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MARVIN MUSQUIN
450 MX / 1ST
IMAGE / KILPATRICK WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / TILLS
>> A late Saturday in July, the birds chirping throughout the litter of trees, a soothing stream parts the dense forest as it funnels into a small stream. The sun is beginning
to cast its beams over this rural Minnesota area, as the blissful sounds of nature echo in the surrounding diameter. A sense of tranquility is upon us, until a grotesque roar rumbles through the hills of Millville, barking like a distorted monster. The figure is pro- pelled by two wheels, multiple circles of black tread spinning rampantly, as it tears up the smooth sands in which the dozers have bestowed. Piloting this blistering automa- ton you ask? None other than Marvin Musquin. From the moment the flag had been dropped in practice, his sights defied all laws of attraction, in regards to the top step
of the podium. Constantly manualing his machine, the front wheel would hover across each individual breaking bump, mere inches above the ground; it was techniques like these that would position him in a solid spot for the motos to come. Armed with an umbrella, sweat towel, and a bottle of water for hydration, he sat behind his selected pad itching for the promotion to go well under way. Once his gate had been prepared, it was time to roll in; the switch was engaged. The pin would fall, his bucking bronco of a two-wheeled terror screaming down the start stretch. He was gelling with his orange battalion, pushing across the stripe in the lead on the opening lap. Taking the green flag with open arms, he had Dean Wilson at his rear wheel for a good portion of the moto, but continued to lead, faltering under no circumstance. Dipping into the mystical 2:24 laptimes, his signature elbows out, rhythmic style was in full bloom, wheel tapping his way through the multiple downhill sections, all in time to hook the nearest inside rut in the following chicane’s. His effort would pay off, and although Eli Tomac would move into second as the laps dwindled, Musquin would have a hefty fifteen-plus second lead at the end of the moto; taking the win. He wanted to repeat the second time around; and that he did. Although Bogle would cross timing and scoring in the lead, the sneak Frenchman would hound him, packing on the rev limiter when the RCH rider would coast; creating a rattling effect, and forcing Justin to break. He would inherit the lead, and lead the charge from there. Using the entire track, from one boundary to the next, Marvin would land in the 2:25’s; enough to pull a lead until the final flag, pumping his arms in excitement and hugging his crew the moment he rode to the podium.
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GRITMOTO • JULY 23, 2017