Page 34 - ISSUE51

ZACH OSBORNE
250 MX / 2ND
IMAGE / KILPATRICK WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / MPG
>> Welcome to Steeler country. A province filled with hard-nosed, grit, and blue- collared mentality; forcing those unwilling to work, out, and accepting anyone willing to grind for a paycheck. They thrive and embrace the characteristics of the “sun up, to sun down” mentality, pushing until the time clock rings, or the final flag waves. It seemed as though this vibe made its way into the mind of Zach Osborne, as his aggression from the time he laid tread on the circuit was imminent. Footpegs scraping the crust of the rut-top’s, bouncing off the rev limiter, he was having nothing other than one hundred percent full-charge. If he could just keep his qualifying pace, throughout the rest of the day, then he would be in tip-top shape. As the field loaded the gate for the first round, his mechanic furiously stomping the launchpad, he halted and took a moment to visualize. He wrapped all of his pre-conceived fear into a giant wrecking ball, and obliterated all of the mental walls that lay in front of him. Gate fall, and he’s grabbing gears along the opening stretch, pulling tearoffs as fast as he could. Fighting alongside Aaron Plessinger, the Virginia native made his move early, looking to capitalize on the mistake of his younger peer; he now had his sights on Jeremy Martin. Closing as the laps continued, he would decide to pinpoint his move through the downhill roller section, and succeed; inheriting the number one ride with a rhyth- mic hop, storming into the g-out in the following section. His guts would pay off, rewarding with a significant moto win. Moto number two saw ZO16 off to a ninth place start; not quite catastrophic, but knowing he had worked to do. Every lap, his creativity would blossom; riding the back wheel whenever possible, digging the tread of the rear tire into the ground. Battling heavy with Dylan Ferrandis,
he would eventually work his way around, and propel forward. He would then overtake AP23, but would be just a tick off of his prior race effort; he would bring home second place, and a solid second overall.
34 GRITMOTO • JUNE 18, 2017