RED BUD!! The countdown for Red Bud begins the moment the final motos end the previous year. We drudge through the cold winters and wet spring with anticipation of this, 4th of July weekend race. Being our first attendance of Red Bud, the masses of motocross fans that congregate at this round was definitely a sight to see. The sea of people, the stir of excitement, the sound of 2strokes every so often pinging the ear…THIS IS RED BUD.
A new sound.. Along with the typical “RedBud!!” screams you hear all weekend, there was plenty of “Two-Stroke!!” screams filling the air. We love the huge support we receive from the fans at every race we attend!
TSM rolled into Red Bud Thursday evening after a rather difficult trip. Having truck issues is never fun when everything is closed for the 4th of July. But persistent as ever, We Made It. Having practice and trained all week, #950 Nathen LaPorte was to be TSM’s lone rider this round. Feeling confident and comfortable on the bike, he was ready to battle on his home track. In 450 group B first practice, Nathen ran a 2:30 hot lap placing him in the tenth spot for qualifying. In Practice 2, he showed his consistency by running just tenths of a second off his first time placing him in 10th again. Qualifying overall in 51st, though highest yet this year, he missed the cut and prepared for the Consolation Race. In the Consolation race, Nathen had a rough start and came out of the first turn in about 35th place. He then went to task and started making his way through the pack. After many successful passes he managed to sit in the 21st position after just the 1st lap. Plugging away on a mission to be better than his previous weeks, Nathen finished the race in 13th, another career best. Each week we continue to see great improvements from Nathen and consider him a great asset in his rookie year. Week after week as he gets more time on the bike we see him getting faster, finding his rhythm, and creating his own style. We are proud of him, and hope to see him qualify before the seasons over. Nathen will be ready for another round in a few weeks at Millville.
To say we haven’t had set backs this season would be an understatement. If it wasn’t for bad luck we’d have no luck at all. It almost at times has seemed like we were cursed. Whatever could go wrong has. But just like Nathen, WE WONT GIVE UP. We at times have felt lost, even at times felt like quitting. But all these setbacks just make us want it more. We have made some major changes regarding motor work and bike setup, We have also brought on some new mechanics to better our team. We even decided to have Jerry Lorenz (#881 AMA and #28 CMRC) run the east rounds of the Pro Canadian Nationals (CMRC). The plan is to keep moving forward and making progress. In the next few weeks we will be publishing an article titled “the REAL inside the OUTDOORS”. We will go through what it really takes to run a race team, the cost, the opposition, the stresses and the joys, so stay tuned!
With everything that has happened since the beginning of the season, we are amazed that we are still going. We couldn’t do any of this without our sponsors and the help of our dedicated two-stroke team. After Lorenz conquers some Canadian nationals and Nathen runs Millville, our team will regroup for Unadilla and be 3 bikes strong, as Robby Marshall makes his return to the 250 to join Nathen and Jerry for TSM’s final round of the series.
Robby Marshall #82 will be back with us for Unadilla!
Thanks to all of our sponsors for making this possible! If your brand would like to get involved with our Pro MX effort, Contact Us.
