PNH held it down for the home team this weekend at High Point. I was stuck testing here at home in California so I missed one of my favorite nationals on the circuit but here are some notes from the race on Saturday.
Mayla Herrick: If you need a WMX rider to root for (which I think we all do because this series is blowing up) look no further than the 17 year old Mayla Herrick! Mayla was at my Loretta Lynn’s Regional Qualifier and it was the first time that I got to witness the speed of the Honda rider. 50 plus class was second gate (women were first gate) and Mayla was the only one that I didn’t catch (or see) from the second gate. She has an aggressive yet smooth style for a girl that isn’t that big in stature. She comes from a great Colorado and her dad seems like a normal dude when I spoke with him on the starting line (not some psychotic moto parent). What also impressed me was her podium speech on the podium at High Point. She was concise, to the point and to me is one of the better spoken ladies on the podium. HER FIRST TIME UP THERE! Great job to her mom and dad for teaching your kid how to speak. Her second moto first turn crash is a huge bummer but from what I hear, she will be ok and hopefully back on the bike for LL’s. The series is better with Mayla in it! With Lachlan ( I refuse to type out “LA LA”, which I just did, but you get the point) being so damn fast, I feel like Mayla is the only other one with the raw speed that can keep her in site. Charlie is also there but I feel like there is a higher ceiling with Mayla. Now if we could just get like a Deegan type in the WMX class instead of all these ladies liking each other! Come on, ladies, we need some story lines here!
Chance Hymas: I got a text Sunday morning reading “me and your kid were battling for 25th in the first moto” from Super Chunk. Chance hasn’t quite been the rider we thought he would be but coming back from another knee injury and having that much time off the bike does hurt the race speed a bit. I do believe within a couple more rounds we will see Chance up on the podium. This class is so damn packed with possible winners I would not count out this dude.
Team Honda: If you have a team and are looking to model yours after someone else then look no further than the factory HRC Honda team. If they are man down, the team steps up, without issue. When you walk by the truck (winning or not) the team looks happy, doesn’t look there is any drama and it just looks like a fun place to come to work. Cameron Camera (Hunter’s mechanic) has had these back problems that have taken him down off and on for quite sometime so seeing Hutch spin the wrenches for Hunter wasn’t a surprise. Factory Honda has come a long way from the rigid feeling under the tent feel of the 90s and early 2000s. Well done, boys!
Mikkel Haarup: This dude is holding the Triumph flag high (props to J-Smith too). Top 5’s and a 7th at Mount Morris is a great result for Haarup and the team. I know you might think I am biased but the factory Triumph TF-450 machine is underrated. It is a really easy bike to ride fast and the team (as well as Mikkel) have been working hard on set up. Mikkel has one of there most “normal” factory bikes that I have seen/been a part of. His suspension spec isn’t stiff as hell, engine delivery is long and linear, his cockpit is neutral and it’s just an every man’s kind of machine. Plus the dude is just a friendly kind of guy! Sucks we are going to lose him to MXGP next year.
Dylan Ferrandis: TWO BIG HITS TO THE GROUND! Dylan is going to be sore Monday morning. His qualifying and second moto crashes were hard hits. It sucks to see because the bike seems to be coming around and Dylan’s speed has been getting better. Remember when Dylan won the outdoor title. Yeah, you forgot huh? I do too sometimes! Here’s hoping he gets healed up and comes out swinging for RED BUD!
Marsh: Weltin pisses my kid off so much! Marshal’s qualifying is NOT impressive but then all of a sudden the dude comes to life in the races. Aden will have similar qualifying times but in the race Aden will be near Marsh and Aden will come back after the moto to tell me how he just blew by him and checked out. “Dad he was going apeshit through the pack”. HAHAHA! Weltin is a racer and it shows. Getting top 20 is crazy this season. There are so many GOOD riders NOT getting in the points in a lot of motos. Props to Marsh for uncorking it during the motos.
Cole Davies: Two years ago if you asked me if this guy was going to win an outdoor race, I would have laughed at you. Now he’s ONE of the guys and at HP was simply dominant. Cole is the type of rider that has thrived at Star Yamaha. The competition day in and day out during the week is something that has molded him into what we see now.
