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HEATH HARRISON
450 MX / 15TH
IMAGE / LANNAN WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / TILLS
>> Looking through the record books of Loretta Lynn’s, you see many promi- nent names that were hotshoe’s from the time of their careers. Numerous minicycle championships, sponsorships, and trophies, you name it, and the likes of Tomac, Baggett, and Webb had it. But taking a look just a tad closer, you will find the name of Heath Harrison; a man who came from nothing, eye- ing a championship in his wildest aspirations, and conquering it through hard work and dedication. Those efforts would be duplicated in his professional run, landing numerous sponsorships and top ten finishes, but always looking to
do more. The scenario would be replicated again here at Budd’s Creek 2017, after a 22nd place start would leave him no other option other than rallying ahead. Each lap, he would pluck a rider and toss, launching the step-up after the mechanics area, over jumping when he had to, all to gain a mere split second on the field. Moving past Lamay, Short, and keeping ahead of Henry Miller, he was just on the cusp of the factory riders by the end of the moto, and his efforts would be reflected with a fifteenth across the final flag. For moto number two, he had to dig deep into his tank of emotion, pulling out every last grain of energy in order to propel to a solid finish. The 26th on the opening lap was horrendous, but nevertheless he put the visor down and continued to click through the gearbox. Names like Mosiman and Tomita were quickly swiped away as he was throwing the chassis of the 450 from side to side over the finish line jump, all the while hitting the tearoff stack with feverish intent. Look- ing to move forward, he had caught Isaac Teasdale and John Short by moto’s end. He would continue to climb until literally the final turn, just barely missing out on the opportunity to catch the number 88. Nevertheless, a 16th would be solid, and he would take home a very respectable 15th overall.
70 GRITMOTO • AUGUST 20, 2017