Story By Jim Paiva (with some interjections from MC) Photos By Jim Paiva

A modern day "Ripped Vans Winkle" would be hard-pressed to find a better place than Trumbull BMX take his long nap. The track is an icon for the NBL and the Northeast. 23 years ago, in 1987, Trumbull was host to "War Of the Stars" X. If Ripped had awakened this past weekend to the latest installment to Trumbull’s Constitution Classic, he would have seen some familiar faces in the pits, with East Coast scenesters of yesteryear Ken Aman, Rich Farside, and Crit Plate mogul Mike Rodrigues. Sure there would be some beard scratching sights, like paved turns and clips, but Ripped would adapt.

Weather was an issue from the outset, with Friday’s practice and pre-race being pushed back due to rain. Saturday was a record-breaking scorcher, with temps in the tippy-top double-digits, and 94% relative humidity. You dripped sweat just sitting in the pits. Sunday was better with the max temp only hitting 79. The snack shack made a killing on 30lb bags of ice.

The track is a beaut. Longer than most, a slight downhill first straight starts off with a step-up into a steep tabletop that dumps you into another step into a 90-degree big right hand turn. The second straight features a large step-up that you need to hit smoothly as it sets you up for the two doubles heading into the second turn.

Hit the doubles smooth, and you were set up well for the rest of the race. Come up short, as many did, and they would stop you in your tracks. One of the main questions of the weekend was “Are you jumping the doubles?”

The third straight featured a rhythm section that set you up for the final long straight. Many races came down to the wire and “too close to call” being a common refrain from the tower.

With only one Elite Series race left (Prunedale, CA on August 14-15) before the Elite Finals in Louisville on September 4, Trumbull was a good opportunity to get some final scores in before 2010 is in the history books. As a result, the crowd saw some good pro action in all classes.

On Saturday, Elite Men and Women both had 10 riders. Elite men had household names like Nic Long, here for a rare NBL appearance, Barry Nobles, Tyler Faoro (who, we just learned, is going to be rockin the Profile Factory colors soon–maybe even as soon as the Grands), and Javi Columbo. Nic ended up with the win both days, with Danny C and Matt Kelty getting in for second and third for the Pro Spectacular round.  On Sunday, Tyler got there for second, and Kelty repeated in the three slot.

Alaina Henderson was flying high over the doubles all weekend. In the day two Elite Women main, Alaina and Dominique Daniels were side-by-side down the second straight, with 3D on the inside (above photo). As expected, Alaina skied over them, as Dominique kept it on the ground. A situation tailor-made for Dom, really, as she got an extra pedal in and made the most of that muscled-up backside pump that she has the patent on. She led the rest of the way, with Alaina sticking in second, and Madison Pitts gettin in for third.
Backing up for a sec, Dom also got the 1-1-1-1 on day one, it was Jamie Lilly for second and Ashley Lynch for the third.

Weston Pope scored twin wins for Dan’s Comp in Super-Ex.  Jason Larev was there for second on day one and Allen Currier rounding out the podium. Day two saw Scott McMahon for the Standard Army on the left step, and Matt Beatty on the right.

Masters was pretty thin in Trumbull, with only five riders either day.  Spidey Percy Owens seems to have scored a new ride, because he was rockin some fresh threads from the last time we saw him in Nashville.  Good news to report back to the new sponsor: Percy grabbed a pair wins.  Speaking of sponsors, there is some breaking news in the second slot, as Joey "Gunz" Albright took what will probably be his final laps in the GT uniform.  Word is he’ll be replacing Tyler Faoro on the Madera squad, as Tyler moves next door in to the profile tent.  Saturday saw Brian Strieby grab third.  On Sunday Chris Keller improved by a place, and rounded out the podium.

With moto counts in the 90’s to match the temps, there was plenty of action. As mentioned earlier, Dominique Daniels (Grand Canyon University) was on, scoring perfects both days. 25 others were perfect both days.

Luke Roarty (13-14 Cruiser)
Keith Newell, (30-34 Cruiser)
RC Colon (17-45+ Women Cruiser)
Isabel Diamond (9 Girls)
Kyly Milton (10 Girls)
Abby Mac Leod (11 Girls)
Rochelle Wooding (14 Girls)
Cheyenne Noud (15 Girls)
Angela Therriault (16 Girls)
Arefin Milton (7 Novice)
Ronnie Burwan (8 Novice)
Kenny Parow (14 Novice)
Derek Ellefsen (17-18 Novice)
Eric Yuhas (35-40 Novice)
Gabe Hatem (9 Expert)
Nichoas Cote’ (10 Expert)
Erik Meyer (11 Expert)
Anthony Catlow (12 Expert)
Justin Knapper (13 Expert)
Michael Schneider (16 Expert)
Michael Caldwell (19-25 Expert)
Shawn Di Prete (35-40 Expert)
Michael Schlesinger (11 Rookie)
Jeffrey Badendyck (41+ Novice)
Randy Bitinaitis (41+ Expert)

Nichoas Cote’ (10-11 Open) was more than perfect scoring 3 perfects over the weekend.

