April and early May this year brought weeks of pounding rains to the Nashville area, producing flooding that temporarily crippled the city, and brought damaging waters to some of the Music City’s most cherished landmarks, including the Grand Ole Opry. For BMXers, another staid landmark that was affected was Music City BMX.

On May 3, a thread was posted on VintageBMX.com asking for information on how the track faired in all the flooding. Locals came back with reports, saying “There is extensive damage to the track and will take a TON of work to get it back to even a local level.” At that point, there were voices asking “will it be necessary to reschedule or move this year’s installment of the Music City Nationals?”

It was evident, on June 2, a plan was in place to bring in legendary track builder Tom “Ritz” Ritzenthaler not only to restore what was lost, but to add some new spark as well. As is so firmly embedded into the fabric of the town, itself, the show would go on!

By the time the first vendor rolled in on Tuesday July 6, all the work track honchos Tommy Jacobs, Brian Hill, Shawn Hisel, and their dedicated crew of volunteers put in over that two month period put the track back to the way it was, and then some! There was no sign of the previous distress, and the facility was as ready as could be to receive the thousands of families who were enroute.

Hard as it is to believe, this was the first NBL National of Calendar 2010 that BMX News has covered—-and our first exposure to their “Pro Spectacular” format which runs the elites classes in the late afternoon, after the amateur mains have concluded. And while we like the idea of the pros being upgraded to have their own show, we’d be lying if we didn’t say it felt like the band was playing one member short. Probably one of those “we’ll get used to it” things.

Precisely at 11:00AM on Saturday, we were underway. With 110 motos, not counting pros, the race was a bit smaller than the 2009 installment, but the ferocity was undeniable, as the 41-Over Expert hit the track for the first rack of the day.

The stage was set early for an impressive matchup between Tony Lehman and the newly-healed Bill Madden. Madden, you might remember, got folded, spindled and mutilated at last year’s NBL grands, but has made a more-than-full recovery and has been back in the chase since May. To show just HOW full a recovery, Madden took the 41-Over ex win both days in Nashville, a second in 40-44 Cruiser on Saturday, and a win in that class on Sunday. Nice job Bill!

Lots of familiar jerseys in the crowd, with strong presence from GT/SC Action Sports (who brought Colman Habib, Cole Tesar and Felicia Stancil), Morphine Industries, with guys like Richie Day and Noah Reeves in the ams, and Pros Jason Larev, Tim Dinger and the newly-unsuspended Mike Kapes (more on that later), Rennen-Intense with Will Murray, Austin Loebe, Cam Moore, Shayne Robinson and Melissa Woodruff. Lots of Kovachi riders as well, with Seth Utz and Crystal Kalogris among them. Dan’s Comp had Justin Posey and Weston Pope.

Sure as Elmer Fudd is hunting Wabbits, the NBL faithful are hunting their perfects, especially with the Grands shimmering on the horizon, a mere 55 days away. And lots of them were bagged in Nashville. Without turning this into an honor roll of sorts, with names listed in long-form we’re gonna give the thumbs up to a few notables right up front, and in no particular order.

Zach Attack Jacobs grabbed double perfects in 6-7Ex, as well as one in 8-Under Cruiser on Saturday. Jonathan Messing came a callin’ on Sunday to snatch the perfect in cruiser, with Zach in the two slot.

The Lone Rider from the Lone Star State, Tristan Judd grabbed a sunday perfect in 9-10 Cruiser and…um…10 Novice. Looks like 10X has one on the way, as he toasted more that a few experts on the big bike.

Cam Moore was a force of nature, winning every lap all weekend long in 11-12C and 12X for Rennen Intense. Looks like that G-Cog training is working out just fine! From Moore’s North Carolina to South Carolina’s Coleman Habib, who owned 11X both days.

Tyler Wagner out of OH scored a double perfect in 13X.

14X was a trail of tears for Cole Tesar fans. With 1-1-1s in both 20″ and Cruiser on Saturday, it looked like another perfect weekend was on tap for Rock & Roll Cole. Looking forward to the Worlds in South Africa in a couple weeks, Nashville would be a good prep trip. All hopes came unglued in the last turn of the 14x main, as Cole and seemingly-recent-arch-rival, Andrew Townsend tangled and both ended up on the asphalt. Cole seemed to get the worst of it, as he was rushed to a local hospital, where his shoulder was set (no surgery, contrary to early reports). The net result was no racing on Sunday for Cole, and the Worlds are all-but dashed. Hope you get that sling un-slung in time to make it happen at the Grands, Cole!

17-18 Expert was one of the largest classes of the weekend, with 24 riders. Going into Saturday’s main, Four riders had 1-1-1s (Jarrod Adcock, Bryan Kipp, Austin Loebe and Chase Hines). Adcock got the Saturday win, and it was Hines on Sunday (though not with a perfect, as Geoff Banser got the first moto win on Sunday).

What can be said about Felicia Stancil that has not already been said a million times before. She’s got the patent on speed, style and smooth in the 15G (well, 15-Over Women this weekend), as well as…uh..15-34 Girls Cruiser. 16 starts, 16 wins in Nashville. ‘Maritzburg awaits, and we can’t wait to see twin W1 plates coming back to the Land O’ Lincoln!

OK, we have officially run out of time in writing part one of this race report. The innkeeper is literally pounding on the door, so we have to go, before we’re put on to ironing sheets. Watch for the Elite report from on Nashville Monday afternoon.

