Aonia Pass, GA
By: Troy Hill #14
I started off my season with a bang at Aonia Pass, in Washington, Georgia. This year I will be running the 90 open Sr., the 90 Shifter (12-15), and Supermini classes. To prepare myself for the upcoming season, I spent half the winter training with Jeremiah Jones, the Pro I have always looked up to. I can proudly say that I have never felt more confident in my training program than I do this year. Being at the JJ compound definitely helped me tremendously with my corner speed. Also, I have a very strong team behind me, so I was at ease when it came to thinking about my bike running well. I set my goals high this year, because I expect a lot out of myself. My goals for this season are to get a championship in one, or more of my classes. Aside of that, to me, consistency is going to be the biggest key to success for this 2014 season.
Sadly, Saturday did not go as planned. I got off to a bad start when I wheeled off of the gate in the 90 Shifter (12-15) class. This mistake made me drop out of the top ten, leaving a lot of ground for me to catch up to. Remembering my goals for this season, I fought back strong and made a lot of passes. My determination got me a 4th place, which my team and I were very proud of. In the 90 open Sr. class, I took in my previous mistakes and bettered my holeshot, putting me back inside the top ten. I rode hard and strongly finished the race with a 3rd place.
Sunday came along and I was more ready than ever to get back on my bike and finish off the weekend strong. The first race I had for the day was the 90 Shifter (12-15) class. My holeshot put me outside of the top ten, which made the race more difficult for me. As I pushed my way up to the top, I remembered that I needed to stay consistent. This being in mind, I pushed hard, and finished with a 5th for that second moto. My second race of the day, the 90 open Sr. class, arrived. I got my best holeshot of the weekend, and rode smooth to earn a 2nd place. As the day started to wind down, the only class I had left was the Supermini class. The gates dropped and I ended up out of the top ten again. Knowing that I have fought my way up to the front before, I fought hard and got up to 7th by the end of the race.
Overall, my team and I were happy with my results. I ended with a 5th overall in the 90 Shifter (12-15) class, a 2nd overall in 90 open Sr. class, and 7th overall in the supermini class. We all feel that my riding is where it needs to be, I just need to work really hard on my starts. My plan is to practice holeshots every day before round 2.
I would like to thank all of my sponsors that make this all possible:
My team FSI/Janssen Motorsports , my brother for giving time on the weekend to help me improve my speed, and for being my mechanic. Also I would like to thank, my mom and dad, my teammate Cody Janssen, Fredericksburg Motorsports for getting me all the parts I need at a great price. Last but not least, SSI decals for the sweet graphics, Janssen for giving me amazing motors, Elka Suspension for everything they do for me, DP brakes, Motul, Maxxis tires, 100%, Hinson clutches, Rheem, Gemaire, Jeremiah Jones, Walsh, Rath, Thor, D.I.D, Tweeked powersports and FMF pipes.