Posts
1719
Joined
6/10/2010
Location
Severna Park, MD
US
Edited Date/Time
8/9/2018 10:24am
The stars all lined up and I got to spend 3 days at the ranch. Granted, for the most part I was there working but when I left my guy to get some rest, I watched a lot of racing. Here's my little run-down...
A classes:
Derek Drake is the real deal. He came off a poor showing at Mammoth(mostly bike issues) and proved that once everything clicks, he is hard to beat. He's very smooth, calculated, and has a boat load of talent. I also like that he is very humble and hard-working. Very nice kid and I hope the best for him once he moves up to the pro ranks at Hangtown.
I'm absolutely biased, so please don't get too upset with me. Seth Hammaker is my guy, but at the same time, his speed and tenacity is unquestioned. His corner speed is incredible! There is no bias here as EVERYONE was talking about it. Honestly, I knew he was fast but I really haven't witnessed/paid attention to how much more his corner speed improved over the last year. He has a couple of things he needs to polish up on(he knows what they are and actually showed it in the last Pro Sport moto) and I expect BIG things from him in the pro's.
B/Schoolboy2 classes:
Jalek Swoll has figured it out folks. He put together a solid performance this year at the Ranch. He has always shown that he has the speed, this year he coupled it with very smart and consistent rides to earn himself 2 championships. I'm looking forward to seeing how well he improves over the next year, he has a great team and trainer behind him.
Pierce Brown...OMG this kid has speed! If you weren't able to witness this in person, do yourself a favor and go back and watch the 3rd moto in Schoolboy 2. This is when he put down not only the fastest lap of the week, but the fastest 5 laps of the week. Unfortunately, he had some crashes in both 2nd motos that kept him from 2 titles. As long as he stays healthy and improves his consistency, he will be the favorite for the Horizon Award next year.
450B classes:
Parker Mashburn is actually the only kid I knew by name. Parker is super smooth and rides the 450 really well. He needs to pick up his intensity and aggression and I think he will progress nicely into the pro's. He kind of reminds me of Luke Renzland his last couple years at the ranch. Very solid and very workman-like.
The rest of the class was very fun to watch because you didn't really know what to expect. Not a lot of "stand out" rides but a lot of surprises.
Schoolboy 1/125 B/C classes:
IMO my favorite classes of the week. Ty Masterpool is an animal!!! I loved watching this kid on 80's, but he is even more fun to watch on the 125. Want to talk about aggressive and just WFO everywhere!?! That was Ty's performances! The 2nd 125 B/C moto was the best of the week! Masterpool came around the finish line on the 1st lap in 17th and I figured he would get no higher than 3rd. At the 2 lap board he was 3rd and right on the top 2. 2 turns after that, he tried a pass in the billboard turn and went down. I thought it was over and he would get 3rd just like I predicted. NOPE, he put on another charge and tracked the top 2 down again and won the moto. Incredible performance!
With all the hype that Aiden Tijero had going into this race after beating RV and Wil Hahn at Hangtown, his performances were less than what I expected. He had some unfortunate crashes and seemed to struggle at the end of the moto's. I hope he can figure out what the issues were and come back next year and grab some titles. We will just chalk up this year as "just what happens at LL."
Supermini Classes:
The most dominate rider of the week belongs to Nate Thrasher. This kid was on rails the entire week. I don't know if anyone thought he would just be heads and shoulders above everyone else in the class sans his family and himself. Even a crash in the final moto couldn't put a dent in his championship run. He got up, dusted himself off and went to work. He fell back to about 5 seconds behind Max Vohland. 2 laps later, an easy pass around the outside of the finish line turn put him back into the lead for good. Looking forward to seeing him on big bikes.
Max Vohland had a great week. First time I've seen him ride in person. Awesome rider, looks just like his dad did on the bike!
Matt Leblanc was just all around out biked. The growth spurt he hit this year came a little too early as he looked like another Cajun, Kevin Windham, his last year on mini's at the ranch. Hopefully Matt will ride the 125's in 2019 at LL.
Mini's:
Ryder D had a great week, adding 2 more Championships. After a 7th in the 1st moto, I thought his chance for 2 titles was in serious doubt. But just like champions do, he put his head down and did the best he could do and let the cards fall how they may. Even more impressive, he was super sick most of the week. Ironman performance by Ryder!
