|
Loretta Lynn's Dirt Days
2003
I have always wondered why in the world a National is scheduled for the middle of August in the most humid and hot place in the USofA. Is this some kind of a sick joke to see how long it takes for the racers and fans to say, 'Wait, this might not be the best time of year to hold this event at this place...' Personally I can barely sit in front of a fan in this kind of weather, and have no idea how in the world the athletes keep body and soul together on the track.
Yes it was hot, and yes it was humid. Heck I'm from Northern California less than 5 miles from the Pacific Ocean where it rarely freezes and never, EVER, gets to the triple digits. Most of the time it is between 50-75 with a cool ocean breeze. So for us NorCal kids it was a rough go. This year joining us in our climate challenged environment at Lorettas were Grandma Charlotte and Grandpa Jim Creech. They missed out on High Point when my nephew, Ross, graduated from Eureka High School, so they thought they would try out Lorettas. They quickly realized why they had avoided this race in the past.
Of course we were concerned about history repeating itself with Dana. Remember a year and a half ago he had a pretty bad experience with Heat Stroke in Macon at the series opener for the 2002 GNC. He ended up spending several days in the hospital recovering after that bout. We were told at the time he might not ever be able to tolerate heat again. One thing that we learned over that ordeal is that when the heat is up and the humidity is up, it is a recipe for disaster. Marathons are canceled. The NFL cancels spring training when conditions are wrong. But we go ahead and race in it.
On Friday, it was great to hook up with all our friends that we hadn't seen since June. Mario DiAngelo has been working on some great drawings for shirts and stuff. He shared his talent with Grandpa Jim and Grandma Charlotte in-between working on his bike and helping us with our stuff. We really appreciate friends like Mario who are just so awesome. Mike Walsh is another of those people who are just the best. We are getting to know Jasmin Plante as well and really respect him and his crew. Since we aren't running the TTs we have had a bit of a break. 'We' meaning Skip and I. Dana drove the truck and trailer back home so we could do some long overdue maintenance, remember he left home in March for the season and it was his first time home since then. It took him 5 days to drive the distance, and he was only here two days before taking off for Hawaii for three weeks to film for Huevos (and yes he is doing just a little freestyle in the video... NO BACKFLIP though so you can quit wondering about that). The day he got back from Hawaii, he slept for 6 hours and then headed north for Dunefest on the Oregon Coast where he hooked up with Jay VanValkenburg ('Jaybo' on atvconnection.com's chat room). Jay and his family were nice enough to share their parking area with my homeless vagabond of a rider for the weekend. This was pretty generous, considering that all those camping areas have been sold out for months. Dana had been to Dunefest when it was still called Sandfest back in the dark ages. It's a pretty big deal around here. He said it was a lot different from the old days, but a lot the same as well. The main thing was he got to do a little dune riding and he got to see a lot of old friends he hasn't seen for a while, as well as meet some new friends. After he got home from Dunefest, he had just enough time to re-pack the trailer and hit the road for Tennessee.
I want to apologize in advance for taking so few photos this weekend. I also had some trouble with the heat. I know that I wasn't the only one besides Dana in the 'I'm melting' club. Doug Morris, our ATVA rep, also had a hard day. It didn't take me long to figure out that I better keep myself out of the heat as much as possible.
This weekend we saw the final project of our new graphics. The original idea was hashed back and forth between Dana and I for weeks. We wanted something different, but Dana has this thing about fire, so he wanted flames on it somewhere. But then everyone has flames. We started feeding Mario with ideas like diamond plate, flames, and stuff looking like it is about to break up and video games that we have played. What it came out with is this: 1,2,3,4. Dana tested them in practice and found that they wore well. He decided not to run them in the race since the track was so muddy beforehand (we almost set up for serious mud situations in moto 2). We will be making those graphics available for all of you by September 10, 2003. These kits won't include a seat cover. and we are still negotiating a reasonable price with the sticker company. If you think you may want these you can email us and we will get back to you first when we know all the details. Our first printing of the graphics will be a limited number and we already have a list going. If you think you will need these please get your name on the wait list so we know how many we are going to need. If you want some of the flame graphics that Dana ran throughout the first part of this year (and at Lorettas) you can also get them from us or from Sheridan Race Products - they come with a seat cover,.
