Page 54 - GRIT-84

COLT NICHOLS
250 MX / 9TH
IMAGE / LANNAN WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / MOTOPLAYGROUND
>> A picturesque morning provided a pleasant sight when riders had awoken. Tempera- tures, hovering in the mid sixties, coupled with a slight breeze and partial cloud cover, had many clasping their hands in thankfulness. Colt Nichols was one of them, and although prepared for any type of adverse condition, this type of weather was a brief sign of relax- ation. And although the temperature was a bit on the cooler side for practice, his intensity on the track really had the heat rising. The radiators, covered with mounds of sand, had the bike begging for air as he railed each corner from outside to outside. Loading up the clutch with the left hand, it would be followed by a vicious dumping of the lever, and an impromptu swift exit. He felt as though he and the bike were on page, and nodded in reassurance,
as he rolled back to the paddock. They would then head to the line for moto number one, and shortly thereafter, he would y on to the raceway. Shifting into fth gear by the end of the two straightaways, the RPM’s were redlining as he hit a maximum velocity. Hovering near twelfth in the rst few laps, it was all he could do to subside the pressure from Joey Savatgy, after his fall. The clamps would begin to slap the tank back and forth, a seem- ingly vigorous motion, yet he would hold on. The inside foot would begin to dabble into the ground, the later the moto went on, as ruts in the corners of the nish line sections were becoming humongous. He never lost sight of the end goal however, and continued to move aboard the tracks to the checkered. With a line of riders behind, he would go on to take ninth. Moto number two was now upon them, and he was scrapping through the rst laps with huge bursts of tenacity. Looking to make moves early, he knew he had to distance himself from Sean Cantrell, who was on the come up. Yet, it was as though he had a force eld circling the perimeter of his machine, a ring of resistance if you will. Hammering down past the mechanics area, a brief glance over his right shoulder as he scrubbed the single, allowed him to gauge just how far he was ahead of those behind him. It was enough for him to get into a comfortable groove for the nal laps. The checkered ag would be ying high for his ride, as he took ninth. Ninth overall was his for the taking.
54 GRITMOTO • JULY 22, 2018