Page 48 - ISSUE_52

SHANE MCELRATH
250 MX / 7TH
IMAGE / LANNAN WORDS / HARNISHFEGER DESIGN / TILLS
>> 2017 has been tough to judge for Shane McElrath. It started off very promising in Supercross after he reeled off wins at the first two rounds. He stayed on the podium at the following rounds and maintained the points lead until a disastrous mechanical at Dal- las derailed his race and championship hopes. We expected him to come out swinging in the outdoors after some stellar rides and near wins last season but that has not been the case. He has visibly struggled and has only finished in the top ten overall once in the first four rounds. He was more than excited the season was headed to Muddy Creek. What better place to turn your season around than your hometown race?
McElrath sure looked at home in qualifying practice by nailing the fifth fastest lap time of the day. It was one of his better qualifying performances of the year and he was certainly feeding off of the hometown vibes. He was ready for battle.
Moto one began with McElrath getting a good start in sixth place. It was one of his better starts of the year and he wanted to take advantage. He looked aggressive and passed Hampshire for fifth early and then went after his teammate Alex Martin. However, his early race adrenaline began to wear off along with his charge. Zach Osborne closed in on him and the two battled it out around halfway. It was two hometown heroes duking it out at the highest level of motocross in front of the hometown fans. It was fun to watch but Osborne would come out on top and make the pass on McElrath. McElrath would stay strong and hold onto sixth to the finish. It was one of his best rides of the year and he’d try to back it up in moto two.
He could not repeat his good start from the first moto and started in eleventh. He quickly slid into tenth. He tried running to the front with Savatgy and Sexton but could not hold their pace late into the moto. He remained in tenth until the last few laps when Mitchell Harrison came knocking. McElrath would not be able to hold him off and would surren- der the position with two laps to go. He’d finish where he started right in eleventh. His 6-11 scores would earn him seventh overall. It was his best finish of the year and it may have helped get his season back on track.
48 GRITMOTO • JUNE 25, 2017