The second Triple Crown proved to be another fun one that came down to the last race of the night. Here are some perspectives of the night.
Hunter Lawrence: So Hunter rode/tested five days in a row. Just FYI people that isn’t that big of a deal in the world of riding dirt bikes. Sure, It’s a little out of the norm but riding a little more without the race pace intensity during the week can actually help in two ways: one is that a rider gets to feel more of the bike without the stopwatch on him all day and get more of a direction of where Hunter needs to head with his setting. Two is that there aren’t any breaks between riding days so Hunter still keeps that “feeling” without a couple days in between throwing a leg over the bike. Now, this isn’t sustainable, but to do this a couple times a year isn’t detrimental to Hunter. Honestly, I think that is one of the reasons why he won this weekend on a tough track. His bike was better and he kept that feeling throughout the week so it allowed him to really know what his bike was going to do on a rutty track.
Justin Cooper: Rumor has it that we might see J-Coop back on the older frame like Webb is but this weekend it looks like the Star Racing Yamaha team found something. J-Coop had some more dig in him as well as the bike looked better through the whoops. Cooper’s jumping through the whoops ability is like no other. Jumping through the whoops proved to be faster at the beginning of the section but near the end, skimming brought back that time that was made up at the beginning. Jumping vs. skimming requires two different types of suspension settings so J-Coop must really communicate which style he is going with if he wants his bike to work for him in the main events. I think the team and J-Coop have that direction now.
Lappers: Every year we ALL talk about this. Sure Vince almost killed Tomac. Sure, Moranz didn’t get out of the way, sure Thompson got landed on, but you guys all know that the leaders can choose their lines a little better when coming up on some of these guys. I am not saying that I am “Team Lappers” but the leaders also have some responsibility as well. Another big responsibility is the flaggers that are waving the blue flags. They are waving them nonchalantly at the lappers. Sometimes when it’s as rutty as the track was at Indy, you will have to stick that flag out a bit more and wave it a little more forcefully. Some of these flaggers need practice on how to wave a damn flag. Also, I like Jase (Gypsy Tales) but I can also disagree with him without wanting to burn the guy at the stake. I think we NEED privateers in our sport. We aren’t F1. We aren’t NASCAR. We are MOTO! This sport always and always will be different than other motorized sports out there. The guy in 16th is still a bad dude. The track was tough and rutty, hence the reason wy we witnessed more close calls than normal. I mean the Friese thing is standard but everything else is due to track conditions. I am not a keyboard warrior! I do this sport for a living and I still think we need privateers, but I also think we need stiffer penalties for riders that are repeat blue flag offenders. Peace and love. No hate comms.
Christian Craig: A quiet 8th overall. CC is chipping away and we could see some top fives when this is all said and done. Birmingham could be a good track for Craig with its hard pack base and his soft/smooth throttle hand. With a Savatgy injury now, Craig must hold the flag up for the Quad Lock Honda team.
Vince Friese: Yes, I know but the dude gets great starts and is the top Kawasaki rider of the weekend in the 450 class. This has to be mentioned. That is all…
Cole Davies: Cole should thank the promoters for the new tough blocks. These angled blocks are saving him from some big ones in the whoops. If the tough blocks were square like the older blocks, his feet would get ripped off. He is not scared of the edge of the whoops. BUT!!!! He makes it work and this is his championship to lose now.
Jalek Swoll: What started out as a rough go in the qualifiers turned around once the sun set. The dude can turn it on like I have never seen. Just when you think Jalek is cooked for a race, the kid comes back and shoves it up our asses. Sure the result isn’t great on paper but the speed is there for a bit and that shows with some more races he could be on the box. Triumph is relieved I am sure.
Devin Simonson: I was at Club MX last summer and this kid was out grinding outdoor motos even though he wasn’t racing the full series. From where he started until now, there is a BIG difference in his riding and if he can keep stacking race weekends, I think Simonson will be a top 5 guy consistently. Staying off the ground and being up front will be huge for him. One of Simonson’s strengths is adapting quickly. He can do this with some of the best.
