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"NEWS NOT HISTORY"

Many "Firsts" at Tri City GP!

07/24/2022

 

First plaque!

Tri City Motorcycle Club is one of the oldest clubs in IL if not the midwest.  Chartered as far back as anyone can remember, with a 2 digit charter (88) it's been a short minute of riding and racing at this club.  Ups and downs with any long term organization but today was a much brighter note.  Rain had cancelled just about everything in northern IL on this sunday, racing, practicing, but the weather gods were being nice to this weathered club. 

Riders showed up to a very nice layout and a good amount of H2O, but not to much.

Gran Prix racing has turned over a new leaf in 2022. Usually a little rain and a dark cloud would cancel, but this year has been different, what's so totally cool about this is Gp racers have proven to be up for the task! A solid mix of fast open woods with natural terrain, slide in the very hilly natural terrain motocross track and you have the perfect recipe for Gp.

We had a weekend of "firsts" as well this day.  First time attending a GP, to first time racing.  Izzy (22) Smith (Ryan & Elisa Smith) of Coal Valley raced

 her very first race ever. The newly formed Gp classes including beginners, 50cc riders and 65cc riders has made a huge improvement to getting riders like Izzy to be able to try a new hobby.  Ryan and Elisa are both in their own right accomplished riders and racers.  Ryan winning many

 championships, Elisa as well, including a fair amount of time ago winning t

he scholarship award.  Well this shows in the little ones today.  Izzy, showed that she doesn't quit, being tough, resilient, and maybe a little stubborn, she bobbled here and there but held on to 5th, the whole time battling with big sis! Won't be long and little brother will be banging laps!! Family, is exactly what Gp racing is all about and this bunch has rode together for many generations!  Pretty cool

For the first time in a long time Colt Converse 

Railin in the chips

(35)had a battle for the win on his hands in the open A class. Arenacross/Supercross rider,  Daniel Herrlein (393), gave that battle in his very first Grand Prix race.  With Herrlein going down early in the moto in the woods, Converse built quite the gap on Herrlein. It took Herrlein until the last two laps of the second moto to figure out the woods and close the gap on Converse. The last lap w

as tire to tire the whole lap, until Herrlein quaded what is normally a double double on the moto track and passed

 Converse for the lead, Converse wasn’t able to make up the time and ended

 up second for the day in the Open A class. Dean Sheldon(18)

Dean Sheldon rippin the kawy rode his first woods race with his friend Jerry Samuelson in the 50A and 40Aclasses. Dean dominated the 50A class in both motos and gave long time GP racer Ryan Duff a good chase in 40A but wasn’t nearly as at home in the woods as Ryan and settled for a second. Dean has had a long history of racing here at Tri-City, many injuries and pretty much a life time of service to the club and banging moto laps here.  Many times over the years on a track he would build/layout. Recovering from an injury earlier this summer, the "old" guy from the Quad Cities had a pretty good day, and stayed on his dirt bike!!!

 

Kyle Walker (33), normally a Hare Scramble and Enduro racer came out to his first GP since he was on a 125 in C class. Kyle was definitely out of his comfort zone in his first races in 122-open and open A, stating “im not much of a jumper man”. He came out for his second motos swinging haymakers with a tie to the first turn in A class with previously mentioned, Colt Converse. Kyle figured out that jumping on the moto track didn’t much matter when you could make the speed up in the corners and straight. Kyle ended up going 4-3 in Open A and 4-2 in 122-Open for two extremely respectable 3rdplace finishes.

Lets not forget Ryan Smith (249)Dustin stalking Ryan coming out of the woods by the bridge. and the Dustin Mcdonald (44) competition in the 30A class today.  Normally Ryan has his way with the 30+ A class but today D&W Cycles owner Dustin kept him honest most of the day.  First moto live engine start, advantage to Ryan and he keeps Dustin in tow.  Second moto, Ryan  is sitting on the line begging that green machine to fire, while Dustin pops his Tm off the line and like a rabbit is gone.  2 laps goes by and well we wonder is Ryan going to catch up?  Dustin is pulling some big air on the middle jump one of only a few doing that leap.  Ryan of course is doing it as well.  As the laps wear down, lappers keep Dustin from popping that jump but Ryan was just far enough back to take advantage of the timing and rocketed by Dustin to complete the 2 moto sweep and over all win.

So we had a bunch of firsts here today, but in reality this club has been in the "firsts" business for a very long time.  Long before there are "big races" long before a rider turns "pro", they all start someplace.  Places like Tri City Motorcycle club can teach riders, families and even the so called "big" places that the reality is Firsts matter, the club knows this and has done it for a very long time!

Thank you for all the riders and families that came out today, it wasn't the blow out big turnout numbers but for our club it was a good day, lots of fun, and most importantly many firsts!  See you in Sept for another family fun gp event!