Indianapolis, IN
March 24th, 2007
After two weeks in sunny Florida, the 2007 AMA Supercross Series moved north to colder temperatures, rainy skies and a domed stadium. Located in the heart of downtown Indianapolis, the RCA Dome ushered in a new era of Supercross racing: one without Ricky Carmichael.
Team Solitaire was on hand in full-force. Ricky Renner continued his assault on the East Region "lites" division, while I competed in the premiere "Supercross" class. Due to space constraints within the RCA Dome and surrounding Convention Center, the pits where closed to the public this weekend and we were only allowed to bring our trailer inside while the tractors remained parked in the adjacent lot. No awnings were set up, and the pit area felt much like that of a European Supercross or Arenacross event.
Practice: Ricky and I both struggled a little in the first practice round. My bike was working well, but it took me a bit to get up to speed and when I did I was still off the pace. Ricky spent much of his practice trying to get the jumps dialed and wasn't stringing too many good laps together. The second practice proved much better for us both, as Ricky dropped over a second off his previous time and I dropped two. We were both positioned well heading into the night show.
"Lites" Heat Two: Ricky had an amazing jump off the gate and looked to have the holeshot heading into turn one. Unfortunately, he was going in a little too fast and the loose dirt in turn one sent him sliding over the berm, into a rhythm section and down on the ground.. After remounting in dead last, he did his best to salvage what he could and came back to 16th, seven positions shy of a transfer.
"Supercross" Heat Two: I had a good jump out of the gate as well but still got pushed a little wide in the first turn. I was around tenth at the end of lap one and put my head down to start moving forward. Exiting a corner into a rhythm I lost my front end when it pushed over the rut in the takeoff. It sent me off the track and back first onto the hard concrete. I got up quickly and my bike was still running, so I jumped on and grabbed a handful of throttle in hopes of being able to get back to the top nine. I rode solid laps and moved forward quickly, but the deficit was huge. On the final lap I passed into 13th place, but fell four riders short of securing a transfer to the main event. I too would have to go to the LCQ.
"Lites" LCQ: Ricky had another good jump but got knocked wide again and was mired in the back of the pack. There was some carnage up front, which moved him up a few, but he was still unable to get back to the top four. That would be the end of his night.
"Supercross" LCQ: With Ricky out, the pressure was on me to put it in the main event. I rocketed out of the gate but had to chop the throttle when the front end came up on me down the straightaway. I came out of the first turn outside the top fifteen, so the road ahead was looking tough. I came through the pack quickly, but with guys like Tedesco and Voss in the LCQ, I would be unable to get myself back up to the top two. I finished up in sixth and would also have to retire for the evening.
Summary: Obviously, we were all extremely disappointed with our results on the track this weekend. Ricky and I rode well, but with crashes in the heats and bad starts in our LCQ's, we never got the opportunity to show it. We just have to regroup and come back stronger and more prepared for Dallas next weekend.
Thank you to everyone for your continued support!
Best Regards,
Ryan Clark