Page 50 - GRIT-83

AUSTIN FORKNER
250 MX / 7TH
IMAGE / KILPATRICK WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / MOTOPLAYGROUND
>> Rolling into the area of Buchannan, Michigan, many are quick to run through the town of South Bend, Indiana. A mecca in the world of American football, the town plays host to the campus of Notre Dame, and the ghting Irish. With movies, heroic stories, and monumental gures playing a signi cant role in the town’s legacy, many are quick to uphold their duty
in athletics, and work their hardest, embodying the true spirit of the area. Austin Forkner
felt symbolic as he rolled onto the Red Bud facility, and maybe blessed with a hint of Irish luck as he concluded practice. One of the rst to throw down a signi cant heater, it was though the track seemingly opened up for him, when necessary. Downed riders and yellow ags were pulled at the last possible second, allowing clean, concise circuits to be pieced together. It had him gleaming from ear to ear under his helmet, and he hoped to continue the momentum going into the rst moto. Shooting out of the whole like a cannon leaving the barrel, his 250f machine was screaming to new heights, as he jumped into the valley initially. He looked to move forward from his initial placing of second, and had to be wise to where he would make his moves. Turns before the nish line, for example, were a tad one lined, meaning most found the same path to be ef cient. However, he felt a seemingly sixth sense, conveying that he go wide before the rollers, in order to make up substantial time. He would do so, and boy could you see the force generated throughout the duration of the second. Where as many would begin to ounder on the sixth roller or so, his front end would hover, and he would continue to charge into the following turn; it was truly exceptional. With lines like this, he would gain on Plessinger. He would make move just before the rollers, seem- ingly having the lead sewed up; when all of the sudden, Plessinger would come from out of nowhere, and clean out Austin! He would be down for the count, subsequently nishing the race in thirty- fth. Rallying for stamina for the beginning of the second moto, you could tell who was t, and who would fade. His time of relaxation came in the air over some of these gigantic tabletops, where for a split second, you could see his hands release the grip, and
a big exhale occur through the diaphragm. He knew he would have to, in order to establish a gap from the number seventeen behind him. The pace he’d established was comfortable, and he knew he could sustain with the two-lap board approaching. The nal segments were pure tunnel vision, and with the nale here, he would stamp his mark on second place, strong enough for seventh overall.
50 GRITMOTO • JULY 1, 2018