20.9.12

Domination At The World Championships!

37th Annual World Championship Snowmobile Hillclimb
Jackson Hole, WY



 2012 Jackson Hole World Championship Snowmobile Hillclimbs.  What else is there to say except you are racing against the fastest riders in snowmobile racing on arguably the hardest uphill race course in our sport.  We had a fantastic weekend of racing in qualifying and in overall finishes.  This is the first year Sherman Racing has been invited to Jackson and we are proud to say we are racing in all 3 Semi-Pro classes for a chance to bring home the title of World Champion and possibly King of the Hill.

All qualifying for Semi-Pro, Womens, Juniors, Amateurs, and Non-Pro Masters took place on Thursday.  The weather was phenomenal and the conditions couldn't be any better for the dismal amount of snow we had this year.  This is where the fun began.  1st run of the weekend, Stock qualifying.  I've never been so ready to race in my life, and it was hard to keep the emotions in check while sitting on that line for the first time.  The timer check the radio and waved me on, and that's where it turned into beast mode.  After going through the timing lights it was throttle to the bar as I went through the first couple jumps and through the KLIM banner over the biggest of the gap drop-offs.  I can still remember every run of qualifying almost running into the edge of the banner I was so close.  After that it was a series of the smoothest, quickest transition turns I have put together in a single run.  I knew I had a good time coming through the last gate, but doubted whether it would be good enough.  As I stopped at the check point to put ski brakes on the Snow Devil volunteer patted me on the back and said, "Good job man, you made it in!".  I was so stoked that I still couldn't believe I made it until I got to the tech area and I could see Rosa holding 4 fingers up!  They qualified 5 in each class and I made it in with a 58.151 second run.  Off the bubble by a margin of 0.95 seconds, and only 1.5 seconds off the lead....


Improved Stock and Mod qualifying produced almost identical results.  I almost can't tell you the difference between all 3 runs because the consistency was too close to pick anything out.  Improved Stock was a 5th place finish with a time of 58.431 seconds and only 2 seconds off the lead time.  Mod Qualifying was another 4th place finish at 58.008 seconds, beating the bubble time by 1.1 seconds and missing the lead time by 1.2 seconds.  It didn't matter how far off the lead I was, it only mattered that I qualified in every class and had 3 runs at a World Championship in finals on Friday. 


 Finals day!!!  It's an indescribable feeling knowing you are going to be racing to the top of Snow King Mtn. for the chance to have bragging rights for an entire year.  I would say the nerves were at about twice the level of qualifying even knowing we had the most fresh course to choose from for the weekend.  Stock run started just like qualifying and was very smooth heading through the first catwalk.  I had chosen my line from watching other racers and started making my way up through the course.  2nd catwalk - check.  Rock Garden - check.  The biggest task ahead was getting around the last 2 gates after the 3rd catwalk.  I made it around the first one and tried to get the sled turned uphill, but just couldn't get enough bite and headed straight for the gate.  Big Mistake!!!  Or so I thought.  Normally at this point on the hill if you get turned around and head down towards the net you are going to face a wild ride and most likely break parts going into the catch net.  I must have been on the big man's good side though because as I started downhill and got sideways I managed to keep enough traction and weight uphill that the sled stopped just above the 4th catwalk entrance.  I couldn't have breathed a bigger sigh of relief knowing my sled was saved with 2 more runs to go.  The hill help got me over to the catwalk and I made my way across the top of Snow King.  I can't consider it as 'going over the top' for the first time, but at least I was 98% there and saved the sled.


On to Improved Stock finals.  This is where the rest of the day really went fuzzy.  For the most part I ran as consistent of run as Stock until about the 2nd catwalk.  After a few bobbles and pretty good saves I headed around the 2nd to last gate towards the top.  Knowing I carried too much speed in the first time I got around the gate, got on the uphill side, and picked a little bit tighter line.  As I was just about to reach the top I bounced off a pretty good mogul and got pitched to the other side of the sled.  Still heading towards the lights I remember gaining my balance as I ran next to the sled and got through the final gate and onto the top catwalk barely hanging on to the sled.  It was finally a reality.  For the first time ever I had raced a sled over the top of Snow King Mtn.!!!  So surreal and amazing, I can really say what I was feeling after wanting to do this for so long.  I have been coming to the Jackson Hillclimbs for over 10 years wanting to be one of those racers that everyone was cheering for as they went up through the most coveted hillclimb course in the world.  I feel like a majority of the story should be based around this accomplishment even though it takes away from the success I had in Mod finals.  In the end I had another amazing run to the top, posting my fastest time of the day and giving the last gate at the lights a tap of the ski as I hung a leg out going through the timing lights.  FINAL TALLY:  5th Place - Stock, 3rd Place - Improved Stock, and 2nd Place - Mod!!!  


Overall I wouldn't have asked for a much better result to what happened.  I consider myself extremely graced and fortunate to have finished the biggest race of my career with 6 Top 5 finishes and 2 podium finishes.  I have to send a huge shout out to the sponsors who helped me get where I am this year:  Sign-Up Signs & Graphics, Dance Designs Inc., SMX Optics, and GoPro.  I would also like to recognize Amsoil for being the only oil I run in my sleds for the last 7 years and never letting me down once.


