Idaho Thunder Mountain Motocross Series Round 1 and 2, 19, 20 March, 2011

Dani, "BIG AIR"....

Matt, "No Hands"...

The Project Filter Motocross Team came together at Owyhee Motorcycle Club, in Boise, for the opening round of the Idaho Thunder Mountain Motocross Series. It has been several months since we have been together, the winter months are usually a break for us moto-heads, although we have all spent the past couple of months preparing for this day. Dani traveled to indoor arenacross races in Utah to keep her skills sharp through the winter months. Matt trained out at his favorite place to ride, “Big Willow”. I spent most of my time in the gym and tried to grab as much bike time as I could in between traveling for work and trying to work around this crazy Idaho weather.

The Motocross Team has made some changes this year, mostly in our look, we are sporting some awesome new graphics and we are all on Kawasaki’s now. We are all ready for another great season of racing and to once again help fight the fight for a Tobacco Free Idaho.
It was a familiar feel as I sat on the start line early Saturday morning with a chill in the air, the sounds of thunder from the bikes and the smell of motorcycle exhaust floating in the wind. I must say, I have been at this wonderful sport for a long time and I still get the butterflies. It’s the love for the sport and the hunger for the competition that gets your heart pumping every time and just like any sport, it’s that one good jump, that one great start or that one perfect lap

that makes you want to keep coming back for more.

The start gate dropped for my first moto and my Project Filter backed KX450 shot me right into the lead. I led for the first lap and then I found out that some of the other riders were hungry too as I was engaged in a battle for the lead. I ended up finishing third in the first moto and considered it a pretty good start for this 2011 season. The competition was great as I found myself in several good battles back and forth over the two days of racing. I am riding two classes this year, again, which is extremely physically demanding but it sure is fun. I had a couple great hole-shots over the weekend as I ended up winning all four motos in my over 40 class and posted 3rd and 5th place finishes in the over 30’s.

The best race over the weekend was my final moto on Sunday. It was unbelievably windy, all day, it never let up. By the time the last moto rolled around I was beat from the wind, the dust and the brutal dry slick track that we had battled on all day. I was ready just to get it over with but it didn’t turn out to be that easy. I experienced an encounter with one of my old rivals and we went back and forth, trading places, several times throughout the moto. We were never more than a bike length apart as we worked our way around the track, through the wind and the dust. At times you couldn’t see because of the dust and we had to slow up over some of the jumps because the wind would try to sweep your wheels out from under you. On this track there is a whooped out brutal uphill that leads into a knarly, deep sandy downhill. Several laps in a row, I would pass him on the uphill and he would pass me back on the downhill. Unfortunately the finish line is at the bottom of the downhill….. He got me on this day but it was a great battle. It’s the competition, the camaraderie and being a part of something great that

will have me sitting on the start line again in just a few weeks.

It was an awesome weekend! I had several people approach me and ask about Project Filter. They want to know about the program, what we are all about, and what resources are available to help them quit when they’re ready. It always makes me feel good when people are asking because I know that is one step closer to quitting.

Next round is in Idaho Falls. Stay Tuned…….