The Thanksgiving Holiday is quickly approaching. It is actually a little over a week away and as quiet as things are it looks like we may have a healthy feast of information to chew on the next couple of weeks. It appears some silence is being broken and there are several changes from some early off-season reports. The shifts taking place are very exciting for next season and should help to produce (dare I say it?) possibly another “greatest season to date” yet again. I realize it is a far reach and even though we do not have any reports yet of venue changes or additions there are things taking place to help build a great spectator platform.

As it has been mentioned in recent weeks, there has not been a lot coming out but heading into the Holidays it looks like folks may be taking a moment to slow down or in some cases finalize deals and prepare for the 2017 season after the upcoming break. I must say I have been pretty pumped with what we were able to dig up this week. I’m not sure whether we will have an edition of Site Lap next week but this week should give you plenty to talk about.

First, I spoke to former 2-Time AMA Pro ATV Champ Joe Byrd today (Wednesday) and in a Miami, Florida hospital headed into surgery as I write this for a 3^rd round of surgery on a neck injury suffered last year. Joe has had as many as six other procedures as well as three surgeries and hopes to return to competition for one final season at the age of 43. He originally had planned the 2016 season as his last but due to the injury he wanted to come back this year and actually make the “farewell tour.” Keep Joe in your thoughts and prayers for a healthy recovery.

The latest reports coming this afternoon from the Byrd camp though do say the recovery may be longer than anticipated. The surgery is expected to last 2-3 hours and the doctors say that in actually has broken his neck at some point according to the test they have run. Joe says he never knew he had and doctors were surprised he didn’t have pain from it. Amazingly these are two different injuries but they are going to explore the older injuries and see how things are looking. Joe is tough but will need all the positive energy he can get.

The now 5-Time AMA Pro ATV Champion Chad Wienen finds himself in Argentina this week conducting his second school there. He said that Wienen Motorsport and Yamaha have teamed up with 7240 crew to conduct the school for nearly 15 students. Chad has found a home in South America like Joe Byrd has for so many years. It also is a good indication we may see an Argentine invasion. I’m not quoting anyone but I will say it has been joked that a major ATV event has been mentioned. If all reports of the popularity of the sport are an indication it may be closer to reality than we may realize. 

Top championship contender Joel Hetrick has been rather busy this past week designing and building a new practice track in Shippenburg, PA near his home. He said that the track is about 1.1 miles in length and he trying to put something from each track in the design to help him prepare for some of the tougher sections of each track. He said he has been working most recently on a “Godzilla like” section from Ironman Raceway. Joel says they have plenty of elevation to work with and is excited to see the end result. Joel said things are starting to get rather cold there he will be training and finalizing sponsorship deals through Christmas. He plans then on heading to his normal practice facility Greg Pafford’s in Louisiana. Joel says there will be a few there with him training and he is super excited to get rolling into 2017. 

Speaking of Joel Hetrick, there is some big news and changes happening around him right now. Nothing will be affecting him or his program so much other than his team is changing more than we expected after reports heard heading into the off season. The last few weeks though things got really quiet but now the reason why is starting to leak out. I spoke with the folks at Phoenix Racing, which manages the Maxxis/Liquid Wrench/Elka team, and they tell me that there will be another roster change. 

The team and ATVMX will be saying goodbye to David Haagsma. He has decided to start racing Side by Side and some car stuff on the west coast. He will be missed by the team and by all his fans here in the east but we send well wishes to him and his family on their new adventures. David leaves a big hole in the team, especially in the AMA Pro class. 

The latest word on this is that is that Joel will continue in his team leading position again next year in the premier class. Haedyn Mickelson will contest the Pro Am class, which we already knew from reports earlier in the off-season. Grayson Eller will remain the teams A class rider but the changes will the addition of now Noah Mickelson the younger brother of Haedyn. Noah was originally slotted to be racing with Ford Brothers but the two teams talked and they decided to keep the brothers together. This means there may be an opening now on Ford Brothers for someone so I expect news from them soon. The news of Haagsma is saddening but the end result may bring some opportunity for other riders. 