Most importantly I would like to thank my beautiful wife Rosa, and my kids Alivia and Austin for supporting me the entire weekend, and supporting my passion throughout the year.  Without their support it wouldn't matter what other sponsors I had.  They keep the life in me, and keep me focused on becoming the best person I can be on and off the race course.  This year was Austins first year of snowmobile racing in the 120 classes, and he did awesome!  At only 3 years old at his first race he loved every minute of it and doesn't talk about anything else other than snowmobiling.  I can only hope he grows up to outshine everything I think I've accomplished in life.


As always, no Jackson weekend would be complete without a trip to our favorite riding area anywhere.  Area 51, as I have sworn to call it, was another blue bird day of riding with some of the best people I know.  Thanks for another awesome ride of big climbs, big drops, big jumps, and beautiful Teton mountain sightseeing with Cory Simmons 181, Chad Smith 141, and Russ Cook 690.

2012 Jackson Hole Hillclimbs.........................................OUT!!!!!!!!

14.8.12

Bear Lake/Afton Hillclimb 2012

 SHERMAN RACING 2012!!  Finally some updates from last season.  Due to the short racing season brought on by low snow conditions, promoter issues, and other issues I am putting some races together to try and summarize what happened last season.  The first installment will cover the Bear Lake and Afton Hillclimb races.  There were some really exciting moments, as well as some real disappointments during these weekends, but overall success was achieved.

BEAR LAKE HILLCIMB 2012
Despite horrible snow conditions the Bear Lake Race was a great opener for the season.  I had great qualifying runs in Stock and Improved Stock, and finally pulled off a 1st place qualifier in the Stock heat.   In Mod qualifying I had an excellent run going until about half way up the course.  It's not exactly clear what happened, but based on photos, GoPro footage, and what little recolection I had of the crash it seemed like I actually got 'stuck in the mud'!  Coming around a gate with fairly good speed I decided to take a higher line that I knew would save me time entering the next corner.  I had done this on a few other gates throughout the day with a lot of success and knew that I could put myself into contention for qualifying if it worked out.  Unfortunately as I rounded the gate my skis couldn't quite push through the muddy area that had been worn out by all the other sleds going up.  Had the snow been better and the temps a little bit cooler I don't think this incident would have happened.  But as we all know, sleds aren't really designed to go through mud that well.  My skis ended up sticking, which threw me off balance towards the downhill side, and the pictures explain the rest of what happened.  Oh well, no harm no foul.  What a great first day of racing. 

 


The weather conditions were perfect on Friday, but once finals rolled in, so did the clouds and snow.  Luckily the wind was calm so visibility stayed pretty good.  In Improved finals we ran a double-run motocross style final.  My first run was less than stellar mainly because I was in the first 5 riders out that morning.  Basically all we do is break trail for the other racers instead of having a nice course to go up.  2nd run was much better and I ended up shaving enough time off to finish 9th overall.  My Stock final went well after nearly crashing going over the road at the bottom.  The course was fast and my overall run was very smooth resulting in another Top 10 finish.  Now!!!!  For the most exciting part of the weekend.

After finals were over I went to the timing trailer to talk with our Secretary Jeniffer Keetch.  After looking at the totals for the weekend and the previous races that qualified from 2011 she showed me that I had enough qualifying points to get in ALL 3 CLASSES at the World Championship Hillclimbs in Jackson Hole.  What a fantastic way to start the season and end the first race.  Finally racing up Snow King Mountain......

AFTON CHALLENGE HILLCLIMB 2012

 What a hill!..............  There are so many ways to describe the feelings in that comment that I don't know where to start.  Afton is a hill that mirrors the steepness, difficulty, and technicality of Snow King as if it was a purpose built pre-qualifier.  Stumps, rocks, ice, trees, huge ruts, and steep off-camber gate placements make this hill one of the most exciting experiences a racer can have.  It doesn't matter if the snow is deep or thin.  The stumps are always there.  The trenches are always deep.  The hill is always a solid, icy, traction screw destroying menace that takes no prisoners.  Afton is certainly a nemesis hill for me.  I seem to either do very well, or I get my trash kicked all weekend.  This year was definitely not great by any standard.  Stock qualifying saw my run go almost 1:20.000 and I failed to qualify even though I eventually made the timing lights.  Improved Stock qualifying was the shining light for the weekend and I ended up with a 2nd place finish in my heat.  Mod qualifying was again, less than stellar, as I ended up taking almost last after getting stuck just below a monster holed-out section that was destroying every one else' runs.  In finals I had only one shot to make something of the weekend.  The course was super-rutted and criss-crossed the frozen trenched landscape from the day before.  Tree stumps were everywhere, though they were not as centered in the course as previous year.  I lined up with nothing to lose and let it rip, finishing in 6th place overall out of 42 racers in the class.  Once again, nothing was broken and my body held up great.  Definitely just excited to go home and start prepping for 'The Big One' at the end of March.  Jackson Hole in my sights!!!


Here's a look at the nasty section that was claiming almost every rider that tried to get through it.


29.6.12

More 2012 Highlights ro Come!!

Hey everyone,

I've been a bit lazy getting things updated throughout last season so here's a short video I put together just to show a little more action from the last couple seasons.  I will be doing a full update with multiple posts here shortly.  Thanks!