Posts
3434
Joined
6/24/2014
Location
Charlotte, NC
US
F150Motocrosser
9/4/2016 6:06am
9/4/2016 6:06am
First upper goes to the track and facility workers who turned the place from a soggy, wet mess from Friday into a first class venue on Saturday.
Next upper goes to the magnitude of the track itself - They really brought some serious dirt in and avoided the "fair grounds race" feel, in my opinion at least. Taking them outside the stadium was a must, and was well designed. (Shoutout to TOM Z for the hospitality!!)
Also - The pit, excuse me, Paddock experience was awesome. Felt like it used to in the 90's - Easy to get around, easy to approach the teams and start convo with random who's whos of the industry.
Oh yea - USA boys showing up to ride = total upper!!!!
Only downer I can think of is the lack of passing opportunities / places to really make up time. ...and the AC crash. Total downer...
This race is on the calendar for next year, and there is no doubt I will be there again!!
Oh yea, getting to shake the hand of THE MAN is always an upper
^^the American Dream right there
Next upper goes to the magnitude of the track itself - They really brought some serious dirt in and avoided the "fair grounds race" feel, in my opinion at least. Taking them outside the stadium was a must, and was well designed. (Shoutout to TOM Z for the hospitality!!)
Also - The pit, excuse me, Paddock experience was awesome. Felt like it used to in the 90's - Easy to get around, easy to approach the teams and start convo with random who's whos of the industry.
Oh yea - USA boys showing up to ride = total upper!!!!
Only downer I can think of is the lack of passing opportunities / places to really make up time. ...and the AC crash. Total downer...
This race is on the calendar for next year, and there is no doubt I will be there again!!
Oh yea, getting to shake the hand of THE MAN is always an upper
^^the American Dream right there
It was cool to see 1 moto in sunlight and another under lights.
The Shop
Seeing all the shipping containers evey team had made me stop and think about allllllll the logistics involved in international racing. Mind blowing how many people it must take
Another highlight of the race for me was watching first practice and guys like AC and Herlings were going at it, and Forkner and Prado were too. You could tell that a few of these guys really wanted to test themselves against certain guys as they would look for them or wait on them in practice and then both sprint for a couple laps together to see which one could gain an advantage. I know it was only practice, but it was really fun to watch these guys that you never get to see go at it.
Weekend Crowd Attendance: 15,500
Source: MXGP.com
The Dirt Track at Charlotte is a 0.4 miles (0.64 km) clay oval located across Highway 29 from the quad-oval speedway. The stadium-style facility, built in 2000, has nearly 14,000 seats and plays host to Dirt Late Models, Modifieds, Sprint Cars, Monster Trucks and the prestigious World of Outlaws World Finals.
After reading that there are only 14.000 seats the weekend crowd attendance from YS are making a lot of sense, Uh?!
Pit Row
I did think it would be like Daytona and set on the main raceway, so the Charlotte hosting a MXGP hype got me, just did not line up with reality (of it not being at the main raceway.)
Attendance did seem weak, but I don't think the stands were less than half full at its peak. There were people lining the fence too, so the stands would have looked a lot more full if people would have stayed in their seats. I went and lined the fence for a while.
It didn't seem like anybody had a clue who Covington was. Everyone was cheering for Webb and forkner each lap, but I was the lone guy cheering for Covington in my section. As the lone American running the series, I wanted to show my appreciation for his effort. People were looking at me like I was doing something wrong when I'd yell for Covington.
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Here's a view of the size of the NASCAR speedway compared to the Dirt Track:
Roman "Fev" ??? Is Fevre actually pronounced "Fev"?? Really thought it was pronounced Fev-ra
Getting back to the intent of this thread, I'll chime in with my uppers and downers:
Uppers: I'll admit it wasn't the most scenic venue for such a high profile event as a GP but I too thought the track crew did a great job of track prep after the previous day's monsoon. Canceling Friday's activities was the right decision, IMO. The track was challenging looking without any sketchy gaps to huck. Didn't look too "supercrossy" given what the builders had to work with. The biggest compliment I can give the track is that it provided some great action. Pit accessibility was awesome. Like somebody else said, it was like the old days at the Nats. Crowded at times but that's why the teams' tents have their barriers. It sucks to go to a pro race now and pay for a pit pass that is only good for a small portion of the day. I hope somebody from Feld and MX Sports were there and took note. I chuckled under my breath every time the track announcer would pump the upcoming NHRA event next door at the drag strip and mentioned "ALL KIDS UNDER 13 GET IN FREE AND EVERY TICKET IS A PIT PASS". Yes, I meant to capitalize that. Speedway personnel and security were polite and courteous. They actually acted like they were glad to have us there, unlike some other races I have been to. Rider performance wise, I was impressed with Covington in the 250 class and Coldenhoff in the 450's. Tip of the hat to both of those guys. The duel between JH, Coop and Fork was as good as anything I've witnessed in a long time. Too bad Fork had the bobble in the 1st Moto with Coop already halfway up his tailpipe. I think things would have worked out a little differently had that not happened, but it is what it is and has been hashed out adnauseum in 13 zillion threads here already. I'm sure it stoked the fire in Webb's belly a little hotter for that romp we sawthrough the field we saw in Moto 2. In the four fiddy class the racing in the pack from 3rd back through 10th-12th was awesome.
Downers: AC's crash is a no brainier. Poor kid. What else can you say? Track wise, I think it would help next year (if they do this again) to bring in some greenery kind of like they do at Daytona with the temporary palm trees and such. Maybe some patches of sod or AstroTurf here and there or decorate the sides of the jumps that face the grand stand for some color. Too much red dirt for the casual spectator. Lighting could have been better in a few corners where the signage created shadows for the riders. My preference of course would be to move this event across the street to the speedway and let them real donut right. Pit situation would be like Daytona where even the lowliest privateer would have a space to use under roof with lighting. Would have liked to have heard some rider interviews over the PA system. If they did, I missed them. Could be a GP thing? I understand the deal of having the podium presentation on top of the structure behind the starting gate that they use at every GP but IMO that does not work well at all in a venue like this where the fans in the stands can hardly see the stage from that distance. Very impersonal. Put a flat bed trailer up by the front stretch wall for a stage that the peeps that bought the tickets can see a face of the guys they just cheered for for God's sake. And interview the podium guys over the PA system!!! And last but not least, it was awkward when they cut the National Anthem short during the 250 podium ceremony. We have a GP on US soil, won by an American and they cut the National Anthem short. WTF? Do they do this at every GP??? Made me feel discriminated against and disenfranchised. I might go out and start a riot or something. Should have gone and looted that euro t-shirt stand down in front of the JGR rig. American Riders Matter!!!
All in all, 'twas a good time. Any race of this magnitude in under an hour from the house is alright by me. Wish I could have met some of you guys there. Maybe we can organize a meet and greet next year like what Hillbilly did at Muddy Creek next year!
Post a reply to: Uppers and Downers from those who attended MXGP Charlotte