Hello Everyone,

 What a sweet feeling to be back home again, leaving the mosquitoes and humidity behind for a couple of weeks.  Everything felt so comfortable leading into this race weekend with my local tuner (Dad) and my friends all providing me so much support.

 We arrived at the track early on Saturday, wondering just what we were in for on this new track.  Well, we took one look and saw a beautiful half mile surface and it was right in the middle of town!  It was obvious that the promoter Bob Bellino had put extra effort into building a good track.

We quickly got down to business.  I took to the track and it took to me.  I qualified a solid third place behind Brad Baker and local rider Ryan Foster.  Ryan just smoked the pack with his qualifying – hats off to you, Ryan.

 In my heat race I had a bad start and got held up in a Calistoga traffic jam.  However I moved into the commuter lane and ended up finishing second behind Brad.   So, I had nailed my front row start.  Job done.

The bike felt really strong but my tuner Bud Riddle and Dad put their heads together to do some fine tuning to get us a bit of an edge.  The talent at the top in Pro Sports this year is major and when you come to the line, you better be at the top of your game.

I rolled up to the main feeling confident, knowing that this was my home race, my friends behind me and I racing on the type of track that I love.  At the start, I got the holeshot and led into turn one.  I kept that lead for five laps when Brad Baker finally edged around me.  On lap six, the red flag came out and we rolled back to the start line while they attended the downed rider.

On the re-start, Brad took the lead and I was right on his tail.  Unfortunately, there was a bad crash in turn two after two laps and we had another red flag.  We waited for 30 minutes before they lined us up again for the last re-start. The bike, tires and me got cold.  It’s a very uncomfortable feeling, waiting like that.
 
Finally we got the green flag and I got a bit of a bad start and Jeff Carver got down low in turn one and passed me.  From that point on, Brad, Jeff and I had our heads down as we all smelled the scent of victory. 

When the checkered flag fell, I realized I had earned my first Pro Sports podium finish and was right there challenging the number one spot.   Being in my rookie year of professional racing, it was a special moment, one I’ll cherish forever.

  I’m so thankful for the tremendous effort from my long-time mentor and tuner Bud Riddle and my father Jerry. My Dad worked his butt off this past two weeks (and the last 12 years for that matter) to give me the best ride possible. 

 As one of the new kids on the professional racing circuit, it’s tough out there, being away from home, going to new tracks every weekend.  Coming home knowing my NorCal Racing Family was behind me made all the difference in the world.  I look forward to Hagerstown…again my kinda track!

 
Immense thanks to all of my sponsors:

  ·         Brown’s Cycles

·         Woody Kyle Racing

·         Mack Daddy Racing

·         Arlen Ness

·         Arai Helmets

·         Motion Pro

·         Rod Lake Racing

·         Renthal

·         EBC Brakes

  ·         Gene & Gail Cummings

·         The Service Pavilion

·         Slideways Racing

·         Troy Lee Designs

·         K&N Filters

·         G2 Ergonomics

·         West Coast Hotshoes

·         Micah Racing

·         Boughner Suspension

  NEXT RACE:  As I write this, I’m on my way across the country – we’ll be at the Hagerstown Half Mile race this coming Saturday.  We are now in the thick of racing season and I’m pumped.
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS: 

  1        Jeffrey Carver Jr.  172                                                                                    

2        Brad Baker            148                                                                               

3        James Rispoli         115                                                                               

4        Michael Avila         104     

  Hello everyone,

It was time for Lima Ohio and I was very excited to finally race on a ½ mile cushion track - the first of the year.

 During qualifying we made a ton of changes to the bike, mainly to the suspension and gearing changes and it got us a 12th fastest time in qualifying. The track surface was super deep and really rough but still somewhat fast.  But I just couldn’t seem to get along with the bike at all. Every time I would come into the corner it felt like I was going to get thrown off, and I couldn’t hold my corner speed.