I have to say that the Saturday racing brought my hopes up for our previously blah Pro-Production Class. At the Casey, IL race Pro-Production finally showed us what it can do. At Lorettas, things just got better, of course that wasn't a big leap, since it was pretty dismal the beginning of the year. Unfortunately for Tim Farr he off-loaded at a recent TT and ended up fracturing his throttle thumb (along with some other road rash), and was a no-show for the weekend. Since he and Doug Gust were neck and neck points wise, Tim's injury made it a near sure thing that Doug would wrap this thing up for the season.
Stephanie McIntyre surprised all of us by suiting up in her brand new Shift Gear and declaring her intention to go out on the track and attempt not to embarrass herself. She didn't. She rode a generous loan from Donnie Allgood (evidently he was more confident with Stephanie's skills than she was... he had to race that machine as well).
Bill Balance showed up and fine tuned the track a bit. RacerX should have gone the extra mile and cleaned up the pit area. The bikes had been completed their series the week before and it had rained a lot during that time. There were ruts so bad in the pit area under the trees (the only somewhat cool place to watch from) that it was an adventure just to stay upright while stumbling through the area. In fact the dirt road was almost more than our rental van could manage. The track looked pretty good when I got out there. The rain from the previous week had been a disaster for the bike guys, but it made it near perfect for us. I am not sure where they get that dirt from, but I would encourage any rider who off-loads to close his or her eyes and mouth. The smell was something awful, I had to keep checking my shoes to see what I had stepped in! The Ten Commandments were as brutal as I remembered. A lot of people look at this track and think it doesn't look that bad. But, I can tell you that this track will beat up a rider more than nearly any other track. Nearly every rider came off this track with his or her tongue hanging out. Not only were they winded, but they were simply worn out. True there isn't any big air here, but there is big speed. The Ten Commandments' rhythm is hard to find. Last year it was who could double them and triple out. This year there were less than five riders that triple-tripled out of them. The combination of having the skill to accomplish this feat and the opportunity to do so without traffic interfering have to happen together before either come into play. The next area that seems to snag a few riders really doesn't look that bad. Commonly known as the Suzuki doubles, this is a very fast section of the track, in fact one of the fastest. The problem on close inspection is that there are big holes in the landing of this very fast section. After these two sections, and of course not counting the start, the only are that holds significant section is the part right after the finish line. These doubles, and I am using the term very loosely here, are not something that the rider can learn to work. It works the rider. There is no rhythm. The rest of the track has speed, blue grooves, pits and bumps. There is only one small section where the rider can relax slightly, but then it is very nearly a TT section at that point. So don't let the fact that Loretta's is flat give you the impression that this track is an easy ride.
Yamaha has made a difference in our Pro-Production class. It started at High Point when Kory Ellis unveiled the first race-ready YZ 450. A mere two months later, this class would have Yamahas dominating the starting line as well as the finish line. You have to wonder if Honda is going to step up to the plate or not. They have been dragging their heels for so long (can you say 14+ years) that there is no question that they are due. Still, I wonder what will happen. The Yamahas are pretty sweet right now. How much better can the Honda be? You have to wonder what Honda will come up with. Taking into account that the Yamahas dominate the bikes (you know the sport where their pros make money), and Honda has taken a back seat there, I would think that if they had anything to give, and I mean anything, they would give it to their bike riders, not the poor cousins (us lowly ATVers). Maybe Honda will come up with something that will make a difference, maybe handling wise. Of course, what would I know, I am only a old lady.
