racereport

Saturday, September 22, 2007

We had many new MRANN members this race. It was very
exciting to see all of the new faces! The weather Friday
night was not very nice. Much of our course was blown
down overnight, which caused an hour delay in the start
of Saturday’s big bike race. There was another
unexpected change in the course. Originally 47 miles, we
made some adjustments that were required by the BLM,
which now made the course 57 miles. MVDS would like to
thank the racers for their patience and cooperation with
all of the changes.
As the racers lined up at the start, a big black cloud
covered the valley. Luckily for the spectators the rain
held off for a little while. The shot gun fired and Adam
Thissen took the holeshot in the expert line. Robert
McAdam took the holeshot for the amateur line, and
Scott Hildebrand…yeah over 50…took the novice
holeshot!
I made my way backwards on the course to the gnarly,
rocky, silty, uphill that would later be littered with bikes,
racers, and 4 letter words (compliments of Brad Kohler
and various other racers). This wasn’t the best spot to
take photos, but Slakker video crew, Bryan and
Jeffro…were in for a spectacular display of grace and
skill as the racers fought their way up the hill. (did you
sense my sarcasm?)
We shot some footage but had to put the cameras away
as the rain started falling and the wind started blowing
harder. If we missed any racers we apologize. We are
part of MVDS and had to help keep the course clear. This
was a pretty hard job since there was really no where to
move the crashed bikes to that would be out of the way.
It was a very tiring day. There were many broken bones
and broken bikes too. For all of the racers that were
injured we hope that you heal fast and race again soon.
In the end the overall winner was Bryce Olson from
Rocklin, CA. followed by Reece Honea, Jason Alosi, Sean
Berryman, and Chris Zito.
After the race there was a special event. Two Slakker
bands came all of the way from Yuba City and Redding,
CA to play for us. We had a great turn out and the bands
really appreciate your support. The bands were rockin’
and the kiddos were break dancing! We also held a raffle
for some really cool gear and accessories. The money
we raised was donated to the Injured Riders’ Fund.
We hope that all racers enjoyed our race and will come
back and race again next year!

Sunday, September 23, 2007

The first race of the day was the pee wee 6 and under.
Jammin’ Benjamin Niles took the hole shot held the lead
for 8 laps to victory. Jesse White had a little spill off the
start, but his dad, Jeremy White was right there to dust
him off and get him back in the race. Dallas Serpa joined
the SLAKKER “over the handlebar club” when he
grabbed a little too much front break on the downhill
section, but he jumped right up and was OK!

The second race was the pee wee 7 – 11. In Row 1, Dillon
Boyson almost had the hole shot until he hit the dip and
lost control. Austin Walton took advantage of this and
took the lead. Tyler Hopkins also had a tough time with
the dip. He crashed pretty hard, but that didn’t stop him
from finishing his race. In Row 2, Samuel Jacobs took the
holes hot, and in Row 3, Jacob Kamplin took the hole
shot.

Race 3 was the V-women. As I watch my fellow racers line
up a tear comes to my eye, as I have not missed a race in
1 ½ years. As I look out at the first line of women, the
experts, the row I should be sitting in (I am a member of
MVDS, and therefore cannot participate in my club’s race)
…the shotgun fires and Jenna Henning takes the hole
shot. Jenelle Chattin struggles to start her bike, but gets
off the line a few seconds before the shotgun is fired to
start the Amatuer line. Beth Legenbauer pulls away from
Colleen Connors and takes the hole shot. The shotgun
fires again and the Novices are racing for the first turn,
as Devan Eastman takes the hole shot for her row. I head
up to checkpoint 3 just in time to see Jenna Henning and
Talya Dodson battling it out for first. Not far behind them
is Jenelle doing her best to catch the leaders. Then
come Colleen and Beth, they too are battling it out for
first (in the Amateur class). On the 2nd lap it was Talya,
Jenna, and Jenelle side by side! I was cheering them on,
it was pretty awesome! Devan Eastman took first in the
Novice class, as newcomer Lee Ann Hardesty took
second. In the amateur class Colleen Connors took first
and Beth Legenbauer took second. Talya Dodson took
first in the expert class and Jenelle Chattin took 2nd.
You ladies are AWESOME!

The final race of the weekend was the Minis.
As the expert line takes off Kyle Fenner is the first
expert into the wash with Kyle Townsend not far behind.
In the amateur line Nate Block gets the holeshot, and
Austin Hammes from Sonora gets he holeshot and wins
the novice class. At checkpoint 3 I watch as Troy
Amacker and Cory Vannoy battle for first in the expert
100cc class. In the end Troy takes the checkered flag by
less than a minute. First place amateur is Blake Talseth
from Reno. All of the dedication from these mini racers is
to be commended!

Thanks again for racing/pitting/watching the MVDS
Monkey Butt 100 at Yerington!