Caden Braswell was another victim of a poor 1st moto, yet came back to secure a 3rd overall and a championship in Sr Mini 2. I admit I don't know much about Caden but he has a really good style and makes good decisions. There was a line he had in the first turn tree section that went unused by any of the other kids the entire moto. Very technical in his line selection which will pay big dividends as he matures.
Daxton Bennick is another OB standout. I know of Daxton because I used to race his dad Todd when I was in amateurs. Just like dad, Daxton is very smooth, calculating and seems unfazed of things happening around him. He had Haiden Deegan breathing down his neck in the 2nd and third motos and he just methodically pulled away.
Haiden Deegan put on a clinic in the 65 7-11 class. He would post wins on an average of 20+ seconds. I think once he moves to the 85 full time, he's going to be a handful for his competition. I don't know if OB has a plan set for him but if I was Star Racing or Team Green, I would snatch him up quick. He is a superstar in the making.
Enzo Timmerman was the class of the field in the 65 10-11 Limited field. This young ripper was impressive as he fended off attacks from Logan Best all week. Look for battles from these 2 for the next several years to come.
Seth Dennis is a stud in the 50 class. He almost pulled off a moto win in the 1st moto after being way back on lap 1. The final 2 motos were honestly pretty boring as he completely dominated by close to 30 seconds in each. He is also developing really well on the 65.
Vet Classes:
Probably the classes that give DC nightmares. It seems there is always some sort of drama in these classes. I have a schedule Davey that may help alleviate some of your stress, or it could possibly make you go bald by pulling your hair out!
Anytime you and Tim want to talk holler at me!
Anyhoo... Mike Brown is and will always be a STUD! His 3rd moto battle with Ricky Renner for the +25 Championship was legen-wait for-it-dary! Brownie put all the years of racing to work to essentially break Renner's will. Honestly, Ricky threw every thing he had at Brown trying to win this championship but Brown always had an answer. There's something to that "old man strength."
The +30 class was a another one of those classes that when you thought it was going to be one way, totally upends itself in the last moto. This class is difficult for me because I have so many friends, so many good guys that I want to see do well. It is full of so many emotions that its hard to enjoy. I feel bad for some guys and then happy for others...its just exhausting.
If I'm being honest, Chad Wages(buddy) had it on lock this year. He rode smart and consistent in the first moto to a 2nd. In the second moto, he tracked down Andrew Matusek(like a little brother to me) from 10+ seconds and won. He had a big lead, 3 points, going into the last moto. The only way anyone would beat him is if had issues. Well...cue the drama. Off the start, Wages put himself EXACTLY where he need to be if he didn't get the holeshot. Unfortunately, it was EXACTLY where Kenny Day(another buddy) needed him to be, as Kenny was the one 3 points down in 2nd to Wages. I cannot say for certain if the next 2 seconds were intentional but what is fact is Day's YZF was on the inside of Wages YZF and Wages ended up on the ground after contact. We had Maryland YZF on Maryland YZF crime here folks! Wages would pick himself up off the ground in dead last and charge the entire moto finishing 8th. Day cruised in second the entire moto, claiming the national title. Wages would end up 3rd overall.
Brown absolutely destroyed the +40 class. There has been a lot of debate about this class and Brown's eligibility in it. I really don't know how I feel about it. I see both sides of the argument. Fact is, most of the guys complaining wouldn't win the class anyway. Case in point, 2nd and 3rd are both former pro's, both held 2-digit numbers forever, and both are 50+ riders too! No one is complaining about them being in the class. Honestly after this week being there in person, the +40 riders just need to step it up, myself included.
Terry Bostard once again came from CA and put in 3 amazing rides to earn himself another title in +45. Terry is a great guy and I had the pleasure of racing him in 2015 at the Ranch. He is very tactical, consistent, and fast! Congrats Terry!
+50 was a slobberknocker between John Grewe and Barry Carsten. It was super cool to see these guys race, literally, side by side all week. Grewe did what he had to do and won the first 2 motos and essentially relinquished the 3rd moto to Barry knowing all he had to do was get 2nd to secure the championship. The first 2 motos were decided by less than 3 seconds combined and Carsten took the 3rd moto by 30 seconds.