Pro-Production moto one was very exciting. First off Harold Goodman has been making a more regular appearance these days. I know its tough to come back after taking a few months off, and even harder when you take a year off. It's good to see Harold and his awesome parents back at the last few races. Anyway, Doug took the holeshot and said 'See Ya!' to the rest of the pack. That is not to say that this wasn't an exciting race. Finally! Harold got a great start right behind Doug but was no match for the finely tuned skills of John Natalie and Kory Ellis who made short work of the veteran. Very quickly it became a battle of the Yamahas. Tavis Cain was right in the middle of this mix also. Tavis has always been a good starter and with the added performance of the Yamaha, well I just knew he would be in the running. Of course those first couple of corners it is usually pretty tough to tell who is where through the lens of a camera (I have to wait to get my photos back sometimes to tell for sure). Tip to other mothers: The race doesn't look so scary through the lens of a camera. Doug had to work to get ahead, but once he did he was gone. John Natalie was busy not only on catching up and hopefully passing Doug, but also on keeping Kory and Tavis behind him. This is one of the main reasons that this worked into to being one of the best races of the season. The fact that Kory was one of the handful of riders that could Triple out of the Ten Commandments made me decide to stay in that area while this race was on. I just knew I would see action in this area. I was right. This year there weren't as many off-loads in that area, or at least there weren't when I was out there (and again, I was seriously feeling the heat so I restricted my activities). This year, the Ten Commandments was the area that separated the skilled riders from those simply hanging on for dear life. Natalie, Ellis and Cain had the big battle going on the entire race. It was high speed and sheer power handling through the bumps on those stock frames. I don't know how they took the abuse. It was hard also to separate the three guys. Of course they have different body styles, but they were on nearly identical bikes. Behind the Natalie, Ellis, Cain mixer there was another race going on. Johnny Hale, finally back in the racing after literally being in a wheelchair earlier this year, did battle with Jason Dunkelberger and Jackie Meadows (who was kind enough to offer his home to Dana Wednesday nite - Thanks Jackie). In the end, Doug took first followed by Kory, John, Tavis and Johnny Hale, Jackie Meadows and Jason Dunkelberger. I have to wonder how this would have played out with Tim in there as well.
Moto two's start should be on the website for Yamaha. Three Yamahas freight trained into the first corner with Tavis Cain running first. Kory Ellis and John Natalie were hot on his heals. Doug ended up with a bad start but everyone knows how well he works through the pack. I had no doubt that he would end up out front sooner or later. Still this class seems to finaly have hit stride for competitiveness and is really shaping up as one of the best races to watch. Here is the main reason that I say this (and remember, I have been a hard sale on this class -- I really, REALLY, was bored with this class before the Lincoln Trails National, and it is just getting better), as the three front runners headed into the Ten Commandments, Tavis struggled to find his rhythm and keep the other riders behind him, not an easy task. Also that first lap, your rhythm isn't always quite there. Anyway, it was Kory's day. And when Kory is on, he is ON. Kory's rhythm was also ON. Tavis took the inside line through the bumps, Kory went for outside and went for triple-triples. See the sequence here: 1, 2, 3, 4. Kory literally passed Tavis in the air, and proceeded to leave everyone in the dust. I say dust, because the track was getting really dusty. Also the heat had risen to the high 90s and it felt like it was going to rain at any time, but there were no clouds. Tavis held John, Johnny Hale, and Jason Dunkelberger off for nearly half the race. This was a good thing for Doug Gust who had been impatiently passing riders and moving through the pack. While Tavis was busy, Doug was able to close the gap and challenge for the lead. About this time, Tavis began to feel the heat (he is from Northern California also where we don't have heat or humidity). He said he felt his vision start to blur and knew he was overheating. He had to back off. Doug and John Natalie got by him. Evidently Johnny Hale and Jason Dunkelberger also felt they should back it off as well and finish the 20 minute plus 2 lap moto rather than fight for a position or two. In the meantime a new rider, Jeff Robbins had worked himself up. Jeff had some serious problems earlier in the day in another class when his bike literally caught fire and had to be put out of it's misery. Whatever was wrong must have been easy to fix since he was out there in this extremely competitive class and running 7th in the second moto. I initially took photos of Jeff, since I hadn't seen him before and to be honest he had a ponytail hanging out of his chest protector and I thought maybe he was a girl out there. When Jeff pulled off his helmet I realized my mistake, but then I already had some good shots of him. Doug ended up working his way into second for the moto, and clinching the overall for the 2003 season, but not for the day. Kory took home the big plastic (trophies used to be made of brass... now they are made of plastic.... so instead of taking home the brass, well you get it), with Doug and John rounding out the podium. Congratulations to Doug for earning the second National Champion Title of his career.