Other highlights included 6 Rookie Brady Valliere’s perfect on Sunday, as well as his performance behind the microphone during one of the breaks

Bummer for NBL spokesmodel, Donna Snow. A crash in the first straight in Saturday’s main left her with a broken wrist and elbow. Less than 24 hours prior, she broke the top 10 in the Miss USA beauty pageant in Chicago. From a beauty pageant to staging…we love the dedication, and hope Donna heals up quick.

No one knows what the next 20 years will bring, but chances are, if you find yourself CT in July 2030, we’ll see you in Trumbull.

Check out the 2010 NBL Constitution Classic Photo Gallery

NBL Results Page

Story By Mike Carruth, Via BMXNEWS.COM
April and early May this year brought weeks of pounding rains to the Nashville area, producing flooding that temporarily crippled the city, and brought damaging waters to some of the Music City’s most cherished landmarks, including the Grand Ole Opry. For BMXers, another staid landmark that was affected was Music City BMX.

On May 3, a thread was posted on VintageBMX.com asking for information on how the track faired in all the flooding. Locals came back with reports, saying “There is extensive damage to the track and will take a TON of work to get it back to even a local level.” At that point, there were voices asking “will it be necessary to reschedule or move this year’s installment of the Music City Nationals?”

It was evident, on June 2, a plan was in place to bring in legendary track builder Tom “Ritz” Ritzenthaler not only to restore what was lost, but to add some new spark as well. As is so firmly embedded into the fabric of the town, itself, the show would go on!

By the time the first vendor rolled in on Tuesday July 6, all the work track honchos Tommy Jacobs, Brian Hill, Shawn Hisel, and their dedicated crew of volunteers put in over that two month period put the track back to the way it was, and then some! There was no sign of the previous distress, and the facility was as ready as could be to receive the thousands of families who were enroute.

Hard as it is to believe, this was the first NBL National of Calendar 2010 that BMX News has covered—-and our first exposure to their “Pro Spectacular” format which runs the elites classes in the late afternoon, after the amateur mains have concluded. And while we like the idea of the pros being upgraded to have their own show, we’d be lying if we didn’t say it felt like the band was playing one member short. Probably one of those “we’ll get used to it” things.

Precisely at 11:00AM on Saturday, we were underway. With 110 motos, not counting pros, the race was a bit smaller than the 2009 installment, but the ferocity was undeniable, as the 41-Over Expert hit the track for the first rack of the day.

The stage was set early for an impressive matchup between Tony Lehman and the newly-healed Bill Madden. Madden, you might remember, got folded, spindled and mutilated at last year’s NBL grands, but has made a more-than-full recovery and has been back in the chase since May. To show just HOW full a recovery, Madden took the 41-Over ex win both days in Nashville, a second in 40-44 Cruiser on Saturday, and a win in that class on Sunday. Nice job Bill!

Lots of familiar jerseys in the crowd, with strong presence from GT/SC Action Sports (who brought Colman Habib, Cole Tesar and Felicia Stancil), Morphine Industries, with guys like Richie Day and Noah Reeves in the ams, and Pros Jason Larev, Tim Dinger and the newly-unsuspended Mike Kapes (more on that later), Rennen-Intense with Will Murray, Austin Loebe, Cam Moore, Shayne Robinson and Melissa Woodruff. Lots of Kovachi riders as well, with Seth Utz and Crystal Kalogris among them. Dan’s Comp had Justin Posey and Weston Pope.

Sure as Elmer Fudd is hunting Wabbits, the NBL faithful are hunting their perfects, especially with the Grands shimmering on the horizon, a mere 55 days away. And lots of them were bagged in Nashville. Without turning this into an honor roll of sorts, with names listed in long-form we’re gonna give the thumbs up to a few notables right up front, and in no particular order.

Zach Attack Jacobs grabbed double perfects in 6-7Ex, as well as one in 8-Under Cruiser on Saturday. Jonathan Messing came a callin’ on Sunday to snatch the perfect in cruiser, with Zach in the two slot.

The Lone Rider from the Lone Star State, Tristan Judd grabbed a sunday perfect in 9-10 Cruiser and…um…10 Novice. Looks like 10X has one on the way, as he toasted more that a few experts on the big bike.

Cam Moore was a force of nature, winning every lap all weekend long in 11-12C and 12X for Rennen Intense. Looks like that G-Cog training is working out just fine! From Moore’s North Carolina to South Carolina’s Coleman Habib, who owned 11X both days.

Tyler Wagner out of OH scored a double perfect in 13X.

