WORCS Round 1
Speedworld, Arizona
January 20, 2008Race Day:
Well, the season is already kicking off! The best part about this race is the fact that it's only 20-minutes from my house. The start was at 12:00 on Sunday, and it was packed with spectators and the pro gate was full. The WORCS crew did a great job on the course! It was rough, but well watered so dust wasn't going to be a factor. Right at 12:00 the gate dropped and my Kawasaki 450 launched off the concrete. I was in second around the first corner (behind Bobby Bonds), but on the next corner Caselli got by. The first lap was pretty wild, and we were all pinning it. On the second lap, I believe Nathan and someone else got by me which put me in 5th. Going into the EnduroX section (which I really like) I was able to get by two guys and put myself back into third. Then not to much further into that lap, I was able to make a nice pass on Kurt to get myself into second. At this point I was feeling really good, and felt like I was going to have a great day. Bonds was still leading and he was pinning it! I figured I'd just ride the pace I was, and see what happened. On the next lap I'm not sure what happened, but I just suddenly got huge arm-pump. It was to the point where I couldn't use the clutch or front brake. The next few lap's people were just blowing by me, and there was absolutely nothing I could do but watch them pull away. At the hour mark I pitted and was back off, but I believe I was around 7th place. My arms started to loosen up and my pace started to get better, but I still wasn't riding loose (like myself). I actually lost two more spots and was just having a tough time flowing. Going out on the last lap, I was able to get around Ricky and finished a disappointing 8th overall.Overall Summary:
As you could imagine, I wasn't too happy finishing 8th when I was running 2nd. I know I'm well prepared for this year, and my endurance was great. If I hadn't gotten arm-pump I really feel I would've had a good shot at the podium. I know its part of racing and a lot of guys dealt with the same problem. I'm still feeling good about my speed and everything else that goes with it!Pro Results (Top 35):
1st Kurt Caselli
2nd Bobby Bonds
3rd Kyle Summers
4th Damon Huffman
5th Nathan Woods
6th Robby Bell
7th Bobby Garrison
8th Destry Abbott
9th Brenden Ritzman
10th Ricky Dietrich
11th Chris Johnson
12th Arik Swan
13th Jamie Lanza
14th Gary Sutherlin
15th Justin Soule'
16th Dennis Stapleton
17th Daryl Ecklund
18th Tim Weigand
19th Ty Davis
20th Sean Collier
21st Ryan Orr
22nd Bryce Olson
23rd Benny Breck
24th Kyle Lewis
25th Ryan Powell
26th Russ Pearson
27th Matt Karlsen
28th Brent Harden
29th Steven Stultz
30th Justin Evans
31st Lance Smail
32nd Adam Harvey
33rd Dustin Cummings
34th Josh Edwards
35th Mike RushOther Notes:
I really need to give a huge Thanks to all my family, friends, and locals that showed up to cheer me on. I really would've liked to give them a podium finish!I'd also like to thank Stephen Gall for helping me so much with my off-season training program. I really feel good about this year!Today was a big day! Not only was it the first race of the season, but it was my sons B-Day (10).It was really great to talk to Chris Blais on Saturday. It was the first time I've been able to talk to him since his accident. He's such a great guy and he's really doing great with his progress at rehab.It's just amazing how big the WORCS series has gotten. I've been racing the series since the first year (2001) and it's really amazing to see all the semis and big rigs in the pits. Now we have a ton of MX riders trying to make the switch over; which is great too.Dan Matthews, at Speedworld, really did a great job on getting the facility ready for this event. I know this is the biggest race of the year (in AZ) and it turned out awesome.This was our first WORCS race with our new Kawasaki / Monster team semi. It was actually the MX/SX team rig, since they got a new one. It's still new to us.Taylor Robert won the Pro 2 class and finished 12th overall. I've been trying to help him out and I know before the year is over he's going to have plenty of top 10 overalls (along with Josh Morros). Both of them ride for Kawasaki and are super fast kids!If you get a chance, check out my updated website www.destryabbott.com. We added some new photos, sponsors, and 2008 race schedule. We're working on some cool new videos too.I attached some photos from my 2008 WORCS photo shoot (courtesy of Kenny Jones).My next race is this weekend in Lucerne, California for round 1 of the AMA Hare and Hound series. I'll be racing the KLX450 in all the H&H;'s.Best Wishes,
Destry
www.destryabbott.com2008 Sponsors:
Kawasaki Racing, Monster Energy, Dunlop, Stephen Gall Training, Scott goggles, Thor, IMS, Pro Circuit, Kawasaki Accessories, SIDI, GPR, Acerbis, CTI2, Jonre, BRP, Motion Pro, Works Connection, OGIO, Kicker, Hinson, Hoy Fox Toyota, AP Designs, Braking, Renthal, Team Hawg Racing, Twisten Wrenches, Cyto Sport, Red Baron, Trick, Zip-Ty, RK/Excel, N-Style, Shoei, Maxima, ZLT, Bent, Steahly, Parkway Chiropractic, and Tire Balls.