Girls/ Women's classes:
The Women's 12+ and WMX classes were dominated by Jordan Jarvis. She is on another level in the women's class. I would like to see her go to Europe and compete for a World Championship. Simply put, the girls racing big bikes in the US can't beat her straight up. They need her to have issues to take wins from her.
The girls 11-16 class was decided by the 1st moto of the week. An unfortunate series of events possibly cost this one going down to the final moto. It appeared that Jazzmyn Canfield thought she took the checkered flag in the first moto after an amazing race between her and Taylor Allred. Once she looked back as she was pulling into the impound area, she noticed the white flag. She immediately raced to the billboard turn and right in front of Allred. The AMA would dock her 2 positions. Once Allred won the 2nd moto, Canfield would need some help to be able to win this title. Taylor Allred did exactly what she needed to do in secure another national title. Very fast and smart riding by Allred!
Sorry for the long post, but I thought I would fill in everyone of the things that I witnessed this week. Once again Loretta Lynn's did not disappoint! Hopefully I will be back next year racing instead of working. But nevertheless, it is always the best week of the year in my book!
Cheers!!
Johnathon Blain
A classes:
Derek Drake is the real deal. He came off a poor showing at Mammoth(mostly bike issues) and proved that once everything clicks, he is hard to beat. He's very smooth, calculated, and has a boat load of talent. I also like that he is very humble and hard-working. Very nice kid and I hope the best for him once he moves up to the pro ranks at Hangtown.
I'm absolutely biased, so please don't get too upset with me. Seth Hammaker is my guy, but at the same time, his speed and tenacity is unquestioned. His corner speed is incredible! There is no bias here as EVERYONE was talking about it. Honestly, I knew he was fast but I really haven't witnessed/paid attention to how much more his corner speed improved over the last year. He has a couple of things he needs to polish up on(he knows what they are and actually showed it in the last Pro Sport moto) and I expect BIG things from him in the pro's.
B/Schoolboy2 classes:
Jalek Swoll has figured it out folks. He put together a solid performance this year at the Ranch. He has always shown that he has the speed, this year he coupled it with very smart and consistent rides to earn himself 2 championships. I'm looking forward to seeing how well he improves over the next year, he has a great team and trainer behind him.
Pierce Brown...OMG this kid has speed! If you weren't able to witness this in person, do yourself a favor and go back and watch the 3rd moto in Schoolboy 2. This is when he put down not only the fastest lap of the week, but the fastest 5 laps of the week. Unfortunately, he had some crashes in both 2nd motos that kept him from 2 titles. As long as he stays healthy and improves his consistency, he will be the favorite for the Horizon Award next year.
450B classes:
Parker Mashburn is actually the only kid I knew by name. Parker is super smooth and rides the 450 really well. He needs to pick up his intensity and aggression and I think he will progress nicely into the pro's. He kind of reminds me of Luke Renzland his last couple years at the ranch. Very solid and very workman-like.
The rest of the class was very fun to watch because you didn't really know what to expect. Not a lot of "stand out" rides but a lot of surprises.
Schoolboy 1/125 B/C classes:
IMO my favorite classes of the week. Ty Masterpool is an animal!!! I loved watching this kid on 80's, but he is even more fun to watch on the 125. Want to talk about aggressive and just WFO everywhere!?! That was Ty's performances! The 2nd 125 B/C moto was the best of the week! Masterpool came around the finish line on the 1st lap in 17th and I figured he would get no higher than 3rd. At the 2 lap board he was 3rd and right on the top 2. 2 turns after that, he tried a pass in the billboard turn and went down. I thought it was over and he would get 3rd just like I predicted. NOPE, he put on another charge and tracked the top 2 down again and won the moto. Incredible performance!
With all the hype that Aiden Tijero had going into this race after beating RV and Wil Hahn at Hangtown, his performances were less than what I expected. He had some unfortunate crashes and seemed to struggle at the end of the moto's. I hope he can figure out what the issues were and come back next year and grab some titles. We will just chalk up this year as "just what happens at LL."
Supermini Classes:
The most dominate rider of the week belongs to Nate Thrasher. This kid was on rails the entire week. I don't know if anyone thought he would just be heads and shoulders above everyone else in the class sans his family and himself. Even a crash in the final moto couldn't put a dent in his championship run. He got up, dusted himself off and went to work. He fell back to about 5 seconds behind Max Vohland. 2 laps later, an easy pass around the outside of the finish line turn put him back into the lead for good. Looking forward to seeing him on big bikes.