Meanwhile, let us give the punchline away by telling you to browse the image galleries from both days (where you are sure to see the podium shots, but oh well).

Saturday image Gallery (55 Images)

Sunday Image Gallery (125 images)

OK, sports fans. Next time anyone hears me saying that I am “up for a road trip,” please help me drill down on that a bit. Sure, there is a tinge of romance to being out on the open road, wind in your hair, etc. But once the 2:30AM reality sets in, it becomes a real drag. So, I’m definitely not saying “no more road trips,” by any means…but the whole sleeping-in-the-car-in-a-rest-area thing, while an easy do at 18 yrs old, is not much fun at 40+.

As you all know, I like to have my photo galleries posted on the day of the race, when at all possible. So, posting this one three days after the fact is a real annoyance. But, I think you will find, as I did, that it was worth the wait.

2010 Great Salt Lake Nationals Photo Galleries

Saturday Photo Gallery

Sunday Photo Gallery

—Mike Carruth

Words by Mike Carruth, via BMXNEWS.COM
Rad Canyon BMX. It’s rad. It’s in a canyon. And it is ALL BMX. A more fitting moniker could not be bestowed, unless going back to the day they found a name for a chunky spread made from peanuts.

Though the Great Salt Lake Nationals are always a popular stop on the ABA National tour, this year held a little something special for the Elites– the designation as the 2010 UCI North American Continental Championships. As noted in a previous report, unlike other championships, where champions are crowned and titles bestowed, this one was really more about the points, offering Class 3 UCI points (the highest points awarded at any North American race, save for the Class 2 Chula Vista Supercross, which is part of the World Cup series).

Saturday’s race topped out at a respectable 189 motos, run with drill-team efficiency (we were out of the parking lot in five hours flat). Highlights include Dominique Daniels showing up in her new Grand Canyon University jersey (not to mention aboard one of Toby Henderson’s “Speed” frames), foreshadowing a full-ride BMX scholarship to the Arizona school (more on that tomorrow).

Tony Hoffman scored his first A Pro win on Saturday, besting the likes of Jake Peebles and local hero Mitch Ropelato. Saturday’s Category 3 UCI points would not find a home in the USA for the top three spots, as Maris Strombergs took home a win for Latvia, and Sam Willoughby and Khalen Young grabbed the second and third podium spots, respectively, for Australia. Don’t get us wrong, we’re big fans of all three—and the Saturday main was off the hook, with Maris getting Sam at the line by less a wheel (watch for the actual finishline-cam image in our Wednesday Race Report). Junior Women had a class on Saturday, and Dom Daniels brought her new colors to the top of the podium. Alise Post won every lap on Saturday, and USA got the full-pull UCI podium points among the gals, with Arielle Martin and Ashley Verhagen rounding out the podium

Oh, we could go on and on…and will in our full report, posted this Wednesday.

But, the Interstate awaits, and it is a haul and a half to the next stop on our mini-tour: Nashville, TN for the NBL Music City Nationals this weekend.

Meanwhile, check out the following SLC resources to temporarily quench that thirst for knowledge:

BMXNOW Twitter Updates from SLC. Just for a little “appetizer” portion of what went down.

Results posted on ABABMX.COM

And, of course, the BMXNOW photo galleries. Saturday is posted now. The Sunday Gallery will be posted Wednesday.

The Jr. Devo gates held what is sure to be some of Team USA’s most promising talent for the 2016 games in…(as a Chicagoan, still pains me to say it)…Rio.

Felicia Stancil owned the weekend in the girls class, with a matched set of 1-1-1-1s The real action was in the second-third battle, as semi-local gal Samantha Brown (above, middle) and the pride of Stompin Stu’s stomping grounds, Norco, CA’s own Shay Glynn (above, right), did a spirited 2-3, 3-2 back & forth on Saturday (with Shay getting the third round deuce, and Kansan Adrian Sanders getting the tre). Shay took twos across the board on Sunday, until the main when “Sam Wow” came back to stalk Shay to the final inches and grab the left step on the podium. Sam’s performance was especially noteworthy, considering she seemed to have a bit of trouble in the gate, just before the cadence started.

Saturday’s Jr. Devo Boys saw Rock & Roll Cole Tesar sittin with a 3-2-2 going into the main, but SHAZAM! flopped an ace on the river with a textbook trip, and bested the field by a two-second margin. Dylan Cooley cruised in for second and Jordan McMullen worked the mojo for a third. That was pretty much how the race came off the first jump, and finished at the line. On Sunday, Cole was out with a seized up neck, and local hero Tyler Whitfield joined the fray, leaving his cruiser in the trailer. The main was a fence-grabber, as Cooley took the early lead into the first turn, but Tyler crazy-glued his tires to the inside line to make the swoop and stretched out an impressive lead by the stripe. Final order: Whitfield, Cooley, and Luke Roarty out of Maryland.

GIRLS

In 11 Girls, first-round transfers Paige “The Pest” Norton and Shelby Fuller-Larsen put down a 1-2, respectively, and second round transfers Ashley Cooley and Tarah Wagner hooked up a good lap to capture third and fourth on Saturday. Norton was back on the top step for Sunday, with Awesome Ashley stepping it up for a second, and Mallory Otto improving her Saturday seventh to a third on day two. The Jr. Devo pace seemed to bode well for Adrian Sanders, as she topped 13G both days. Hard to question that the heavy comp with the fastest ladies in the land brings out a better showing in class.