250 Pro-Am had a different mix as well. After Gilbert Attix had his unplanned dismount during practice at High Point and ended up doing some serious damage to his leg, Dustin Wimmer has had no challengers for the #1 plate. He locked the season up at High Point and mae the decision to test the waters in the Pro-Class this weekend. What happened is that Matt White was able to show what he is made of. That would be speed; lots of serious speed. Matt didn't get a great start but he made short work of any rider in front of him to take the checkers in moto one. Nate Frees was out in front as well, but evidently Matt's season of playing with the big boys has put him up a couple of notches in the stamina circle. Ryan Ogram also was a top runner, in fact he finished first in the second moto for an overall second for the weekend. Hunter Miller, Tom Miller and Harold Goodman all had great runs as well. Harold even finished third in moto one. Mika Payne also looked good on track as well. Skyler Stewart had a minor wipe-out right in front of me (I accidentally took the shot... but then hey, most of the guys really like shots of their wipeouts). Mark Kendall was awesome in the first moto, especially considering his first practice lap (heh, had to add that Mark...). I am not sure what happened to him in the second moto, but he didn't finish. Jeff Robbins' ride caught on fire and had to be put out of it's misery in moto two (on Sunday) but he had a top ten finish in moto one. I think the heat had a lot to do with a many finishes, but that's racing.
Women's A riders came off the track looking a bit warm but to be honest they didn't look as wiped out as most of the male riders. Angela Moore continued her quest for #1 with Heather Byrd showing what she is made of. Paula Shank continues to have strong finishes with the real racing happening between Melissa Kufel, Michelle Reiser and Julia Neace. These ladies, although in the back of the Women's A class, have some heated races consistently. These three ladies are separated by mere 9 points (after a throw-out). It's anyone's call as to who will end up where at Southwick.
Women's B class has been a great one to watch this year. Cindi Hart began the series very, VERY nervous, but has grown to be a contender. With two throw-outs (this is one of the many classes who can throw away their two lowest scores for the season overall), this class looks like Jamie Rentz is a sure thing for #1 if she just finishes the anywhere at Southwick. Melissa Bailey has the edge by 5 points on Cindi Hart so it could go anywhere here. Melissa and Cindi have been strong competitors throughout the season. Both are great people and I can honestly say that it is a win-win situation with any of these ladies. They are all winners. Still look for some action between Melissa and Cindi at Southwick. I know I will watch that race closely.
4 Stroke Production class also showed significant increases in numbers this weekend. In fact there was two qualifiers as well as a LCQs for this class. Jason Watt pulled a set of number ones to take the overall for the weekend. Jason has a long way to go to challenge for first for the season, but you never know what could happen. Right now Jake Balsiger, who had a great holeshot and awesome rhythm through the Commandments, has a solid lead of 26 points, with Jason in second, Jesse Rossner and Jeremy Craig also looking solid for their 3rd and 4th for the season as well.
Open Pro-Am is also a competitive class. Nate Frees has the lead here and it doesn't look good for anyone to catch him since Gilbert Attix is out of the picture. Cory Ellerbroek has had his hands full playing catch up, especially after he had some problems and ended up in a LCQ situation. He ended up fourth overall for the weekend, but is running second for the series. Chad Lohr worked his program well this weekend for the overall on the weekend with Rob Arnold putting in a strong ride to second overall.
