Weekend Race Recap
Friday - 8:00PM -
USHRA Thunder Nationals
Verizon Wireless Arena
Manchester, NH
Friday, January 20th, 2006
8:00 PM
Griff Allen – USHRA Announcer
This crowd got revenge on the cold weather of last year by returning as a near-full house for a show that was not to be forgotten. Beautiful weather brought a good crowd out to see Anger Management (Scott Poirier), Towasaurus Wrex (Jeff Bursey), Thrasher (Pat Summa), American Guardian (Rick Raab), Superman (Chad Fortune) and Madusa.
The wheelie competition ranking set the order for the bracket that saw Superman take the narrow win over Madusa with a score of 26 to 25. Chad had quite a bit of twist as he skied his way over most of the stack to take the win.
Tow Wrex fell in the first round to the man of steel. Madusa took down Thrasher in the second pair, and American Guardian defeated Anger Management. Anger Management wouldn’t have been able to return anyway as Scott grabbed way too much throttle on the launch to make up for a nap at the light. As a result, he skied and twisted over the entire course – landing hard on the left-rear wheel – which sheered off beyond repair. Talk about giving it your all.
Of the losers in the first round, Thrasher had the best wheelie score, so that allowed him to return for the next round against Superman. All the racing so far was close and this was no exception. In a close one, Fortune advances. On the other pair, Madusa had a better reaction time, but not as good a hookup and American Guardian was able to pass in the air for the win.
The finals were dramatic as well but in the end, Raab in Guardian took it.
The Dew Action Sports Tour brought some excitement in the form of a BMX demo featuring Ron Thomas, Ross Oberholtzer and Vinnie Vasquez. Announcer Jody Donnely – a pretty way rider himself – gave the pumped-up commentary on the mic to make the session huff. Backflips, aerial 720’s, bar spins were the order of the day and done quite well. Check out dewactionsportstour.com or hunt down ride-n-grind stunt teams for more.
Billy Cole was the next freak to take to the sky. His quad jump over three monster trucks was the moment of the night despite the fact that he struggled to find traction on the polished concrete floor. While he was going for a record jump, he came up a little short, but not too short. For anyone that jumps or rides MX, you know very well that coming up short is the last thing you ever want to do. Hopefully, with more rubber laid down in the later shows, his run-up will be more aggressive and he’ll be able to hit his record distance. For more, check out colemx.com.
Monster truck doughnuts are not as easy as they seem. Tow Rex proved this as the first truck out. It wasn’t until Thrasher’s score of 25 that the mark to beat was the challenge. It wasn’t until Chad was able to spin Superman to the judge’s satisfaction to get a 26 to take the win.
To wrap up the night, everyone’s favorite – monster truck freestyle – did not disappoint. Tow Rex’s reverse hit was a crowd favorite and Superman’s integration of doughnuts into a solid routine got a great reaction as well as a score of 21. The American Guardian – with its fire-breathing exhaust nozzle – was the usual crowd favorite and also garnered a 21. It was Madusa, however, who finally was able to break through for the win with a score of 23. Once she had a chance to get on the mic, she let the judges know that she disagreed with their scores in the doughnut competition, the wheelie competition and … well … pretty much just disagreed with them as only Madusa can do.
Scores:
Wheelie:
Tow Rex 12
Anger Management 24
Madusa 25
Superman 26
American Guardian 21
Thrasher 16
Doughnut:
Tow Rex 11
Anger Management DNS
Thrasher 25
American Guardian 23
Madusa 22
Superman 26
Freestyle:
Tow Rex 15
Anger Management DNS
Thrasher 18
Superman 21
Madusa 23
American Guardian 21
Saturday - 2:00PM
USHRA Thunder Nationals
Verizon Wireless Arena
Manchester, NH
Saturday, January 21st, 2006
2:00 PM
Griff Allen – USHRA Announcer
After the Naults Honda Powerhouse pit party, this capacity crowd got one of the best shows ever that had all of the elements that make monster truck shows so awesome. No driver substitutions from the previous night saw the same line-up.
As hard as Anger Management (local hero Scott Poirier) tried, he and his crew weren’t able to get the machine race ready in time for the show, so the Thunder National fans got a rare chance to see an out and out pit thrash for the show. While Scott promised to make every effort to get the truck ready for freestyle, it never looked hopeful that this would ever happen.
