2015 Buckeye Nationals Race Report

Filed under General on August 15, 2015 | Comment(s)

August 15, 2015 – Akron, Ohio – The USA BMX National series returns to Ohio for the first time since 2013 and Akron BMX is ready to rock with some of the best in the nation! The last time we were in Ohio, the tour made a stop at Toledo BMX in Toledo, Ohio – about two hours west of us. 

To kick off the weekend, the City of Akron's Mayor and the Akron Summit Convention and Visitors Bureau invited us to check out the All-American Soap Box Derby facility where they host the annual soap box derby world championships. It was a spectacular opportunity and there was definitely some ferocity on the hill as many of the attendees loaded up into their car of choice and zoomed down the hill at over 30 mph. We were stoked to see that the city was so excited for this weekend's Buckeye Nationals event, which happens to be right next to the soap box derby facility. 

After some fun at the hill and a good nights rest, Friday morning brought us to the track. When you first pull up it leaves you wondering where you might be going. Why do you ask? Mainly because there is a giant black hangar adjacent to the track. While many were thinking it was a UFO or other top secret project, it turns out it houses one of the Goodyear Blimps that is used throughout the year at various events. 

The track itself sits behind a local Lockheed Martin facility, as well as next to the blimp hangar and a local airport. It is definitely some serious company to be a part of, and considering Lockheed Martin is a company that specifies in American global aerospace, defense, security and advanced technologies, I would venture to say that Akron BMX is in a pretty secure location. After taking in those great surroundings, the track walk was next, and it was nice to see a change of pace with their non-traditional layout. Akron BMX features a good mixture of technicality and easier obstacles, and riders were racing about the speed they gain on this track. Some of that could come from their custom slurry topcoat, which has been taking many tracks by storm as another option instead of Soil-Tac. With a big sweeper first turn, followed by two nineties and another hairpin makes a total of four tight and very carvable turns. Needless to say, this track is on point and should make for some great racing during this weekend's event. 

The pre-race was quick and easy, with a ton of smiles as racers were stoked to get their weekend kicked off at the BMX track. With day one of the 2015 Buckeye Nationals right around the corner, it is only a matter of time before we find out who is ready to win! Be sure to tune into the live audiocast at usabmx.com/webcast, and don't forget to follow all of our social media outlets @usabmx. We will continue to bring you updates throughout the weekend and, as always, check back here Saturday night for the complete recap of day one. 

SATURDAY:

Day one of the 2015 Buckeye Nationals started with a big bang as two early morning sign-up surges led to 181 total motos, with a gaggle of Striders and 11 A Pro riders. Throughout the entirety of qualifying, most classes went pretty deep into the talent pool. While 17-18 Expert was a let down with rider count, every single rider was capable of winning the main event, which you do not see too often.

After qualifying hammered through, the A Pro class was whittled down to the final eight, they were ready to see who could be the best out of three rounds. Both Ssquared's Hayden Fletcher and Extreme Team's Jeremy Smith were ready to take down the dominant Kenny Gustafson. Unfortunately for them, Kenny G. had other plans and cruised to impressive wins in each of the three rounds. After some back and forth, Jeremy kept a bit more consistency and found himself in second place overall, while Fletcher settled for third. These three will be back at it tomorrow, and we cannot wait to see if day two brings more fireworks like they put on today. 

After some fast paced action in the open classes, the transition into the championship classes left the crowds on the edges of their seats while everyone was searching for wins. One of the best of the day between both girl and boy cruiser classes came from the 8-year-old boys. As they loaded into the gate and got clipped in, the cadence started right as Answer~Rennen's Marshall Gehrke lost his balance and fell. The cadence immediately stopped to make sure no injuries happened, and after Marshall was able to get unclipped the reset, the crowd cheered. That cheer was followed by Marshall shouting out, "Let's not let that happen again!" With the little man set back up, we started over and with no interruptions the gate dropped. After that, it was Marshall Gehrke out front and pulling away with each crank. The crowd erupted with cheers after realizing that he had such a big lead – especially considering his mishap in the gate. Luckily for Marshall, the motivation to dominate the class came from probably a little bit of pre-race crowd pump. Who knows if he would have destroyed the class by that much had he not fallen, but nonetheless "Major" Gehrke took home the win in what was the most hyped up cruiser class of the day. 

Another big cruiser race that had the crowd on their feet was in the 51-55 class. With a full rack, these guys were ready to do battle. During the qualifying rounds, Woody Woodruff looked off the pace, but we now think he may have just been sandbagging it. The gate dropped and Woodruff took off like a rocket. He led the first two straights, but Alltow's Renato Pistolesi was hunting for an inside dive. He would get the chance in turn three, and took over the lead, but it would not last for long as Thunder Racing~Dan's Comp rider Frank Kratz made a last straight pass. In the end, it was Kratz with the win, Pistolesi in second, and Woodruff in third. You do not get to see the older guys battle like that too often, but this one was a jaw-dropper!