True, as well for 14G, as Shay Glynn (above) topped the class both days. In Saturday’s 14G main, Samantha Brown entered the first turn in second, but tangled with Hannah Tavenner and neither would see turn two, after a fairly-dramatic pull of the ejector lever into the infield. Day one was Shay, Heather Collman and Mikenna Koth. On day two, all stayed on two wheels, and Shay put down a great lap, protecting her flank, against a hard-charging Brown. Koth was positioned well in third for most of the race, but ended up getting passed by Heather Collman for the third. Shay and Sam battled heavy to the stripe, but in the end, Glynn got her Profile jersey into the proverbial endzone ahead of the Young Guns-mounted Brown.

15G saw Fly’n Felicia handily dispense with the pack on Saturday, with Kristin Bob and Courtney Purcell rounding out the podium. Sunday saw a changeup, as Stancil and Bob battled down the first straight. Felicia was on the inside, and had a knobby on Bob, but the two got together midway down the first straight, and Felicia’s Phantom-OnTrac went off-track and took her out of the race (depriving Felicia of a “Double Triple” for the weekend). Kristen came unclipped in the clash, as Courtney Purcell took the lead, but Bob got back in the pedals and made it from fourth in the first turn to second at the stripe. Megan “The Major” Pritchard hooked up the third.

In other Girls-class highlights, Dani George and Victoria Hopperdietzel did a turnabout, with “The Grasshopper” Hopperdietzel getting the high-hardware on Saturday and George grabbing it on Sunday. 17-27G had Samantha Bretheim leveling a Napa Valley Crush on the class both days.

CRUISER

The cruiser clash was in full effect as early as the first gate-drop with the 8-Under main on Saturday, as the Smooth E, Corbin Essman took the lead. Local hotshoe “Super” Cooper Sheldon went into the first turn in fourth, and put on a clinic to work his way into the two slot by the exit of the second turn on Saturday. Final order on day one was Essman, Sheldon and Nathan Davids. Sunday’s main was the Smooth-show all over again with Essman grabbing the wire to wire win. Sheldon had the second from gate-to-stripe and it was Andres Papajohn in the three slot.

Action-wise, 12 Cruiser had not much in the way of high drama or back-n-forth battles. What IS significant is the substantial service visited upon the class by local zoomer, Justin Richmond. The Juice won every rack all weekend long, and went wholly unchallenged in both cruiser mains. Now that we’re talking about it, he scored a coveted “double-triple” at the Rock, taking home the top spot in 11-12 Open, 12C, and 12x both days. We saw Justin goofin in the pits on Saturday, not long after a first round transfer in three classes. Just another day at the office…next case!

The hometown Snap Factory team locked up 14,15,16 cruiser on Saturday, with wins by Brandon Ceslok, Tyler Whitfield and Alan Struna (above). As noted earlier, Tyler left the big bike parked for Sunday and raced Jr. Devo instead, but his aforementioned mates carried on the tradition, and took 14C and the combined 15-16C on day two.

36-40 Cruiser is always one to watch, and the Rockford installment was no different. Last we saw Rusty Dial, he was suited up all different like. At the Rock, he was decked in Free Agent threads head to toe, and goin WAY fast. Saturday’s main had him leading…well…pretty much from the “llll” in “watch the lights.” Still, MCS-mounted Raul Gomez was not giving him an easy time of it—until an apparent wardrobe malfunction/unclippage sent him into an abrupt and unfortunate (for Tae Thomas) left turn, taking out both himself and Thomas. Doran Bradshaw kept Rusty honest, and kept the Morphine flowing fast, right to the stripe for a Saturday second. Sunday shuffled the deck, with Gomez gettin gone from the get-go for a win (top). Robert Riofrio had a good hold on second… so the Three-abreast battle down the last straight was for third, between Dial (who came unclipped in turn two), Bradshaw (who battled back from seventh in the first turn) and Hoosier Billy Knies. Come to think of it, that’s how it ended up.

Todd Parry is a one-man “Monster of the Midway.” He’s rockin’ the true-blue SE factory duds, and keepin TL very happy, with double cruiser wins in Roseville and now bringing that stuff over to Rockford for a double-double (and not the kind you get at In-N-Out Burger, which we don’t have in Illinois anyway). George Goodall kept the Redline colors flying fast and in the front, with an early lead in both mains, but TP got the smooth inside line (turn one on Saturday, turn two on Sunday) and snatched the lead from the Gorgeous one. Parry and Goodall with the 1-2 both days. On Saturday, a down-to-the-wire throwdown for third between Randy Bitinaitis and John “CornFed” Noerenberg. It was Noerenberg upon review. In Sunday’s main, Noerenberg had the third by a margin, and the battle was for fourth between Bitinaitis and Hector Mendez (Randy got it).

14-16 Girl Cruiser came out with Felicia Stancil scoring the win both days. On Saturday, it was a battle to the stripe between Victoria Hopperdietzel and Crankin Carly Dyar. The grasshopper got it on Saturday, and Carly made tracks on Sunday for the deuce.

Always great to see mid-schooler, Melanie Cline doin her thing in the 31-35GC class. She served it up cold to a couple twentysomethings on Saturday for a win, but Sunday would see Megan “High Maintenance” Hughes switching places with Melanie. On the weekend, it was Cline and Hughes for the 1-2, 2-1 respectively.

Pro Cruiser was stuck in Xerox mode, with Barry Nobles, Danny C and Jason Carne$ racking up identical scores both days (in that order). You say there is not much excitement in Pro Cruiser? Wait til the grands. I think these guys are going to race for Pink Slips or something. In addition to that black number 1 plate, that is. Word round the campfire is that we may see Nic Long suit up for some big bike bar bangin as part of his Haro deal (though unconfirmed).

