Page 76 - GM33

BROC TICKLE
450 SX / A2
IMAGE / MPG WORDS / ECKERT DESIGN / WILSON
>> Not getting the start he wanted, Broc got off the gate for heat two in the middle of the pack and sat in 10th entering the second left hander. Feeling the flow from the get-go, Tickle picked up a couple spots to 7th to start lap number two. The fast Anaheim II circuit suited Tickle well and he looked to take advantage of the five minutes he had to get a qualifying position. On lap three, following a trail led by Cooper Webb and Eli Tomac, they boys gobbled up their first victim as the three riders plus Weston Peick got around the #10 of Justin Brayton, moving Tickle into 6th. Unfortunately, Tickle would have to settle there and look to a semi for his transfer position. Starting outside the top five in semi #1, Tickle made out like a bandit after the first turn shuffle and came out of the third turn in 4th. Getting around Vince Friese quickly, Tickle took control of third and continued forward. Moving up to the back of 2nd place Brayton with two laps to go, Tickle made the move around him and followed three seconds behind Musquin for the remainder of the race and into the main event.
As the main got underway, Tickle came out of the gate strong and followed behind the lead group in 8th as the peloton moved through the first few sections of the track. By lap two, though, Tickle dropped back to dead last, struggling to find the smooth lines he used in the semi. Tickle was laying down everything he could and began to pick off positions, moving into 18th by the end of lap four. Within the next five minutes, Tickle had moved around Justin Brayton and Vince Friese to reach 15th and sat behind Pourcel before all riders moved up a position because of a major crash by Ken Roczen. With the race moving past the halfway point, Tickle was unable to put any move on Pourcel despite being all over the #377 Husqvarna. Broc appeared to play the waiting game and didn’t make any move on Christophe until the final five minutes of the race but the move was enough to steal away 13th and the #20 rode the rest of the way home, tying his season best finish of the year.
76 GRITMOTO • JANUARY 22, 2017