This past weekend in Chula Vista was the US National Championship for the Elite and Junior Elite classes. They raced on the Beijing replica track, which is the original SX track and a clear favorite over the newer London replica.
In the Mens elite, Corben and Nic were out front in all of their qualifying rounds and breezed through semis and into the main event. In the main, Nic took lane 2 next to current champion Connor Fields in 1 and Corben in lane 3. There was a pretty good drag race to turn #1 with Corben, Nic and Connor but Nic took the clean holeshot and ran away with it while Corben had a bit of trouble on the track and ended up 5th. Congrats Nic.
In the women Elite, they raced total points 3 laps for the overall. Brooke finished 3rd in the first two and looked to be taking the holeshot in main #3 when she ended up going over the first turn. With her points she still salvaged a 3rd overall behind reigning champion Alise Post, followed by Arielle Martin.
Our team sponsor, Bell Helmets, put together a web video from the weekend featuring our team along with our friend Mike Day. Check it out.
Corben recently headed over to Medellin, Colombia for a Redbull BMX race presented by the current Olympic gold medalist, Mariana Pajon. He was winning the Mens Elite final until the second to last turn when he made a mistake and got passed by one of the locals. He had a good time and checked in about it:
What an awesome experience it was to be able to Take my
Haro ride over to Medellin, Columbia for Redbull's Mariana's playground event.
No matter where you go in the world if your in the sport of BMX everybody
always welcomes you as family and the Columbian people did just that, I had a
blast riding with the locals the day before the event even giving a few
youngsters some tips. It was a very humbling experience for me seeing the fan
base over there for a U.S rider such as myself, being able to sign autographs,
give things away and take photos with people that look up to you was just
earthmoving. The track was very technical but fun and fit my style of
riding, I loved getting out there on the new Haro clutch carbon and pushing my
limits.
Corben and his team mates Brooke Crain and Nic Long are currently in Manchester, England for round 1 of the 2013 UCI Supercross Series. You can watch it live at http://bmxlive.tv/#/event/manchester on the 19th - 20th
USABMX Pro Series Stop #3 - Desoto, TX
Last weekend in Desoto, Texas was the 3rd stop on the USABMX National series for the pros. We made the trip out on Thursday, and although the forecast said otherwise, it was FREEZING!! Forecast said 70's, but it was really around 50 all weekend long, with a nice wind chill.
To start the weekend, Nic Long got the late sign-up for Friday nights pre-race so I went ahead and left him at the track and headed back to the hotel with my frozen hands. He ended up taking a spill in his second moto and putting some nice war wounds on his new Bell Moto 9 helmet. He ended up 3rd overall in the finale.
The crew was looking good on Saturday with Nic, Corben, and Brooke all top 3's all day long. Nic made the main and ended up 5th, Corben fell just short with a 5th in his semi, and Brooke killed it in her 3 mains and came up just shy of the win with a 2nd overall behind current points leader, Alise Post. Other highlights from Saturday included a 2nd place in the Factory Team ranks from our Haro/Promax squad, with wins from Leo Hile in 10x, Bryant White in 12x, and ABA's National #1 Amateur, Rusty Nesvig in 19-27x. Haro backed Jason Rogers also took his #Blackout to a 4th place in Elite Men. Good job boys.
On Sunday, Pro warmup kicked off at 7:30am and it was 31 degrees outside. Talk about ridiculous!! Neither of our guys made the final, but Brooke was out there grinding it out in Elite Women and still ended up 3rd overall after taking a gnarly slam going for the lead in the second main. There was a 3 way photo finish in the first Lady Pro main event between Caroline Buchanan, Brooke, and Alise Post. It was one of the most exciting classes to watch on Sunday.
Rusty Nesvig went on to win all of his laps on Sunday once again, leading the Haro/Promax team to a win in the factory ranks with wins also from Madelynn Desantis, Jaydin Wenck, Leo Hile, and Bryant White. Congrats!
The USABMX Pro Series takes a break after this busy month of back-to-back events but it picks back up in North Carolina, May 10th. The next race for the team will be at the UCI World Cup Round #1 in Manchester, England on April 19th.
