In the blink of an eye, the race that we’d all been waiting for, the 2019 Sweney Cycle Park Memorial Day Showdown, has come and gone. And just as we anticipated, it brought all the action and then some! Top riders in the region packed the gates on Monday to deliver next-level racing to Brush, Colorado for the third round of the RMRA Showdown Series. Oh, and a very confused Mother Nature, despite not receiving an invite, showed up to the party to mix it up, too (as if any race at SCP isn’t already interesting enough). She couldn’t make up her mind all weekend, going from rain to wind to shine then back to wind then rain then to shine again and again… and again. But you best believe that the local motocross community wasn’t about to let her put a damper on their race weekend! The battles were intense, the track was brutal, and the fun was immeasurable! So, without further ado, let’s get down to the good stuff, what you all came here for: the racin’.
Pros:
The pro classes never fail to bring the heat to any race, especially this one! The battles in every A class were so back and forth that the top guys can’t even be counted on one hand! Todd Bannister, Tucker Saye, Bobby Fitch, Cody Gray, Chris Flesia, Trevor Crider, Mikey Sweney, Austin Painter, and more all had their bars banging for the top several positions at one point or another throughout the day. This can definitely be attributed to the unimaginable speed and skill that all of these riders have come to attain, but can also be blamed on some surprising inconsistency, since riders were swapping positions left and right as a result of mild crashes and mistakes made almost every moto. There was one rider who was absolutely on a level of his own, however. That rider goes by the esteemed name of Derek Anderson. The #241 ride checked out so far in every moto he raced that he could’ve stopped for a nap and still been the first to cross the checkered!
Schoolboy 1 (12-16):
This class is overflowing with young talent. All day long, Texas native, Drake Dickehut, and local boys Logan Lessar, Jaxon Pascal, Cade Britt, Jagger Koch and Connor Stevenson brought their best to the table and it made for some edge-of-your-seat racing. In moto one, Dickehut started his race off right with a massive holeshot! By lap two, he dropped to third, with Lessar in second and Britt leading the pack. Even more switch-ups were quick to come, with Koch putting on the pressure til he could pass into the number two spot. Dickehut snagged third, dropping Lessar to fourth. Pascal had the speed to stay close by and grab a fifth. Some unfortunate penalties overturned the podium results which bumped Dickehut up to second and Koch down to third after all was said and done. In moto two, another rider was thrown into the mix, Stevenson. Koch, Dickehut, Britt, and Stevenson all went at it by mid moto. Dickehut closed in on Koch by the white flag lap to challenge for the win, but laid it down, resulting in your front runners for the moto being Koch, Britt, then Stevenson.
Supermini (12-16):
The Supermini class is as stacked as ever. The best part about it is that most of the kids have battled it out since they were 50cc riders! In moto one, Propernick held it on for a holeshot, with Lessar and Pascal in tow. In lap two, Lessar made the pass on Propernick, putting him into first. Pascal then followed his lead, making quick work of them both and landing him the first position. His reign was brief, however, as Lessar was able to reclaim first and bring the class to the checkered with Pascal finishing second and Propernick finishing third. Moto two wasn’t any less exciting! Lessar grabbed a huge holeshot this time, but his competitors were ready to bring the pressure. By lap two, Lessar dropped back, leaving the door open for Willoughby to move into first, Propernick to second, and Hernandez to third. Hernandez was soon bumped back as Malcolm and Lessar worked through the pack after suffering from early moto mistakes. Unfortunately, Propernick had bike trouble late in the moto that caused him to DNF. In the end, Willoughby finished with a dominant win, Lessar followed, and Malcolm snuck into the third spot.
65cc (7-11):
The little rippers in this class impress the crowd every time their tires hit the dirt, and this weekend was certainly no exception! None other than Jeremy Roe secured a significant lead right off the gate in moto one. The kid was on absolute rails. To put it into perspective, he had a solid 15 seconds on the rest of the pack by mid moto. That’s some serious speed, considering the riders following him are no slouches. They were back there bringing some serious speed of their own and battling it out the whole race! Beau Leach and Ryan Hadley dueled for the second spot for much of the moto til Hadley found himself in another battle against Collin Clark for third. Moto two is where things got a little messy. The rain left the track deep as ever and we give props to all these little bikes for still bringing it in those gnarly conditions!
The racing that played out for this Showdown was nothing short of spectacular — especially considering the circumstances that were dealt. With this race being held on Memorial Day, it’s an important reminder that, no matter the cards we’re given, we must look past the trivial inconveniences that we so often blow out of proportion, and instead, be grateful for all that’s been sacrificed to allow us to have what we have (certainly when what we have is a weekend spent around dirtbikes and friends, which is about as good as it gets if you ask us). Thanks to the Sweneys and their crew for rising above the hiccups and making their best effort to keep things running smoothly and the track in shape all weekend long. This gem in Brush sure has a mighty reputation to live up to, and according to our own eyes and all of the riders we heard from, it was the deepest, ruttiest, and roughest Brush track anyone’s had the privilege of riding in a while. That’s what we like to hear! Hope to see everyone at the Thunder Valley National this weekend for what is sure to be yet another gnarly day full of motos and memories! Here comes the checkered flag on this one!