Precision Concepts talks about Ricky Brabec’s National title and Max Eddy’s sportsmanship at the final round of the AMA Hare & Hound Championship.
The following is a press release from the Precision Concepts racing team on behalf of newly crowned SRT AMA National Hare & Hound Champion Ricky Brabec and team rider Max Eddy:
The last round of the 2014 National Hare and Hound championship headed out to the ever-familiar desert of Lucerne Valley, California, for a three-loop, 100-mile long finale. It was a classic course design with the first two loops being a little faster, while the third and final loop tested the racers’ skill in the more technical, rocky terrain. Precision Concepts’ racer Ricky Brabec came in to the race with a 15-point advantage over Nick Burson and needed a fifth-place finish or better to secure his first ever Hare & Hound title. Max Eddy has also been showing great form as of late and looked to put himself inside the top five at the final round.
There was no denying a little extra pressure would be on Ricky’s shoulders as he was so close to earning the championship, but he did his best to focus on the race at hand.
“All the way up to the race I was fine, but then once everyone [started] talking about what I had to do [to get the title] I was getting more nervous,” Ricky said. “When the banner went up just before the start I think my heart rate had to have been over 200! I [really] needed that one-kick start.”
And when the banner fell, Ricky got off to his best start of the season, the bike igniting before he had even finished his first kick. He was first to the bomb, with nothing but clean air ahead of him.
“My starts have been crazy this year!” Ricky said. “Either starting dead last, or first, [but] this was my best start of the year. Within half a kick the bike fired, I got the hole shot and was dust-free.”
Ricky has begun to assert his dominance as of late at the Hare & Hounds, showing he has the speed to pull away from the field and after grabbing the holeshot. This time he never looked back, and he stretched out nearly 2 minutes on the first loop, then more than doubled his advantage on the second loop and continued to put time on everyone behind him to the finish.
“I couldn’t believe I was doing it,” Ricky said. “I was riding [really] well, [wasn’t making] any mistakes, and before I knew it the checkered was waving!”
As he crossed the finish line, Ricky took a commanding win over Ivan Ramirez and Nick Burson, and with it, his first ever SRT AMA National Hare & Hound Championship.
“[Over] the last five years I never thought I’d be here with a number one Hare & Hound plate, and man does it feel great!” Ricy said. “It’s just wild, and I still don’t know what to do. I’m just so happy! I’d really like to thank all of my friends and family because without any of them this wouldn’t have been possible, and all of my supporters: Hoosier Precision Machining, THR Motorsports, Precision Concepts, ZLT, O’neal, SIDI, FMF, Leatt, Eksbrand goggles, A’ME grips, MotoXXX, Bonanza Plumbing, EVS, Renthal, Dunlop, IMS, Acerbis, PCI race radios. I can’t wait for 2015 to go race the Hound and Hound series again!”
“I didn’t a great start…[but] the course was faster than I thought it would be, which played into my favor for the first two loops,” Max said. “My bike handles really well, which helped me get to the front, and at the first gas pit I was [already] in sixth overall.”
Not long into the second loop Max was able to make his way into fifth.
“I had a really fast gas stop [after the first loop] and came out of the pits right behind fifth place, making the pass a few miles later,” Max said. “I had a really good second loop, [with] no mistakes and caught fourth, but I couldn’t quite make the pass.”
The third loop was tight and much more technical, making it harder for the riders to pass, and also making it tougher on the equipment, as Max would get and untimely rear flat.
“About halfway through the third loop I suffered a puncture to the rear tire,” Max said. “I was able to keep going, but fourth place pulled away from me a little bit. About five miles from the finish I dropped into a sand wash and saw that fourth place, Axel Pearson, had gone down hard. I stopped to help him and lost two spots [in the process], dropping me to sixth.”
Showing true sportsmanship Max would help Axel get going and make sure he was alright before continuing his own race. Max crossed the line a few miles later, still taking an impressive sixth place overall and the win in the Vet A class over Morgan Crawford.
“I would like to thank Precision Concepts, THR Motorsports, Bell, Alpinestars, Barstow Motorcycle Center, Baja Bound Insurance, and everyone that helps me make it to these races,” Max said.
While the AMA SRT National Hare & Hound Championship is finished, THR Motorsports still has plenty on its plate on the coming weeks. The team is planning to attend the Lake Elsinore Grand Prix in Southern California on November 8, followed by the SCORE Baja 1000 in Baja California, Mexico, on November 13. On December 6, the team is scheduled to participate in the Best in the Desert Henderson 250 outside of Las Vegas, Nevada.
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