Chesapeake BMX Pro-Am Open

This past Memorial day marked the first ChesapeakeBMX Pro-Am race for the 2011 season. With an entry fee of $20 and a guaranteed purse of $1000 dollars there were sure to be some good racing. The moto count may have been mediocre, but the racing wasn’t. Riders came from Southern Maryland, Pennsylvania and Delaware leading to a good rider count for the 15 & over Pro-Am.

The track operators ran moto’s smoothly, while the racers charged each turn and straight away. The Am’s where racing for bragging rights with the hopes to pass a Pro and the Pro’s racing for the purse and to keep their rep up. The first round of qualifier where fast and intense!

14 & Under

Rider 8 on the gate at Cheseapke BMX

During the first round the rider from gate 8 (couldn’t get his name) had an incredible snap, almost pushing the gate the down. With his explosive and picture perfect start he checked out early into the semi’s.

The semi’s for 14 & under where fun to watch as well. It’s always a joy watching the future of BMX push the sports to knew competitive levels.

15 & Over – 1st Moto

Factory Deluxx riders making their presence known.

Local rider Lance McGuire #57, riding for Rennen Intense, had a perfect gate, coming over from the outside, he quickly charge the step-up making his presence known and locking down his place in the semi. As the rest of the class approached the step all you saw was Blue & Yellow, the colors of the Deluxx Team; Dave Damascus #12, James “Frenchy” Martene #60, Donathon Williams and Deyonta Gross #6.

One of the most competitive riders to watch during the first round was a local of Southern Maryland, Deyonta. Going over the first jump he trailed behind, but was determined not to get pinched out down the first straight and stayed in the mix until the last turn, where he tried to make an unsuccessful move sliding out in the processes. He dusted his self off and was able to ride out the rest of the track.

Charging the step-up

15 & Over

2nd Moto

The next rack of Pro-Am 15 & over open consisted of: Kenny Knot, Marcus “The Squirel” Petite, Tony Fahara and Powers Bike Shop riders: Niles Austin, Taylor DelTuva and Tyler McMeans. Niles, known for his persistent and powerful gate powered to the first obstacle, battling with Tony Fahara, both checking out early into the semi.

As they came over the step-up, Marcus Petite, one of those riders plagued with bad luck and “mechanical malfunctions” came unclipped. He managed to get his foot back onto the pedal but that wasn’t enough, as he approached the double he slammed on the breaks avoiding a crash.

Second Round of Qualifiers – A Piston Malfunction

Right before the second round of qualifiers the piston had malfunctioned, It appeared as if the piston wasn’t bringing the gate up. Local track operators where quick on the scene, knowing the heat was getting unbearable, parents wanting to get the young ones in and out of the sun and riders looking to do the same, they where trying to figure out a quick fix. The quick fix lead to going into a “half manual mode”. Where the officials would pick up the gate manually, until the it started working.

Semi’s

1st Gate

With the gate working the qualifying riders where in the gate, ready to race and get back into the shade.

The gate dropped and Austin Lobe lead Tony Fahara, Niles Austin, Taylor DelTuva, James “Frency” Martene and Donathon Williams into the first turn. James “Frenchy” Martene took the high line over the step-up-double, while the others riders kept it low and Donathon was stuck on the outside. Frenchy made some good moves in the turns and was able to advance passing Taylor DelTuva for the qualifying spot. The riders that advanced to the main were: Austin, Niles, Tony and Frenchy.

2nd Gate

Some of the riders from the 2nd gate of semi’s where: Lance McQuire, Matt Kelty, Dave Demascus, Tyler McMeans (PowersBikeShop). Lance and Matt quickly checked out. Lance took an incredibly fast line going into the first turn, with a quick and smooth tap manual, he almost cut a groove into the dirt and was able to pass Kelty coming out of the first turn. Kelty, though pinned the 5th gear, passing lance, both riders qualified along to the main.

Main

In a fast paced race of follow the leader Matt Kelty lead the main event for 14 & over open followed by: Austin Lobe, Lance McQuire, Niles Austin, and Frenchy. Coming out of the last turn it was easy to see that each rider was pushing themselves and their bike harder then the next. For an official results listing checkout out: Chesapeake BMX.

Conclusion

Temperatures were in the 90′s, everywhere you looked riders were under canopy’s trying to stay cool till the next round of qualifiers. The track officials had there hands full between the gate malfunction and heat, but where able to pull off another fun and successful day of racing. Amateur and Pro riders alike put on a great show of racing for the Memorial day Pro-Am at Chesapeake BMX, hopefully this will be a tradition.

The Pro-Am was made possible by an track staff and the following sponsors:

• InforMed-LLC Health Care Solutions
• #1 – Pools
• 24 – 7 Design Build

Gallery

Head over to our Gallery section to view all the photos from the race or go directly to Gallery 1 or 2 by clicking the thumbnails below.

Gallery 1

Gallery 2