After a leisurely dinner at the well air conditioned Log Cabin (one of two restaurants in the thriving metropolis of Hurricane Mills- unless you actually count Loretta's Kitchen as a restaurant, then there would be three restaurants...) we hung out for a bit out front with everyone waiting for a table. Actually it is usually a great place to catch up with your friends. The grass and benches out front of The Log Cabin are quite comfy and usually well inhabited by racers and their families. And the bonus is that the evenings are still quite warm this time of year.
It's hard to believe but Sunday was actually warmer and more humid than Saturday. The RacerX crew worked into the wee hours to ensure that the track would be in great condition. Toward mid-day on Saturday the track had gotten quite dusty. So the crew did their best to water the track and make sure it had time to soak in and keep the dust down for Sunday's motos. Unfortunately, Mother Nature decided that the rest of the area could use some hydration as well. In the early morning hours the sky dumped buckets on the entire region, ensuring that not only was the track well hydrated, in fact it was water logged. And it was still hot and humid. By noon temperatures had climbed into the triple digits, with humidity in the 90s. It sucked. The mud that its. The mud literally tried to suck the shoes off my feet as I attempted not to fall in front of everyone out on the track.
Mario DiAngelo had the incredible honor of an early moto on Sunday. He had to go out and become a mud monster with the rest of the early motos. In fact conditions were so bad on track that practice was cancelled and the youth classes were moved to the afternoon so that the track would be in better shape. Mario ended up with a fifth overall; one of his best finishes for the year. This is also his last race for the season as his brand new wife won a Disney Cruise that they will be on during the Southwick race. William Shukitis was one of the riders that I was able to identify after the start. Shukitis took the holeshot in moto two, but finished third. Bob Paulson took the overall for the weekend, and points leader Jeremy Lawson simply had a hard day. To be fair I took a lot of photos during this race, but they all looked the same: covered with mud.
The Open C class found Lance Conner taking a holeshot and dominating both motos for a 1-1 finish. Jason Smith, didn't have as good of luck even though his start looked promising. If you look to the left of this shot you can see him ahead of his bike, notice his boots. He was talking and moving but the EMTs were cautious with him just the same.
Humidity is something you can feel in the air and just can't see. The lead-up to the Pro race is much the same. Everything gets pretty quiet about 30 minutes prior to the moto when track operators go out and fix up the track. I used to not think this was fair. Be real, they are Pros. They should be able to handle any track conditions. From my view now, I see many reasons that this is done. First off, they are Pros. They have earned the right to have a decent track. Second the speeds they are going leave little room for error. And third, it gives the racers right after them a semi-fresh track as well.
We found a great spot for Grandma Charlotte and Grandpa Jim to watch the race from. Just south of the finish line there is a small creek that feeds Hurricane creek. There are some trees and a fairly level spot we could take the Grandparents to so they could watch Dana's race in the shade. Skip took them down to their viewing area with some Motion Pro chairs and some water to hang out for a while. Skip would be pitting for Dana and I would be on track during the moto so they would kind of be on their own for a bit. As the heat continued to climb, our worries over Dana dealing with the conditions also climbed. After his experience with Heat Stroke in Macon (2002), we were told that he would have to be extra careful for ever-more in the heat. Luckily we hooked up with pretty cool kid, Blake, who happen to have a Camel Back hydration system in his motorhome that he loaned Dana. We actually have a couple of these, but for some unknown reason the outside part and the inside part didn't make it to Tennessee together. My guess is the inside part is on the bench in the garage in California. Dana decided to do some fine-tuning to his gear. He is actually planning on sending this guide into ShiftMX so that they can help design a set of super-dooper vented gear for nasty conditions. Actually we had to have him hold back a bit on the cutting or he would probably have been sitting out there with just the waistband and a zipper attached after a couple of laps. He cut about 200 vents in his gear including removing the entire arm-pit area from his jersey with my utility shears. All Sunday morning Dana had been sorting laundry and deciding what to take with him to France for the Pont de Vaux. Our trailer looked like a closet had exploded in it.
