Since Phil had been logging more time in the goat van than on his bike, the crew decided to head out to Vegas early. They took a midway-stop at Alma MX track in Nebraska. Owner and Operator Jesse Wessels went out of his way and prepared a great Endrurocross track for Phil to practice on. He also opened his gates and lent out some bikes for Binz and Rex to rip around on.
They just so happened to be in town at the ideal time of the year; The Orleans County Fair. It just so happened that the fairs’ main event, team pig wrestling, was scheduled for the night before the crew had to head to Vegas. Jesse decided to sponsor a team, The Alma MX “Hornshwagglers,” and it was on. It took the ‘Shwagglers nearly an entire minute to wrestle the 300+ pound pig into the barrel. Their time wasnt quick enough to top the locals and claim the cash, but eyes were bloodied, knees were shredded, and footage was stacked.
Everyone decided it would be best to break up the 18 hour trip from Alma to Vegas with a stop in Silverthrone, CO to do some skateboarding. A local friend moved out west a few years to ago to start Cured Skateboards. The crew checked out his new boards and casual and Phil picked up a new deck and some swag to spread the word.
The GV rolled into LV Friday afternoon. 100+ degree weather aided in the decision to skip setting up the pits until Saturday morning. Saturday arrived and Binz and Rex prepped the bikes while Phil shot a bit of the morning qualifiers.
Hot laps started around 4, with each rider getting a single fast lap to place them in their heat races and designate gate picks. Phil’s lap started off fair, but after getting stuck in the rock turn, his time was outside the top ten. Taddy Blazuziak set the tone for the evening with a flawless ride, grabbing the top spot.
Heat race one saw Taddy continue his strong riding with a decisive win. Heat two hosted a battle between Ricky Dietrich and Jaimie Lanza that had the crowd on its feet. Dietrich took the win and the top transfer spot. Heat three had Phil come out with a 4th place start. He worked his way into 2nd after a few turns befroe things got ugly. A single log in the middle of a fast straight kicked Phil’s legs up and over the bars, sending him slamming into the tire step-up. He crawled off the track and fell down by the barriers. Obviously shaken, Phil hobbled back to the pits while One Shot Circe rode the bike off the track (safely navigating three logs in the process!) Phil couldnt tell how hard he had hit his head, so he got his eyes checked out before the Semi. They were fairly responsive to the tests, and Phil felt his balance was stable enough to ride. Binz and Rex straightened out the bars and levers and Phil iced his body until the Semis started. He finished right on the rear fender of Jason Raines, just shy of qualifying for the main.
He did qualify, however, for the Baja Designs night race. The gang threw a light on and pushed the bike up to the line. Canadian killer Bobby Prachnau took the win, Wild Wally Palmer launched his way to second, and Phil ended up third.
The main turned out to be a race for the books. The lead changed at least seven times with four or five different riders. It all came down to the battle between Dietrich and Taddy. The two swapped paint for a few laps, with neither rider able to break free. Not until the last lap did it look as though Dietrich had it wrapped up. Then, like it often does in Endurocross, the unexpected happend and Deitrch hit the dirt. Taddy took over the lead with a straight away and one corver to go. Before the crowd could finish reacting to Dietrich’s crash, Taddys rear wheel fell off the side of the last rockpile. With Taddy stuck and Deitrich now on the move, the entire stadium was on its feet. Taddy chose the far left line through the toothpicks while Ricky D. powered down the middle. It was a photo finish off the last tire section, with Taddy getting the nod by half a wheel.
After the race Binz and Rex loaded up the pits, while Phil headed back to the hotel for more ice and an attempt to sleep. His questions about the concussion were answered with a garbage can full of puke. After a nearly (unless your Rex “Tired Terry”) sleepless night, it was time to pack up and head back east. An enormous thank you goes out to the Wessels and the Thelens for providing an amazing place to stay and train, as well as J Weezy for fixing the Goat Van so we could make it to Vegas!