For the heat race I was lined up on the very outside of the front row, which was a great position because I could potentially pinch the inside riders off in the first corner. Once the light turned green I dropped the clutch and immediately moved my ass to the back of the seat to try and get as much traction as possible and I was in third coming out of turn four. I chose to run the low line (the shortest way around the track) but after a couple laps the line wasn’t there anymore and I fell back a couple positions to 7th or 8th. So, on the next lap I had to move up to the top of the track and start making passes to earn a transfer spot. The third place rider fell down and that moved me up into 6th and I capitalized on some other riders’ mistakes going into turn three and moved to 5th.

 However there was another incident behind me in turn one and they red flagged the race with one lap to go. With a red flag finish they revert back to the previous lap position and unfortunately I was in the 7th position.  It was still a direct transfer to the main but definitely not where I wanted to be.

After the heat race, we tried to make more changes to the bike to get it to handle a little better. When the main rolled around, the moisture in the ground hadn’t really come up to the surface so they soaked it down with water.  After realizing I had 14th pick in the main event I knew I was going to be on the third and last row, which is a long ways back! So I stacked on some tear-offs and knew I had nothing to lose and could only gain. Where I was lined up, there were cross ruts coming off of the line which was going to make it difficult for me to get a good launch and go in a straight line.

As soon as the light turned yellow I put the bike in gear and all of my focus was on the green light. I got a good jump off the line but couldn’t go anywhere after falling into the ruts and spinning up and swapping the bike from left to right. The first couple laps I tried to run low and ride smooth and make passes but there wasn’t anything there. So right at the halfway point, I moved to the top and started to just have fun and chase the cush and I started to catch riders and makes passes. But when the checkered flag waved at the end of the race I still was all the way back in 14th position.

But I scored enough points to get into fourth position overall in the points chase.

The next race is in I96 Speedway in Odessa, Michigan on July 10th,.. , so I'm getting my head right and going there with a winning attitude and see if we can get some good results!

Mikey Avila

Thanks again for all of the help and support, and thanks to all of my sponsors:

  ·         Mack Daddy Racing

·         Arlen Ness

·         Arai Helmets

·         Motion Pro

·         Rod Lake Racing

·         RHC Products

·         JE Pistons

·         Renthal

·         EBC Brakes

·         Gene & Gail Cummings

  ·         RK Excel

·         Slideways Racing

·         Troy Lee Designs

·         K&N Filters

·         Web Cam

·         G2 Ergonomics

·         Brown Cycles

·         West Coast Hotshoes

·         Micah Racing

·         Checkered Flag Photography

I just got home from Gas City Indiana for the sixth round of the AMA Pro Racing K&N Grand National Championship presented by Motorcyclesuperstore.com.
  This was the second time this year we tried to get this event in, the first was due to a rain out. But this time the weather held up perfectly and the track looked great. Qualifying didn't go so well as we could not find the right bike setup because of the track changing every session I took to the track and it seemed like we were always one step behind. But I ended up 17th fastest overall. I had a back row start for the heat and knew I had to be aggressive if I wanted a direct transfer to the main event. I got a decent jump and made some passes late in the race and finished 6th. We made some more changes to the suspension in hopes to find a little extra traction during the race. When the main rolled around I was once again on the second row. There were two or three red flags due to downed riders so we restarted and I had a clear track in front of me because they were unable to make the restart. I spun up really hard off of the line the second restart and was in about 6th or so and I moved down to the bottom of the race track to see if there was any traction at all down there but found none and started to fall back and lose positions right at the half way mark. And fell back to tenth at the finish. It was frustrating for me to struggle like that on a track type that I usually do well on. But we really learned a lot this past weekend are ready for Lima Ohio this coming weekend. And I am looking for a great result there.

Springfield, Illinois, June 1, 2010:  Hey everyone!  My team, Mack Daddy Racing and I just returned from the Springfield double header. Saturday night was the TT and Sunday was the famous Springfield Mile and what an exciting race the Pro Singles race that was!

