Words by Jason”Shooter” McGuire
Article from USABMX.com

USA BMX took over the Bank of the Cascades arena for the Great Northwest Nationals! Known for the beautiful scenery and world-famous Deschutes Brewery, this is the place to be this weekend as stop number 8 of the 2014 USA BMX National Series invades Redmond, OR!

FRIDAY:

The first thing that many people immediately noticed about this year’s event was the new name the area has adopted. Unlike last year and many years prior to that, the name Hooker Creek was removed from the title and that same building is now the Bank of the Cascades Arena. However, the name on the outside is not what is important; it is the racing inside.

The pre-race kicked off for the weekend’s event with 107 action-packed motos. While still small compared to the normal national days, it was time to go racing in Redmond! This year’s track compliments itself quite well to the riders capable of staying the smoothest, which results from the mass amount of flow that comes with this race every year. That being said, riders from around the country loved the track and from my understanding, there was not much to complain about. A long sprint out of the gate and out of the first turn really helped separate those who are doing sprints and those who are not. The second straight showcased an elongated step-up-down that allowed the faster and more skillful riders to gap between that and the next obstacle. All three turns are setup to allow for some beautiful passing opportunities so anyone in the lead will have to protect the inside lines more than usual.

This weekend is shaping up to be quite the barnburner here in Redmond, OR and there is sure to be multiple upsets by the time the last gate drops on Sunday. Stay tuned for the updated photo gallery throughout the day as well as the end of day race report later this evening.

SATURDAY:

The main events kicked off with a thundering roar as the crowd came to life after the A pros were announced. The 258-moto day was chugging towards the end and spectators were on the edge of their seats as they prepared to watch some of the top A pro riders duke it out.

My biggest question is how has Austin Hiatt not picked up a sponsor after his recent performances? This kid has been on fire and he once again when 3/3 in his main events today after beating some pretty stiff competition. Pete Pascual gave him everything he had, but it was just not enough to get the job done. The home town hero, Kristian Cooper looked great all day until the main event. The bad luck kept piling up and he was unable to throw his hat in the bucket for the podium, but he will definitely be in the hunt tomorrow after a solid day. Another pair of guys that will be on the hunt for Hiatt is Boise, ID’s Matt Baisley who missed out on the main after a wreck and some bad luck. Also on that list is the guy who pulled a third place podium slot, Matthew Rubeck.

The Jr. Devo class saw a new name pop into the win column today. Phoenix Pro Cycle’s Brian Ensey dominated the class all day long. Sure there was a lot of stiff competition such as Jacob Haley, Ryan Puckett and Jason Boyle, but Ensey seemed to leave everyone else in a separate area code. Either way, he has shown us some serious speed and is not a guy that should be taken lightly.

The amateur main events were nothing short of spectacular. The super tight hairpin last turn left for some very interesting finishes as well as some serious upsets in qualifying rounds. One of those upsets was Extreme Team’s Robby Patterson. Sitting solid in qualifying position for the main event, a misjudgment and hold up with Evan Steinberg had him riding the soft stuff off to the side and diminishing his main event appearance. That same section bit again when Tangent’s Jacob Abbe was leading the 17-18x main when too much speed out of turn three left him in the soft stuff and both Justin Anderson and Andrew Townsend pulled away, making Abbe settle for a third.

Speaking of top amateur races, Kohl Piluso may not be a household name, but he sure is good! He rides for Phoenix Pro Cycles and while he has had some impressive finishes at the World Championships, Kohl does not hit a lot of nationals. Nonetheless he dominated the 11x class today after beating some tough competition in Nick Adams and Reilly Johnson just to name a couple. Be on the lookout for him as I am sure he will be right in the mix for the win at every race he attends.

In the girls classes, the Shriver sisters; Esja, Richelle and Katja cleaned house over their three age groups. It is quite the treat to see three sisters go out and pick up wins across the board like they did. Scott of at J&R definitely saw something in these girls when first sponsoring them and now I can understand why. They remind me a lot of the Mitchell boys, only they are the Shriver girls. Both win, A LOT!

Day one turned out to be quite the success for both racers and spectators. Tomorrow’s races should bring even more great excitement and it will be great to see riders try and redeem themselves for misfortunes today. Or for the riders, who were victorious, see if they can throw down repeat performances here at the Great Northwest Nationals! Stay tuned for live updates on the USA BMX Facebook page throughout the day and as always, keep the rubber side down!

RESULTS

Friday Pre-Race
Saturday National #1
Sunday National #2

Categories: BMX Racing

Tags: BMX, Oregon