CLASS

Even the puniest of pedal pushers were puttin down the ponies in RFD. Saturday’s 6X main saw a hefty holeshot by Aiden “A Bomb” Leaks, which lasted him to the last turn when, after making up a ton of real estate in the rhythm, Ethan “The Bull” Moore gave Aiden the horns and stampeded by with a last straight pass to take the win. Not so bueno for “el Toro” on day two, as a tangle in the early part of the first straight put him out of the action. Leaks grabbed the Sunday win with Alex Thrasher in second.

7X gives us a precious chance to do some braggin. BMXNEWS Test Force Ace, Gavin “The G-Man” Freewalt had a supreme weekend with a pair of “three second lead,” wire-to-wire main wins. The first round of Sunday’s 7-8 Open was also a “News Pride” moment, as the G-Man put the melt on “Ice Trey” Maeker’s lead in the first turn and grabbed a moto win from the eventual 8x winner. Great job Gav! Those “News” colors look mighty fine up front! Back to 7X for a moment, it was Willie “Maze” Hayes and Kegan Perlberg for the second and third, respectively both days.

10X had some ooh and ah to it in Rockford, with a hearty tussle between Tyshawn Carr, Colin Whittington and John Jilbert. In Saturday’s main, Jilbert did the top tube tango in the first straight, and ended up fourth at the stripe. Carr handled all comp with poise and apparent ease. Kyle Rittenhouse with a second and Whittington for the third. On Sunday, it was Whittington with the holeshot, but Jilbert jammed on it and by the end of the first turn had it in the bag. Final order: Jilbert, Whittington and Daylen Pendley.

Walker Finch owned 13x, with an impressive pair of laps which were good enough that, even as long-winded as we tend to be, leave no further reason for comment. Props to his #2, Alden Volle for a 2-2 punch and Zachary Tossett for a 3-3.

We were, as-always, glad to see Justin and Momma Posey at the Rock. 16X is a hot class, with plenty of guys looking for the lead. Jon Jon Rapp is off Syndicate, and just built up a new Intense to rock along with his new Young Guns Jersey. Alan “The Big Kahuna” Struna who, as we reported earlier, took home a pair of cruiser wins at his home track, was also a major factor in the “salty 16″ class. These dudes are gunfighter serious and many have the Olympic rings screenprinted on their bedroom ceilings–and will long after the next Gold medal is awarded. This weekend the top step did the Saturday/Sunday swap between Posey and Struna, respectively, with each getting the respective second. Damian Cherepko got the Saturday third, and Dan Birmingham took the tre on Sunday.

To attempt a narrative on how thoroughly Connor Fields cleaned up in 17-18 Expert, we would need to invent new-improved words for massive, colossal and/or titanic. Guys like Austin Loebe and Jacob Sherbno are double-F-Fast, no doubt. But the ConMan (now “Bugsy??”) had a whole ‘nother gear this weekend and plucked a pair of plum wins from the ABA trophy tree (saver stamps probably, but it did’t flow as well). Saturday, it was Loebe for the second and Sherbno for the third, while Sunday saw Colby Landin out of AZ with the second, and Sherbno repeat in third. Sunday’s main is definitely worth watching on Go211, as the cameraman was having a tough time keeping Connor and Colby in the same shot.

Per usual, 19-27x was one of the biggest classes of the weekend, with 39 riders on Saturday and 35 on Sunday. That meant quarterfinals, and at least two additional opportunities to get squeezed off the track, or detonate in some remote stretch of the rhythm section.
Come main time, it was Josh Study with the pop, and a good lead into the first turn. Unsure if Josh’s front wheel broke loose as he railed through bermzilla, but the bottom line was that his bottom was on the ground in turn one. That got Olijuwan Davis a little off-kilter, and he made it back into the clips in time to avoid a major ball up just before turn two. In the end, it was always-on-the-radar Rennen/Intense flier Max Egdorf with the win on Saturday, with Ben Kubalak in second and OD in third. On Sunday, Study got the better of Bermzilla and escaped clean. Davis grabbed the second and Brandon Elmore scored an impressive third.

In the final race of the weekend, we already talked about how TP brought home a double-double for SE with a win in 41-45 Cruiser, and 41-Over Expert. But the main had some exciting moments both days. In the Saturday Main, Parry and Goodall got to it quick with the 1-2 lead. In the third slot, we had local oldschool hero, Frank Nuccio and an even higher-wattage star in the fourth spot, in the person of Hall of Famer, Eddy King. That was in turn two. It stayed that way until the last turn, where something must have popped King Edward’s bubble, as he ended up with a snowman. Final order on day one was Parry, Goodall, Nuccio and Bitinaitis. Same for Sunday, but a switcheroo in the 3-4.

Within 90 minutes of TP crossing the line, Searls Park was getting back to looking like a nature preserve again, rather than the BMX Woodstock it turns into during the Midwest nationals (meant in the most positive and affectionate way). BMXNEWS was back at the Rock the following morning at 8:30 for a photo shoot and, while you could still hear the faint echo of gate drops and Jim Riley’s PA horseplay, the circus had, most certainly, cleared out of town. A thousand clipped zip ties were scattered about, the droppings of what was, 24-hours before, a bustling vendor row. An abandoned EZ-up stood twisted in the distance, contorted in such a way that it could have easily been passed off as lawn sculpture. Track Operator Jake Karau motored around the grounds with purpose, working to get his baby back to its normal pristine condition. But still, as over as Rockford 2010 now was…it was an easy peck at the iPhone to set up the countdown for Rockford 2011. 357 days, and counting!

