able considering the
difficulty of the course.
Smage's 16-point
total was 54 points
better than the closest
competitor and more
than good enough for
the overall win.
"I was kind of frus-
trated with the two fives
on the second lap and
so I did a reset and
went out with a little
more focus on that last
lap," said Smage.
Smage was focused
and steady all day on
Sunday, with his only
major points coming in the very
difficult 12th section, which
featured a steep, sandy downhill
that left little room at the bottom
for stopping. Most of the riders
ran over the ribbon at the bottom
of the drop, however, Smage
managed a three on his first two
rides. But could not help finish-
ing with a five on his final ride
when the downhill deteriorated.
At the end of the day, Smage's
3-3-6 loop scores were more
than good enough for win num-
ber four on the season.
"Overall, it was a good week-
end," said Smage. "I had a lot of
clean rides during the two days,
so overall I feel like I'm riding
well. There are a few little things
I need to work on to improve for
the remainder of the season, but
the factory Sherco is working re-
ally well and I'm really looking for-
ward to the east coast rounds."
Picking up where they left off
last week in New Mexico where
they battled over the runner-up
spot, GasGas North America
teammates Alex Niederer and
Daniel Blanc-Gonnet traded sec-
ond- and third-place finishes over
the two days.
Niederer got the upper hand
on Saturday, beating his team-
mate by eight points. Blanc-Gon-
net put on a hard charge on the
final lap to catch Niederer but it
was too late. Niederer's 70-point
total had put the Florida rider into
the runner-up slot while Blanc-
Gonnet settled for third with 78
points.
The roles were reversed on
Sunday, and it was Niederer
making the last-minute push to
beat his teammate, but Blanc-
Gonnet held on by the skin of his
teeth to beat Niederer by virtue of
a tiebreaker, falling to him by one
clean after the two riders each
carded 47 points.
Sherco USA's Sam Fastle
doubled up with a pair of fourth-
place finishes on the weekend,
while Scorpa USA's Quinn
Wentzel and Beta USA's Andreas
Niederer tracked fifth- and sixth-
place finishes.
Shan Moore
SATURDAY
1. Pat Smage (Shr) 16
2. Alex Niederer (GG) 70
3. Daniel Blanc-Gonnet (GG) 78
4. Sam Fastle (Shr) 129
5. Quinn Wentzel (Sco) 155
6. Andreas Niederer (Bet) 161
SUNDAY
1. Pat Smage (Shr) 12
2. Daniel Blanc-Gonnet (GG) 47
3. Alex Niederer (GG) 47
4. Sam Fastle (Shr) 96
5. Andreas Niederer (Bet) 104
6. Quinn Wentzel (Sco) 113
IN
THE
WIND
P42
Alex Niederer
was runner-up on
Saturday but slipped
back a position on
Sunday.