Cole Sepesi and the crew has been busy themselves since the final rounds. As recently mentioned he has been in Florida building the new 345 Motorsports Training Facility. He said that Randy Poulter had spent some time there helping with layout and design. He said, “we got a nasty track built for winter riding.” 2017 will mark his AMA Pro ATV Rookie Season and will continue to contest the Pro Am championship as well. He said about the step up and the Pro Am title battle, “my mentors Harold Goodman and Joe Scarrow and myself have been putting together a new training program to elevate my fitness and my riding past the next level.” I have to think the key statement in Cole’s words was the word “past.” It sounds like he is serious and realizes the process ahead is going to take some major dedication. As Cole matures I feel we will see what the next prodigy has to offer. 

And lastly, but not least, I spoke with John Natalie. I actually may have ended the conversation with more questions than answers though. The remarks were short and simple. He told me he has been really busy lately working with his demolition business but has also been busy working on starting a marketing business. I feel this is a great move for John to pass his knowledge of this on to others and knowing his personal successes it may be a good thing for John and the sport sometime in the future. If you have followed John any you know how successful he has been and his recent series by one of his sponsors titled “Natalie’s Way” can still be viewed on Youtube. Check it out and be waiting for news to break on the new venture. 

That’s about it for me for now. Next week I am headed to the Winter Olympics (Mini O’s) for the upcoming week. I am not sure if I will have much to share next week but with Thanksgiving and all you will likely be distracted with all your family functions. Happy and blessed days to all. Let’s check in with Gloop’s Loop and with Ken “here turkey, turkey, turkey” Hill. Till next time, God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs. 

In The Loop with Gloop:

Megan Shepherd is building a Yamaha!

Nick Gennusa is having a blast down in Costa Rica.

Keeping up with Ken Hill:

Well it must be Wednesday because I am sitting here sipping on my coffee and punching the keyboard for this week’s edition of Site Lap! There is not much going on beyond the release of the 2017 schedule which we need your help spreading around so please share it! Do I like it? I don’t know, it looks ok to me and I am stoked to see the Monster Mountain round back in the mix and earlier in the season as I detest heat! Other than that, it is what it is and we will race where they hold the races I reckon! I will at some point, sit down and make a calendar so the family can see where I will be at virtually every weekend until some time in July. At this point in time all I have on my mind is deer season but after that ends and we get through the holidays I will start getting amped to be away from the cold and snow and be down south soaking up the warm sunshine the first few rounds usually bring us. 

I don’t know about many of you, especially the younger crowd, but the off-season for me is all about getting caught up on chores and making sure things are ready to go for spring. This year I have an added project as we redo a room for my youngest son so he will have some new digs when he returns from the Army, which has added some work, I am not really any good at! If it is liquid, I spill it period. Paint, stain, coffee, yes, I spill it so I am regulated to playing Joe handyman and then supervisor when it comes color time. The family has pitched in like usual and the project is almost done so I can scratch one thing off my long to-do list. Staying busy helps in a big way as the time rolls by before another season is upon us. The bad is that the time flies by and in a blink of an eye another year is in the history books and it is all going by way to fast the older I get! I wish I had some advice to give those out there in the same boat and I am always open to advice on slowing life down so feel free to fill me in if you happen to know.

And then there is the outside work, which I do enjoy and in reality, it helps keep me in shape for chasing you knuckleheads around the track. Catching the social media posts that have you at the gym or putting in seat time just encourages me more to go out and do more stuff and I thank you all for that. I recall a few seasons where it felt like I was dying out there and getting myself in better shape sure helped especially on a few tracks that have some big hills to tromp up and down on all day! Of course I am not a gym type person so cutting up a tree and hauling firewood has to replace dumbbells and the constant walking and dragging or carrying takes the place of a stair master or treadmill. I just consider it being like Sylvester Stallone in Rocky 5 while the Russian trained in a state of the art gym while Rocky busted his hump in the field! I do not think Rocky had a beer in his cup holder or a pack of Marlboros in his pocket though! Oh well, being perfect is overrated.

That is all from me this week as the off-season black hole is wide open and things are as quiet as ever. Other than a few quads being completed and ready to be thrashed and several parts being thrown up for sale, there is not much to report on which is ok; we all need a break and some “me” time. Speaking of that, it’s 5:30 am and I need some “me” time 20 feet up a tree! God bless you all and stay safe in all that you do!