—Mike Carruth
June 25, 2010

If you have not checked out the full
Sunday Photo Gallery yet, go do that now.

“The Rock,” as it is lovingly called, is one of those must-attend races each year. A geographically-desirable location (relatively close to both Chicago and Milwaukee’s airports), as well as a masterfully-groomed facility which is constantly, and meticulously maintained by Track Operators Jake and Candy Karau, plus the 60-acre park that the track sits in, are all ingredients in making the annual Midwest Nationals a deliciously-spicy BMX soup.

Jumping right in to the meat & potatoes, Elite Men/AA Pro was about as stacked as it gets, with 28 of the biggest names in the sport winging on into RFD from places as far-flung as South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and even Ohio. South African, Sifiso Nhlapo, was truckin both days, with wins in two of three motos both days, as well as a main event slot that did not quite come up roses (a fifth and a seventh)…still nothing to sneeze at.

Rockford 2010 served as the coming out party for Nic Long riding his new Haro hardware. Hard to tell them boys apart, as they are both way-fast and are equally decked out in TLD threads (Nic is the one with the white bike). No main spot for Nic on his first outing in the new duds, but Sunday would be different.

AA Pro main on Saturday had Strombergs coming out of lane 8, and immediately challenging Marc Willers and Denzel Stein for the lead. Willers got the first call from the tower, but Stein had been going fast all day, and got right to it. By the backside of the first set of doubles (formerly, the dropoff), Stein had the lead. Into the first turn, Strombergs held an impossibly high and tight line and railed the razor-thin real estate between glory and “goombye” to zoom past Denzel into the second straight. Denzel’s front wheel got as close to the lead as Maris’ bottom bracket in the last straight, but the results were written on this one as soon as they entered the second straight. Final order, Strombergs, Stein and Willers. And yes, Maris did pump his fist into the air, for those of you keeping score at home.

On Sunday, the deck was shuffled a bit, as Nic Long, Khalen Young and Jason Rogers took the place of David Herman, Denzel Stein and Randy Stumpfhauser in the Main. Stumpy had strong showings in the motos, with two second places and a first, but a sixth in the semi sat Stumpy on the sidelines for the big lap. Herman also made it to Sunday’s semi, after a third, a first and a fifth in the motos, but got sealed out of the main with a seventh in the semi. Denzel also made it happen in the motos, with a 2-1-2 on the sheets, but a snowman in the semi marked an end to the story for this go-round.

Sunday’s Main had Long and KY coming out of gate 1 and 2. The pack balled up early, and took out Marino and Rogers who were in lanes 3 and 4. Willoughby was out in six, and vectored out of the carnage in a hurry. Into the first turn, Willoughby had about a half a wheel on WIllers, but also had that cool and crisp inside line. Nic Long went into turn one a half a wheel behind Strombergs, who was in third…and lookd, for a nanosecond, like he might light the afterburners and swoop the whole pack. He came out of the turn in third, and Strombergs gave chase. Pretty much the end of the story where that main is concerned, except for KY running off the track out of turn two while battling with Nhlapo. The podium would go Willoughby, Willers and Long.

The Women.

On Saturday, the Jr. Elite Women class made, with five riders, including reigning National Numero Uno, Dominique Daniels. Not much to report that we could not copy and past from any number of other race reports where the Jr. Class was made…Dom won it handily. Alaina Henderson, Keely Kortman and Crystal Kalogris made up the balance of the main.

Elite Women…now that’s a different box of chocolates altogether. Oh sure, you had all the familiar faces of Post, Geving, Tomei and Lilly, but toss in Kiwi cutie and reigning world champ, Sarah Walker, into the mix, and you know it’s a gonna get good. Sara said that her and her Team New Zealand mates are here in the Nifty Fifty for some training at the OTC in advance of the worlds next month. “It’s miserable, cold and raining at home right now, so tough to train” she said in a pre-podium chat on Sunday (sounds way better with the accent, trust me).

On Saturday, Alise and Sarah were in the same moto for first round, and Sara got the win. She would ace the remaining two laps as well, as would Alise. So the stage was set for a showdown in the main, and the dames did not disappoint. From the gate to the first turn, Post and Walker were as close as peas & carrots. Alise had the inside, and glided into the turn, picking up a bike length on Sarah. She quickly made that up, and was back to buzzing the Redline decal off Alise’s chainstay by the middle of the second straight. All held their breath as the second turn unfolded. That turn can be tricky, as “a little high/low” often turns into a little “high-and-bye” as the high gal propels over it. Not to be this time, thankfully, as Sarah rails the outside and is back to near-even with Alise down the third straight. Nothing of note in the last turn, but Alise starts to stretch out a bit of a lead in the last straight, and hits the stripe a good bike and a half in front of Sarah. Courtney Tomei scooted her Supercross 20-year retro jersey in for the third.

The Jr. Women class did not make on Sunday, with the absence of Dom Daniels, so the rider count in Elite Women got a bump from 12 to 15 for day two. Four of the six sistahs in Saturday’s main made a second appearance on Sunday. We swapped out Kim Hayashi and Baylie Kortman for Aussie Redliner Ziggy Callan and Baylie’s little sis Keely (who got second behind Dom in Jr. the day before).

