Hello everyone! We just finished off the 4th round of the Toyota AMA Arenacross series in Rockford, Ill. We had a week off from racing last week and it was also the first weekend that the Series had a split weekend, one race in Rockford, and another in Rochester, NY.  Both rounds allow you to get the same amount of points for the same championship, so we were all curious to see who would be in Rockford and who would go to Rochester. It was definitely going to be an interesting weekend. It was also going to be the coldest race we have had all year. When I flew in on Thursday it was a high of only 28 degrees.

The series didn’t go to Rockford in 2007, so it had been a little while since I had last been there, in December of 2005. I also learned that I probably have the worst sense of direction in the entire world.  I got us lost about 10 times before actually making it from Chicago O’Hare to Rockford, which is only supposed to be an hour drive, but somehow I made it more like 2 hours…. OOPS! I kept thinking that I recognized everything, but we were so turned around by that time that I finally had to ask a nice police officer where the MetroCentre in downtown Rockford was. Finally we were going to make it! By that time both Robbie Reynard and Cory Green were ready to strangle me. Luckily we made it to the track so they were instantly sidetracked by the dirt and the track layout. The dirt looked like it was going to be very soft, but the track guys did a wonderful job, as usual, of putting it together and making a really good track with pretty hard-packed dirt.

Most of Friday I co-hosted a radio show with Stone and Double-T. They pretty much kept me laughing for the entire four hours I was on the show. It was so much fun. We had riders stop in and talk on the show, and before I knew it, it was almost race time.

Again, the whoops were the most challenging part of the race track, leaving no room for a mistake. If you did make a mistake, it left you either on the ground or you got passed left and right. That was the section to watch for sure! The Lites class was stacked with mostly local guys and some of the usual teams like Rockstar Suzuki, Ti-Lube, and Tuf. Cory Green’s Suzuki got him off to a great start. He was charging through the whoops and getting himself a great lead. Travis Sewell’s Suzuki, however, started to gain on Cory. They were both riding very well.  With only a couple of laps left Travis set Cory up and was able to make the pass. It was a great race to watch. Travis Sewell came over the checkered flag in 1st with Cory Green in 2nd.  Roy Horton was able to get himself the final place on the podium despite his hard crash he took in practice.

Following the U.S. Air force Freestyle Exhibition, the Arenacross class was on the gate ready to race the main event. The track crew did a good job of keeping the track groomed, but the whoops were getting very cupped out.  It was difficult to keep the same line every lap, so again they were going to be the most challenging part of the race track.  Down came the gate and off they went! Keith Johnson and his Yamaha were able to get the holeshot and the $750 Toyota Certified Used Vehicles holeshot award. He was holding on to his place and started to pull away, but Chad Johnson, Danny Smith, Kelly Smith and the rest of the guys were all charging hard to gain those valuable points. Danny and Chad were both gaining on Keith, but it was Danny who accidentally made a mistake in the whoops and went down. The Arenacross Class Main Event was a crazy race. There was carnage all over the race track in every corner! Chad Johnson was able to get around Keith for the 1st place position. But Josh Demuth was on the prowl… he began to pass rider after rider until he was up there right behind Chad Johnson. Almost every rider on the track was fading badly through the whoops, except Josh. That is where he was able to make up so much time on the front runners.  Chad kept his head down and rode, so he was able to come out on top of the podium with yet another Arenacross Class win, keeping the points lead for the championship and the Toyota Truck. Kelly Smith came over the checkers in 2nd putting in a really good ride, and Josh Demuth was in 3rd.  We heard the results in Rochester and Kawasaki’s Brock Sellards won, following Brock was teammates Tyler Bright and Jimmy Neese on their Suzuki’s, in 2nd and 3rd.

We started off Saturday at Hammertime Sports, the biggest and best bike shop in Rockford. I remember going to Hammertime my very first year as Miss AX for an appearance and meeting Spencer, his daughter, Olivia, and the rest of the crew. They took really good care of me. It was still the same, only Olivia had grown about 6 inches and they had made us some homemade Pumpkin Cake that was yummy and packed with calories! Team Fiber Wise Yamaha and Reynard Mods/ Rockstar Suzuki joined me at the dealership to sign autographs and meet the wonderful people in Rockford. While we were there the weather quickly changed and snow began to fall. There were a couple inches by the time we left at noon. It was really pretty!