By this time of the day the track had dried out just enough to be perfect. Of course the edges of the track were slippery as you can imagine. So the photo-journalists out in the middle were slipping and sliding around the infield. The crowd packed the fences in anticipation of fast speeds, thrills and spills (of which I hoped to see few of), while heavy equipment shaped the track. The Pros and their mechanics lined up to choose spoons with numbers on them to determine gate choice. Tavis Cain got the #1 spoon. Dustin Wimmer contemplated his first time racing as a pro. And the pressure built. The riders chose their gates and their mechanics began to clean up the gate area to ensure a clean gate drop. The humidity increased. The riders took their 'Parade' or site lap. I felt sick to my stomach (I usually do right before a race). Dana went for triple-triples twice through the Commandments. The riders lined up. Just before a Pro-National it seems that the area gets real quiet. The main thing you hear is Mark Strabanger talking about the riders. Out in the middle of the track, I can't hear much at all; except my own heartbeat (racing of course). At Lorettas, if you are standing on the track you can't really see the starting gates. But you can tell when it's all going to happen. Donny Banks was the starter this year. I could see him. I could hear all those 4-Strokes idling with an occasional 'rap' of the throttle. Donny held up the '2' side of the starting board. When he turned it to '1' indicating one minute, the thunder of the four-strokes began building in intensity until the gate drops. At this point I simply hold my breath for the next 60 seconds or so, and pray they all stay upright until I can breath again.
Tavis Cain came out of the hole first. That put him two holeshots in a row (one in Pro-Production and one in Pro). Doug Gust, Keith Little and Kory Ellis were the show for the front. Tavis held on to his lead for a short time, but again, the heat was not his friend either. Dana had a nasty start. Looking at this optimistically, his 14th or so into the first corner gave him the opportunity to work on his passing skills. Yeah, that's it. Passing skills. Mike Walsh, Jasmin Plante, Jeremiah Jones and Shane Hitt looked real good running in the top ten. Shane Hitt also had a decent start. Two or three laps in everyone had settled into their individual race groupings. There were the front runners, Doug, Kory, Joe Byrd and Keith, the next group Tavis, Shane, Mike Walsh, Jasmin Plante, Dana and Jeremiah, and then there was newcomer Dustin Wimmer, Jason Dunkelberger, Joe Haavisto and Matt White. Somewhere near the back doubles (behind the Suzuki doubles) Jasmin, Jeremiah and Mike hooked up with each other cartwheeling. Dana saw all of it happen and only knew he had to avoid it. Jeremiah took the worst of it. His bike was smoking when he came around and he was moving stiffly. Jasmin and Mike got going and ended up in a great race for the remainder of the moto with Dana. They all took turns passing each other. There was a big separation between these guys and the next closest riders, Wimmer, Hitt, Cain and Matt White, so they didn't appear to be pushing it too hard. I thought that might be because they all had tickets into France leaving the next day for the Pont de Vaux. The three of them switched position and flew over jumps side by side for several laps. John Natalie was another casualty of the heat. He took an early parking place near the finish line and waited out this moto. Jeremiah Jones continued to limp around the track in obvious pain. Dana looked good the entire race other than fading back a bit around the halfway mark. After that he seemed to hold his own. Two more laps and Joe Byrd would have caught Keith Little and Kory Ellis probably would have been challenging both of them.