My Dad and I flew into St. Louis late Friday afternoon, spent the night and got up early the next morning to take the short drive to the track. I was really anxious to get there, see the TT track and put in some laps.
 
I struggled in the first practice on the TT track and was only 20th fastest.  I came in and we made a lot of adjustments to get the bike hooked up out of the corners. Mike Boughner helped me a lot with the suspension and the result was that it worked great. For the final qualifying session I ended up 11th overall, which was okay.

In the heat race I was on the very outside so I knew I was going to have to nail the start and get to the inside immediately. As soon as the light went green, I slipped the clutch and got a killer drive off the line and was in third place coming off the jump.   I was right behind Tyler O'Hara and Brad Baker, two really fast TT riders. About half way into the race, Tyler made an aggressive move going into the right hander and to attempted an inside pass on Baker, but Brad shut the door and Tyler hit the hay bale and stalled.  That allowed me to take over the second position and remain there for the rest of the heat.

After the heat race, we made some gearing changes and twisted some clickers on the suspension for even more traction. When the main rolled around we had a perfectly-prepped the track and the moisture had come up as the night went along to make it even better. I was lined up forth over from the inside, not exactly where I wanted to be. I got pinched off in turn one and exited in about sixth place. I made some mistakes around the halfway point and fell back to ninth at the finish. I was a little frustrated but I made valuable points for the long season.

The next day was the Springfield Mile. I was extremely excited about this because I knew we had a fast bike and I like the big tracks. In the free practice I was out fourth behind Carver, Beach and Baker.  I couldn't catch their draft but was still gaining ground on them pushing wind. That's when I knew we had a huge chance at winning this thing. In the first qualifying session the track had slicked off and traction was a little harder to find. JD and I managed to get out together and use each other for drafting partners to make a fast lap.

I was making some test runs down the front straight seeing how late or how soon I could pull out of the draft and make the pass at the finish line. After pulling off of the track I rode up to the screen and saw I was in second behind Carver by three thousands of a second, which isn't much at all. After the last session of qualifying I dropped one spot down to third, with Beach on the pole.

In the heat I finished second right in front of Shayna Texter.  She made a move down the back stretch but I railed the outside of turns three and four and passed her back and got a good enough drive for her not to pass me at the line.

 For the main I was hoping that there would be a group of four of us that would pull away and lead the race, but the exact opposite happened. Right off of the start in the middle of turns one and two I almost high sided off of another rider’s rear wheel and I had to let off the gas and check up.  I lost about five positions going down the back stretch.  However, I found a line way up high in three and four and passed them back and was in third going down the front straight for the first lap. Then going down the back stretch I set up the draft and pulled out and once again went high and found a fair amount of traction and took the lead coming out of four. But as soon as I found the lead I lost it the next lap and dropped down to about 8th or 9th.

We were all running ridiculously close the whole entire race. Just about every lap we were going four or five wide in the turns. Going into turn one I went up a little too high and got pushed really wide on the exit and clipped the wall, I thought for sure I was going down but managed to keep it on two wheels. I lost most of the spots I had gained back and my momentum and riders were blowing by me like I was sitting still. I continued to run the high line in three and four and getting an amazing drive out and catching the front runners, but it was too late and I ended up 10th at the finish line. There was a pack of twelve riders at the line that was separated by less than one second from first place to twelfth. So that just shows how close the racing was for the full 12 laps of the main event. It was by far the most exciting race I have ever been in!

I want to thank K&N and Motorcycle-superstore.com for stepping up and helping out the AMA Grand National Championship for 2010 and years to come.

I would also like to thank all of my sponsors and the people who helped my program this weekend:

Mack Daddy Racing, RHC Products, Arai Helmets, Rod Lake, Arlen Ness, Gene & Gail Cummings, Boughner Racing, Motion Pro, West Coast Hot Shoes, Slideways Racing, JE Pistons, K&N, Renthal, RK Excel, Troy Lee Designs, Shawn Doner, Rob Williams and the Stear family.

 

Hello everyone, this past weekend was round three of the 2010 AMA Pro Singles Championship, in Prescott Arizona and as my first mile as a Pro Sports rider, I was very excited about the event.

We arrived early on Friday to take a look at the track. It had really long straights and paperclip turns. It immediately had the team talking about gearing, but we felt that we were well-prepared for what we saw. 

 Early Saturday morning we headed to the track with the weather surprisingly cold and windy. But with that aside everything looked good. We went out for practice around 10:30 AM.  The AMA gave us two extra un-timed practices to get use to the new track since it was new to everyone. There were a couple wrecks in the first session which was followed by some track maintenance. The surface was dry slick, and was starting to get dusty with low visibility in turns one and two. We struggled with our set-up all day, but we made some gear changes and suspension adjustments in between sessions and ended up qualifying 7th overall.
 
I was in heat two, lined up on the inside. I was able to find traction and came off the line in second behind Harley Dunn. Coming down the home stretch, Brad Baker and Michael Toon pulled out of my draft and passed me going into turn one. I was carrying a bit too much momentum and blew the groove and saw that Harley did the same.  There was absolutely no traction up there, and I was just worried about staying off the ground.
 
After getting my composure back, I was back into fifth behind Chaz Springsteen approaching the white flag lap. Going down the back stretch for the final time we managed to catch Dunn's draft and sucked right in behind him. It was a three way battle for third. We were all nose-to-tail going through turns three and four. I saw Harley lose traction and start to spin up, and he never recovered and the bike came around.  Chaz had nowhere to go and they stacked up and made contact. I also had no escape path and thought for sure all three of us were going down. But somehow I managed to keep it on two wheels. Then, when I recovered, I realized I was still fighting for position and I got back on the throttle. It was a drag race between Chaz and me and we were rubbing elbows side- by-side coming to the finish line.  I barely squeezed by and beat him by two thousands of a second, for third place.

The main consisted of 12 laps with 18 riders. I was lined up fifth from the outside, in the same position as I was in for the heat.  I knew that I was going to be able to get a good jump. The light seemed like it took forever to turn green. As soon as it did I dropped the clutch and was off the line in second behind Baker. I came off turn two a little low and was in the dry stuff and got all crossed up and lost a bit of speed but managed to hold second place.

  I got a good drive out of four but I felt someone drafting me and before I knew it Carver and Springsteen drove it in below me and I was back to fourth. The dust was really bad in one and two, and made it hard to see the riders right in front of me. Coming into turn one I had once again ran it in too hard and drifted up into the marbles and slipped back to fifth as Crawford slipped by me. I saw that he was on the run as he made another pass into third. I had no drafting partner so I was running all alone in fifth place for the remainder of the race, and finished a solid fifth.

  I was happy to have finished the race on two wheels and a decent fifth place. I definitely learned a lot this weekend and have already begun preparations to be ready for the double header at Springfield the end of this month.

  Mikey Avila

  Thanks to all of my great sponsors that helped me this weekend:

·         Arlen Ness

·         Rod Lake

·         Arai Helmets

·         Micah Racing Services

·         Brown Cycles

·         Mack Daddy Racing

·         Riddle Racing

·         K&N Racing

·         Renthal

·         Leo Vince

·         Dickel Racing

·         Boughner Racing

·         Division 26

·         Leo Vince

·         RK Excel

·         Crave Co

·         Troy Lee Designs

·         Checkered Flag

·         Slideways Racing

This past week marked the start of the 2010 Dirt track series, the first race on the new Daytona short track, and my very first pro race riding for Mack Daddy Racing!

My dad and I flew into Daytona late Monday night, met George Mack and we went out to dinner with the team to get to know everyone.  Afterwards we headed back to the hotel to rest up for the practice day on Tuesday.

