by: Rodney Tomblin
Friday, February 27, 2015 | 3:45 PM
One week from today the big rigs, and big names, of ATV racing will be cresting the infield to a venue where some of the most legendary moments in motorsports racing have happened. It is Daytona International Speedway, and for the first time in history ATVSX will be a part of the iconic Daytona Bike Week. I get goose bumps imagining the excitement and anticipation of how that feels. It is a moment that only a few may actually experience, but the importance and significance of what this means for our sport is so far unprecedented.
The hard work done by so many people over the years, and now the biggest strides we have may be coming in the form of television coverage that we have been receiving the past couple years. Through our media outlets, be it cable/satellite TV networks or the most recent live streaming of select events on RacerTV.com, ATV racing is picking up fans and new racers from around the world. The ATV races are starting to get more recognition and even taking some of the spotlight. It is the hearts of many that the Fly Racing ATVSX at Daytona International Speedway may be the next big springboard for the sport. Where it goes from here is a big question on a lot of minds and their hearts are hoping for the best.
Check out the ATVSX at Daytona commercial below!
One thing to note about this historic event is even if you cannot be a part of the action yourself, you can still be part of the history, log onto RacterTV.com for ATVSX Live beginning around 2:00 p.m. eastern on Tuesday, March 10 2015 for all the live coverage. The race and coverage is expected to run till around 6:00, but don't worry if you can't catch it at from 2 - 6! The coverage will be archived for your personal viewing convenience on RacerTV.com. If you want to get warmed up, you can head over and catch last year’s coverage of the High Point ATV Stampede and ATV Dirt Days from Loretta Lynn’s season finale.
What is going on right now in the ATV Racin’ Nation? We know of all the changes. Hetrick to his own team, Upperman to Root River Racing, Thomas Brown with his own team, Josh Creamer has retired, Ronnie Higgerson with a new team, the legendary John Natalie teamed up the legendary Mark Baldwin and a dozen other things I leave out. One thing is for sure that this has been one of the busiest off-seasons we have seen! The surprising thing though for me is that each move I see being made (except Creamer’s retirement) has been most likely the right and positive move. A few toes may have been stepped on in a couple of shake-ups, but ultimately everyone wins. Ultimately, the ATV Racin’ Nation wins!
As far as something new to the ATV Racin’ Nation is the addition of Elliot Skaggs as a factory mechanics. If you followed GNCC while Bill Ballance was reined over the off-road thrown, Elliot was his mechanic and helped Bill win a few of the 9 championships to his credit. Last season I got a message from Elliot stating that he may be coming to work at the Mtn. Dew ATV Motocross National Championship in 2015. He said he may be coming on board as a Yamaha factory mechanic for the Wienen Motorsports team. I got a message a few days ago and he said, “I'll be on the road with Wienen motorsports as a mechanic for the 2 riders from Argentina that will be running the full schedule.”
I had to get the full scoop, so I asked Elliot what was up. How did this all come about? I mean I guess it makes sense. He was a factory mechanic for Yamaha for several years so why not? Elliot told me, “Yeah! I’m pretty pumped! I have been away from racing too long. Chad called me about 2 months ago and asked me if I would be willing. I thought about it a couple of weeks and told him I would do it. I've been working with a bunch of guys back here in Kentucky building custom race ready and rock crawling Razors for Rocky Ridge Racing for the last 2 years.” Elliot will be a part of the team in full duty beginning with the Fly Racing ATVSX at Daytona and should add a great element to the team.
That’ll wrap it up for me, but before we check in with Gloop and Ken I want to remind you to post and share everything you can over the next week about ATVSX so folks know about it! Don’t forget to tag @RacerTV, hashtag #ATVSX and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Plus, if you would like to share some thoughts of your own, please email me and we will try and share your thoughts next week for this history making event. I am sure there are plenty who want to weigh in. So let me know, what’s your thought?
In The Loop with Gloop:
Scottie Vechery, a former ATV Motocross racer, has now switched to the mechanic side of things. He is now wrenching for Vechery Racing’s Tim Detling, and is headed to Florida to do some testing before the ATV Supercross at Daytona event.
I spoke with Scottie on his season plans for the team and here’s what he told me, "Now that I have this big responsibility with the team I would like to see Tim run a consecutive top 10 finish in the Pro class and a top 3 overall in Pro Am. We really need to focus on having a healthy and safe season and being on our A game.”
He then added, "As far as the 2015 season, I am stoked to go back to Underground MX this year because I like that track a lot. The ATV Supercross at Daytona we all know will be a great event, and a good step in the right direction for ATV racing.”
I recently caught up with Dylan Tremellen and we spoke about his past championships and what big moves he was going to make for this upcoming ATVMX season.
Dylan told me, "For 2015 I will be running Pro Am and Open A, and I hope to be in the top 5 in Pro Am and win the championship in Open A. At the Daytona Supercross race I signed up for Pro Sport and cannot wait to experience this event.”
Good luck to Dylan and we can't wait to see how everything pans out in Daytona!
Catch up with Ken Hill
With the first ever Fly Racing ATVSX at Daytona approaching fast, I thought I would check out some of the things that make this place such a talked about venue in the racing world. First, it is a huge complex sitting on just under 500 acres of ground! The infield alone is 180 acres and features a lake (Lake Lloyd). Of course, the Daytona 500 is held there but I was unaware it had nearly a 3 mile road bike course and features events virtually every week!
Ink on the deal to buy and start construction of the speedway started in 1957 and the facility saw its first race on February 22, 1959. Daytona was the start of the super speedways and lead to the construction of many infamous race facilities that are a mecca for motorsport enthusiasts worldwide. It is hard to think of a top racer in just about every style of racing that has not raced at this historic venue.
It is now our time to make our mark in history as we draw down on the inaugural Daytona ATVSX and write our own page as the series and its racers embark on this illustrious race. No one knows exactly how this event will play it but we do know the anticipation is almost at a fever pitch. Grabbing the win at this round will be something historical and every rider in every class will be charging hard to become part of the historical results. The Pro class will have all eyes upon them as they launch off the gate and roost Daytona dirt for the first time ever on Tuesday, March 10!
They say that a win at Daytona is something beyond any other race in the world and it will be an honor to be part of it! We hope everyone has a safe trip as the racing nation fires up and starts its journey to Daytona. Please be sure to double and triple check the information being emailed and released on the www.atvmotocross.com website for up to date information and instructions. Check out the video below before heading into Daytona. Our very own Tim Cotter explains the parking and setup once you're in!