Day practice and Qualifiers were just about to start by the time I made it back to the hotel.  It took over 45 minutes to go 18 miles! When I saw the track I instantly noticed that they had made the whoops even LARGER than on Friday night, and they looked very intimidating! There was a ton of riders going down in the whoops throughout the day. One bad crash I remember was when #68 MDK rider, Billy Jurevich, got sideways in the whoops and somehow ended up trapped under his bike. He got up ok and headed to the Medics.  He thought he would be OK to get back on and ride his other qualifiers but unfortunately his dad and girlfriend had to take him into the hospital. I have not heard how he is, but please keep him in your thoughts!

It warmed up a lot and the snow turned into rain, but it was still freezing cold outside so all the moisture on the grown turned to ice. We weren’t sure how it was going to affect our crowd, but when the doors opened at 6:30pm the fans just came pouring in out of the cold. The fans in Rockford are diehard fans of motocross and they make it so much fun to have a race there in the MetroCentre. They stick to Arenacross in the rain, snow or shine!

Races were just as good, if not better, than Friday night. The whoops were still silly big, testing every inch of the all the riders’ suspensions! It made the track very challenging as the races went on throughout the night, developing once again into very cupped out whoops. The Lites guys were on the line and we had seen Cameron Lansing #192 and #662 Travis Bannister win their heat races, both had a very difficult night on Friday.  But out of the gate first was #45 TI-lube Honda rider Colt Humphreys, getting another holeshot, followed by Gray Davenport, Travis Sewell and Travis Bannister. Colt made some mistakes in the whoops and Gray Davenport, Travis Sewell, Kurt McCabe, and Travis Bannister were able to get around him. It was another “crazy” Lites Main Event with riders down, and bikes stalling all over the track. These guys had to definitely work hard to keep it on two wheels. Gray Davenport had the lead for a while before the whoops got the best of him and he went down. Travis Bannister also went down sending Travis Sewell to the top of the podium for the second night in a row.  Kurt McCabe was able to work himself into 2nd and Travis Bannister got the final spot on the podium with 3rd.

It was pretty cold inside the MetroCentre all night, but we were at the final race of the evening, with no real way of predicting what could happen. That is what is so great about Arenacross, there are never two nights alike. As I said the whoops were going to make or break each rider, making it the most action-packed part of the race track. Kelly Smith and Kevin Johnson were the two guys into the first corner. It was hard to tell who got the holeshot from my angle, but word came along Kevin Johnson got the holeshot and Kelly Smith quickly passed him in the whoops. Kelly Smith was racing a very good race and pulling away from the pack way out front. Most of the riders had turned the whoops section into a rhythm section, jumping through them rather than skimming the top of each whoop. Josh Demuth somehow came up with this line in the whoops making him the fastest guy out there. He would jump in then jump over about five of the whoops and jump out. It was crazy!  It paid off because soon he was right behind Kelly Smith’s Babbitts Monster Kawasaki. Kelly got a little out of shape in the whoops and Josh took full advantage of it, taking over 1st. Kevin Johnson moved back into 2nd, Kelly Smith was still charging hard trying to get himself the  first win of the season, but then he stalled the bike in the corner, adding to his frustrations! Danny Smith was also not having the best race, going off the track once and crashing another.  Josh Demuth’s line in the whoops was where it was at! He kept himself consistent and clean the entire race and made the whoops look easy! Kevin Johnson was pumped to be in 2nd, with his best finish of the year! But props to Chad Johnson for somehow working his way through the mess of down riders and being toward the back of the pack off the start, finishing in 3rd on the podium. Patience definitely paid off for him!

The split events went really well for Team Babbitts/ Monster/ Kawasaki rider Brock Sellards; he gained 50 points in the championship point’s battle, moving him up to 5th overall.  Also joining him on the podium in Rochester was Nathan Skaggs and Jimmy Neese.

We are off for about a month, until the first weekend in January. I am going to make sure to spend lots of time with family and probably in the gym. Maybe even take my new pit bike for a ride… who knows! Get ready to start off wide open in January at Grand Rapids, Mich., and go nonstop until Green bay, Wisc., in March! It is going to be an incredible season; with so much talent on the start gate the races are sure to be unpredictable! Don’t forget to keep checking your Speed Channel schedule so you can see all the racing action for yourself, or check online for the full schedule. I hope everyone enjoys their time off and has Happy Holidays and of course a Happy New Year! Until January remember to be safe, keep it on two wheels and always keep your smile! See you at the races in 2008:)

XOXO
Ashley
Miss Arenacross