Atlantic GrandPrix Race Recap!

Little Egg Harbor Township in New Jersey was host of the 8th Round of the Mid Atlantic Off-Road Series. Being its second full year as dual (bike and quad) series, it seems as if the promoters are starting to get the respect they deserve. Not only is the number of racers starting to cultivate but the quality of competition is starting to show. It seemed to me like the event was run like a mini GNCC. Even the pit area showed a glimpse of a National with trailers and Winnebago’s with an array of neighboring state license plates. Racers came from near and far and with the weather forecast hitting the 90 degree mark you would think they came to New Jersey as if it were summer vacation at the shore. My wife sat in for Jimmy B and took over duties as my pitgirl and photographer on race day and I’m sure she would much rather me be writing about lying on the beach for the day. And even though a summer vacation in October sounds enjoyable; everyone was here to race; race in the Mid Atlantic Series.
While sitting on the line waiting for the start of the race I took notice of racers in attendance and I was quite impressed. It’s been a year since I attended one of these Atlantic races and I really felt as if they are starting to get a good following. With that in mind I knew that it was going to be business for the whole race.
I got a really good start, just missed the holeshot but managed to hold onto second at the first turn. I know that the Jersey boys are naturals in sandy conditions so I made a really good push to make sure I kept myself in the front of the pack. I lost sight of the rider in front of me about 4 minutes into the first lap but I continued to push really hard. The track was awesome, I mean it was really wide open and most of the track was wide enough for two quads to pass. It had both hard packed and super deep sand, with some sweet up and down hills. I knew that it was going to get whooped out well into the race so I had to conserve some energy for the finish.
I kept the pace up for the first lap and went through the scanner in second. From that point until the last lap I felt as if I was fighting little wars within a battle. The heat was a bit of a factor in the middle of the race. At times I was going really fast, pushing harder that I normally push just to make it easier on myself riding in the sand. The slower you go the harder it is because you have no momentum to keep you balanced when riding in the deep Jersey sand. Then at times I was feeling heat exhaustion so I slowed it down and kept a steady pace. As the track got whooped and rutted out some nice single track lines developed off the main trail, which I made an appoint to take. That is one aspect I love about this type of racing – creative line selection. As I came through the scanner I was 3rd,3rd,2nd,3rd,2nd until the white flag was waving and I started out the last lap in third. I didn’t remember getting passed but as I looked at the scoring tent I notice that I was only 0:05 second behind 2nd place. The rider, who was on a Honda, was right in front of me as I was getting scanned. NO WAY was I going to give up second place when I was so close. I mean this is the reason why people compete and racers race. The first half of the final lap we would play touch and go, he would take off and I would catch back up. When we reached the half way point I realized that I was going to have to make a move soon which was a good enough reason for me to dig down real deep and find some strength to hold on while blitzing some really deep and nasty whoops. Just when I thought that it wasn’t going to happen we reached 3 lappers on some tight single trail. They slowed us up just enough where I could take a few breathers and get ready for the final push. Just as we were approaching the last half mile of the race 2 of the lappers let their front end wash out on a big right-hander berm. The Honda guy tried going to the left and went over the berm while I pinned it and made it through a space between the fallen riders no bigger than this computer screen. I pinned it for about 150 more whooped out yards until I was out of the woods, and then down a big downhill, a quick left-right turn and to the finish where I held on to 2nd Place. Just as I was getting scanned I looked back at the Honda rider and gave him and thumbs up. I was dead tired, I had nothing left, nothing saved – I laid it all on the table on that last lap and it worked to my advantage. I’d like to think I was lucky, I could have made the pass earlier and that would have been me getting stuck behind the lappers. But a good man once told me that “luck is when preparation meets opportunity.”
Chris Borich who is in the midst of winning the GNCC national championship on quads was in attendance to race. Not only was he there to race quads but he also ran the bike race before and he was in my class. He ended up getting fourth so it’s kinda cool to say that I beat Chris Borich. If the roles were reversed he would run laps around me, like he does every time I see him ride, at every race, to every other rider who tries to challenge him.
My wife/pitgirl/photographer came through with flying colors. She endured the strange summer heat in October and did an awesome job helping me out all day long. Good thing she’s a permanent fix on our team.
I said our team as in DHaggs Harescramble Racing and as you know DHaggs Sr. is still out. His knee is much better and he hopes to get at least one race in before the season comes to and end. Keep checking back on the site to stay updated!
I would like to thank my sponsers: DHaggs Harescramble Racing, MSR, Scott USA, TAG Metals, Scott Powersports, Kenda Tires, Twin Air and Pivot Works!