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JOHN SHORT
250 SX / 13TH
IMAGE / LANNAN WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / WILSON
>> The Indiana Pacers have been apart of the Indianapolis culture for decades. Names like Reggie Miller, Jermaine O’neal, and now Paul George, have all been apart of a solid foundation, trying to put the city of Indiana on the map. There’s a certain grit about teams from Indianapolis; hard nosed, tough, and willing to put it
all on the line in their quest for glory. Look no further than the malice in the palace incident in 2004; a catastrophic brawl between the Pacers and Pistons, as both
fans and players were alike were swinging for the fences, all because of a regular season NBA game. The vibe is the same for Supercross; everyone appeared ready to pack a punch from the get go of practice, starting with the top in command of Zach Osborne and Adam Cianciarulo (hitting each other fiercely, resulting in AC getting carted off the stadium floor.) John Short seemed to have the same characteristics; pushing and shoving throughout the opening laps of practice, he wanted to assert himself as alpha, and knew that being aggressive was his only way out. It was the same in the heat race, pushing his way amongst the top two digits in the game, he did just enough to place within the qualifying positions, and land himself a spot on the final list of 22. With the 30-second board going sideways for the main event, his grip became white knuckled, and the left foot immediately began to bang through
the gearbox. Three wide over the first triple, there was absolutely no room for error; yet he remained composed, and would get out of harms way by the green flag. He would register inside the top 15 in the opening moments, looking to do battle with the best in the business. His short stature allowed him to finagle between the bod- ies, bar banging with riders such as Luke Renzland and veteran Kyle Cunningham. His stamina was being foreseen by everyone, as the heart rate appeared to be low, never reaching lactate threshold, and he was putting on a pace in which was solid and consistent. He would chase the number 70 of Dakota Alix for the majority of the moto, really making time prior to the finish line, as he was able to complete the on off section before the left hander; however, it would be just a tad little tool late as the checkered flag flew. A solid ride nonetheless, he would bring home 13th.
88 GRITMOTO • MARCH 19, 2017