Max Vohland had a great week. First time I've seen him ride in person. Awesome rider, looks just like his dad did on the bike!
Matt Leblanc was just all around out biked. The growth spurt he hit this year came a little too early as he looked like another Cajun, Kevin Windham, his last year on mini's at the ranch. Hopefully Matt will ride the 125's in 2019 at LL.
Mini's:
Ryder D had a great week, adding 2 more Championships. After a 7th in the 1st moto, I thought his chance for 2 titles was in serious doubt. But just like champions do, he put his head down and did the best he could do and let the cards fall how they may. Even more impressive, he was super sick most of the week. Ironman performance by Ryder!
Caden Braswell was another victim of a poor 1st moto, yet came back to secure a 3rd overall and a championship in Sr Mini 2. I admit I don't know much about Caden but he has a really good style and makes good decisions. There was a line he had in the first turn tree section that went unused by any of the other kids the entire moto. Very technical in his line selection which will pay big dividends as he matures.
Daxton Bennick is another OB standout. I know of Daxton because I used to race his dad Todd when I was in amateurs. Just like dad, Daxton is very smooth, calculating and seems unfazed of things happening around him. He had Haiden Deegan breathing down his neck in the 2nd and third motos and he just methodically pulled away.
Haiden Deegan put on a clinic in the 65 7-11 class. He would post wins on an average of 20+ seconds. I think once he moves to the 85 full time, he's going to be a handful for his competition. I don't know if OB has a plan set for him but if I was Star Racing or Team Green, I would snatch him up quick. He is a superstar in the making.
Enzo Timmerman was the class of the field in the 65 10-11 Limited field. This young ripper was impressive as he fended off attacks from Logan Best all week. Look for battles from these 2 for the next several years to come.
Seth Dennis is a stud in the 50 class. He almost pulled off a moto win in the 1st moto after being way back on lap 1. The final 2 motos were honestly pretty boring as he completely dominated by close to 30 seconds in each. He is also developing really well on the 65.
Vet Classes:
Probably the classes that give DC nightmares. It seems there is always some sort of drama in these classes. I have a schedule Davey that may help alleviate some of your stress, or it could possibly make you go bald by pulling your hair out!
Anytime you and Tim want to talk holler at me! Anyhoo... Mike Brown is and will always be a STUD! His 3rd moto battle with Ricky Renner for the +25 Championship was legen-wait for-it-dary! Brownie put all the years of racing to work to essentially break Renner's will. Honestly, Ricky threw every thing he had at Brown trying to win this championship but Brown always had an answer. There's something to that "old man strength."
The +30 class was a another one of those classes that when you thought it was going to be one way, totally upends itself in the last moto. This class is difficult for me because I have so many friends, so many good guys that I want to see do well. It is full of so many emotions that its hard to enjoy. I feel bad for some guys and then happy for others...its just exhausting.
If I'm being honest, Chad Wages(buddy) had it on lock this year. He rode smart and consistent in the first moto to a 2nd. In the second moto, he tracked down Andrew Matusek(like a little brother to me) from 10+ seconds and won. He had a big lead, 3 points, going into the last moto. The only way anyone would beat him is if had issues. Well...cue the drama. Off the start, Wages put himself EXACTLY where he need to be if he didn't get the holeshot. Unfortunately, it was EXACTLY where Kenny Day(another buddy) needed him to be, as Kenny was the one 3 points down in 2nd to Wages. I cannot say for certain if the next 2 seconds were intentional but what is fact is Day's YZF was on the inside of Wages YZF and Wages ended up on the ground after contact. We had Maryland YZF on Maryland YZF crime here folks! Wages would pick himself up off the ground in dead last and charge the entire moto finishing 8th. Day cruised in second the entire moto, claiming the national title. Wages would end up 3rd overall.
Brown absolutely destroyed the +40 class. There has been a lot of debate about this class and Brown's eligibility in it. I really don't know how I feel about it. I see both sides of the argument. Fact is, most of the guys complaining wouldn't win the class anyway. Case in point, 2nd and 3rd are both former pro's, both held 2-digit numbers forever, and both are 50+ riders too! No one is complaining about them being in the class. Honestly after this week being there in person, the +40 riders just need to step it up, myself included.
