September 24 & 25, 2011

 

Saturday started out a little wet, but before the first Moto was over the track had dryed out nicely. In fact by the end of the day, the track had become dusty in places. We had a decent turnout on Saturday, but it was much better on Sunday, the day of the Pro Race. It did rain Saturday night and the track was again a bit greasy in the morning, but not too bad.

 

 Jaedon Walraven made a good showing today in the 65cc and Mini-Junior Classes. He won both classes both days! Nice job Jaedon! He is pretty much assured the Championship in the Mini-Junior class and is closing in on the 65cc Championship. It will be real close.

 

The Pro Race was fun on Sunday, even if it was a little light in riders. We had a new rider in the Pro class. Cole Maston moved up to the A Class and put up a good battle. He did an excellent job considering he gave up 200cc in displacement to the rest of the regular crowd. Billy Burton won the race hands down. He continued to pull away from everyone for the entire Moto (in both Motos). I think Billy is even faster this year then last. Cody Longwell is still trying to sort out his bike from the time it spent in the hands of the criminal that stole it earlier. Also, the promoter of the OVMX Series, Josh Davis looked good out there, even though he has spent most of the season riding Cross Country events with his Dad.

 

The later it gets into the season, the faster Tate Elliot and Cody Taggart are getting around the track. Their speed and riding skill has improved considerably. These two gentlemen are going to be our 1st and 2nd place 50cc Champions for this season. I see nothing but good things for both of these young gentlemen in the sport of Motocross!

 

One of the best races of the weekend happened on Sunday in the 125cc B-C class. Deron Glass and Jim Roth had a great battle right to the end. Deron led the entire Moto until the very end. Jim Roth just got by for the win on the last lap. I have watched Deron go from a young kid on a trail bike barely making laps on the track, to making an excellent showing of himself. His skill has improved immensely. Look for continued gains in speed for both of these riders.

 

Time for a discussion I wish I didn't have to mention. BUT... here goes!  I have worked at Fly MX Park now for 6 years and in that time I have really enjoyed myself. I have had the opportunity to meet so many good riders, interesting families, and make many new, good friends. It had been a wonderful time, My wife Jeanne and I have worked very hard to make the experience as pleasing as possible for all that attend. In that time, I have been really dissappointed only three times. The first time was last year when a person by the name of Chris Lehman "stiffed" my wife and I on the final payment of his Photo Book that we produced for him. We made a really nice book with many really good pictures (I even included extra pictures not in the original price). He didn't make it to the last race, so he wasn't available to pick up the book.  I contacted him by phone and made arrangements to send the book to him with the understanding if he liked the book, he would send me the final payment (If he didn't like it, he could return it and I would refund his deposit). I sent a self addressed, stamped envelope for him to return his final payment of $55.00. A month went by and we received no payment. I contacted him (by phone) to make sure he had received the book and that he was happy with the product. He assured me everyone LOVED the book and he would send the payment. After another month went by, I sent a second addressed, stamped envelope and to this day, I STILL HAVE NOT received payment. Chris, remember telling me how disappointed in me you were because I didn't mention you in a race story? Well, Chris, I am VERY disappointed in you for not paying for a product you ordered from my wife and Me.

 

Now to disappointment number two! Last race, we all witnessed a rider perform a very un-sportsman like act in a combined Moto. I am not going to mention names or classes, but I still wanted to mention the infraction so others can learn from it. This incident was the FIRST time we ever had to Black Flag someone in the short history of Fly MX Park. Two different classes were run together because we didn't have enough riders for two seperate Motos. One class had several riders that are vying for a Championship position and the other class had only one rider with no one to race against. Normally, in this case, we start all of the riders together with the expectation that a normal race will be run with everyone putting in their best ride. On this particular race, the person riding by himself in a different class decided to impose his idea of who should win the race. In Moto one, a very blatant effort of blocking one rider and letting another go to the front of the pack was witnessed by all. A discussion was had by the staff between Motos about how to handle this situation for Moto number two. The decision was to stager start the two classes, holding the rider back that caused the issue in the first Moto. The hope was that given the opportunity to "Do the Right Thing" would prevail and the individuals vying for a win in their class would be allowed to race their race with no interference. The Moto started and the rider that caused the problem was held back, we thought he would "get it" and stay out of it. He proceeded to catch up to the other riders and started to pass everyone. We decided to let him get into it thinking that he would pass his way through the pack and move beyond. If this would have happened, there would have been no issue. But after he got the lead, he proceeded to once again do the same un-sportsman act as the first Moto. He blocked the leader and allowed another rider to move into the lead. That was when we decided to Black Flag him for insinuating himself into a battle and possibly changing the outcome of the race. I wanted to let everyone know why he was Black Flagged and to tell everyone we would do the same to anyone who doesn't just race their race and allow everyone to do the same. Blocking riders deliberately is not allowed under AMA rules and will never be acceptable at Fly MX Park!!

 

The third disappointment is a story for another time. Anyway, hopefully, no one takes offense and we all learn from the experience. We only have a short time left until this season is over. I sure hope there is some good weather in our future. We still have to work out how we get our last two races in by the end.

 

There are 27 riders that have their 13 races in and are eligible for a Championship Trophy. Several folks only need 1 more race to get their 13 and 6 need 2 races for 13. I will mention that there is at least one battle for the Championship that can still change before the end. I hope to see everyone this coming Saturday October 16 for race number 17.