VOL. 53 ISSUE 24 JUNE 21, 2016 P29
when a five rattled Smage in the
third section.
From that point on, Freixa
dominated Saturday's event,
posting lap scores of 6, 8 and 9
for a total of 23 and the win.
Pennsylvania's Andrew Putt
even finished ahead of Smage
on lap one, turning in a 19-point
card to Smage's 24. However,
Putt faded on laps two and three
as Smage finished the event with
a total of 52 for the day and sec-
ond overall. Putt rounded out the
top three with a total of 68.
On Sunday the sections were
a bit drier, making them easier,
and Smage was able to push
Freixa a little harder, especially
over the first two laps.
Once again, Smage took the
early lead when Freixa fived
the second section and Smage
was able to get through with a
three. Freixa was able to gain
back a point here and there and
finished the opening lap with
12 marks compared to 17 for
Smage. Putt was hot on their
heels with 26 points.
Lap two saw Freixa logging
a seven-point lap, Smage a 12,
and Putt a 21-point lap. However,
on lap three, Freixa was the only
one of the trio to show improve-
ment, finishing the lap with just
six marks while Smage and
Putt dropped 16 and 23 points,
respectively.
When the final cards were tal-
lied, Freixa extended his lead in
the series with a win on Sunday
with a total of 25 points. Smage
was second with 45 points and
Putt finished third with 70 points.
"This weekend was difficult
and Smage pressured me all the
way, especially on the first two
laps today," said Friexa. "But on
the third lap I was able to extend
my advantage."
Smage, on the other hand, felt
a bit out of his element on the
slippery rocks.
"This is something I haven't
spent a lot of time practicing,
and I let it get to me with a
lot of errors, both on the bike
and mentally, and that made it
frustrating," said Smage. "But
as rough and difficult as Satur-
day was, I tried to take some
good from it and I think I turned
it around on Sunday and I rode
much better."
The SWM US National Cham-
pionship MotoTrials Series trav-
els to Canon City, Colorado for
the final two rounds of the series
on June 25-26 where Freixa will
carry a 10-point lead over Smage
in the standings.
Shan Moore
Saturday
1. Marc Freixa (Mon) 23
2. Pat Smage (Shr) 52
3. Andrew Putt (Shr) 68
4. Alexander Niederer (GG) 108
5. Daniel Blanc-Gonnet (Mon) 114
Sunday
1. Marc Freixa (Mon) 25
2. Pat Smage (Shr) 45
3. Andrew Putt (Shr) 70
4. Logan Bolopue (Shr) 115
5. Karl Davis Jr. (Sco) 118
Pat Smage
took runner-up
honors.
