Page 28 - MPG14

theGRIT
In the semi qualifier, Reed did not get the best jump off the gate and he was pinched out of contention for the holeshot headed into the first corner. He was forced to flat track through the 1st corner, sitting
right in the middle of the pack. His veteran level experience helped him to cut under a pile up caused by Justin Barcia in the 2nd corner and come out into the first rhythm lane in 3rd place with Broc Tickle and Vince Freise ahead of him on the track. After the halfway point, Reed was able to get around Friese just before the whoops section and work his way to within 2 seconds of Tickle, turning the fastest lap of the race in the process. Unfortunately for Reed, his 200th main event was over before it really even started due to a first turn crash
in which Eli Tomac was the catalyst. Reed was on one of the far inside gate picks and failed to get the jump off of the line, therefore putting himself at the mercy of the riders in front of him. Tomac and his Kawasaki clipped a tuff block and went down, causing a chain reaction of crashing behind him and collecting Reed in the process. Both wheels of the Yamaha never actually went sideways, but Reed came out of the first corner in 18th place. Incredibly, he was able to make up 5 positions on the first lap alone and cross the finish line in 13th place behind Justin Barcia, doing a lot of the hard work early on and making the best of a bad situation. Over the course of the main event, Reed was able to blitz through the pack alongside Trey Canard and salvage a 6th place position, but he’ll definitely be expecting more of himself after the speed he showed at the beginning of the year. Whether he was involved in a first turn crash or not, nearly 40 seconds behind the winner is not where Reed wants to end his season.
28 GRITMOTO • APRIL.18.16
words/LAKEKILPATRICK