In a bit of “groundhog day” charm, Alise and Sarah were bar bangin and hard chargin for the lead. This time, it was Sarah on the inside, coming from gate three. Alise was in lane four, and busted out an impressive muscle move on the world champion at the mid-point in the first straight. That move made Sarah ride the white line for 10 feet or so, just long enough for Alise to settle in to the top spot coming into turn one. Amanda Geving gets some ups at this point for getting to turn one in third, from the way outside.
Alise lead the race down the third straight. But Sarah did on Sunday what she did not do on Saturday, which is set herself up early and often in the third straight for a last turn attack. As if there was a crew chief saying “get to the inside” Sarah zips to the inside, and immediately challenges Alise for the lead at the midpoint in the third straight. Sarah had the primo inside line going into the last turn, and that was the proverbial ballgame, as she scooped it low and deep and glided right into the lead. Alise put the ponies down to try and make up the lost ground, but she ran out of track. Final order: Walker, Post, Geving.

Jr. Men

Whoa…this class has quickly become one that you come to the fence to see. Every lap, it’s a battle royale between the Con Man and Corben. Either guy can win at any time, and these guys are so fast that you’d have to be on a controlled substance not to put them both squarely at the top of the US talent pool for London 2012. Both guys raced two classes (for Connor it was Jr. Men and 17-18x, for Corben, A Pro and Jr. Men). A Pro runs as the first main, and Jr. Men runs seventh. About an eight-minute recovery time from a wicked fast lap to prep for a hyperdrive lap. How DO they do it?

Saturday’s six-man main blasted off like a rocket sled on rails. Corben had a paper thin lead over the first jump, and into the first turn. Connor had the outside, so making the move for the lead might be a tough do. The race stayed Sharrah-Fields into the last turn, but Connor punched the nitrous button in the last straight, and came within a valve stem of the lead over the last table. A the stripe, it was Corben, Connor and Tommy Zula.

On Sunday, the class dropped four riders and it was down to seven, with a six-man main. This time, Connor had the inside gate, coming out of four (which, at Rockford, is preferable for most to either one or two, due to the dogleg to the outside in the first straight). Corben was way out in lane seven. All that really didn’t matter, because by the first obstacle, they were bar end to bar end and raging up the middle. Corben almost got a taste of the tar on turn one, as Austin Loebe came into the turn high and hard and almost took Colby Landon on a trip over “bermzilla.” No paint was traded though and Austin slid in to the third slot. Connor laid down about as perfect a lap as we had seen that day, and parlayed all that inertia into a two second lead (using the “one-one-thousand” method, not Swiss Timing) by the stripe. The podium mugs were Fields, Sharrah and Loebe.

—Mike Carruth

BMXNEWS will bring you highlights from the Amateur side on Thursday morning, so stay tuned!

Meanwhile, occupy the time by browsing our 200+ photo gallery from Sunday’s race.

The pro ranks were roughly the same composition as on day one, with Dennison Smith and Logan Collins doing battle, ultimately ending up first and second, as on day one… though Logan did mount a pulse-quickening assault into the last turn of the main. Still, Sun Brü’s favorite son held the lead, and made off with twin pro wins for the weekend.

The Junior Development classes were also in redux mode, with Jordan Miranda and Samantha Brown serving a beat down to their comp for the second day running, and bringing home double-first place points to California and Indiana, respectively.

Though plenty exciting to see the pros lay down the ponies, the carbon copy results doesn’t give us much room to write. Thus, we turn to classes like 6 expert, where Ethan “The Bull” Moore was going from last place to second in the first round, after a bad start (Ultimate finish for the day: first). Or 15 expert, where Tyler Whitfield got called for a 30-foot rule violation, and invited to make a rare second round appearance (more on 15x in a minute).

Come main time, 7 expert provided some needed chills and thrills. “Zach Attack” Jacobs came out of the first straight, and onto the crossover in the lead, but had Saturday’s winner, Cooper Sheldon stalking the lead in second, then third. Into the last turn, Zach had held the lead, and put his first ABA National Expert Win in the books. Sheldon ended up on the ground after a last turn washout, and ended the weekend on a 1-8 split.

Change also came to 10x today, when Justin Hendley handled Tyshawn Carr for a win. The 19-27x class also had some dynamic racing on Sunday, with Seth Utz besting Brandon Elmore and John Anderson, who had the first two podium spots on Saturday.

But it was the 15x main that was the oxygen-needed race of the day. Snap Factory teammates, Tyler Whitfield and Alan Struna battle regularly on the track, at least for some of the year (when not on the track, they are friendly competitors in throwing Yahtzee in the trailer). The two threw down in a big way for Sunday’s main, with Struna having the slight edge going into the last turn. Tyler hopped and heaved his manual magic down the last straight, and the finish was close…realy close. The scorer called the race for struna, but it went to the video. Under the proverbial hood, it was told to us that the race was a virtual tie. So, what happens then? Well, if you’ve listened at your riders meeting, you’d know that the call of the scorer is final if the video cannot determine a winner. Thus, Alan Struna took home the highest hardware this day (Whitfield got it on Saturday).

Check out Sunday’s Dothan Photo Gallery

With 29 hours spent in the car, 1720 miles in the rearview, and 400 photos clicked off, the 2010 Wiregrass Nationals is part of BMX History. The ABA has had a great result out of their first national in the State of Alabama, and has pulled up stakes for Albuquerque. The next race we’ll be bringing you is the ABA Midwest Nationals in Rockford, IL over Father’s Day weekend.

