Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Legendary Weekend.

Over the weekend I had a British Championship at Farleigh Castle, one of the oldest motocross tracks in England (and the world for that matter). I was so nervous going into this race because after my crash at Foxhill I had a slim lead of only 7 points in the championship. I knew I needed a good day to extend my lead over my competition, but I had no clue if I could do that considering that I have no experience on a proper old school scrambling track like Farleigh.

My only knowledge of the track at Farleigh came from watching the GP where Dave Thorpe crashed in the first turn and came back to win the moto from dead last over the best 500cc riders in the world. Having seen that moto I knew that there was some sort of secret to this place and obviously Thorpe had it dialed.

Practice went well. The track was really slick and I had to be ever so careful in the grass sections just to stay upright. The woods section was already getting gnarly only after 10 minutes of riding. I came out of the time practice with pole going into the all-important Superpole lap. I knew I needed a good lap to get that inside gate which is so important at Farleigh. I rode super cautious and was only able to get 2nd to Martin Barr who put in a killer lap and took the pole spot.

At the start of the first moto I was surprised to see him not choose the inside gate which left it wide open for me. I pulled the holeshot and got a comfortable lead straight away! I took the opening moto win by a few seconds over 2nd place and was happy to get a solid moto in to start the day off.

In race 2 pole sitter Barr decided it was time he took the inside gate. So I lined up just beside him. We came together a bit and I found myself about 15th on the first lap. I started to work my way up through the pack but after only two laps the race was red flagged because the Maxxis arch had fallen in the track. It seemed as if luck was on my side, so I took full advatage of my second chance and pulled the holeshot. I got a comfortable lead and took another moto win.

In race 3 I pulled another holeshot and rode smart to my 3rd win of the day. Farleigh was my second triple win of the year. I can't say enough about how awesome the track was prepared and what an awesome experience I had. The track is a legend-- it's one of a kind and there will never be another like it. I really hope it's on the schedule again next year. I must say that on Sunday my bike was pretty amazing. It was such a horsepower kind of track and I never felt short on power that's for sure. Everyone on the team and all the guys at Cosworth have worked so hard to get to this point and I cant say enough how much I appreciate it.
I quickly left after the podium ceremony because I had some laundry to do before leaving for Brazil. What a reality check! LOL! I got it all done, finished packed, and got to bed at a decent hour. 5 o'clock came early though and the next thing I knew was on a free First Class upgrade thanks to Delta! I arrived in Atlanta at 1:30 EST and my flight to Brazil didnt leave for 8 hours. Being the star that my girlfriend Brittney is, she drove all the way to Atlanta and picked me up and we spent the day together.

Once I got back to the airport I met up with my friend Russell. We had dinner then boarded the plane to Brazil. Russell comes with me to some of the GP and it's always good to have someone with military experience with you when you're going to crazy places! We arrived in Campo Grande (where the race is going to be held) on Tuesday at around noon.

Wow! That's all I can say about this place so far. It's so different from what I had pictured, but it's going to be a good experience I'm sure. On Thursday I'm going on a Youthstream media trip to a Brazilian Ranch for some fun. Pictures soon!

Thanks so much for reading!
--Zach

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