Page 18 - Issue-46

JASON ANDERSON
450 SX / 3RD
IMAGE / LANG WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / WILSON
>> The NFL Draft is in full swing. Millions of fans are glued to their television screens, waiting
to see whom their team is going to sign next year. While on the opposite end of the spectrum, a few select hundred prospects are on the edge of their seat, itching for an opportunity to show- case their talents on the world’s largest scale, salivating at the thought of a lucrative contract, and being honored to deem themselves as a professional athlete. Supercross riders are the same way; as you can ask many of the smallest pilots in the youngest age divisions of what their dreams are, and more often than not, you will hear “to be a Supercross champion.” And while you may brush it off as a pipe dream, for riders like Jason Anderson, that quote has resonated
in his thought process over and over, eventually coming to fruition at this very moment. Although he may not be winning the title this year, you can bet that with the results he’s put in week after week, that the goal is as close as ever, and he can literally feel the title within his grasp in the near future. You couldn’t tell he was out of the hunt in practice however, as he could be found sending the 450 to absurd heights, and his momentum latching into the bowl turns with unbe- knownst speed, carving into the New Jersey soil like a rapid carousel. With an outstanding ride in his heat race, he claimed the number one gate position heading into the bright lights of the main event. His prior results seemed to light a fire under the white rear fender of the Husqvarna, as the number 21 shot out of the gate like a cannon. Pushing the envelope early, his ass end never stopped dancing though each respective mogul section, all the while his shirttail dangling in the wind. With the likes of Millsaps, Dungey, Tomac, and Musquin at his doorstep, he knew
he had to push a feverish pace. The plan seemed to be working, until just few laps in, when the number 21 would slide out near the two triples, frantically racing to pick the bike up, but with
it being so early in the race, the number 21 quickly faded back to eighth. He came around the mechanics area furious, with his mechanic providing a bull-whip effect, lashing the dirt with his hardest intentions. It quickly translated into a bulrush for the New Mexico native, where as eighth became seventh, and then sixth, so on and so forth. Wheel tapping his way through the whoop sections, his way of placing the rear tread of the 450 into the vertically intriguing divots was noth- ing short of impressive, all the while clicking up gears and looking onto his next opponent. His effort would be rewarded, and guys like Justin Brayton and Justin Barcia would be pushed to the way side, eventually moving into the third place spot as the laps fell away. He would reside here, claiming the last step on the podium, and a smile for all to see as he held up his trophy during the final ceremony.
18 GRITMOTO • APRIL 30, 2017