Changing conditions make for wide-open racing at MX Nationals

Aug. 5, 2003 – Sloppy as a pig sty in the morning, fast as Churchill Downs on a perfect summer day in the afternoon, the track at the AMA Amateur and Youth National Motocross Championships was the number-one topic of conversation as racing began Tuesday.

A heavy downpour Monday night tested the track crew’s abilities, but the morning motos were only slightly delayed. During the course of the day, however, hot sunshine and constant grooming dried all but a few spots on the track to near perfection, leading to a fast and exciting finale to the day’s racing with a battle to the finish in the 250/Open A/Pro Sport class.

The difficult conditions in the morning left several top competitors with DNFs and higher-than-expected numbers beside their names. In the 125A class, the third race of the morning, contenders such as Thomas Hahn and Jimmy Nelson failed to finish, while Ryan Sipes crossed the line in eighth and Davi Millsaps finished sixth.

That opened the door for Jacob Saylor, of Middleboro, Kentucky, who rode his Yamaha to the win despite crashes of his own.

"That first turn was just so muddy," said Saylor. "I went down twice and then I went into caution mode."

The most dominating performance of the day was turned in by Mike Alessi. The Honda rider out of Apple Valley, California, showed he could win on the sloppy track in the morning and on the much faster, drying track in the afternoon.

Alessi won the 85cc Modified 14-15 class in the morning by a 30-second margin ahead of Ryan Villopoto of Poulsbo, Washington. Villopoto was trying to maintain his momentum from his recent win in the 85cc class at the F.I.M. Junior Motocross World Championships, but he suffered from a bad start and was mired in 21st place early in the race before fighting back to take second.

Much later in the day, Alessi again topped his rival, Villopoto, in the 105cc Supermini 12-15 class. Alessi led from the start and built a 16-second lead before cruising to the win.

"I got the holeshot, pulled away and never looked back," said Alessi. "The track’s awesome. The track crew has done a great job. It was a little muddy this morning, but now it’s great."

Also turned upside down by the muddy conditions in the morning was the 85cc Modified 12-13 class, which is so laden with talent that it promises lots of great motocross racing in the future. Class frontrunner Jeff Alessi went down in the first turn in a tangle with half a dozen other riders. Joshua Hill, of La Center, Washington, stayed clean through the havoc and took the win on his Yamaha, followed by Austin Stroupe, of Lincolnton, North Carolina, Zach Osbourne, of Abingdon, Virginia, and Dominic Izzi, of Deland, Florida.

Marisa Hampshire of Hudson, Florida, helped Florida-based riders lead the field in moto wins on day one as she won the Women 80-105cc 12-15 class.

Ryan Sipes found the fast afternoon track more to his liking and followed up his eighth-place finish in the muddy 125A class moto with a hard-won win in the competitive 250 Open A class. Georgia rider Bryan Johnson held the early lead, with Broc Hepler, of Kittanning, Pennsylvania, charging forward after a mid-pack start. Mid-way through the race, they formed a tight, four-way battle along with Thomas Hahn and Jacob Saylor, who won the 125A moto. At one point, all four racers were separated by less than two bike lengths.

But then Sipes seemed to find a reserve of energy the others couldn’t match, surged forward from fifth place and pulled away from the pack in the final laps for the win.

"I just decided, ‘I don’t want to be fifth, I want to be first,’ and I charged," said Sipes.

The day of racing ended with fireworks on and off the track. The fastest bikes took to the track when the surface was at its fastest, and former national AMA Motocross champion Jeff Emig jumped into the early lead in defense of the number one plate in the 250/Open A/Pro Sport class. In the final laps, however, Emig came under pressure from Brian Gray of St. Augustine, Florida. Emig held on for the win as lightning flickered on the horizon.

The first fat drops fell as the 250cc riders took the checkered flag.

Then the clouds opened and in an instant the dry track was no more.

Looks like we’ll do it all again Wednesday.

For full results, see MX Sports.

From sloppy to sweet: Track crew works wonders

It took a dozen experts in maintaining a motocross track, a dozen pieces of heavy equipment, and a little help from nature, but the track crew at the AMA Amateur and Youth Motocross National Championships converted a mud bog into a fast race track in the course of a day on Tuesday.

It has been a challenge.

Rain fell on the Loretta Lynn Ranch Thursday through Saturday. That meant the track crew had a lot of work to cram into Sunday so that racers would be able to take their practice sessions on Monday, said Davey Coombs of MX Sports.

"We had it in perfect condition for practice Monday, which I think surprised a lot of people," Coombs said Tuesday. "Then last night's rain was severe."

Still, despite the heavy rain Monday night, Tuesday morning's motos went off only minutes behind schedule. That's not too surprising, considering the lineup Coombs and MX Sports put together. The track crew at the Motocross Nationals consists of AMA promoters who are all used to grooming their own tracks, so all of them are experts.

"The starting gate has the best riders in the country, and the track crew has the best in the country, too," said Coombs.

The track crew uses everything from heavy bulldozers to a mini-scraper to keep the track groomed. They also hauled in several truckloads of sawdust to lay down on the track to soak up water.

Meanwhile, inside the trailer that serves as nerve center for the event, a lap-top computer is permanently logged in to an internet site showing the weather radar for the area. But with scattered showers and thunderstorms predicted for nearly every day this week, it’s pure luck whether the rain will hit the track or miss it. On Tuesday afternoon, a few pop-up showers barely missed the track.

he effect of the conditions on the competition is equally unpredictable. Even the experts had differing opinions.

"A couple of championships just changed hands," predicted AMA Sports’ Stephen Carnegie, who thinks a wet track will give some racers a big advantage. "You have some riders from the Northwest and the Northeast who are pretty good mud riders."

Some young riders from drier parts of the country may have less experience in the wet conditions.

"The riders who are more disciplined in throttle control will do well," said Carnegie.

Coombs, however, said that while some riders may have gained a slight advantage over others because of the conditions, he believes the best riders will still rise to the top.

"No one ever lucks into a title at Loretta Lynn's," Coombs said.

Mike Alessi (80) gets the holeshot in the 105cc Supermini 12-15 class moto.	A young rider tries his skills in the slow race in the Kawasaki tent.	Riders leave the starting gate in the Senior 40 Plus class.
Broc Hepler (57) leads Bryan Johnson in the 250/Open A class.	Fans find a shady spot to watch the afternoon racing action.	Usually, it’s a horse pasture. For this week, it’s a motocross track decked with banners.
Jeff Emig won the day’s final moto in the 250/Open A/Pro Sport class as evening clouds moved in.	Mike Alessi won two motos by big margins on Tuesday.	Ryan Sipes is interviewed after his win in the 250/Open A class.
Racing was tight in the 125cc Stock 12-15 class.	Davi Millsaps struggles with a muddy track in the 125A class.	Riders in the morning motos found conditions difficult. So did scorers trying to identify them.