Colt Brinkerhoff National Hare and Hound Round 4 Race Report
Sunday greeted us with some great temps but the wind didn’t calm down much from the day before. I had some breakfast and had my go fast juice, Precision Nutrition Plus Protein, Glyco Fueler and Cardio Surge Pills, to make me feel fresher than a summer’s eve. After checking the “tank” over and fueling it up, we were ready for battle. At the start I found that my line had been taken so I moved to the right as it looked pretty open. At the rider’s meeting; they explained to us how gnarly it would be with 3-4 quad alternates in the first ten miles. I knew I had to be on my toes and pay attention.
They called out the two minute warning, so I started warming up the “tank”. It was starting much better now so I was stoked to try and get the hole shot. The banner rose and I shut off the quad and rested my foot on the kick starter. The wind was pushing the banner towards us, it was very windy and all I could hear was it whipping in the wind. They lowered the banner at the same time I was kicking the starter downwards, first kick start! I clicked it into gear and I was off! I knew with my fire breathing Moto Xperts engine and LSR exhaust I would start pulling away from the competition down the bomb. It was very fast for the first 4 miles and then it turned into the nastiest rocks I’ve ever ridden. It was rougher than the Healthcare.gov website but my Exit Shocks, Flexx Handlebars and A’ME Grips were giving me a very comfortable ride. I ended up getting side aches shortly after we hit the rocks, it was tough to sit or stand with that going on.
I was paying close attention to the quad alternates making it through each one with care. Survival mode kicked in as I was trying not to destroy my quad and get a win. Around mile 15 I had Jace Penney catch up to me as I gave him a head nod to congratulate him for being in 2nd. I knew I had to put my head down and charge as we came to one of the few valleys of the race. I was passing dirt bikes left and right through rock and high speed sections. At this point my side ache had worsened but I kept pushing past the pain just thinking about the “W”. I knew we had been riding for a long time but didn’t see any mile markers at all during the race. We came across a flat area once again and I could see the salt flats so I held it wide to the finish coming in 1st Overall ATV and 1st in class. I did end up proving The SoCal club wrong, finishing the race in 2 hours and 44 minutes, that seems crazy to me with a 40 mile race but I know I pushed as hard as I could. It was the toughest race that I’ve done so far. This would be my 2nd win in a row and I now have a substantial points lead in the championship points chase.