Race Report: U.S. Nationals, Bakersfield, CA May 13-15, 2011
This past weekend, McKenna Dean loaded up the Team Race Trailer for the four and a half hour drive north, to participate in the 2011 U.S. Nationals in Bakersfield, CA. The weather forecast for the weekend was looking good, except for the possibility of showers on Sunday morning. McKenna arrived in plenty of time to get the trailer and pits set up for the weekend of racing, and make it over to practice before the Friday night pre-race. The pre-race saw a
smaller rider turn-out, probably due to the fact of many racers still travelling on Friday, and McKenna was able to have three great rounds of racing and take the win on Friday night.
Saturday morning dawned bright and early with clear skies, and little wind. McKenna made her way to the track for practice, feeling confident from the previous night's win. National #1 would have a full gate of 8 year old girls, and today's racing would be tougher than the pre-race. McKenna was able to win the second round and guarantee herself a spot in the main. She was assigned lane 6 in the main, and rode well, but found herself in some traffic and was unable
to get around, finishing 5th.
As Sunday morning rolled around, the skies were much greyer, the temperature colder, and the wind a lot stronger. Racing got underway at 8:00 am sharp, and shortly thereafter, McKenna was again able to win her second round qualifying for the main event. Around this time, the skies opened up and a good drenching came down on the track. The long period of waiting around for McKenna's main, gave the track a chance to dry out and get fast again for the most important race of the day. As the gate dropped for the main, McKenna shot out of lane 8 and immediately came over to the inside, slotting into 4th position. She pushed and challenged 3rd place in every turn, but was unable to come around, finishing 4th on the line.
So the weekend wrapped up with a 1st, a 5th, and a 4th place. McKenna thoroughly enjoyed the track, the racing, and the competition. She now has a break from Nationals for a while, with some State races and Redline Cups to occupy her time. She would especially like to thank Vince at Free Agent, Ryan at Troy Lee Designs, and Frank at Triton Imaging, for working so hard in getting her 2011 race gear to her in time for this National. She says "Huge thanx for keeping me looking Factory, Guys!".