Day Two Race Results

The first running of the ABA Wiregrass Nationals saw attendance from as far west as California, as far North as Minnesota, and even Florida, where the NBL State Championships were happening, in a parallel BMX universe.

It was not at all uncommon to hear “12, 14, 16 hours” as the answer to the “How long it take you?” question.

The southern hospitality was dialed up to “high” by the track crew, led by Track Operator, Mr. Wellington Cannon, as well as by unoffical Grand Marshals and ambassadors of goodwill to the festivities, Stuart Harrison and Richard Bunt.

Action stepped off on cue, at 11:30, with 92 motos in-and-through the chutes.

The A Pro Class had two racks, with 13 riders total. Dennison “Black Daddy” Smith and Logan Collins had a firm hold on the class all day, with Brandon “Butterman” Hopkins and Jason LaRev (fresh back from Copenhagen). And, wouldn’t you know…it finished just that way in the main.

A spectacular loop-out digger in the first round brought 7x contenda, Andres Papajohn to the canvas (see photo of the moment before the loopout…would have been a great shot, had he landed it). Props go to his mom for being a well-trained ABA BMX parent and, though she was standing only a dozen feet away, did not run on to the track as the ABA officials were tending to him (until called over).

DK’s Spencer “Coletrain” Cole trucked on home to win the 8x main, after a battle with Trey Maeker turned ugly (for Trey) going in the first turn.

Fortunes turned in 14x, as Cody Dziak ceded control of the main to Brandon Ceslok, a win that helped the Snap Factory Team score their first teamsheet win by two points over Sun Brü

Always good to see Shan Hatfield up top of the pack (in the 20th or 21st century). First in 36-40x.

Bummer for Jon Jon Rapp, who went down hard on the first lap of JDP during the Pre-Race, and bought himself the attention of some pretty nurses at the local patchup parlor…looks like a few weeks off, minimum. while the kid’s kidneys kick it.

BMXNEWS is going to be producing a special Web Zine PDF from the Wiregrass nationals, which will be available mid-next week. Inside, we’ll have more from the Wiregrass, as well as some interviews and a couple “head to toe” features. Be sure to check it out.

Meanwhile, check out the Photo Gallery From Saturday’s Race

Results, on ABABMX.COM

We never really closed out our coverage of the ABA Super Nationals in Desoto. First it was thawing out, then spending 15 hours in a confined space to get back to base, then the inevitable cold & flu that ensued. But Elvis dutifully, and immediately filed this report within hours of the last gate. We were just waiting to post it until we had a more robust report to tag along with it. Well, that ship has sailed, so we submit, for your approval, the following missive from Mr. Elvis.

It was cold in DeSoto, very cold.

The Titanic got wet, very wet.

It was freezing; it was nuts.

Friday was typical Texas weather for the day before the first day of Spring, pleasant, mild, all that. Then, it came. “It” being some mad-dog cold front moving in the mad-dog tradition, just ripping across the Texas prarie and smacking the central Texas area up the side of its head.

The temps dropped, and kept dropping, and the wind came up, way up, howling up. Then, oh man, it snowed, beginning Saturday night and on-and-off into Sunday morning as flurries blew through, carried by that cold relentless winds knocking that early Spring weather out of the way, way out. Bears repeating: It was nuts. Sunday morning, second day of Spring, scraping the snow off the windshield to drive to the track through flurries.

In the middle of this Spring-Winter madness: Sunday motos. Actually surviving Sunday motos despite the cold. The trick was to do everything you could not to interact with the weather. Listen on the radio for the motos. Everybody has a routine, and time to start getting ready, little rituals to warm up, but that was out the window. Instead you sat with the heater going until the last possible minute, then quick, helmet on, gloves (hoodie already under jersey since leaving the motel that morning), out of the car, grab the bike, staging, trying to time it so you’re there with as few motos as possible between you and get-in-your-lane time.

Stretch? In this cold? It’s 32 on the dashboard thermometer, stretching is for warm people. Just get this over with, wait ’til the last possible second to get out in it.

In the staging area hiding behind a vendor’s trailer trying to block the wind as best you can, tight-lipped jokes with your buds, “We must be crazy to be out here.” Already the cold numbing fingers and toes (mesh shoes seemed like a good idea once).

There it is, your moto called, out from behind the trailers and up and around (”excuse me, ’scuse me, ’scuse, coming through”) now in the lane trying to find something to duck behind, keeping the wind off as best you could, some guys are taking off outer jackets now. You’re up, rope up, climb the hill MAN it’s cold.

Time to get racy, shut the outside world part of the brain off, it’s race time, focus, move up, behind the gate, focus, clear, (MAN it’s …. stop it, race time) sliding into the gate, clip clip, set steady, cadence.

The racing was racing, except the cold effect made everyone move a little slower overall. And if you let your brain relax you’d really feel it coming down the third straight which had an open shot at that mad-dog prairie wind.

Finish line, quick nods around then back to the car, get the heater going, get in, gloves off, helmet, warm, please, the first puffs of not-cold from the vents and set the fan to stun, trying to get as much heat, and feeling back in toes, as possible before you have to go up again.

Listening to motos on the radio, feeling the occasional gust shake the car. Everybody’s got a routine, nobody’s got one for this weather.

Yes, it was cold in DeSoto.

