Confidence in this sport is something that can either make or break a racer.  Either you have plenty of it and know you’ll succeed or you lack confidence and fall short of your potential.  For a majority of racers it’s something that doesn’t always come natural and it must be earned through repeated on track success.  Josh Holley had tons of confidence when he was rolling through the youth ranks in 2011 but since moving up to the Youth Pro-am (ops….”Allstar”) class that confidence had faltered.  Josh decided to sit out the first round of racing in Texas and wait to turn 16 in order to race in the 450 classes.  This turned out to be a great decision for the Shermans Dale, PA native.  The #7 machine was ripping Holeshots and taking checkered flags in Tennessee.  Josh won the overall in the Open C class with a dominating performance on Saturday and a steady smart ride on Sunday as he went 1-2 and landed on the top of the box for the first time in a few years.  Josh also took 3rd overall in the 450C class which would have been an accomplishment in and of itself. 

Speaking of confidence…Zach Kaczmarzyk is one rider that has and will never lack in confidence.  When Zach approached us with the idea of skipping from B class straight to Pro Sport and Pro-am we didn’t exactly agree with it.  We have had riders do crazier things as Brett Musick went from B class to Pro-Am in the same season.  The honest truth behind Zach’s season so far is that we are thoroughly impressed with the determination he has shown to prove he not only belongs on the same track as his new peers but that he’s beating a lot of them every weekend!  Kaczmarzyk missed the podium by 1 spot in Texas but used great starts and 2-4 moto finishes in Pro Sport at Muddy Creek to snag his first ever big boy podium finish.  Zach’s Illinois Powersports CRF power plant got him out front early in every moto he rode.  In Pro-am he took home his best finish of the year in Moto 1 by beating some really fast guys, but fatigue set in for the 2nd moto on Sunday and Zach finished up 4-10 to take home 7th overall. 

There are few things we are sure of in life besides Death and Taxes…well and Dane Heilman.  The Richland, Indiana vet rider has been a consistent front runner longer than some racers have been alive.  Heilman wasn’t sure if he would even race this season, so he rolled his Honda into his trailer for the first time in 6 months and then as only he could pulled the holeshot with the last gate pick in the 30+ class and never looked back.  The win is Dane’s 1,000,000,000th (or something like that) of his career.  Seriously the #07 is a staple at the races and the entire Media Allstar team is faster with his extensive knowledge at our disposal. 

Team Media Allstars has a history of supporting some of the fastest females.  Emily Saieva sure seems to fit that mold.  The young lady from Virginia Beach, Virginia raced her first national under the MAS tent at Muddy Creek.  While you can tell there is rust to be knocked off after a long offseason and an ongoing recovery from knee surgery,  you can also tell there is a lot of speed in a tiny package too!  The #411 is trying to adjust to the power of her new 250cc machine but a solid 6-5 6th overall finish in Schoolgirl should build confidence.  Emily really showed where she’s most comfortable as she was really rolling in the 90 Auto Sr. class.  Saieva went 3-2 for her first podium finish of  the young season as she took home 2nd overall.

Switching machines can sometimes be taxing and often times it takes riders a little while to adjust to those changes.  After spending the past 9 seasons aboard a Suzuki LTR450 team manager Chase Cunningham decided to make the switch to a Honda.  With only a limited amount of seat time to get accustomed to his new surroundings not much was expected of the  #419 machine in Tennessee.  Cunningham used his TC racing power plant to rocket out of the start in both his 25+ motos, even pulling the holeshot on Sunday!  Chase used those great starts to overcome some fatigue and arm pump issues from not really riding any prior to the Muddy Creek event.  The 4-3 moto finishes were good enough to earn the Morehead, Ky native his first podium of the season with a 3rd overall.  Maybe there is something to this Honda thing? 

Several riders had race weekends that just didn’t quite go as they wanted but were solid performances.  Sometimes things just don’t go your way on the track but it’s a long season and early on it’s all about earning every point you can toward that year end championship.

Brandon Cesaroni went 4-11 for 9th in Producion B and 3-16 for 12th in 450B.

Juan David Lopez showed more speed in Tennessee and is proving he belongs in the B class at the Nationals.  It’s still a learning process for Lopez as he adjusts to racing in America but he’s getting faster and more consistent with each event he attends.  Juan managed to go 8-11 for 12th in Open B and 10-18 for 18th in 450B. 

Kobe VanFossen went 5-8 for 6th in 90 shifter (12-15) and 12-5 for 8th in 90 Auto Sr.

Kazin VanFossen went 6-5 for 5th in 70 shifter (6-11) and 10-7 for 8th in 70 Open.

James Perry went 8-9 for 8th in 30+C 

With 2 rounds of racing down several of our riders are right there in the points chase.  Round 3 is less than 2 weeks away and takes place at one of our favorite stops Ironman MX in Crawfordsville, Indiana.  Once again none of this would be possible without the support of our amazing sponsors!  See at the races!