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ZACH OSBORNE
250 MX / 3RD
IMAGE / KILPATRICK WORDS / KUHLHOFF DESIGN / TILLS
>> Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Zach Osborne arrived at Un- adilla looking to maintain his current points lead. After his first moto comeback and second place overall at Washougal, Osborne was confident in his speed and skill as he lined up for the first moto at Unadilla. The thirty-second card rose and the gates dropped. Off to an okay start, the Virginia native found himself in the sixth place spot early in the moto and knew that he needed to start making moves if
he wanted to gain positions and maintain his series points lead. As the halfway point approached, Zach Osborne made a pass on Ferrandis and moved into the top five. The excitement did not falter as the race was coming to an end: after a mistake by Cianciarulo and Plessinger, Zach Osborne was able to charge into the third place spot by the time that the checkered flag flew. With a solid podium finish under his belt, Osborne knew that he was a contender for the overall win. Unfor- tunately, Mother Nature angrily struck the track during the first 450 moto, resulting in a rain delay that kept riders and fans on the edge of their seats. Would the race be cancelled? Would the torrential downpour ever come to an end? As soon as the rain eased up, the track crew went to work trying to redeem a saturated ground that was littered with puddles. The sky was blanketed with gray clouds as the riders lined up for the second 250 moto of the day. Nervous energy had to have been run- ning through these rider’s minds knowing that mud, the great equalizer, was now
a huge factor in how they would perform. The gates dropped and the number 16 machine was off to another good, but not great, start. Zach Osborne found himself in ninth place on the first lap but started charging through the mud while quickly making necessary passes. First a pass on Harrison sent him into eighth, followed by a pass on Cianciarulo that moved him into seventh. After Plessigner, who was running in second place, went down, Osborne then moved into sixth. Plessinger was not the only rider that made a mistake in these rough and slippery conditions, RJ Hampshire went down while in the third place spot, sending Osborne up an- other position into the fifth place spot. Zach Osborne made it through the mud fest and finished the second moto in fifth. With a 3-5 for the day, Osborne left New York with a third place overall; still holding on to his series points lead.
36 GRITMOTO • AUGUST 13, 2017