Chaparral Motorsports | Precision Concepts | Kawasaki 2018 Day In The Dirt Race Report
It's hard to describe in words the size and scope of the Day in the
Dirt event to someone who didn't attend. Held at Glen Helen, and
presented by Red Bull and Fasthouse, it's touted as
the fastest party in town. Additionally, it's probably the largest.
Each race seemed to have 150-200 racers entered, some taking it
seriously and some just there for the good vibes and great times.
For the Chaparral Motorsports, Precision Concepts, Kawasaki
Team Green crew, it was a bit of both. The riders went out to enjoy
the event as an exhibition, but had some great rides in the
process.
Blayne Thompson had a stellar weekend, entering five events and
taking home three first-place finishes and runners-up. In what was
probably one of the biggest ironman efforts, Justin Seeds raced
seven events. From those seven, Justin was only off the podium once
individually and took home two wins. Additionally, Clay Hengeveld
raced five events, taking three wins home with him.
Blayne Thompson -
Stunt GP - 2nd place team
Bossa Nova GP - 2nd individually, 1st place team
Pro/Am GP (Saturday) - 1st place
Pro/Am GP (Sunday) - 2nd place
Coup De Grace - 1st place
Blayne was consistently one of the fastest racers all weekend long.
In what was an exciting event for spectators with such close
racing, he and Justin Seeds teamed up in the Stunt GP. The
two finished literally a bike-length behind the winning team of
Deegan Vonlossberg and Trevor Stewart. After that was the Bossa
Nova team GP. To explain, the Bossa Nova is a three-man team race,
but each rider is on the track at the same time. Similar to
Motocross-of-Nations, the three rider's finishes are totaled and
lowest scoring team wins. Blayne put in a great performance,
finishing second and helping the team take the win. Then, Thompson
backed that up with a win in Saturday's Pro/Am GP.
Blayne had a great ride in Sunday's Pro/Am GP, finishing second to
his teammate, Justin Seeds, but always had an eye on the weekend's
finale: The Coup De Grace. After taking the lead on the first lap,
Thompson was pushed all the way to the checkers by his Team Green
teammate, Seeds. But in the end, Thompson came away victorious,
capping off a stellar weekend.
In His Own Words
"I've been doing [this event] since I was on 80's,
probably ten years. Like the Adelanto GP to me, it's an awesome
event and I look forward to it every year. This year's event was
really good. The track layout was awesome, definitely no complaints
there. For me, Saturday went really well. I had a few little
mistakes throughout the day. But no crashes and came out with a win
in the Bossa Nova [as a team] and Pro/Am [GP] and second in the
Stunt GP. So, we couldn't complain about that. Sunday went really
good too. I battled with Justin in the Pro/Am [GP] in the morning,
then high-sided in a corner and went down. But I came back and got
second in that one. Coming into the Coup De Grace, I just cleared
my head. I said [to myself] I needed a good start, then I got the
holeshot and held it the whole way."
Justin Seeds -
Two-stroke Revival Race - 3rd place
Stunt GP - 2nd place team
Bossa Nova GP - 4th individually, 1st place team
Pro/Am GP (Saturday) - 2nd place
Pro/Am GP (Sunday) - 1st place
Moto-A-Go-Go GP - 2nd place team (later DNF'd)
Coup De Grace - 2nd place
Justin Seeds surely deserved the ironman award this weekend. Justin
entered seven events, finishing off the podium just once
individually in the Bossa Nova. To kick it off, Seeds pulled his
2003 KX250 out for the two-stroke revival, finishing just a
bike-length behind Willy Simons in a close battle for second. He
then teamed with Blayne in the Stunt GP, where the riders switched
arm bands each lap, and took second. He rounded out Saturday with a
fourth-place individual finish in Bossa Nova and a second in the
Pro/Am, where he was just a wheel-length behind his teammate,
Thompson at the checkers.
Seeds shook off some soreness and sent it Sunday, taking a win in
the Pro/Am GP. Then, he and Clay partnered up for the Moto-A-Go-Go
team GP. Similar to the Stunt GP, the riders alternated laps,
switching an arm band each time. In that event, he and Clay came
from outside the top-ten on the first lap to take second place.
