Hello race fans! This is Ashley, Miss Arenacross, and the newest addition to the Toyota AMA National Arenacross Series crew. We started off the series two weekends ago, Halloween weekend, in the beautiful, but a little chilly, state of New York. It was a weekend full of firsts for me. Not only was it my first time to be in New York, but it was also my first weekend at the races as Miss Arenacross. We threw a pit party for the Boy Scouts on Saturday, and if the Boy Scouts wore costumes they were able to win prizes! I had the honor of judging the costume contest along with Mr. “Nor-Cal” Jeff Northrop, and Mr. Brock Sellards. We had a hard time choosing because the kids were adorable. We narrowed it down to four and made them dance (mostly for our entertainment), but the kids were so brave that we couldn’t pick just one!
The series kicked off with some intense racing! The riders were anxious, the crowd was pumped and I had so many butterflies in my stomach! All the heat races were so exciting and action packed, that we all couldn’t wait to see the mains. Friday night was a little trial and error for some; after all it is hard to get back into the smaller, tight and difficult tracks of Arenacross. This was especially true for those coming out of the summer season of spacious outdoor tracks. On the podium Friday night for the Lites (125) class stood Shawn Clark in 1 st, Damien Plotts 2 nd, and Jim Chester 3 rd. The Premier (250) class had a lot of tire-to-tire action from start to finish, putting on the podium Chad Johnson 1 st, John Dowd 2 nd, and Brock Sellards 3 rd. Saturdays racing was the same as Friday only more intense. The Lites class was won once again by Shawn Clark, followed by Damien Plotts, and in 3 rd Kevin Karkwardt. On the podium for the Premier’s stood once again Chad Johnson 1 st, Brock Sellards 2 nd, and John Dowd 3 rd a little shuffle from Friday. The weekend was a success and we all couldn’t wait to see what Des Moines had in store!
I just got home from Des Moines, Iowa where we had our second round of the Toyota AMA National Arenacross Series. What an awesome weekend! We started PR for the second round in Des Moines on Monday the 31 st having radio interviews all through the week getting the town of Iowa pumped for the weekend races. We had an awesome turn out both Friday and Saturday! Mr. “Nor-Cal” and I watched the sun come up in the wee hours of the morning on Friday, while going to News Channel 5 for an early morning interview to give out information about the races.
The racing kicked off in the brand new Wells Fargo Arena on Friday, along with the Mid America Powersports Expo next door at the Hy Vee Hall. Although I have only been to one round of Arenacross, I have a feeling it is going to be hard to be in a better building than the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines. It was beautiful, my hats off to the builders! My first glance at the track made my eyes pop out a little; it was sculpted to perfection and looked difficult! At this point I was glad that I am Miss Arenacross and not a rider! But all the riders never fail to amaze me by putting in once again some intense racing.
On Friday the Arena was packed with a ton of race fans, and you could feel their energy throughout the building. Kicking off the race with Opening Ceremonies, Tim Cotter and I rode out in a brand new Toyota Tacoma, and also announcing that the winner of the Toyota AMA National Arenacross series will not only win the cash, but also a brand new Toyota Truck. I wish that I could race so I could have a chance at winning this beautiful truck!
The riders came out with determination in their eyes and rode their hearts out. The Lites were won once again by the undefeated Shawn Clark, Matt Barnes in 2 nd and Jimmy Neese in 3 rd. The Premier Class racing was competitive, but once again Chad Johnson pulled off that 1 st place spot, followed by “Nor-Cal” Jeff Northrop in 2 nd, and Jimmy Neese 3 rd. On Saturday, the pressure was on for the riders to see if someone could finally get the first place slot from the undefeated two riders Shawn Clark for the Lites and Chad Johnson for the Premier Class. I myself had my own pressure on Saturday; the beautiful Michelle Stephenson was in the crowd. Michelle Stephenson, or as most of you know her Michelle Falls, is the Veteran Miss Arenacross, and she has some big shoes to fill! I was really happy to see her and talk with her receiving a little advice to hopefully enhance my performance as Miss Arenacross. She is such a beautiful person, both inside and out; it is an honor for me to be in her former position. The racing was once again tire-to-tire, and the determination worked for Cody Gillmore, he pulled of an incredible win over the undefeated Shawn Clark. The podium for the Lites was Cody Gilmore 1 st, Shawn Clark 2 nd, and the Veteran Travis Hodges in 3 rd. What a race!
The main for the Premier Class was different from any other main I have ever seen. During about lap four, Team Faiths Kevin Johnson was in the lead, and a red flag came out due to Matt Barnes taking a hard crash. At first I didn’t know what was going on, but thank God Matt was able to get up and walk off the track. Once the race was restarted it didn’t take Chad Johnson long to take over the first place spot and holding it till the checkered flag came out. On the podium was Chad Johnson 1 st, Jeff Northrop 2 nd, and Greg Schnell 3 rd. It was good to see “Nor-Cal” back in race mode on the podium where he belongs. Jeff also took the $500 Weekend Warrior check home for the holeshot.
All in all, the weekend was incredible. Everyone had a fun time, especially the race fans. This weekend we finally had my posters available to purchase, it was kind of surreal for me because I never thought I would ever be on a poster signing autographs, and having 7 year old boys asking me to marry them, and telling me they are my biggest fan! What an experience! I also had my first ever interview for TV with the boys of Speed Channel. It was so much fun and I want to thank them for including me on their show, I feel special! My weekend ended perfectly when Michelle Stephenson came up to me after the race and told me that I “couldn’t be more like her” and she is so proud to have me follow in her footsteps. Hearing that from her made my weekend even better than it already was! I was also honored because Riley (Michelle and Denny’s 5 year old son) said to Michelle, “See her, that is my girlfriend Ashley, because she is pretty!” Sorry boys I guess I am taken now!!! If you can please keep Matt Barnes in your thoughts and wish him health and safety, along with all of the riders! We have a weekend off of racing this week but we will be back and ready to go in Charlotte, NC on November 18. So until then - be safe, ride hard and always smile!
XOX,
Ashley
