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MITCHELL HARRISON
250 MX / 10TH
IMAGE / KILPATRICK WORDS / MATTINGLY DESIGN / MOTOPLAYGROUND
>> As the crowd began to roll into Red Bud this weekend, there was a mass of utter anticipation. An aura, lingering in rim-like fashion around the facilities perimeter, had everyone in attendance tapping their foot and clasping their hands. The 250 class was spectacle for all to see, and prior to their placement on the track for qualifying, people were pushing towards the fences. Mitchell Harrison was underneath the spotlight, as fans were magni ed to his daunting skills around the track. Ripping through these mounds of sawdust with blistering intent, it was all he could do to keep the 250 beneath him. With piston, crank, and rod all meshing together as one complete combustion chamber, both riding style and header were crackling with heat. He would park the bike on the stand after qualifying, and once crew were around, he was reassured he’d done enough to be well off into the racing portions of the afternoon. The rst moto had the
pin fall immediately, and he swooped into the initial left-right bend. Timing and scoring would have him hovering near the thirty- rst place spot; but as we all know, he’s never one to settle for something less than stellar. The front number plate began to get caked with that ever so tacky Michigan soil, and the cage of his snout would be lled with sand as well. He relished with the grit between his teeth, but it gave him a bit of incentive to try and move forward, as the taste wasn’t so pleasant. He wanted to push forward so bad, scrubbing the nish line jump to absolute maximum capacity. It was Dakota Alix breathing down his neck, but there was no way he would allow himself to crumble with the checkered ag literally within his grasp. The willpower of his mind wouldn’t fold, and he would go onto nish thirteenth. The sequel of the series was right around the corner, and as his mechanic walked away, the adrenaline began to rise. It would dump, as he sprinted around the track two, and three wide, to begin the race in sixth. Although his style tended to favor a bit of riding the back seat, the center of mass acting as counter balance, this moto he was standing the majority of the time. Blasting through the rollers, from the moment he entered, to the corner immediately after, he was on the balls of his feet. How else was he going to get away from Ryan Sipes? Once again, proving to any, and all doubters in the crowd to not bet against him, he would go on to hold off the op- position, taking the nal ag in eighth; good enough for tenth overall.
56 GRITMOTO • JULY 1, 2018