STEVE LEIVAN WHAT/WHERE/WHEN: Round 8 OMA Nationals; Bedford, IN; August 29 MY BIKE: WR450   HOW IT ENDED: 1 st +30 “A” – 12 th Overall BEFORE THE START: While riding the Saturday practice session, it was obvious that this race was going to be the dustiest race that I have ridden in quite some time. The property seems really cool with some big hills and cool single track, but last years conditions were similar, so we have never really got to ride this place while it is in good shape. We arrived in time for Dad to ride the morning race and after placing third in the +50 class, he said that the race was “no fun” and that the hills were full of stuck bikes. Just about like I had figured. I put on a filter skin to try to keep the filter from getting clogged and I switched to a narrower front tire since I assumed there would be lots of silty ruts and I didn’t want the tire trying to crawl up the sides of them any more than normal. It was obvious that a good start would be crucial so I walked over and checked out the first hill climb that had three lines up it. The quickest was the most difficult and I figured if I got there first that I had to go that way. If not, I planned to go where no one else was going. THE RACE: Scott Bailey beat me to the first turn but I pushed hard through the third and fourth turns to move into the lead. Stephanie was standing at the base of the hill and motioned me to the hardest line knowing that there was no one in the way and I would have a clean run at it. I made it to the top and enjoyed the clean air – for about a minute and then I got into the fine dust from the row ahead of me. The first section of trail was super silty and was like riding in snow in a snow storm. It was tough. I caught a few guys and just tried to patiently work my way past them. I had a little over a minute lead the first lap. Early in the second, I got off balance going up a hill in the dust and smacked a tree. It bent my fender straight up and I tried to pop it back into shape. Three of the guys I had passed all passed me back. I rode pretty good through four laps and then on lap five I didn’t get up one of the big hills. I felt like I was all over the place and I just kept digging my way up but I finally lost control and went down. Kato and Gasso were both there and I yelled “that didn’t go too, good”. Kato responded with a “better than most”. I’m sure they both got a shot or two of it. The good part was that I was able to take back off from where I was and not have to go back down. I started lap six and tried the hard hill coming out of the pits. It was getting worse and worse and I didn’t get up it this time. There was a guy who helped me get my bike turned sideways and I was able to take off and make it. I was kind of starting to not have much fun by this point and just wanted the race to be over. I also had a silly little tip over that lap when I hit neutral and couldn’t touch the ground. When I pitted, Mom told me I had a big lead so I just tried to focus on getting the laps done and staying out of trouble. The track was really tough in the late stages and it was all I could do to get through some of it. It was much worse than a bad mud race. I didn’t get up either of the two bad hills on the final lap and had to go back down and try a different route. I finally got the checkered flag and I was very happy to see it. I got my sixth class win of the series and ended up 12 th overall. Considering I started on the fourth row and with the conditions being what they were, I’m happy with where I ended up in the O/A. THOUGHTS & OBSERVATIONS: What a weekend! I am super happy with the way things went and grateful to get two wins. It was busy and we were on the road a lot but it was a lot of fun and it was just the family and it reminded me a lot of the old days. Except this time we weren’t in a Datsun pickup. A huge thanks to my family for making it happen and getting me everywhere I wanted to be. I think they all enjoyed it as much as I did. Steph had a flight delay and even though we had a 9-hour drive home, she only beat us by two hours to her destination. QUICKEST ON THE DAY: 1. LEIVAN (YAMAHA); 2. Johnson (Kaw); 3. Boyd (Hon) THANKS AGAIN FOR ALL OF YOUR SUPPORT! SPONSOR LIST – HELPING ME MAKE IT HAPPEN - ALLIANCE - ARAI - ATHENA - CLARKE - DP BRAKES - DUNLOP - EVS - FAH-Q - FASTWAY - FLATLAND RACING - HOT CAMS - HYDRAPAK - LEO VINCE - NGK - OZARK FOAM INSEALATORS - PIVOT WORKS - PRO MOTO BILLET - RACE TECH SUSPENSION -RENTHAL - SCOTT - SILKOLENE - SOURCE MX - SPORT CYCLES - TIRE BALLS - TSUBAKI - YAMAHA MOTOR CORPORATION   Jacob Argubright Race Report Hoosier OMA Maxxis National There isn’t much I can say about the OMA event, except- WHAT AN EXPERIENCE. It was a total learning experience for me, and had I taken the time to actually read through the rule book- remember I decided last minute to race this one- I might have finished a little better. Saturday we got to take a practice run at the course, but they didn’t have the entire thing set up. We got to ride on the mornings amateur sections, which didn’t include some of the Pro only tech sections. I felt good and was really happy that it wasn’t as muddy as my GNCC experience last year. After the practice we had a mandatory autograph signing in the OMA tent, and I got to meet a whole lot of people who had no idea who I was! It was great meeting people from a different part of the country, and I really enjoyed talking to people about what desert racing was all about. Some of them even knew who I was which was cool, I kept getting the question- Are you the kid with the orange helmet?! I know that my dad was excited about that part! Sunday morning I got to sleep in a bit and get a good breakfast before the race started at 2:30. I wasn’t as nervous as I was at GNCC last year, mainly because we had ridden the course the day before. Off the start I was about mid pack and as soon as we got into the woods the lead guys began to pull a lead. Into the trees I made a right turn and thought that I was doing good. I got about 2 miles further in and found out that the red arrows I was following were for the mornings course! – Hense the part about not reading the rule book!!!! Well by this point I was way behind, at about 38 th overall. So I just started to ride my own pace and not really worry about where I ended up. I made a lot of passes, and ended up passing Levi on my second lap, he was having a dehydration issue and didn’t look to be having a good time! At the end of lap 1 I was in 30 th, but by lap 2 I made it all the way up to 13 th. Not too bad for a desert racer! I ended up riding with Steve Leivan who I know from Brian Elliott and the Endurocross series, and just kinda followed him around. Being that I wasn’t in this for the points, I didn’t want to do anything that might take him out, so I gave him his space and just enjoyed the day in the woods. Again like it was in Oklahoma, it was really freaking humid here, so I was definitely out of my element. I got passed by Paul Whibley on my last lap, and then let both Thad Duval and Jordan Ashburn by. Finishing right behind Steve, I was 13 th overall and 9 th in the pro class. But most importantly I had completed an OMA race and now have a goal and bench mark for when I return next year. The weekend was fun, and again I am one of the luckiest kids to get to race all over the country this year. As I was getting back on the plane to head home though, the only thing I was thinking was – I CAN’T WAIT TO GET BACK TO THE DESERT! As always thanks to all of my sponsors Kawasaki of Simi Valley, Kawasaki Team Green, Monster Energy, TBT Racing, BRP, FMF, IMS, Fastway, Pro Moto Billet, Rekluse, and Off Road Support. It was really fun to get the chance to support them across the country this weekend. Also a special thanks this week to Mark Kariya for the awesome photos he got of me at both Endurocross and the OMA race! My next race with either be the Lost Coyotes Dual European Scrambles, or the Washington round of the Endurocross series next weekend. See you in the Desert! -Jacob Jacob911.com