Terry Bostard once again came from CA and put in 3 amazing rides to earn himself another title in +45. Terry is a great guy and I had the pleasure of racing him in 2015 at the Ranch. He is very tactical, consistent, and fast! Congrats Terry!
+50 was a slobberknocker between John Grewe and Barry Carsten. It was super cool to see these guys race, literally, side by side all week. Grewe did what he had to do and won the first 2 motos and essentially relinquished the 3rd moto to Barry knowing all he had to do was get 2nd to secure the championship. The first 2 motos were decided by less than 3 seconds combined and Carsten took the 3rd moto by 30 seconds.
Girls/ Women's classes:
The Women's 12+ and WMX classes were dominated by Jordan Jarvis. She is on another level in the women's class. I would like to see her go to Europe and compete for a World Championship. Simply put, the girls racing big bikes in the US can't beat her straight up. They need her to have issues to take wins from her.
The girls 11-16 class was decided by the 1st moto of the week. An unfortunate series of events possibly cost this one going down to the final moto. It appeared that Jazzmyn Canfield thought she took the checkered flag in the first moto after an amazing race between her and Taylor Allred. Once she looked back as she was pulling into the impound area, she noticed the white flag. She immediately raced to the billboard turn and right in front of Allred. The AMA would dock her 2 positions. Once Allred won the 2nd moto, Canfield would need some help to be able to win this title. Taylor Allred did exactly what she needed to do in secure another national title. Very fast and smart riding by Allred!
Sorry for the long post, but I thought I would fill in everyone of the things that I witnessed this week. Once again Loretta Lynn's did not disappoint! Hopefully I will be back next year racing instead of working. But nevertheless, it is always the best week of the year in my book!
Cheers!!
Johnathon Blain
Thanks for taking the time to share the racing with us.
DC
The Shop
Pierce had 8 out of the top ten fastest laps,unbelievable. The race you're thinking of is moto 3 of the schoolboy 2 class. 39th to first, most incredible thing I've seen.
We met Seth's dad and talked for about 10 minutes, really nice guy. Seth has a lot of speed I was really impressed with him.
Me and my dad sat in the river Friday night drinking beer with Tim Ferry. I was already a big fan but what an absolute badass he is, I came away with a great new memory, so thank you Tim.
Too bad we weren't able to meet up and bench race, maybe next year
Chad Wages posted on FB that the start crash pinched his radiator reducing cooling and the excess heat cooked the motor.
While Best rode well, his only real defense against Enzo was Enzo's lousy starts.
-In Moto 1 Enzo came from way back and on the final lap posted a lap time that was four seconds quicker than the next kid (to be accurate, Logan was the second quickest).
- Moto 2 Enzo came through the pack, passing Best on his way to a win. Fastest lap time was again Enzo.
- Moto 3 Best holeshot, and Enzo ran out of time to catch him, though through traffic Enzo again had the fastest lap time.
Nothing against Best, and you're likely correct about those two having battles for years. I'm just correcting an oversight. Beyond that, thanks for the write-up. It'll be interesting to look back at what you wrote in 10+ years after seeing how those kids turned out.
Very much appreciated. Thanks.
Pit Row
Thanks for the correction on the moto. Actually watched the 3rd moto with Seth and his 250 B moto was right after the 250 A. A lot of motos during the day, hard to keep up sometimes.
Hopefully next year we can meet up and crack a couple cold ones!
Yep, I was wrong. I didn't go there to write a report so I didn't write anything down. I was just going off on the best of my memory. After going through 23 motos a day for 4 days, things run together. I should've gone back and checked the results.
I apologize that there were some inaccuracies, I have since corrected the ones that were pointed out. Also, there are several kids I failed to mention. They aren't intentional, just going by my recollection. I can tell you I watched the +40 and +45 classes as intently as I could since they are the classes I race and I watch +50 because Barry and John seemed to be linked together at the hip all week. I didn't know there was contact between Carsten and Grewe. I figured John just cruised in 2nd to the title.
There's a ton of racing going on there and I just missed some things.
I missed it! I watched that moto over by the pond. When they came around, I figured John just let Barry have it since all he needed to do was cruise in 2nd to the title. How bad is his thumb? Surgery required?
Corrected. Thanks for the heads up, getting old sucks!
Maryland on Maryland crime line was phenomenal. Nice word smithing sir!
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