winning two little bears and two big bears. I got 2nd place from day one in my age class, 10th place from day two in the open class, 1st place from day two in my age class, and 1st place for the overall Road To Mammoth race in my age class.

 
I GOT INTERVIEWED ON THE PODIUM EACH TIME AND IT GAVE ME A CHANCE TO THANK MY SPONSORS!

THANK YOU
MOM, DAD,AND MY SISTER
GRANDMA AND GRANDPA
51 FIFTY ENERGY DRINK
ME – MOTO EFX
BOSS SUSPENSION
DRAGON GOGGLES
CYCLE GEAR
INTERO
I COULDN’T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT     ME-MOTO EFX    AND    51 FIFTY ENERGY DRINK

MY….ROAD TO MAMMOTH 2012 (part 1 of 2)

A few months back I raced in Los Angeles and qualified to go to the main event race in Mammoth Lake. The Road To Mammoth, two week event, is the oldest running continuous running motocross event in the USA. The track is located 8,000 feet up in the Sierra Nevada Mountain range and the track is only utilized for this one event each year.

We loaded the family into the Moto van and headed to Mammoth. We were all really excited because we had to drive right through the middle of Yosemite and none of us had ever been to Yosemite before. We had a really nice drive through Yosemite, but the ride was cut a little short… The transmission went out on the van and we were stuck on the side of the road with no cell phone service. My Mom had to walk down the road about five miles to get cell phone service to call AAA. Thankfully my parents found Tim that gave them a ride back to the truck and we waited for the tow truck…..thank you Tim

Finally the tow truck arrived

 

 

We had about a two hour delay, we arrived in a tow truck, but we finally made it to our condo in Mammoth.

Our van, bikes, gear and parts were now at our condo but we had to be able to get ourselves and my bikes to and from the race track each day. Luckily Tre and Kai came by our condo and picked up one bike to take to the race for us. Anthony and his Grandpa Ray moved things around and were able to fit my other bike, my riding gear, and my family in their van and we were able to get to the race track. I CAN’T THANK YOU GUYS ENOUGH FOR HELPING ME GET TO THE RACE TRACK. Now it was time to race.

 

 

TO BE CONTINUED…..