The defining moment came,
as it so often does at Brushy, in
the creeks.
Lost My Balls Creek featured a
waterfall that became the race's
ultimate separator. Riders who
cleaned it gained minutes; those
who didn't paid dearly.
"I knew in the last lap, it was
going to come down to this wa
-
terfall," Hart said. "I actually threw
my bike down it pretty good on
my first try. I was stressing. The
second try, I absolutely just gave
it everything I had and cleaned it."
That moment broke the race
open.
LeBlond's speed on the hills
kept him firmly in contention.
Time and again, he clawed back
seconds on the climbs, where
traction was consistent and
commitment paid off.
Behind them, Rocky Mountain
Yamaha's Cody Webb mounted a
charge of his own, overcoming a
mistake-filled opening lap to claw
his way back into contention.
"I was literally cussing at
myself," Webb said. "It wasn't
even the track; it was fully on me
for making really bad mistakes.
Then I just pushed hard the rest
of the race."
By the final lap, the order was
set, but not without drama. Hart
continued to refine his lines, im
-
proving his lap times as the race
wore on, while LeBlond fought
to minimize losses and Webb
closed the gap from behind.
When the dust settled, it was
Hart standing atop the podium
once again, his sixth consecutive
victory at the Battle of the Goats.
The AMA National Hard En
-
duro Championship, presented
by IRC Tire, goes north for the
Locked N Loaded Hard Scram-
ble on May 23-24 in Sugarloaf,
Pennsylvania.
Steph Vetterly
OVERALL (Top 10)
1. Trystan Hart (KTM) 2:58:24
2. Ryder LeBlond (Hus) 3:19:01
3. Cody Webb (Yam) 3:21:05
4. Branden Petrie (Bet) 3:44:54
5. Ryder Guest (KTM) 3:46:16
6. Braxton Hintze (KTM) 3:50:35
7. Kawelo Huddy (KTM) 3:52:38
8. Kamakana Waitwaiole-Kahalepuna
(KTM) 4:24:49
9. James Flynn (Bet) 4:27:25
10. Quinn Wentzel (Rie) 4:35:19
WIND
IN THE
P40
Cody Webb came on strong
to get on the podium.
