Site Lap: Is It Really Over!

It is hard to believe but it is finally over for the 2011 AMA ATV Motocross National Championship by DWT.  Championships were claimed and dreams were lived and in some cases crushed.  It is the nature of the beast in the ATV nationals and to be a champion here is the biggest honor any ATV racer can hold.  It is a championship ran against all odds and a championship that takes its toll on the mind, body,spirit and wallet.  A championship that if you do win will be one of the most rewarding challenges you ever faced.

The 2011 season ended with a bang as The Suzuki Loretta Lynn's ATV National Dirt Days hosted well over 700 entries in a championship deciding weekend.  It was as critical for amateurs as much as the Pro Am and Pro Classes were.  Dirt Days served as the deciding factors in both the North and South Challenge as well as deciding race for many National Championships.  You can check the results tab to find out more on the final points standings.

Loretta Lynn's serves a dual purpose in hosting the final by acting as the obvious series ending race and probably as important the "World's Greatest ATV Racing Vacation."  Families use Loretta Lynn's as kind of their vacation time before school gets underway for the youth of the ATV Racing Nation.  ATV racing families literally begin showing up Saturday evening as the motorcycle racing families are pulling out of Loretta Lynn's.  It used to be that ATV racing would begin on Tuesday with the TT racing and the week would be filled with racing.  Since the split of the GNC to a separate series for each, families have continued to use the week as a time to get away even if there is no racing going on.

This year was no exception as the ATV Youth Contingency headed up Freida Rozelle once again raised nearly $70,000.00 worth of prizes to hand out to the youth participants from the season finale.  This was the 5^th year for the event and was a huge success once again for all those in attendance.  Some of the prizes given out included a 90 Kymco Mongoose as the Grand Prize , over 60 helmets, 5 pair of Garene boots, 2 riding schools, 488 Web Design rider websites, ATV Fourplay Soft Bars, Backpacks, goggles, helmet bags, gear bags, goggle bags, lots of grips, spend a day in the life with Jeremiah Jones (The Famous Comeback Kid), Motor Rebuilds, Fasst Flex Bars, Escore Transponder, ATV Insider subscription, Free gate passes to next year's events, lots of Gift Certificates and more. This was one of the best years ever.

All the prizes on Friday were preceded by an RC race on Wednesday with a kid's carnival.  On Thursday there was also a corn hole tournament and other games and then Friday brought us the annual golf cart parade.

Saturday Night was all about the 88 Live to Ride Charity Auction which was a huge success.  There were items like the 2011 Victory Lane Podium Backdrop that was purchased for $6,000.00 by AMA Pro ATV Rookie Derek Swartfager's mother.  Rich Gillette purchased John Natalie's Championship Jersey he wore in the final moto to claim his championship for $5,000.00 and also purchased the Motoworks Can-Am John Natalie ATV for $10,000.00.  And that was only the last three items.  Next week I hope to speak with Debi Bartosek for Site Lap and introduce you to what 88 Live to Ride is all about.

As far as the racing front goes, it was about a classic finale as anyone may have scripted.  Aside from many of the Amateur Championships on the line most eyes were on the Pro and Pro Am classes.  Motoworks/DWT/Can Am's John Natalie came into the round with a 10 point lead over Baldwin Motorsports' Josh Upperman.  If you were there or read any race reports you may know that there could not have been a better ending to the final motos than what we saw.

Moto 1 saw rookies Chase Snapp and Joel Hetrick in a battle we had not seen since last year at Dirt Days when they were battling for the Pro-Am titles.  It was only when Snapp threw a chain that Hetrick saw any relief and was able to carry on to the checkers to win moto 1.  Upperman lost a couple of more points to Natalie in the moto and needed a miracle when they lined up at 4:00 p.m.

Moto 2 set the stage early for the excitement that is National ATV racing.  Upperman needed a win and Natalie to finish 9^th or worse to have a chance.  In turn one Natalie got crossed up and collided with a couple of riders dropping him to last place and nearly 10 seconds behind.  Natalie went to work and proved why he is the Ironman and why he deserved to be crowned AMA Pro ATV Motocross Champion passing through the pack to 4^th for the moto.

As impressive as anything was the ride that rookie Joel Hetrick displayed on his way to sweeping both motos and his second overall win for the season.  Hetrick made history by winning his first overall at Unadilla then to win Loretta's Dirt Days was another huge notch in the belt for this young man.  Many folks are already considering him a championship contender for 2012.  Who really knows but it will seem like forever before we get a chance to find out.

Early season point leader Motoworks/DWT/Can Am's Chad Weinen who is out for the season due to injury joined me in the tower to help announce both AMA ATV Pro Motos.  Big Chad had some great insight and was a pleasure to work with at both Loretta's and also at Red Bud a couple of weeks before.

Pro Am racing was equally exciting in both the Unlimited and Production with the championship down to the final moto of each division.  A big thanks goes to Pro Am racer #74 Kyle Fix for helping out with the race call for moto 2 of the Pro Am Production class on Sunday.   Fix had some moto 1 mechanical issues and was unable to race the 2^nd moto and stepped in to help.  He had a lot of insight to all the riders and the battles that each was having. Great job Kyle!

Blue Rok Racing/Ditch Witch's #41 Mark Madl who was in a come from behind contention for the championship in both divisions.  Madl did all he could on Saturday to overtake JB Racing's #728 Jeffery Rastrelli in the Pro Am Unlimited Class.  Coming in to the round Rastrelli had a slight point lead and with the Pro Am classes having "A Drop" had a little padding heading into the final round.  When it was all said and done Rastrelli rode the race he came to ride and secure a championship.  Madl took the final round win but Rastrelli took the championship.

On Sunday in the Pro Am Production class Madl was a mere 2 points behind class leader MotoXperts/Custom Axxis' #75 Casey Martin.  Martin started moto 1 in early control but as the moto wore on the determination and late season charge that Madl had put together was more than Martin could fend off.  Madl who had intensified his training throughout the season became an unstoppable force by seasons end was able to overcome the 2 point margin and claim the prestigious Pro Am Production Championship.  Madl also took home a Yamaha Generator awarded to him by Yamaha's Thomas Brown.

To say the least the final round was filled with excitement and will provide plenty of fuel and fodder for bench racing throughout the off season.  Here are a couple of things to chew on to get it all started; Both Mark Madl and Jeffery Rastrelli stated plans of moving up to the AMA Pro ATV Class next year.  This is huge for the sport and to have the young talent from this season and the addition of next year's rookie class is going only help better the quality of competition and the depth of talent we see in the nation's premier ATV motocross championship.

Till next time, God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs.