Profile at USA BMX Grand Nationals!
The Profile team met in Tulsa, OK for the USABMX Grand Nationals over Thanksgiving weekend. Team manager Gus had the Profile pit area set up along with the west coast team trailer for a nice place to rest in between motos. Thursday was Thanksgiving Day and practice day. Gus and his wife Susan hosted the team’s traditional turkey feast with everyone celebrating as an extended family. After dinner, Gus handed out presents to the team; their new 2013 team uniforms.
Looking sleek and stealth in the new uniforms the team was ready to take on the Presidents Cup/ROC.
Tyler Faoro got things off to a great start in the Elite Men motos. He finished top three in all of his motos. He was in a great position to transfer; it would come down to the Pro Spectacular on Saturday night for Tyler to transfer out of the semi and into the main. Tyler had lane 2 between Mark and Sam for the semi, the gate dropped and Tyler was elbow to elbow down the first strait and held on to 3rd to transfer to the main were he finished 6th in the main and 10 place overall.
Right after Tyler, Shay Glynn was riding fast in the Junior Women class. She looked strong competing against the group and made the main. She had tough competition but still managed to finish fifth.
In the 12 girls class, McKhenna Calhoun was flying fast in her motos and throughout her qualifiers all the way to the main event. In the main she kept her fast pace going to take the win! She took the top podium spot and the ROC title. Also racing girl’s cruiser, McKhenna battled through the motos and semi into the main event. There she had a little bit of traffic and had to settle for a 5th and 2nd place overall.
Also in 12 girls Lauren Lanzilotta was racing really well. She wasn’t able to make it all the way to the main, but she was riding among the tough competition and looked good.
Chandler Denton racing the 19-27 expert class transferred out in his first moto and then through quarters and into the semis. He was looking to make the main until a crash took him out of the race.
Casey Minthorn was 11 racing expert and looking fast. He was keeping to his signature strategy of jumping his way around the track. He looked good in his motos and even transferred out but couldn’t make it out of the qualifying rounds. His brother Caleb was with the team this weekend but still sitting on the sidelines due to his broken collarbone.
Tanner Engle stepped up to a bigger frame just a few weeks before the race.
He looked really good on the new ride but not enough time to really get the bike dialled in affected his track speed and he wasn’t able to make the main.
John Pringle (AKA Strider World Champion) was on a roll Friday transferring out on both bikes in the first moto. He then faced quarters in the 41-45 cruiser and 41 and over expert classes. He pedalled and carved his way into the main on both bikes. In cruiser he was looking good riding in fourth when going into the second turn his chain broke. He was able to stay on the bike but was passed and had to settle for an eight. In expert John wanted to redeem himself and he was battling down the first straight and into the second straight. But with all the elbows and bumping he was driven into the pro section. He was able to get back on the track and catch up to one rider and take a seventh.
Grand Nationals
The team got some rest and headed into the weekend for the Grand Nationals.
Chandler Denton, racing 19-27 expert, was racing the largest class of the weekend with 88 fast, hungry racers all looking to make the main event. Chandler sped through the motos, 1/8 qualifier, and quarters to make the semi-final. There he had a little tougher time and finished just outside the transfer spot. Still it was a great job to make it that far!
Casey Minthorn was a little grasshopper jumping his way around the track in the 11 expert class, which had 75 riders and quarterfinals. He was riding fast and looking good in the motos and into the qualifying rounds but could not get all the way to the big show.
Tanner Engle in the 13 expert class was getting more comfortable on the new frame and looked faster and smoother with each moto. He had 68 riders and quarters and while he made it out of the motos he could not get through all the qualifying rounds to make the main.
John Pringle was looking to continue the momentum from Friday’s races in the 41 and over expert and 41-45 cruisers. His expert class had 44 riders and quarterfinals. With 53 riders in cruiser, John had the largest cruiser class of the weekend. After some good runs on Sunday, John made it out of the motos and into the quarterfinals on both bikes but was not able to make the main.
The ladies of Profile were getting it done this weekend. Shay Glynn started things off right in the Junior Women making it all the way to the main and finishing fifth. In the 17-27 girls class, Shay had a huge group of 34 riders and quarters. She flew through the motos and qualifying rounds to finish with a sixth in the main. That’s 2 main event finishes for Shay-Shay!
Lauren Lanzilotta was racing the 12 girls class that had 29 riders and quarterfinals. She was looking even better than Friday’s races but was not able to get into the main event.
McKhenna Calhoun was also racing the 12 girls class. McKhenna transferred out in the first moto and got to sleep in on Sunday. She sped through her quarter and semi-finals to make the main event. She continued the dominating performance to take a second place finish. That’s a podium spot and a huge trophy. McKhenna also raced 11-12 cruiser where she battled through motos and semis into the main to take a seventh place finish. Another 2 main event finishes for this Profile lady making 4 main event appearances for the weekend!
All in all it was a great weekend for the Profile team and an excellent end to the racing year. There was a lot of excitement and good racing from everyone. We could not do it without the help of our awesome Sponsors and everyone at Profile, especially Jim, Nancy, Charlie and our fearless pit boss Gus. Look for more excitement from us in 2013!