When BMXNEWS turned out the lights at 4AM on Sunday morning, after posting our story and photos from Saturday’s race, the concept of us even making it to the track for Sunday’s race was very much in doubt. It was snowing violently, with temps in the 20s—and did we mention that we packed for the gentle climate of Dallas, not Duluth, thus shorts only were in the wardrobe. Still, neither rain, nor sleet, nor 20 year low temperatures shall keep us, blah, blah, blah. We were up & at ‘em in time for the third round of pros, and all the semis and mains.

Sunday Photos are posted, check out the gallery now. BMXNEWS will have a recap of Sunday highlights Monday afternoon.

With respect to the “National Championship” component to this race…well, that is a topic of some controversy and discussion as well. A so-called “one-lap,-no-crap” approach to crowning a national champion (via a win in the main event) may work great for countries with less-developed BMX programs. But for the United States, there is a large chorus of voices calling for this race to be re-engineered into a mini series or, dare we say, some kind of “Superbowl of BMX,” where the champions of the ABA and the NBL meet in…well, Chicago, or other neutral ground, to decide the true national champion for each class. But that, too, is another story of “War and Peace” heft.

However you feel about the format, this is the one day of the year where riders qualify (or not) for the 2010 UCI BMX World Championships, to be held in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa this July. If we did out math right, only an unfortunate few in 17-24 men did not qualify for the worlds by default, as all riders in the semis automatically qualify (and thus, the mains as well). Also on the auto-qualify list were any riders who made the main at last year’s worlds.

Hard to launch into the highlights from the race without first talking about the weather—normally, that most mundane of topics. Well, 24 hours prior, we were enjoying a southern, breezy 68 degrees. By the first gate on Saturday, it had started raining and the temp dropped by more than HALF, to 33 degrees. People were wandering blank-faced and aimlessly around staging, like you’d expect in one of those shows about the days following a nuclear apocalypse. Seems a lot of people were caught off guard by the cold front, present company included, except we did not strip the bed in the hotel of its bedspread and wear it like a prize-fighter’s robe. As much as the parents were “on tilt” at the teeth-chattering temps, the riders were moving as if in some kind of splinter dimension where everything goes at 3/4 time. What was once a picture-perfect factory uniform was now a patchwork of T.H.E. hoodies, flannels, and the now-ubiquitous Troy Lee zip-front hoodies, on which J&R did a brisk business, when the winds turned from brisk to blistering.

The unfriendly Fahrenheit notwithstanding, there was some seriously hot racing happening on the track. In addition to the above-listed rules of the day’s race, another important aspect of today’s race was that it was open to only US Citizens (hence the name, “USA Cycling BMX National Championships”). The birth year rule brought more than a few sometimes-rivals squarely into the ring—one being in 8 boys where the now-eight-year old Julian Dittrick met his old pals Wyatt Bell and Andres Papajohn to come from way out in the back 40 of gate 8 to win it by a couple lengths.

Changing channels for a moment, to the Elite classes, Elite Men had 14 riders, but the scratching of Dennison Smith, Kyle Bennett and Matt Pohlkamp brought the field down to 11. Defending champ, Jason Rogers made his 2010 debut on his home turf to do battle with some familiar faces like Donny Robinson, Nic Long, and Danny Caluag, and some not before seen in the class like Riley Stair, Corey Reid, Tony Hoffman and Tyler Faoro. Nic took the lead in today’s Elite Men main, and never had a knobby not out front thereafter, with Danny C in second and Corey Reid on the right-step (well, camera-right, at least).

Elite Women had a similar flavor and flair as it had the previous day, with Alise and Dom in the same class (and the same moto in the qualifying rounds). The results tell the story as well as we could: Dominique Daniels: 1-1-1-1, Alise Post: 2-2-2-2, Stephanie Barragan (who was in the other rack): 1-1-1-3.

The six-rider Jr. Men class actually had some punch to it in the action department, when Jared Garcia snatched the win from the grasp of Elliot McGrath at the line, in one of those moments where a “correction” has to be announced (or in our case, tweeted). Justin Posey got the third for Dan’s Comp.

In Masters, Kenth Fallen walked away with a perfect day, and it was down to the final feet between Chad Street and Joey Albright who, after a quick check of the finish line camera, just to be sure, finished second and third, respectively.

Gotta give a BMXNEWS shoutout to the four riders in the “dub club,” who scored wins in class as well as cruiser. Cruisin’ Chris Blevins (12 Boys and 12-Under Cruiser), Cole Tesar (14 Boys and 13-14C), Jordan Miranda (16 Boys and 15-16C) and Kelsey Van Ogle in 12 Girls and 14-Under Girls Cruiser). Congrats!

Other highlights:

The most pint-sized podium topper was five-year-old (six in “UCI Years”) Dylan Borbely of Belvedere, IL.

In 35-39 Cruiser, Doug-E Fresh Crowell took the gold medal practically off the neck of Jason Carne$ when he sneaked in to the lead in the final few feet.

17-24 men was the largest class of the day (and the only one to have a quarterfinal), with 39 riders.

The 13 Boys main served up a heaping helping of disappointment for Walker Finch and Brock Heffron when, in a bummer of a do-over from the Friday Semi, the two tangled, this time in turn two, and handed off control to Jake Campbell and Antonio Bonessi for the 1-2 finish.

Check out the Saturday Photo Gallery for more fun and excitement from the race.

It is currently way-past-midnight on Sunday morning as we post this, and it is snowing in Dallas. There is a fair chance that we will not be shooting tomorrow (today?), as we did not pack for a snowy 30 degrees when the first gate drops at 8AM. Hopefully, some main photos or somesuch.