After I got off the track I and back to our pits, there was no one there. I remembered that I we had left the Grandparents up around the bend, so I jumped in the Van and went to pick them up. When we got back to our pits (around a 3 minute drive), still no one was there, so we suspected that everyone was at the river cooling off. We tried to go down to see them (the Grandparents can't walk that far) but the traffic was too thick for us to get close enough. Grandma Charlotte and I decided to go and get some of the awesome frozen energy drinks they had up on vendor row (and of course stay in the ultra-cool air conditioning of the van). We dropped Grandpa Jim off at our pits and went on our mission. When we got back, Mario met us at the van and told us that Dana was having trouble with the heat. He told us that a nurse had taken Skip and Dana up 'that-way.' We assumed he meant they were headed for the First-Aid trailer that was about a three minute drive from our pits (since Vendor Row is closed to traffic). Charlotte and I rushed over to the First-Aid/Administration trailer to check on Dana. He wasn't there. We supposed that we had simply missed him in traffic somehow. Here is where the story gets a bit sticky. I am torn between telling all of you what happened and doing what I know is the right thing. My mother always told me if I can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. Dana reminded me of that quote (evidently I have used it on him in the past). So, I will have to do what is in my heart, and not 'go-for-it' and say everything. Here is the glossy version (all true of course and easily verified by the many witnesses that saw this incredibly unbelievable event unfold): one of Dana's old friends that he has kind of lost touch with came up to the van I was driving with my 70 year old mother-in-law sitting in the front seat, and wanted to know where Dana was so this person could check on him. I suggested very politely (in front of witnesses) that it wouldn't be a good idea just now since we didn't know the extent of his heat injury and to be honest didn't even know where he was. The old friend proceeded to inform me that I really don't know the first thing about being a decent parent and maybe I should leave my son alone while the old friend took care of him. I again asked the old friend to 'Please be a friend and just leave him alone without any drama just this time.' The old friend really went off on me then. I rolled up the window and went back in search for where my son was. Harsh words were indeed spoken; by the old friend, not by me. I did ask the old friend to quit acting like a, well like a bad person (but I admit to using another word). As I drove away I put the old friend out of my mind, since I really was more concerned about my son (even though I had just been labeled a worthless parent). I took Grandma Charlotte back to the pits to sit in front of the fans with her cool drink and continued to search for Skip and Dana and the mystery nurse who they left with. This time I went back to the First-Aid trailer and insisted on them getting on the radio and trying to locate where he had been taken. Rita Coombs got on the security radio and also began quizzing her contacts on what they knew. About this time, Blake (our newest semi-pit-crew member) came flying through Vendor row on his quad (probably not the best idea, but his heart was in the right place). He told me that someone had just came into our pits and was 'Taking swings at your Mother.' I was floored to say the least. Smitty (the AMA/ATVA official referee left immediately to see what was going on). Rita called security in, and the EMT left with me to check on the welfare of my in-laws. Although they were very shaken up (both are in their 70s) they were OK. We at that point found out that Dana had been taken up to Joe Haavisto's motorhome where he was with Skip. The EMT lady (thanks by the way), went with me to check on him as well. He had mild heat exhaustion and was doing pretty good in the cool air-conditioning. He, like the rest of us, was in a state of disbelief that someone would verbally and physically attack his grandparents for any reason. Anyone who has ever met them (Jim & Charlotte) would agree that they are very nice and completely non-confrontational people. What it comes down to is that someone (not the old friend of Dana's) came into our pits and began to verbally assault, Grandma Charlotte, who asked the person to, 'Please leave,' several times. The person refused to leave and continued to get more and more agitated. As Grandma Charlotte stood up and turned her back to go into the trailer and get away from this person who wouldn't leave, the person took a swing at the back of her head! Grandpa Jim stepped in at this point, and the person began to go after him. Needless to say the people in our pits, were amazed that this was happening. I guess it's like a train wreck where you can't believe what is happening, and it is happening so fast, and you are simply glued to your shoes in shock. About the time that the person turned the anger on Grandpa Jim, one of the person's family members came in to restrain the person. The person was so agitated that they were able to break away once and go back after Grandpa Jim before the family member regained control of them. The person was removed back to their area. I relate this story for several reasons. First I want to reassure people that it was not me involved in a brawl in our pits. I was actually in the First-Aid trailer when all of this happened. Second, I want to reassure people that Grandpa Jim and Grandma Charlotte are fine. They were really shook up, but are fine and will be able to travel to the next race. Also to let people know that we declined to hold the rider whose pits this behavior came out of responsible for the behavior of people associated with the rider. According to the AMA, the choices of repercussions for these actions could have had the rider disqualified for the weekend. All of us would prefer that this never happened. We do not want to have the person who behaved this way arrested or anything like that, we actually feel that this person really needs to be treated with compassion and hope that they will find a way to express their frustrations without hurting other people in the future. Again, I have been torn with how to present this extremely uncomfortable situation. I have my mother's voice telling me to be nice, although this time my mother actually told me not to be nice. Dana said we should be the bigger person and not say anything. The problem is that a lot of people saw parts of what happened, and rumors were flying. I think it is better to just be honest with what happened, even when we are right or when we are wrong. The most amazing thing about this entire situation is that the persons involved in this, have made no attempt to apologize to Dana's Grandparents for assaulting them. I know we are from California, but I thought the rules were the same everywhere: you do not assault elderly people that did nothing to you.