When we got to the track and they unloaded the bikes I was in shock with how nice and well-prepared they looked. After making a few little adjustments on my bike, we walked out to inspect the track and it looked pretty good, appearing that it was going to take on some rubber and groove up. So we changed tire air pressure and I got suited up to try the new bike and new track. It took a while to get used to just how slick the track was, and where to find a good line and traction. But I felt very comfortable on the new bike and after getting in a lot of track time I was definitely ready for the races to start. After a long day of riding we left, got a bite to eat and went back to the hotel to rest up for the races on Wednesday.

RACE DAY #1

Upon arriving the next day, the first thing we did was look at the track and it was dramatically different than the conditions of the previous day.  The track prep people had dug up the top three inches of surface and there were now large rocks scattered all over the track. So we made some changes to the suspension and hoped it would work for timed practice. The horn sounded for us to get into staging for the first round of practice. As soon as I got out on the track, I realized just how rough and rutted it had become.  I tried to run a high line but going into turn three I ran in a little too deep, threw it in and almost low sided but it caught and straightened up and then I was headed straight for the wall.  I was thinking that this was really going to hurt! But thanks to the AMA’s use of air fence, I came out relatively unscathed, only a little embarrassed to have fallen in the first practice. When I got back to the pits George humorously said, "Now that you got that out of the way, are you ready to race?”
 
So it was time to go out and get my second session of timed practice in.  I was a little apprehensive of the track conditions and just tried to put in some smooth laps. I ended up qualifying 18th.  Looking at the heat race line ups, I realized I had some work ahead of me as I was to start on the back row of my heat.

Before the heat races started, they had once again changed the track by wheel- packing and watering and it looked much better.  That gave the team confidence that there was going to be some good racing. I was lined up third from the inside on the second row and I knew I was going to need a good jump and get to the bottom as soon as I could.

The green flag fell and Jeffery Carver and I arrived at turn one at the same time so I backed off and fell in right behind him and followed him through and we both made some strong passes. There was a downed rider between turns three and four and I narrowly missed him and actually clipped his rear tire.   Surprisingly it gave me some traction and I got a good drive and it set me up to make a pass into the final transfer spot.  I kept my head down and made some more passes late in the heat and ended up fifth.  I was very happy to be in the main.

When the mains were posted I noticed that I was lined up in the same spot as in my heat race, second row third position over. After the rider introduction I was ready for business.  The only thing on my mind was getting a good jump off the line and getting to the bottom into one.  That's exactly what I did, and after a little rubbing, coming down the back straight I was in about 6th.  JD Beach and Brad Baker then made contact, and were both going down.  Carver and I committed to the high line and it was a struggle to keep the bikes upright in the loose dry stuff, but somehow we managed and avoided the wreckage.   

The crash did bring out the red flag and I knew I was going to have to get another excellent start and come from the back again. However, this time there were two less riders in front of me on the front row, so that made it a little bit easier.  I spun up a bit off the line but still my start was good enough to shut the door on the two riders underneath me.  This time everyone managed to stay on two wheels even though we were all sliding around, swapping positions and trying to find traction on the slick surface. After a couple laps we were all settled down, the field spreading out and I found myself in fifth.  I knew I had to make a move fast to get into fourth and start chasing down the front runners. I got a good drive out of four and made the pass for fourth, and started to catch up to the top three. When the halfway mark came around I saw the riders in front of me were beginning to chase the cushion up high the track. I stuck to my bottom line and tried to make it work the best I could but they pulled away a couple of bike lengths and I ended up the night in fourth place.  Not bad at all for my first pro race and it was a great start to the season.

RACE DAY #2

After the race on Wednesday, I knew exactly what to expect and tried to use all the information I learned about the track and bike to my advantage. This time I knew that I couldn't tiptoe around in timed practice and I had to put in a good lap. We only had four laps of qualifying so I tried to stay smooth and but also go as fast as the track would let me. The times were all so close and there was only a one second difference from first place down to twentieth, showing how tough the competition was.

I was thrilled to see that I qualified with fourth fastest time as that gave me a front row start in my heat. I had second pick and was lined up with Brad Baker on the inside and James Rispoli to the outside of me. The light was held for a long time and I almost went too early but instead timed it perfectly and Brad and I got out front early and pulled away from the rest of the field. I was right on his rear tire the whole race but we both were getting the same drive out of the corners so there was no advantage for either of us.  I ended up a respectable second place, and earned a transfer into the Dash for Cash.