Wheelie competition saw Madusa come out swingin’ with a 26 – lots of angle and distance to set the mark. Superman came close with a 23 and veteran monster truck racer Pat Summa in Thrasher was able to threaten with an equal score, but no one was able to beat Madusa for the win. In her interview, she commented on her admiration of the state motto of New Hampshire – “Live Free or Die” – which she noticed on cars’ license plates.
The bracket – set by the wheelie competition – saw the following eliminations …
Medusa had to take a bye to advance, since Anger Management wasn’t able to make the call. American Guardian took down Thrasher and Superman bettered Towasaurus Wrex.
In the next round, Madusa sent Thrasher – the returning loser owing to his rank in the wheelie competition – packing for good. American Guardian bettered Superman – but not by much – to earn a second trip to the finals in as many days.
In the finals, while Rick Raab in American Guardian was able to take the win, Madusa was the wild ride of the night. She rocketed off the line so aggressively and got such a good launch and kept her foot in it so long that the machine over rotated to the rear – landing her squarely on the tail of the frame of the truck. While it wrinkled the metal that protects not just the driver, but also the engine and the rest of the truck itself; it didn’t take the machine out of competition for the balance of the night – just lightened its muster a bit.
The Dew Action Sports Tour again brought excitement in the form of two wheels and flight. Ron Thomas, Ross Oberholtzer and Vinnie Vasquez made things happen with style and amazement. Announcer Jody Donnely – a pretty way rider himself – gave the pumped-up commentary on the mic to make the session huff. Today, while we caught a backflip or two, aerial 360’s and 720’s, bar spins and superman’s were the key to getting the crowd pumped. Check out dewactionsportstour.com or hunt down ride-n-grind stunt teams for more.
Billy Cole once again was looking for a record distance on the quad with a ramp to ramp jump on his Honda 450. While he was able to find more traction today, he still wasn’t able to find as much as he would have liked. While the jump was as awesome as always, it was still a bit short – no record today. But remember, there’s always one more show! Perhaps tonight will be the night. For more, check out colemx.com.
Many of the drivers had better luck today with their doughnuts than the previous day. The last three competitors were definitely locked into a game of one-upmanship. Guardian, Superman with his no-handed doughnut and Madusa successively raised the bar with a 20, 25 and 27 to make the win a dramatic and well-deserved one. Madusa was even able to show her prowess by spinning the machine not just to the left – as most drivers seem to prefer – but also to the right.
The judges kept up their good work by once again scoring well when it came time for monster truck freestyle. Though the pit thrash was gallant, the end of the show was here and Anger Management’s crew was still crawling around under the truck. We believed that though they tried, they weren’t able to get the machine rolling for freestyle. Much to our surprise, the next machine to fire was Anger Management! Scott had made good on his word to do everything that he could to get the machine rolling again. It seems that a quick call to Advance Auto Parts was able to save the day. While a majority of parts on a monster truck are one-off and fabricated in a shop, there are some parts that you and I can buy just the same at any Advance Auto Parts. Seems the last piece of the puzzle was found on the shelf in isle four!
A 13 was a good run for Scott – especially seeing as this was his test run after reinstalling the left, rear wheel, replacing the starter and tending to some other work. Thrasher followed with a like score and then – once again – the final three tried to outdo each other. Superman was able to muster a 23 to set the mark. Madusa followed with a 24 and a little bit more creative of a routine. The final shot was to be fired by American Guardian – who put on a great show – complete with a fire-breathing tailpipe. His high-energy routine netted him a 27 to take the win. The crowd not only liked his style and his wins, but they also admired his tribute to the fallen men and women of the armed forces - the names of which adorn his machine and which include the name of his very own nephew. People with 100 times more money than Rick still don’t have as much class as he has in his little finger. It’s great to see a winner who understands honor – and it was our honor to see Rick enjoy his hard-earned wins here in New Hampshire today.
Scores:
Wheelie:
Tow Rex 17
Anger Management DNS
Madusa 26
Superman 23
American Guardian 19
Thrasher 23
Doughnut:
Tow Rex 15
Anger Management DNS
Thrasher 13
American Guardian 20
Madusa 25
Superman 27
Freestyle:
Tow Rex 14
Anger Management 18
Thrasher 18
Superman 23
Madusa 24
American Guardian 27
Saturday - 8:00PM
USHRA Thunder Nationals
Verizon Wireless Arena
Manchester, NH
Saturday, January 21st, 2006
8:00 PM
Griff Allen – USHRA Announcer
Talk about finishing with a bang – wow!!!
