Sure we get a kick out of watching the typical top-of-the-box talent tear it up weekend after weekend, but what we sometimes enjoy even more is seeing the rookies make strides, the underdogs overcome, and the weekend warrior simply do rad stuff on two wheels. You know, those riders who, while they may not dominate the field every single time they race, still make a serious impression and are deserving of some props. And for that reason, we bring you this week’s Standouts. Ready to find out who made the cut? Let’s do this thing.
The Paulsens
It seems these siblings get faster every time they hit the track! Kahne Paulsen, who has been a sixth through second place overall rider most of the season, came out this weekend to secure the overall W in both the 50cc Class 2 7-8yrs and the 50cc Class 4 4-8yrs! No ifs, ands, or buts about it.
His younger sister, Kynlee Paulsen, had a stellar first moto in the 50cc Shaft Drive 4-6 class where she earned fourth place — her best moto finish by far this season! Kynlee’s smooth and steady riding style kept her on two wheels and allowed her to ride most of the moto in the third position while the throttle-happy little dudes in the class found themselves on the ground and into hay-bails everywhere during that race. Consistency is key and that girl sure has it! According to the race-day announcer, she’s also the youngest rider in the class at just three years old. If there’s truth to that statement, she deserves extra kudos from us!
Paxton Walter
The #144 out of Larkspur earned a spot on our Standouts list for his impressive perseverance in moto two of the 50cc Class 4 4-8yrs class. The kid shot out of the gate with what could’ve been a sweet holeshot, but went down in the first turn. The rest of the pack was well into the race before he was able to get going again, though he didn’t let that stop him. In fact, it looked like it actually fueled his fire! He worked his way through the pack all the way up to fourth place by the time the checkered flag flew. That’s one heckuva comeback in our books!
Dalton Caudill
Speaking of comebacks, Caudill hung up the moto boots for a year and a half recently, but is now back and still as talented as ever. We never would have guessed he’d been off the bike for that long, because he put down solid rides every moto. For reference, his most notable finish of the weekend was a solid fourth place overall in the Open Mini 85cc 9-13. You can bet he’ll be on our radar as the season progresses! We’re glad he’s back.
Caden Gordy
The Colorado Springs kid showed up to do work for his hometown crowd, that’s for sure! Gordy has consistently been a top contender for a while now and every time we see him hit the track we know we can expect some clean, fun racing to follow. He overalled second in the Schoolboy 1 12-16 class and first in the 125cc B/C 12+ class. It wasn’t easy though, as the #141 had to strategize passes to stay in the front of the pack almost every race. Hats off to you, Caden!