The Dash for Cash was only four laps so I knew I needed to get out in front as fast as I could.  The first couple of laps we were all skating around trying to find traction but I had little luck and ended up fifth in the dash.

I had a front row start for the main, fourth from the pole and I knew it was going to be a challenging start.  I came out of turn one in sixth place and after a couple laps made a pass on Rispoli for fifth but by then the top four had pulled away just enough to where I couldn't make a move and I finished my second AMA Pro Sports Race in fifth place.

MY SPONSORS

I can't thank George Mack enough for all of the time and effort he put into the bikes for this week. They were awesome and worked great. He is a great guy and I can't wait to work with him for the rest of the season. I would also like to thank the mechanic’s Shawn and Rob for all their help.

Thanks so much to all my sponsors Mack Daddy Racing, Rod Lake, RHC Products, Boughner Racing, Arai Helmets, Troy Lee Designs, Motion Pro, G2 Ergonomics, Slideways Racing, JE Pistons, Web Cam, and Crave Co.


 

This next weekend, I meet George Mack, owner of Mack Daddy Racing and my new premier sponsor.  Exciting stuff! 

I promise a report when I get back.

Mikey

P.S. Here's a photo of George and parents from the good ol' days

This past weekend my dad and I made the three hour drive down to Willow Springs for the final two rounds of Eddie Mulder's West Coast Vintage Dirt Track Series. This weekend I made my debut on Clark Dickel and Jim Kelly's Harley 750. There were a lot of heavy hitters there at the event including Sammy Halbert, Jared Mees, JR Schnabel, Jeffery Carver, Jimmy Wood, and many more. 

I was very anxious to get on the big bike and ride but a little nervous at the same time. On Saturday when we rolled the bike out of the trailer I was pumped for practice. I sat on the bike just to get the feel for it, and it was a bit uncomfortable because the foot pegs are off center with one further back than the other and the air filters stick way out and in your way.  It was a different feeling sitting bow-legged on a motorcycle.  Additionally, the shifter and the brake are both on the right side, which is totally opposite from what I'm use to riding. But the more I sat on it the more I became comfortable with the bike. I went out for my first practice and just let everybody else go by so I could ride without distraction. I was surprised with how good it handled with all of that weight, and I was also surprised when I let off the throttle and it seemed as if there was no engine braking, with a feeling like I gained speed when I got off the gas. But I quickly learned that the sooner I picked up the throttle the better it would turn. I came back in to the pits and made a couple of adjustments and was ready for the heat.

I lined up for my heat race and was honored to be there because I was lined up with people I grew up watching on TV and seeing in magazines. I got off the line pretty good, but Shawn Russell was closing the door on me so I shifted down into third ( Yes I shifted down because the shifting pattern is the opposite of a DTX, one up and four down) but I didn't quite get it in gear and it went into a false neutral.  I immediately pulled in the clutch and tried to find third gear, but by the time I did the pack was already too far gone. I was heated that I made a mistake like that but I rode as hard as I could, I made one pass and closed down on the pack but it was too late, so I was headed to a semi-final.

For my semi, I lined up and tried not to think about the shifting, but as soon as I went to shift I made the same mistake and once again found myself trying to catch up. But when racing against people of that caliber it’s hard to make up a deficit like that. So I found myself sitting on the side lines and watching the main. I definitely learned a lot watching the pros and was eager for Sunday.

On Sunday morning I was ready and knew what to expect on the bike. I went out for practice a bit more confident than the day before.  Then all of the sudden JR blew by me on the inside and held the gas on a good two seconds longer than I did, so not knowing any better I tried to do the same as he did, and I felt so much faster. However, I was having some turning issues and so I came in and talked to Joe Bisha and we made some adjustments to the suspension and the tires.

