Read what a host of 450 riders had to say about their weekends in Thunder Valley.
Jett Lawrence: “When I have a really good flow and I feel like I can pick it up, I can. It’s like, depending on the track, today it was like, you don’t really want to fully send it, just because these ruts are so deep. If you try to go any faster and lean it over more, it’s going to grab the bottom of the fork on the inside, and then it pitches you up. So you kind of have to be patient.”
Eli Tomac: “It was a solid day here in Colorado. In the first moto, I did a ton of battling, but I just struggled with making some passes. I needed to be a little bit better with some lines. Then I was able to capitalise on a late-race mistake from Hunter and ended up third. In Moto 2, I went to battle once again and was a little bit behind on the start but made a push all the way to the front. I was right behind Jett, and we were dicing back and forth. I had one spot specifically where I thought I was a lot faster than him and then got a little too excited when I was near him and crashed in the turn before that section. I gave it all I had. Unfortunately, it was second, but I will keep pushing.”
Aaron Plessinger: “That first moto was a lot of fun and I was really amped! I didn’t feel fatigued after that one, and then I made a small bike change going into the second moto, which I should have just left alone. That was on me, and I struggled in that second moto, but it was just a good day. I had some really good lines in the first one, but being in the battle and making passes on those guys is all I can really ask for. Back to work this week – we’ll come back next weekend looking for that elusive win.”
Justin Cooper: “It was a good day here at Thunder Valley. I got my first qualifying pole position in motocross, so that felt good. The track was really rutted in practice. They kept fixing it, and it got easier and easier, but the speeds really went up. It took the technical side out of it a little bit, and I just kind of struggled to really send it in the motos, but we had two good rides today. Fifth was all we could do in moto one. By the time I got there, there was a pretty big gap to the top four. The second moto was really cool. I started around fourth and got into the lead and led for about half of the race, which was fun. I was smiling under my helmet and just enjoying the moment for the first time. I haven’t really ever done that, so that was cool. The weather was awesome today. The track was good too, but I was just a little bit off those top two.”
Cooper Webb: “Lakewood was a good day for me. I was able to qualify seventh, which was the best I’ve done so far this year. Being under the weather, it was a tough day, but we pushed hard, and I gave it my all. I was able to go 7-6 for sixth overall. We’ll heal up and get ready for High Point.”
RJ Hampshire:“I definitely progressed this weekend. I made progress during the week with my wrist, and I finally feel like we’re turning a corner there. I was inside the top five again for the first 25 minutes of moto one, so I am getting longer with that. Then the second moto, got a good start and then made a mistake early and went down… Got up, then went down again a couple of laps later, so I had my work cut out for me, but that was the strongest I’ve been at the end of a moto. I’m pretty happy with where we are at and we’ll keep on building.”
Malcolm Stewart: “The day started off a little rough with the mud. I got off to a mid-pack start in moto one and made a lot of passes to get my way up into 10th there. Moto two, the track was pretty gnarly in that one, another average start for me, and I made a lot of passes throughout the race. I tried to find a flow and eventually ended up with 10-10 for eighth overall. Things could’ve been better, but at the same time, we learned a lot, so we’ll come back for High Point and try to put this bike inside the top five.”
Valentin Guillod: “14-8 / ninth overall. First top 10 overall, I enjoyed my riding in the second moto. 15 years later, back on this track, Motocross of Nations 2010 with team Switzerland. Maybe a little less professional than today, but memories for life, Greg Wicht and the Swiss crew.”
Jorge Prado: “Not the results I was looking for today. The track conditions were pretty difficult out there. The rain made it very slippery and the ruts were super deep. It was a hard track to feel comfortable on having never been here before. In moto one, the track felt super soft, so we made some changes to the bike for moto two, but I ended up hitting a hole in a deep rut that threw me off and ended my moto. We continue to make improvements during the week, and we will learn from this race and look for more progress next weekend.”
Jason Anderson: “Obviously, today was not how I wanted the day to pan out. My main concern for Thunder Valley is always the elevation because I struggle with altitude sickness, so I was focused on managing that. I ended up getting 19th overall. The first moto, I got a bit squeezed out on the start and was just trying to hammer in laps. The second moto, I went down at the top of the track and tweaked my knee, and then I ended up going down again and got trapped under my bike for a bit. I didn’t feel comfortable finishing the race after that. I’m going to get my knee checked out next week and we’ll see how it all goes from there.”
Image: Star Yamaha
