Welcome back Arenacross fans!! I am so happy to be back at the races. A new season is upon us, and it definitely is going to be an exciting season. We opened up the season this year in Des Moines, IA at the Wells Fargo Arena. I flew into Chicago on Wednesday and it was chilly! I wanted to go see the office and meet all the people who I haven’t met yet, I am glad I got the chance to meet most everyone. So Thursday morning we packed up our Tacoma and headed down the road to Iowa. I didn’t realize that it was a four to five hour drive, but I have not visited that part of the country too much, so it was cool to get the chance see how many corn fields there really are.
Des Moines was almost exactly how I remembered it. I was excited to be back! I actually had a little bit of butterflies, I am sure it was because I couldn’t wait to see the riders, the track, and the show.
My early morning wake up call on Friday was at 5am!! Which is really 3am my time (PST) OUCH! I was accompanied to the radio station by local rider Brady Peck. The whole day was filled with radio stations, and many other promotions it definitely made the day fly by and the next thing I new it was show time.
Almost 200 riders showed up to Des Moines to race arenacross, doors at 6:30, as usual, Opening Ceremonies around 7ish and the races began at 7:30. The format of the show however, was completely new. Instead of doing all of the qualifying in the night, it is a little more like Supercross, heats, semis, and an LCQ for both the Arenacross Lites class and the Arenacross class. The track looked fun! It was definitely technical with very soft, easily rutted dirt. Not only was it going to be difficult to race, there were so many new pro riders who were all after getting on the box. It was going to be a great night!
Opening Ceremonies was exciting, there was a lot of people in the crowd and it felt great to be back, it was also the night we presented the #1 to Chad Johnson with his championship ring. He told me that he had completely forgotten about it and his look on his face was priceless! The ring looked like a Superbowl Championship ring, it was beautiful! I am so happy for him; he worked so hard and deserved his title!
The Lites class was full of talent, the race got off to a great start. The riders came out of the first turn bar to bar, but Gray Davenport was able to outlast Kody Molitor and Cory Green. It was a close race and set the stage for our Arenacross class.
The Arenacross class was looking a little more familiar, #1 Chad Johnson, #3 Kevin Johnson, #18 Brock Sellards, but there were a lot of fresh new bikes that I didn’t recognize. The gates dropped and they were off! Local rider Teddy Maier got the whole shot and looked like he could take off with it, however he made one tiny mistake and Danny Smith came up right behind him got the pass to lead the race. Gregg Schnell was up there with these two, he looked incredible, and he was riding so strong! As the riders raced by me I was shocked to see that Chad, Brock and Kevin were towards the back of the pack. It was so different than what I was used to! I didn’t get to see the crash, but apparently Chad went down in the first corner. So he was going to have to work his way up there all the way from the back. The 15 laps went by way too fast, there was some real battles going on out there and before we knew it the checkered flag was out. Danny Smith was able to maintain the lead and take 1 st, Teddy Maier was not too far behind taking 2 nd, and Junior Jackson Suzuki with Gregg Schnell came in 3 rd. There was definitely disappointment on the face of #1 Chad Johnson. But Danny, Teddy and Gregg were all smiles! What a way to start off the series.
I knew we were in for a good show on Saturday because of Friday’s results. We had a track party at 5:30, Toyota of Des Moines brought in some really nice trucks so people could look at them up close, along with being able to interact with the riders, and walk them around the track. So many people showed up it was awesome to see all the fans able to talk to the riders and be on the track! I really thought it was cool how many people there was. Des Moines is definitely full of Arenacross fans!
Saturday was the same format as Friday, only there was hardly an empty seat as I could see. The lights went out and it was show time! I was anxious to see what was going to happen! The Lites class started out very different, there were riders down all over the place throughout the entire 15 laps. Tuff blocks were falling into the track and there were so many obstacles to avoid.
It was time for the Arenacross class, the bikes were all lined up, the riders were determined and the crowd was on their feet. Robbie Reynard took the holeshot and off he went, he had to ride hard because the others were not too far behind him. Gregg Schnell was also riding so well, he made a couple passes to put him in second but he just couldn’t get passed Robbie. Danny Smith also was riding awesome; he looked so clean and kept up there with Robbie and Gregg. Kevin Johnson had a wonderful first half of the race. I believe he was up in 2 nd or 3 rd and took an unfortunate fall towards the end of the race. But I think we will see an improvement in him next week. Brock and Chad were battling for 4 th place for a while, and Chad crashed however, he did come up from last to 7 th so he still has it in him. Robbie was able to hold on to 1 st for the entire race, Gregg Schnell was just behind him in 2 nd, and Danny got his second podium of the weekend in 3 rd. What an amazing weekend. Des Moines was definitely a great place to kick off the season, there are so many Arenacross fans there and I enjoyed talking with them all! This season is going to be a close one; it has already started off intense. Not one rider came in the same placing both nights, not all riders qualified both nights, and it is going to be so fun to watch!
It felt so great to be back out on the road, I had the chance to do a lot more talking and interviewing on the microphone and it was so fun. I am excited about the year and can’t wait for next weekend. Make sure you all keep up on the website and the results, because I have a feeling this year is going to be one for the record books! Until Albany, ride strong, be safe and keep your smiles!
XOX
Ashley Miss AX