I lined up for my heat and got a decent jump but I was a little cautious with the shifting just to make sure I didn't make the same mistake as the day before, and my hesitation cost me a bit of time. The first and second place riders had pulled away, so it was a four way battle for third between, Shawn Russell, Jethro Halbert, Kevin Vance and me. I was right there with them but I just couldn't get a good enough drive out of the corner to make the passes stick. So I had to settle for sixth and unfortunately they only took the top three finishers to the main. So I came back in, we flipped the tire, made some more adjustments and went out for the semi.

I was lined up on the second to outside. We all got a good jump off the line and it was a drag race going into turn one and I followed Luke Gough into turn one.  I squared off the corner but Brad Baker got a hell of a drive coming out and went high to make a pass and it pushed me up and I had to let off or I would have ran off the track. So going into three I went low and ran it in as deep as I could and made a couple of passes, then going into one, Baker, Kevin Vance and I went in three wide and none of us wanted to give an inch. I got a good drive down low and so did Brad, but Kevin spun up in the dry stuff up high.  Going into three Brad held it on super deep and went up high just enough for me to get underneath him, but then he got back by me going down the back stretch. All of this battling was fun but it enabled Luke and Kayl Kolkmen to pull a good six bike link lead over Brad and me so we had no chance of making the main. 

I was very disappointed that I didn't make the main event, but I learned a lot from riding with the pros and I was definitely honored to ride because not too many people get an opportunity to ride a Harley Davidson XR750 at 15 years old.  It was a learning curve for Clark, Joe, Jim and especially me this weekend, but and I can’t wait to work with them again in the future and ride it again as soon as possible.

I would like to thank my sponsors: Dad, Rod Lake Racing, Micah Racing, Brown’s Cycles, Woody Kyle Racing, Jett Tuning, AGV, Troy Lee Designs, Cycle Gear, Slideways Racing and Checkered Flag Photography.

I also want to thank my XR crew: Clark Dickle, Jim Kelly, and Joe Bisha.  And last but certainly not least, Eddie Mulder, Digger Helm and the top-notch crew that made the show a success.

It was round number four of the WCVDTS in Bakersfield, Ca. The day started off pretty good when I pulled number one for line up in the Digger Open Pro class. The track is very small and known for its aggressive riders.

The track was q bit different than what I remembered it.  The straight-aways seemed to be longer and the corners were more of a paper clip shape. In the first practice, the track was really good as it had good moisture and a nice amount of cushion. I went back to the pits and made a couple of adjustments and waited for the second round of practice. They released us out to the track and it had dramatically changed from the first practice. It was super dry and had little traction and there were some good sized ruts coming out of the corners, so we made some more adjustment to the bike to make it work on the new track conditions.

 There were about thirty riders who signed up for the pro class that night.  Among them some very fast guys were there - Jimmy wood, Jared Mees, Joe Kopp, and Branden Bergen to name a few. I was in the first heat race and had pole position on the start.  I knew I was going to have my hands full with Mikey Rush and Jimmy Wood in my heat.  Since only two riders would transfer directly to the main from the heat I had to make every move count.  At the drop of the flag, it was a drag race between Jimmy and I going into turn one.  I ran it in a little too deep and the front end pushed and I slid up the track just enough for Jimmy to square it off and get by me. But I corrected myself before anybody else could capitalize on my mistake. Every lap the track was losing grip little by little, and I was struggling with keeping the bike in line. Jimmy pulled a comfortable lead over me so I just tried to keep it on two wheels. I was very happy to make the main directly from my heat race.

By the main event the track had progressively slicker so we made a couple more adjustments to the suspension and dropped a tooth on the gearing. We had the fastest heat, so even though I got second in the heat I had pole on the back row, lined up directly behind Jimmy Wood. I felt this was to my advantage because if I could get a good jump I could follow him through turn one.