However, with how packed the racing schedule was, Justin and Clay
hadn't informed registration that Clay was stepping in for Blayne
(who was the scheduled rider on the entry). In the end,
registration gave the team a DNF for the oversight. In the Coup De
Grace, Justin pushed his Kawasaki teammate hard, but a fall on the
second-to-last lap took the wind out of his sails and he settled
for second.
In His Own Words
"The last time I did this event was back when it was at the
original LACR [LA County Raceway]. It was a lot of fun. [The vibe]
is completely different than anything else we go to. It's really
professional for more of a 'go out and have a good time' kind of
race and the people are really cool. My Saturday went really well.
I started with the two-stroke, which was kind of hairball because I
didn't really have any time on it. But that was fun. Then, I jumped
straight into the Stunt GP, which I didn't realize I was racing
until Blayne told me just before we had to go to the line [laughs].
Then, [in] the Bossa Nova team race I rode really well there and we
ended up winning the team race. Wrapped it up with the Pro/Am and I
think Blayne and I were like half a second apart at the
finish.
"Sunday, [the body] was a little tight, but I stretched it out and
was good. In the Pro/Am GP I got the holeshot and was able to kind
of walk away from that one. Then, we went into the Moto-A-Go-Go
with Clay. We got close to the lead, but then unfortunately Clay
had a little tip-over. But we were still able to get second.
Unfortunately, through poor communication, we didn't let
registration know we were switching to Clay racing instead of
Blayne. So, we ended up getting a DNF. Then, we went literally
straight into the Coup De Grace. They tried to fool us on the start
and I wasn't ready at all. I think I was like sixth, then I got
into third behind Toby [Price]. I got by Toby and charged and got
into the lead for a lap when Blayne pitted. Tried to put in a
charge after I pitted, but ended up crashing, which took the wind
out of my sails and I settle for a second. But I have to give it up
to my teammate Blayne for riding well all weekend, making for some
good racing and giving the crowd a show."
Clay Hengeveld -
Bossa Nova GP - 9th individually, 1st place team
Pro/Am GP (Saturday) - 1st place 450 Expert
Pro/Am GP (Sunday) - 1st place 450 Expert
Moto-A-Go-Go GP - 2nd place team (later DNF'd)
Coup De Grace - 5th place
Clay's weekend started in a rush. Unable to arrive at the event
until mid-morning Saturday, Clay nearly had to step out of the car
and onto the bike for the Bossa Nova GP. Henge was dressed and
ready in the car, though, and did just that. He went out in the
Bossa Nova, blind without any practice, and was able to finish
ninth, which helped the team get the win. Then, he turned around
and took the win in the 450-expert class in Saturday's Pro/Am GP.
Hengeveld back that up in Sunday's Pro/Am GP, taking the 450-expert
victory once again. He made the quick turn-around for the
Moto-A-Go-Go with Seeds, and then the ultra-quick turn-around for
the Coup De Grace. Clay was in the hunt with the eventual
third-place finisher early, but a few mistakes set him back. He
capped off an action-packed Sunday with fifth in the finale.
In His Own Words
"This was my first Day in the Dirt. I've always wanted to come out
to this race and see what all the hype was about and I was stoked
to be able to do that this year. I thought it was a really cool
event. Yeah, it's racing, but you don't have to take it too
seriously and you have a fun time with all your friends and family.
Saturday went decent for me. I was fresh out of the sprinter van
for the Bossa Nova [laughs]. We ended up winning that, which was
pretty cool. I got really bad arm pump from being straight out of
the van and on to the bike. But then I was able to take the win in
the 450-expert class, so it was good.
"Then, on Sunday Justin and I did the Moto-A-Go-Go and I actually
felt the best I did all weekend in that race. That one was cool
because we switched every lap. So, we all got to basically throw
down a heater, then take a break. In the Coup De Grace, I struggled
a little bit. I struggled in the corners, keeping my eyes up. It
didn't go that well for me, but I was glad to go out there and
learn more. I ended up fifth and had fun."