Saturday night is usually where all the action is and this Thunder Nationals was no exception. We had the best of everything that we could ever ask for.
It all started with the fact that local hero Scott Poirier was able to make his truck happen for the first time since Friday night and a non-stop pit thrash between then and the start of the show. He had a lot of fans in attendance and he surely did not disappoint.
Wheelie competition started the night with Anger Management going completely 12 o’clock and then some. We thought for sure he was going over, but he was able to power out of it saving the truck – but doing so at the expense of some of the body work. His effort was too much to beat and his score of 24 was only threatened by American Guardian’s 22.
Monster truck racing saw the following eliminations …
Anger Management would have no part of being beat by a girl, so he put Madusa back on the truck in round one. Superman had his way with Pat Summa in Thrasher and American Guardian sent Towasaurus Wrex lookin’ for a ride.
In the semis, Anger Management thrashed on Thrasher while Anger’s teammate American Guardian earned his third trip to the finals in as many races this weekend with a win over Superman. Rick would be gunning for his eighth consecutive win this season.
In the finals, the crowd seemed to be behind Anger Management. With the tough and unbeaten competition in the other lane, Scott gave it his all and then some. Anger was able to manage a win over his teammate. His victory came in part due to the fact that the Guardian rotated almost 90 degrees during its flight. Had the truck remained straight, Rick may have had a chance. The win was well-deserved and heartily enjoyed.
The Dew Action Sports Tour BMX crew put on their best show yet. Ron Thomas, Ross Oberholtzer and Vinnie Vasquez made things happen with flare and class. We saw a combination 360 with a tailwhip, 360s done clean as can be and 720s. A triple combo hit featuring 360s and backflips closed the segment with quite a kick. Announcer Jody Donnely once again served it up with energy and enthusiasm. Check out dewactionsportstour.com or hunt down ride-n-grind stunt teams for more.
Billy Cole thought he could get his record distance on the quad with a ramp to ramp jump on his Honda 450, but instead, he came up shorter than he ever has before and came very close to crashing. He wasn’t able to get the runup speed that he was looking for and knew upon liftoff that that he was in trouble. In the air, he grabbed a gear and lots and lots of throttle to keep the nose up and extract as much distance as he could out of the slow run-up. Upon just clearing the gap and using the safety catch extension, he basketballed his way down the landing ramp and never had a chance to even start to slow the machine until he was on level ground. He used all the shutdown area and then some as he parked the machine sideways into the dashers. Though he cleared the gap, he was quite short of his record jump. Perhaps another opportunity will lend itself to the record jump and Billy so badly wanted to do for this great New Hampshire crowd!
Monster doughnuts went a little better today with Madusa able to spin ‘em in both directions for the top score of 29. Superman was closest to her followed by Guardian and Thrasher.
Freestyle offered its usual mayhem and then some. Pat Summa in Thrasher unfortunately broke a front drive shaft during doughnut competition and wasn’t able to bring the machine out for freestyle. Anger led the way with a 15 – kind of a low score – in spite of his no-handed doughnut. Tow Rex threw two reverse hits, but the judges noticed that the second one was after the clock expired and did a good job of not scoring the stunt. A big, smoky doughnut and a well-varied run are what got Superman a 27. With Madusa and Guardian to follow, it would be a tough score to beat. As luck would – or would not – have it, Madusa cooked the tranny and couldn’t grab a gear for all she was worth. American Guardian started a strong run with authority, but holed a piston 15 seconds into the run putting an early end to a promising run. With that, Chad celebrated the win and headed off to meet the Thunder National fans who would stay for hours for the chance to meet their hero.
Scores:
Wheelie:
Tow Rex 13
Anger Management 24
Madusa 12
Superman 16
American Guardian 22
Thrasher 17
Doughnut:
Tow Rex 10
Anger Management 10
Thrasher 24
American Guardian 24
Madusa 29
Superman 26
Freestyle:
Tow Rex 13
Anger Management 15
Thrasher DNS
Superman 27
Madusa 11
American Guardian 10