That is exactly what I did and I was about seventh coming out of turn two. Bergen was directly in front of me and he almost high-sided.  I went up high on the track, and then squared it off and passed Bergen and Kopp. I was in fifth for about six laps then going down the back straight I got a good drive on Stevie Bonsey and made an aggressive pass on him going into turn three. Then I set my sights on Sammy Halbert. I was about five bike lengths behind him when I ran into turn one a little too hard and almost laid it down.  The bike started to chatter then I hit a rut and almost went over the high side. That enabled Bonsey to get back by me. After the half-way mark I started making little mistakes which let Joe Kopp close up the gap. I felt him breathing down my back the last half of the race. I felt the strongest out of turn four and the weakest out of two. So I concentrated on staying smooth and just tried to calm down and minimize my mistakes and not give Joe a chance to make a pass. I held him off for a fifth place finish.

All in all it was a really good night for me and Dad. I felt we do well against such substantial competition.   We couldn't have done it without my sponsors Eddie and Jodi Mulder, Digger Helm, Ronnie and Brenda Brow, Brown cycles, Woody Kyle Racing, Micah Racing Services, Jett Tuning, Troy Lee Designs, K&N, AGV Helmets, Pacific Coast Pools, and everybody else who contributes to my program.

Mikey

This past weekend, my Dad and I made the three hour drive to the Gene Romero's West Coast Flat Track Series in Placerville, CA. I was only four points in front of my rival Mikey Martin, so I knew I had to win the main event to keep my points lead going into the last race. This was the first time that we had ever been to the track. It was a high banked 3/8 mile and it looked like it was going to be very fast, if they could keep the moisture in it. The first practice the track was excellent, as it seemed to have a lot of grip even if you went up high on the track. But by the second practice session it was really dry, slick and very dusty, and a narrow two inch groove had formed which made passing very difficult.

 I lined up for my Top Gun heat race and had poll position. I chose to invert the line up so I could start on the very outside of the groove where all the traction seemed to be. I knew that I would have to get a good start if I wanted to win. But I got a little anxious when I saw a couple people out of the corner of my eye start to creep, so I started to move too; then I just dumped the clutch and went for it but the light never turned green. So I had to start on the ever-so-familiar third row along with the whole front row  with the exception of one rider. There were about five of us back there. I was a little pissed off but I just tried to stay focused and not jump the start again. I got a good start, there was a little bit of elbow rubbing because nobody wanted to give up a spot, but I found myself in third place coming out of turn four on the first lap. I tried to make a couple of aggressive passes on the inside but I just couldn't make it stick. I knew that I was a lot stronger than everybody else going into turn one so I knew that's where I would have to make my move.

So after the third lap, I ran it in as deep as the track would let me and went around the outside of the second place rider and got a great drive, and passed him down the back straight. I just put my head down and checked out.

 By the time the main events came around the track had a little bit more grip than the heats but if you got off the groove there was absolutely nothing up there. Mikey Martin had the fastest heat and I had second fastest. He chose to line up on the very outside and I went directly below him. We both got good starts but he was about a half a bike link ahead of me. But I had the inside line and didn't back down until we made a little bit of contact and I drifted up high and he squared me off and took the lead. I was trying everything, I went up high and tried to square him off like he did to me but I just couldn't get the drive. But just like the heat race I was a lot stronger going into turn one, so once again I knew that's where I would have to make my move. I kept showing my front wheel on the outside of him and every lap he started to drift up when he sensed me there. So about two laps after the half-way mark I made my move. I ran it in deep going into turn one and showed him that I was on the outside of him, and as soon as I saw him move up I tapped the brake and squared him off. It was a drag race going down the straight. We both ran it in super deep and I almost blew the groove, but I kept it in line and was able to keep the lead. Once I took the lead I was able to hold him off for the last couple laps and to take the victory. It was a very exciting race and the crowd seemed to enjoy it as well.

 I would like to thank: Ronnie Brown Racing, Woody Kyle Racing, Micah Racing Services, Jett tuning, AGV helmets, Troy Lee Designs, and K&N.

 The last race of the year is in Pomona in October 24th, two days before my 16th birthday.