2008 AMA/NATC U.S. Indoor Trials National Championship
Webb retains title in close battle
Photos by Bill Ibsen
Sherco’s Cody Webb (center in photo, right) retained his AMA/NATC U.S. Indoor Trials Championship title in an extremely close battle with GasGas rider Will Ibsen and Sherco teammate Patrick Smage at the Camp Jordan Arena near Chattanooga, Tennessee on July 5.
After last season’s dominating outdoor championship win, many picked Smage as the favorite in the indoor championship, but a mistake while executing a risky maneuver on the barrels section cost him a five and all but eliminated his chances of victory.
Ibsen finished the main with a one-point lead over Webb, leading into the two race sections. Because the loser of each race receives
an extra one-point penalty, the entire championship came down to the final race sections. Webb would need to win both in order to prevail.
The first race was almost a dead heat, with Webb edging to a victory by less than a bike length. In the all-or-nothing final race, Webb got his booming 4-stroke Sherco to hook up for a hole shot on the slippery concrete floor and held-on for a close win as both he and Ibsen rode at their limit on the final race section's highly technical obstacle course (left).
The Indoor Championship and capped off a week of motorcycle trials summer camp and Youth trials competition at the nearby Trials Training Center in Sequatchie.