14X was a trail of tears for Cole Tesar fans. With 1-1-1s in both 20″ and Cruiser on Saturday, it looked like another perfect weekend was on tap for Rock & Roll Cole. Looking forward to the Worlds in South Africa in a couple weeks, Nashville would be a good prep trip. All hopes came unglued in the last turn of the 14x main, as Cole and seemingly-recent-arch-rival, Andrew Townsend tangled and both ended up on the asphalt. Cole seemed to get the worst of it, as he was rushed to a local hospital, where his shoulder was set (no surgery, contrary to early reports). The net result was no racing on Sunday for Cole, and the Worlds are all-but dashed. Hope you get that sling un-slung in time to make it happen at the Grands, Cole!

17-18 Expert was one of the largest classes of the weekend, with 24 riders. Going into Saturday’s main, Four riders had 1-1-1s (Jarrod Adcock, Bryan Kipp, Austin Loebe and Chase Hines). Adcock got the Saturday win, and it was Hines on Sunday (though not with a perfect, as Geoff Banser got the first moto win on Sunday).

What can be said about Felicia Stancil that has not already been said a million times before. She’s got the patent on speed, style and smooth in the 15G (well, 15-Over Women this weekend), as well as…uh..15-34 Girls Cruiser. 16 starts, 16 wins in Nashville. ‘Maritzburg awaits, and we can’t wait to see twin W1 plates coming back to the Land O’ Lincoln!

OK, we have officially run out of time in writing part one of this reace report. The innkeeper is litterally pounding on the door, so we have to go, before we’re put on to ironing sheets. Watch for the Elite report from on Nashville Monday afternoon.

Meanwhile, let us give the punchline away by telling you to browse the image galleries from both days (where you are sure to see the podium shots, but oh well).

Saturday image Gallery (55 Images)

Sunday Image Gallery (125 images)

OK, sports fans. Next time anyone hears me saying that I am “up for a road trip,” please help me drill down on that a bit. Sure, there is a tinge of romance to being out on the open road, wind in your hair, etc. But once the 2:30AM reality sets in, it becomes a real drag. So, I’m definitely not saying “no more road trips,” by any means…but the whole sleeping-in-the-car-in-a-rest-area thing, while an easy do at 18 yrs old, is not much fun at 40+.

As you all know, I like to have my photo galleries posted on the day of the race, when at all possible. So, posting this one three days after the fact is a real annoyance. But, I think you will find, as I did, that it was worth the wait.

—Mike Carruth

2010 Great Salt Lake Nationals Photo Galleries

Saturday Photo Gallery

Sunday Photo Gallery

Words by Mike Carruth, via BMXNEWS.COM
Rad Canyon BMX. It’s rad. It’s in a canyon. And it is ALL BMX. A more fitting moniker could not be bestowed, unless going back to the day they found a name for a chunky spread made from peanuts.

Though the Great Salt Lake Nationals are always a popular stop on the ABA National tour, this year held a little something special for the Elites– the designation as the 2010 UCI North American Continental Championships. Unlike other championships, where champions are crowned and titles bestowed, this one was really more about the points, offering Class 3 UCI points (the highest points awarded at any North American race, save for the Class 2 Chula Vista Supercross, which is part of the World Cup series). But, come Olympic time in another year and a half, a Cat 3 podium spot could make a major difference in the number a given country gets to have in the 2012 London Games.

Saturday’s race topped out at a respectable 189 motos, run with drill-team efficiency (we were out of the parking lot in five hours flat). Highlights include Dominique Daniels showing up in her new Grand Canyon University jersey (not to mention aboard one of Toby Henderson’s “Speed” frames), foreshadowing a full-ride BMX scholarship to the Arizona school this fall (more on that tomorrow).

Tony Hoffman scored his first A Pro win on Saturday, besting the likes of Jake Peebles and local hero Mitch Ropelato. Saturday’s Category 3 UCI points would not find a home in the USA for the top three spots, as Maris Strombergs took home a win for Latvia, and Sam Willoughby and Khalen Young grabbed the second and third podium spots, respectively, for Australia. Don’t get us wrong, we’re big fans of all three—and the Saturday main was off the hook, with Maris getting Sam at the line by less a wheel (watch for the actual finishline-cam image in our Wednesday Race Report). Junior Women had a class on Saturday, and Dom Daniels brought her new colors to the top of the podium. Alise Post won every lap on Saturday, and USA got the full-pull UCI podium points among the gals, with Arielle Martin and Ashley Verhagen rounding out the podium

Oh, we could go on and on…and will in our full report, posted this Wednesday.

But, the Interstate awaits, and it is a haul and a half to the next stop on our mini-tour: Nashville, TN for the NBL Music City Nationals this weekend.

Meanwhile, check out the following SLC resources to temporarily quench that thirst for knowledge:

BMXNOW Twitter Updates from SLC. Just for a little “appetizer” portion of what went down.

Results posted on ABABMX.COM

And, of course, the BMXNOW photo galleries. Saturday is posted now. The Sunday Gallery will be posted Wednesday morning.