Way to go on taking 1st in ABA BMX State Championship Lee!

[TeamDEKEbmx]

Saturday September 13th our very own 2wheel_lee took first place in the state series of ABA bmx racing! WTG Brother!
I could not make it as I was unavoidably detained. Congrats Lee. Perhaps someone has photos?


*Photo from earlier in the race season

[jcka]

Congrats!

[Jordansrealm]

congrats Lee good work my friend!

[bighit8]

Good job Lee. No Bikes for you Randy.

[BrewMaster]

Good job Lee!

[Chewyeti]

FinaLEE!!!

Good job dude!

[cbHarping]

Yeah LEE! Way to go. We all knew you'd do it!

[ride hard]

congrats on the win!

[OTHRIDER]

GREAT job Lee !


...and to think he learned all those skills at the 'Loop....

[dstepper]

Nice...

[mtnbikerfred]

Lee is just scary-fast out there. I'm honored to race with him. He's very easy to follow. You turn 41 when Lee?!

[Pain Freak]

You're a very talented rider Lee. Great job!

[Tmac]

Way to go Lee...

[jfromlv]

Congratulations Lee!

[TrojanInsomniac]

Congratulations on the big win, Lee! Great seeing you on Friday night as well.

[2wheel_lee]

Thanks Randy!

Although I pretty much returned to BMX racing this year, when I found out about the state championship qualifiers - halfway through the season, causing me to miss many of them - I set winning the state championship as my goal.

To qualify, and get in get in the needed points to win the overall championship, I raced at the Orange y (1st), Freedom Park, at Camarillo (3rd), Simi Valley (1st), and Bellflower (2nd). Since they only count your best three finishes, the 3rd got dropped. Also, the way the points work out, two 1sts and a 2nd is the same as three 1sts.

After being sick, then having to travel for a couple weeks for work, I had a hard time getting back into shape. My strength out of the gate was down, and I couldn't get it back in time, so I dropped to a lower gear. Although it improved my gate, it hurt my straight.

Fast forward to the finals this last Saturday at the Orange Y, I had a full gate of eight riders. Most any one of them could have one the race. One of the riders, Carter Holland the owner of Black Market, was riding a custom Mob - yes, he was riding a geared mountain bike. And considering he races 4X with the likes of Eric Carter and Brian Lopes, I knew I had my work cut out for me. However, Holland wasn't in the running for the state championship, so all he'd win was the day's race. His goal was to get in shape for the upcoming invitational 4X even coming up in Vegas.

First moto, the gate drops and Holland gets the snap and I'm right on his tail. Well...from my perspective, the race was non-eventful as I just followed Holland around the track to qualify for the main (qualifying two riders in the first moto).

There were 92 motos on Saturday! I was in moto 27. I really had no intention or expectation to qualify the first moto. I had actually expected to qualify in the second or third moto, considering the speed of some of the other guys I knew in the class, not to mention some of the other guys who I didn't know, but I've heard a lot about. Qualifying the first moto meant I would be sitting out for a long time until the main.

I drew a good lane in the gate (3) for the main. Three of the fastest guys were in 6, 7, and 8 (Holland in 8 ). And the other two fast guys to my right. Lane 4 was open. The gate snapped, and the guy on my right and the guy in lane 6 got the snap. The quickly converged on me both having a slight lead, leaving me knowwhere to go. Fortunately, I was able to get over the first obstacle a bit cleaner than them, and I was able to force my way through a bit. The guy on my left was a tick ahead of me still getting ready to hit the big jump going into the first turn. I stayed low, and he jumped it. My way was apparently faster, and I was able to get the lead into the first turn. After that, it was all over - I carried the lead all the way to the finish.

What happened to Holland I wondered. Apparently, the guy in lane 7, who I know gets incredible gate starts, did in fact get a good gate - faster than Holland - but he came unclipped and veered toward Holland, leaving him nowhere to go.

Needless to say that not only am I very excited to win the day's event, but I'm also very excited for winning the state championship title.

Today, they held the awards for the state championships at the track and I picked up my #1 state plate. Ko shot a couple photos on the podium, so I should be able to post those soon. Also, the guy who got second (the one who jumped the big jump) is hoping to have a video of the race on youtube soon. I'll post that when/if it's available.

I should also mention that Julia was also out there racing in the 13 year old boys class. Although her racing experience is limited, she's a quick study. She's embarrassing many of the boys! I'd be willing to bet that there are few guys on this board who are faster than her on the track. I'm really looking forward to seeing her progress.

Of course, I have a bunch of people to thank. Ko, my loving girlfriend, Mike at Fullerton Bicycles for his support, and the entire crew at the Orange Y for busting their butt to put on a damn good event!. I also have to thank many of you from STR for coming out to the track for your support; although I can't remember all the names of people who've come out, I'll list some of the regulars I'd like to give a special thanks: Dino, Sugie, Carla, Hugh, Julia, Elvia, Randy, Fred, Angelo, and Brian.

[ezzyride]

Lee Congratulations!

Talked to Julia last night and she was so excited over your 1st place win. Her words "Mom Lee is #1".

Cheers from Boston

-Elvia

Just FYI and not to take from Lee's accomplishment. Julia tells me she came in 5th and was racing against 9 boys. Julia tells me she has a plaque to share with me when I get home. Her words are "I am really proud of myself mom" she also mentioned she crashed on one run. Lee thanks for the support you gave Julia yesterday. Thanks to everyone that makes it to the track and practices with her.

Congrats Julia!

Love,
Mom