For me, I have not been on the east coast a lot this year. Last year it seemed like I was all over the place, but not as much in 2015. That said, I noticed some seriously fast girls out here this weekend, and each of them deserves some good recognition for their truly spectacular performances today. First up was Kennedy Cloutier who riders for Kid Dynamite in the 9-year-old girl's class. This young lady had no easy road in front of her today, and she made some big things happen. Definitely keep an eye out for here as she continues to progress through the sport. Next up was Kalli Streeter. The 10-year-old from Blain, Minnesota had a solid third at last weekend's Land O Lakes nationals but, unfortunately, came up short with an eight place the following day. Luckily that did not phase her and today she laid down the turbo burners in order to pull off the first place finish over some strong contenders. If she can grab another win tomorrow, there will certainly be some big momentum as she heads into her next race. Finally, we had 12-year-old girl Jennifer Mettler who rides for BMX Track Supply. Admittedly, I had not heard too much about the young rider from Chanhassen, Minnesota, but she absolutely crushed it today. It will be pretty interesting to see how the rest of the year pans out for her, and if she continues to make big things happen on the track. 

Every now and then you run into a rider who has a serious will to ride and/or win at whatever cost necessary. This weekend that award goes to Full Tilt's Reed Larson. Earlier this week Larson suffered a broken hand, but he was not going to let that get in the way of this weekend's racing. Larson got casted up and made sure he was still able to grip the bar. He lined up today and while definitely not perfect, he was able to pick up the double win in both class and cruiser. It does not get much more dedicated than that. Many of these kids will do whatever it takes to race, and that is one great thing about our sport. 

Day one could not have gone much better. Between the racing, weather, and checking out the Goodyear blimp that circled the area for a couple of hours, it was a wonderful day to be tearing it up on the USA BMX National series. We are locked and loaded with 174 motos for day two, so be sure to join us at Akron BMX for all of the action! Also, remember to follow all of our social media outlets @usabmx, and as always, the complete weekend recap will be posted up here tomorrow evening! See you tomorrow...

SUNDAY:

Day two of the 2015 Buckeye Nationals arrived and riders were ready to rock. Going into the day there were 174, only seven less than day one. There are times where there can be some major fluctuation between the two days, but everyone was so pumped after day one that day two became a no-brainer for many racers.

Qualifying went like fast, with main events rolling in just before noon. Walking through staging you could sense the excitement of the riders who had high hopes of going home with a win and the big trophy. Before they amateurs got to take to the dirt, the A Pro class was already loaded up, and it looked to be much of the same from yesterday’s class. We also happened to see the same results by the time they had wrapped their three rounds. It was Kenny Gustafson once again who led Jeremy Smith and Hayden Fletcher around the track. This cat has been an absolute ringer in the class this year, and I would be he is the favorite at this point of the season for the PULL Magazine Golden Crank award for Rookie Pro of the Year. He has shown us some spurts of brilliance in the Elite class as well, but it looks like we will have to wait until next year before we get to see him with the dig dogs full time. 

There is no doubt that the amateur challenge classes have been pretty tight all year long, and in many of the classes and/or age groups, there are quite a few more riders who have come out of the woodwork in order to make the NAG title chases a lot more interesting by the time we enter the Grands. One of those riders hails from Glen Burnie, Maryland. Addison Shreve has had to sit on the bubble of the top ten NAG rankings in 10 & Under Girl Cruiser, but no longer will that be the case after this weekend. Shreve laid down her aggressive riding style and piloted her BlackCrown ride to the front of the pack and would take the double win on her big bike. There are still some good scores to be had on the east coast, so it will be interesting to see if the young rider will capitalize on those available scores and be ready to lay down the hammer at Grands. 

Ohio local Shawn McGovern has been known to have hot and cold spells when it comes to his track performance. Luckily as of late, those spells have been mostly hot. Maybe he is making sure to be in good enough shape that his dog, Blake the BMXing Boxer, does not show him up (yes, we saw the video of Black schooling you, Shawn). All paws aside, this was a big weekend for Shawn, and he made sure to make it happen in a big way on both the big bike and little bike against some really strong competition. He would take his Moto Up ride to the elusive double-double, which some people try to achieve during their entire careers. Congrats Shawn, now let's see if he can hang on for the next few months. 

Vendetta’s Payton Ridenour has been a big name in the girls ranks for the last few years, and rightfully so when you consider her vast accomplishments at just 13-years-old. So what sets her apart from the rest? Not only does her work ethic pay off, she is hands down one of the best female jumpers in BMX, and if history is any teller, that is a requirement to go far in this sport, or it at least helps. Payton was skying the entire second straight all weekend and that helped lead to her complete domination of the class. Coming in second behind her both days was Factory Extreme Team’s newest member Jaydin Wenck, who also looked quite impressive. These two were definitely the show of the class. Payton has a very bright future ahead of her, just watch out because chances are she can jump better than you.

Earlier this year we saw DK Bicycles rider, Jack Davis appear on the U.S. tour. The foreigner was a big a hit and started grabbing wins out of nowhere. It has been a while since the last time I saw him, but he has no apparently relocated to Ontario, Canada, which could mean bad news for some of the U.S. riders – at least the ones who have to race him. Davis had a rough day yesterday and missed out on the 12 Expert main, but today he made sure he was there and set up an awesome pass on Kiegen Perlberg. Davis looked like a long time veteran with the move on one of the best riders in the age group, and it would land him the win. Davis will certainly be a force for years to come, and possibly a future National #1 titleholder if he keeps up at this rate. 

It is crazy to think that the weekend is already passed us, and now it is time to get ready for next weekend’s Mile High Nationals at Grand Valley BMX in Grand Junction, Colorado. The 2015 Buckeye Nationals is a wrap, and there is no doubt we want more of the awesome racing that was on display this weekend. The eastern side of the country has been producing some great riders as of late, and it was on display this weekend. We want to thank everyone who came out and joined us this weekend, and a special shout out to the entire Akron BMX crew. We hope to see you all next weekend in Colorado.