Page 44 - GRIT_75

DAKOTA ALIX
250 SX / 7TH
IMAGE / LANNAN WORDS / HARNISHFEGER DESIGN / MOTOPLAYGROUND
>> Dakota Alix, member of the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM squad, has had a tumultuous 2018 campaign. He has been near the front and shown signs of improvement in his fourth Monster Energy Supercross season, but he has failed to sustain any of it. He has made a name for himself by being able to notch holeshot after holeshot, especially in the heat races. He always seems to be in that front pack early, but he nds a way to squander it in the long run during the main events. There have been times when his speed is on par and it looks like he is ready for a good result but then he makes a mistake. However, he has been riding a bit injured throughout the season which has probably contributed to some of these misfortunes, but he continues to show his strength and resolve by gritting through each race. Now late in the year, he looks to be healthier and will aim for a strong end to the season.
Dakota Alix didn’t have the easiest time adjusting to the dif cult terrain that the Salt Lake City track had to offer. He powered through and managed to escape the morning qualifying practice sessions with the fourteenth fastest lap time of the class. He knows all too well that a holeshot is what he would need to get his day going and with his holeshot talents, that shouldn’t be too hard.
In his heat race, Alix would not nail the holeshot, but he would get a solid start. He rounded lap one in fourth place right behind Kyle Chisholm. He stayed with the wily veteran throughout most of the heat race until Justin Hill caught up to him and made the pass on lap seven. This bounced Alix back to fth where he would end up nishing. It was a nice, clean heat race and he would try to put together a similar race in the main event.
Alix did not get off to a very good start in the main. The Vermont native started buried in eleventh. He threw down a great lap on lap two to power all the way forward to eighth place. He made some swift moves without getting too hung up on anyone and he would pick up another spot-on lap three. He was looking good, all the way up to seventh in just two laps after that poor start. From that point on, Alix executed the perfect race for himself. He stayed mistake free and despite losing touch of Phil Nicoletti, who was ahead in sixth, he built a gap between him and the rest of the eld. He would keep it clean to secure the seventh-place nish which would be his best of his career. It was a great display of maturity and poise and maybe that strong, isolated ride could be what he needed to boost his con dence as we head into the nal round in Las Vegas with the outdoors soon to follow.
44 GRITMOTO • APRIL 29, 2018