Legacy wrap-up race report. SQR edition. Aug. 1, 2020.

[bnd]

Do you remember when you debuted a brand new uniform? You felt fresh, fast & factory, right? You were ready to kick some butt because somehow that new uni made you faster. Kind of like when you were a kid and got some new shoes & they made you run faster. That's how I felt last night, new gear & when I saw Zach sporting a some new gear too, I laughed said "It's going to be a good night!" Well, for one of us, it was & the other, not so much.

Big Ripper race #5.
Since this was a State Qualifier, I thought some entrants were going to take it easy to save themselves for class as they were probably chasing a title. It was blazing freaking hot & I knew attrition would come into play. My game plan was to take it easy & save myself for the Open.....what a mistake.
14 riders, 2+2 straight to the main. Since we do random motos now, you never know who your going to race against. I was in the 1st moto & it was stacked. Didn't make it out, oh well, I'll get it next time. My 20" class came up with low points, I decided to take it easy & did, thinking I would save my energy.
2nd Open moto & I'm still feeling pretty confident knowing that my comp has had to go 100% earlier & might be a little tired. I get the outside gate. Bam! gate drops & I get out good, I have Doug on the inside of me as I jump into the 1st turn, riding his hip & feeling good.......Wha? WTH!? Here comes this white flash on the inside of both of us & Breanna low-highs us. Oh crap, I get on the gas & start to press, as I come out of the 2nd corner it's full on panic mode. Breanna has the lead & I know getting past Doug is going to be hard. Coming out of the last corner & I have the juice but can't get a lane to pass. I'm in WFO mode now coming down the last straight, an opening is on the right & I take it, I pull Doug & we both push at the line & the finish line gives it to him. What the hell just happened? I say to myself. I honestly had to take a minute to gather my thoughts & went back & congratulated the others. This is the first time in the 3 year history of the Open that I haven't made the main & it sucked, lol. But, this is also what I wanted & envisioned that this Series would be all about, Good, hard comp week in & week out, making everybody better & having a good time doing it. I guess I have to work a little harder if I don't want to get into this position again, right?
Main time.
Brooke gets the "X" ball & sends Jared to lane 8. Gate drops, Zach is out, Brooke is out, on the farside it looks like Jared has done something wrong, but he came unclipped for a spilt second & he's playing catch up! Going into the 1st corner it's Zach, Brooke & Jared on the highside. Jared comes off the berm & blows by Brooke on the 2nd straight but Zach has a huge lead, 4-5 bike lengths, there's no way Jared is catching him, right? WRONG! Jareds track speed is crazy fast & he smokes the 3rd straight & the new step-table like it wasn't even there. He reels in Zach & everybody in the stands could see it coming, Jared is coming like a freight train, catches Zach but runs out of track. I was on the infield w/ Danita filming & the crowd was going crazy as was Dave Cote. What a race! Zach, Jared, Brooke, Doug, Breanna, Russ, Kevin & Jason Melton rounding it out. Honestly, the most exciting race I can remember in the Series history.
Ok, so now to clear the air a bit, there was a little bit of chatter about how the action unfolded at the finish line. So, first up, besides a blatant T-Bone-take-out-move, there is no DQ's in the series. It's a fun race that is off the grid. I think if sh*t happens, that's between the riders involved. It's either "pay back is a witch or you shake hands & leave it at that". I made my way over the finish line & all I saw were smiles, handshakes, respect & a ton of "that was AWESOME!" Can you imagine how much more cowbell these mains could get with T.P. or Barton in there just to name a few super, fast guys that threaten to show up? Thanks for everybody that entered last night.


The night.
- Most of the loyal readers here know how hard we at Legacy have worked since Memorial Day weekend to get this track & program to this point. This weekend was our target to have everything dialed & running smooth. This was our Grands so to speak, & Iv'e got to say it surpassed all my expectations. Our volunteers made it all possible, you know who you all are, thank you!

- Last night I left the arena at 11:30 I think. Driving home it reminded me of the days of the Fairgrounds Indoors, Preston BMX & late nights at 00's Deseret Peak.

- 42 motos, 170+ riders. I think this was the biggest race in the 9 year history of the track, thank you for showing up.
- Dustin Jennings almost single handedly sponsored the 50/50 raffle with his donations. What a stud & strong supporter of Northern Utah BMX. $580'ish bucks went to a lucky winner.
- We had 3 people rocking the mic last night & it worked great.
- My wife helped out in staging, she says it's the most thankless job at the track, lol. (That's what she gets for not racing ,haha). Being prepared, I.E., number plate, knowing your moto, paying attention is the least a rider or riders parental unit can do to make things keep moving. Learn it, love it, live it.
- Faction BMX Team cooked up 200 free hotdogs, first come, first served. I got #196.
- Our TO, Zach Randall not only won the BR Open, he won his X class too, must of been that new uniform.
- Jason Melton showed up & even though he complains about how out of shape he is, he is still fast & for the most part, backed it up. Nice seeing you again & don't be a stranger.
- There were a few full rack mains, 5 & under novice & 9 novice come to mind, great signs for the future of the sport.

- Dave Cote.
I asked Dave awhile ago if he would announce at this race, he accepted. After some catching up, he fired up the mic. Now, I know most of you have never been to a Slayer concert. I've been to 3. Slayer is a legendary thrash metal band that is so loud & bone jarring, they make other metal bands almost look tame. This how I initially felt in the first 30 seconds when Dave came live. It was so good to hear this voice that just commanded your attention. He kept the action moving, info coming in & just general chit chat, going with the flow all night long. Iv'e been around a lot of announcers thruout the years & have listened to some really great guys, no disrespect to any of them but Dave is the G.O.A.T. in Utah, that's my humble opinion. He set the tone for the atmosphere in the arena & all it did was go up & up as the night went on. It almost makes me to want to go to a 3-moto transfer system just to string it out. Ryan Crandell was our music DJ & when he switched over from 80's New Wave to classic rock after the motos', he also set a great mood. Thank you both.

Thanks for reading.
b.