Monday, April 23

Vines In Vegas

By B.J. Smith
MotoWorld

LAS VEGAS, NV. - It was the "Sterilizer" that clinched it. With that last trick, Team Yamaha's Trevor Vines took home a cool $10,000 and 20 championship points at round three of AirMX freestyle motocross series at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

With high winds leading up to the event, promoters expressed concern for rider safety and the contest came close to being cancelled. Conditions cleared later in the day though activities went on as planned. For Vines, it was his first win of the series and he said he hopes to have many more.

"I'm really stoked about this win. We didn't know if the event was going to happen because of the wind earlier today, but it cleared up and the show went on," Vines said. "I knew if I could pull the "Sterilizer" out of the bag tonight, I would have a good shot at winning. As long as I can stay healthy, I'll be doing the whole series. That's what kept me from making the first round - I had a broken arm. It's a pretty dangerous sport, so hopefully I got mine (injury) out of the way."

Clifford "The Flyin' Hawaiian" Adoptante played it cool and took home a solid second place finish.

"Basically, tonight wasn't my night," he said. "I think I rode to the best of my abilities and the wind a bit of a factor. I'm not going to make excuses, but yesterday's practice was postponed until today and it was a little windy even then and they shut it down until later this evening, so I think that mentally screwed me up a little. I'm still in the lead for the championship and as long as I stay consistent in each event that's what I'm looking at, because if I'm staying consistent, I'm making money."

"I definitely know I need to bust my butt and get some more practice in and start doing some of the tricks I haven't been doing because I want to win this championship."

Many of the routines were filled with the basic Seat Grabs, Bar Hops, Cliff Hangers, No-footed Nac Nacs, and Supermans.

Brian Manley, track builder, said outdoor events at venues like LVMS give the riders more space for thought and execution.

"The layout of the track is different on these outdoor events because we have a lot more room and a lot more dirt," he said. "It makes the guys think more about their runs and where they are going to go so they don't screw up or get out of place. The landings are safer outdoors but you don't have all the berms like you do indoors."

Look for freestyle highlights from Las Vegas on MotoWorld TV this Tuesday, at 6 p.m. EST. Round four takes place April 28 in Houston, Texas.

Overall - Freestyle:

1. Trevor Vines
2. Clifford Adoptante
3. Tyler Evans
4. Doug Parsons
5. Jeremy Steinberg

Point Standings (After 3 of 13 rounds):

1. Clifford Adoptante - 58.5
2. Trevor Vines - 36
3. Tyler Evans - 34

Step Up Competition:

1. Jeremy Steinberg
2. Justin Homan
3. Adam Pierce

MIA in Vegas was Tommy Clowers who broke his collarbone during the step up competition last month. Also missing was Brian Deegan who broke his ankle in Daytona in early March. Kenny Bartram is also on the injured list this week .