As I sat with Dana in Joe Haavisto's motorhome and cooled off along with him, Dana felt he could go out and turn in enough laps to be scored for the second moto. He had a headache but otherwise felt pretty good. We made him eat a couple of bananas and drink some more sport drink. He said the bananas weren't settling real good but otherwise he felt pretty good. We knew though he should not attempt to race. He felt he would be cooler riding and having the wind around him rather than sitting and watching the race. He promised not to race but simply to mark enough laps to be scored and hopefully retain some points for the series.
Moto two found Shane Hitt and Doug Gust vying for holeshot. Keith Little was behind them narrowly. Shane came out of the Ten Commandments with a vengeance. Dana scared me pretty bad right about then. He 'accidentally' got a good start. It's weird really; when he is trying so hard to get a good start it doesn't work, but when he relaxed and really didn't try he came into the first corner in 4th. Thank goodness he remembered his promise and pulled off the track and let everyone go by. Doug didn't waste much time getting by Shane. Joe Byrd didn't have a great start but he quickly worked into position for a solid second. Jeremiah had felt his back was injured from his wipe-out earlier and almost didn't ride the second moto. He ended up pulling a solid fourth in the second moto (not bad for someone hurt...). Shane held onto fifth and Jasmin Plante walked away with sixth. Kory Ellis came out way back in the start and worked his way up to seventh from his dismal start. Skip and Alan Ellis (Kory's dad and mechanic) were running the pit boards for their respective riders. Skip didn't have any pressure on him, since Dana was just marking time on the track, but Alan was all about encouraging his rider to get on the gas and get by some of the riders. Skip ended up being the second cheerleader for Kory in the mechanic section. There was one section of mud right by the mechanic section that most of the riders were diligently avoiding. Alan wrote something on the pit board to the effect of, "Get your bottom moving." Evidently Kory didn't appreciate the comment so he veered into the mud puddle and literally roosted his dad with mud. Kory insists that it was an accident. I'm sure it was. Dustin Wimmer finished with a top ten overall in his very first Pro race. Congratulations Dustin, it's great to have you here! Dana finished with a 13th overall. Actually that was somewhat of a surprise since we have raced real hard before and finished lower. Go figure. Joe Byrd was the man for the day, in fact moving ahead by a slim one point for the series lead. The fans were treated to a champagne shower by the podium winners. I'm sure that was all kinds of comfortable with the heat and the humidity. Who can say how this season will wrap up? What is going to happen is that it is all going to be played out at Southwick. Can he do it?? Can he hold on to the lead? That my friends is a story waiting to be told.
As of this writing (August 31, 2003) Dana is in Spain after finishing the Pont de Vaux (I will write on that later when I have the photos he and Bianka took as well as Mike, Jasmin and Dana to relate their adventures). They are filming for Huevos 6 and doing some freestyle shows. It sounds like he is having the time of his life, and I wish I had got to go as well. One day I will make to over there to see all the things that I'm sure the guys aren't interested in. I know he has had culture shock, but he is loving it.
Wishing much peace, comfort and safety to all. Be safe, ride hard.
Mom
Extra Photos:
Aaron Slingluff
Cory Ellerbroek
Joe & Heather
Greg Meeks, 2
|
