Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/936927
CN III VOICES W H A T Y O U A R E S A Y I N G "Barcia's pass on Tomac was a deliberate take-out, not just a simple bump-and-run like Anderson's was on Musquin." Harley Hillclimb It was cool seeing veteran Travis Whitlock win the inaugu- ral X-Games Harley-Davidson Snow Hillclimb, but they need to throw a few Devil's Staircase- like steps (though smaller!) into the mix to make it more chal- lenging for next year. This first hillclimb didn't quite have the "wow" factor that we are used to at X-Games. Steve Casper Oakland Supercross Great race, and the last-lap mistakes by both riders—no doubt exhausted—made it even better. Jason Anderson is clearly the real deal and Mr. Con- sistent so far. But I think Ken Roczen is also riding smart; round by round he needs to keep riding his race. I'm surprised by Mistakes Inc. (aka Marvin Musquin and Eli Tomac). Great to see Justin Barcia enjoying his ride; I wish Weston Peick could find that extra little bit to ride up front. I'm rooting for Malcolm Stewart every round. He didn't do himself any favors in Oak- land—but he was clearly not alone on this tricky, technical track. Hope they can keep his program going. Bob Close Awesome race, awesome track! One of the best last laps I have ever seen! With all due respect to An- derson, after seeing how hard Anderson had to ride to beat him, I think Roczen is poised to dominate the series. I mean, he's only five races into his comeback! How fast will he be when he is back? Howard Halterman Man, I can't remember seeing so many riders on the ground during qualifying. For both 250 and 450 there was like a bar- rage of crashing each session and some were "take-me-to- the-hospital" crashes. This was by far the best racing I have seen this year, though—no runaway winner in either class. In my opinion Barcia's pass on Tomac was a deliberate take-out, not just a simple bump-and-run like Anderson's was on Musquin. Roczen's was as smooth as it gets, while An- derson clearly is a madman on a mission, the last lap was one of a kind. The lead changed three or four times and the top four were pretty much on the same straightaway at any given time. Great to watch! Jerome Britting Its kind of funny how rough- and-tough tracks make for the best racing. Just maybe the promoters and track builders can learn something from this week's racing. Do away with all the bowl turns, flatten them out and let some ruts form. But that's just my opinion. Roger Guard Letters to the editor can be sent to voices@cyclenews.com. Published letters do not necessarily reflect the position of Cycle News. Letters should not exceed 150 words and are subject to editing. Anonymous letters won't be considered for publication and each letter should contain the writer's name, address and daytime phone number… Editor P6 Not only did Jason Anderson survive a tough Oakland Supecross—he won it. PHOTOGRAPHY BY HOPPENWORLD.COM