There's nothing quite like a good ol' fashioned road trip. This time, our particular mission was to hit the road for the first two rounds of the 2007 Maxxis EnduroCross series in Denver, Colorado, followed by the next weekend in Guthrie, Oklahoma. Piling into Big Air Tod Sciacqua's tightly packed motor home, the crew started out with Tod, myself, off-road up-and-comers Kyle Redmond and Gary "Plankton" Fogg, as well as my older brother, Scott, and former supercross hero-turned diaper specialist Damon Huffman. (However, Scooter and Huff Daddy had "real" responsibilities that kept them from partaking in the entire trip.) Together, our merry band of roaming roost carnies left California on a sunny morning and bombed it straight to Colorado, struggling to keep 65 mph going in our overloaded rig full of bikes, gear and junk food. Fueled by laughter and our beloved Texaco gas card, the trip started out as just another dirt bike adventure with a few favorite friends. Yet when the motor home came to a halt and we pulled out the bikes, the true meaning of our journey became evermore clear: We drove halfway across the country just to race, and race we did.
When we finally arrived at Denver's National Western Stock Show complex and laid eyes on the freshly completed course, it was clear that round one of EnduroCross would certainly weed out the weak of heart. The organized practice sessions confirmed this, as the track's tricky boulder sections, greasy slick logs and loose river rock corner made things more than a little interesting. But who said EnduroCross was supposed to be easy? While nearly everyone crashed, some pulled off and a few quit completely, a couple of riders visibly excelled on the brutal little track; it was clear who had done their homework coming in. I felt decent on my Suzuki RM250 two-smoke but was reminded that one of the key aspects to EnduroCross lies in your arms-they're going to pump no matter what, so you can either quit or accept it. I chose the latter.
After pounding through qualifiers, I hit the track for the Junior (ages 24 and under) main event. One cool aspect of EX is that unlike in supercross, amateur classes race on the same track as the pros do, so you really get an appreciation for how good those guys are. As is usually the case with off-road riders, pretty much all the invited pros are cool enough to come out and watch you ride, mostly for track-study purposes but also for their own entertainment. Working through my eight laps of fury, I noticed Ty Davis, John Dowd and David Knight standing along the sidelines with all the other VIPs and mechanics-very cool indeed, and a great motivator when you need a second wind. Despite the tricky conditions, the racing was close yet the riding was clean, with most riders being too busy taking themselves out to really have a crack at anyone else. I struggled in the rock corner but rode somewhat mistake-free and crossed the line in fifth, giving me nearly a minute of recovery time before taking off in the succeeding Open two-stroke main. I pulled through that one with a seventh-five gaping spots away from making the night show-but was slightly stoked to be able to take my gear off for the night.
When the final race of the evening took off in front of the packed crowd, Knight pinned it off the line and never looked back. Several riders looked to be in a position to keep the KTM rider honest, but it was trials pro Keith Wineland who eventually grabbed the runner-up podium spot. Huffman showed no signs of his recent retirement, riding with a smooth, consistent style to take the final podium position. Back at the motor home, you could see in Damon's eyes that he was just stoked to be back racing after a two-year hiatus; this guy was born to ride a dirt bike.
The Denver EX track was so tough, Chuck Norris didn't even race! |  |  |
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Destry Abbott and John Dowd drop the hammer in qualifiers. |