Nic Long Presented by Bell Helmets
USABMX Gator National - Oldsmar, FL
Another awesome weekend for the Haro pro team and Haro/Promax amatuer team last weekend as the USA BMX hosted stop number two of the 2013 national series in Oldsmar, Florida.
Friday was the UCI North American Continental Championships where Nic Long continued his domination from last weekend in Phoenix. Nic won all of his qualifiers and went wire to wire in the main event, taking home the $2600 cash prize! Brooke brought home a 4th in Elite Women and Corben was the victim of dive bombers in his semi final.
Saturday showed the boys dominating through qualifying, but this time Nic would be the unlucky one to finish 5th in his semi final, while Corben won his. When the gate slammed down on the main event, it looked like Corben was going to holeshot from the inside, but he was edged out by Sam Willoughby. Chalk up a 2nd place on the podium for Corben. Brooke brought home another 4th in Elite women.
Sunday saw Brooke winning all of her qualifying rounds, finishing 2nd in her semi final, and on to the main event where she decided to ride to her potential for the first time this year, bringing home a close second behind Olympic Gold Medalist, Mariana Pajon, and ahead of US Olympic team mate, Alise Post. Corben made his main event again like a champ, bringing home a 7th for the day. Nic looked to have a good start in his semi, but got tangled up on the first jump and came unclipped.
Other awesome highlights from the weekend included Haro/Promax amateur riders Andrew Townsend bringing home the Junior Elite win on Friday, Bryce Hocking winning 19-27 expert on Saturday, Hunter Pelham winning 16 expert on Sunday, and Rusty Nesvig winning 19-27 expert on Sunday. Morphine Indsutries rider, Olijuwan Davis, also brought home a Friday night win in the A-Pro class. Last but not least, Haro mounted Jason Rogers scored up a 4th and a 5th in the Elite Men class this weekend.
The next stop on the USA BMX National series is next weekend in Desoto, TX.
Haro Dominates USA BMX Pro Series Opener
This past weekend in Phoenix, Arizona was the much anticipated season opener for the pro classes. With over three months since their last race, all kinds of sponsorship changes, and an international field of pros in attendance, this was sure to be an exciting event!
Saturday morning saw 45 Elite Men on the moto sheets which meant 1/4 finals and $3500 up for grabs for the winner, along with a $250 holeshot award in the first main event. Our crew of Nic Long and Corben Sharrah were on fire all day long. Winning most of their qualifying rounds, the boys ended up in different semi-finals and both took the wins wire to wire and had first and second lane choice in the main event. In the first main event, Nic took the holeshot with the USA BMX National #1 Pro, USA BMX National Champion, and Olympic Gold Medalist all hot on his heels. Nic took the win in main number 1 of 3.
In the second main, Nic holeshotted again with his team mate in the #2 spot until he [Corben] slid out in the first turn. Nic continued on for the win in main #2.
USA BMX' #1 Pro, Sam Willoughby got the holeshot in the third main event, but Nic was only a couple spots back. With a third place finish in the final main, it gave Nic the low points and the overall win and after 13 hours at the track, he left $3750.00 richer!
Corben ended up 6th overall for the day, and their team mate Brooke Crain brought home the 2nd spot in the girl pro class after missing a huge crash in the first turn that took down 4 other girls.
Day number two was similar for Nic as he cruised his way into the final, taking the win in the first main and second behind Sam in the second main. Sam went wire to wire in the final main, taking the win and giving Nic 2nd overall for the day. Not a bad weekend of racing for the #64 bike.
Corben rode awesome on Sunday, but fell in the second turn in his 1/4 final.
Our amateur team, Haro/Promax took the Factory team win on Saturday, and finished 2nd on Sunday. They remain the leader in the overall points for the year-end cup!
Last but not least, last weekend was the debut of the Phantom HP Development team. Phantom HP is an entry level team under the same umbrella as Haro/Promax (shown above) and enables riders to get help with their training, and also discounts on product from Haro, Bell, Promax, etc. For more information on how to join Phantom HP, check out their website @ www.phantomdevelopmentbmx.com
The USA BMX Pro Series continues on to Oldsmar, Florida next weekend where Nic Long will try and defend his points lead for the National #1 Pro title. Enjoy the photos from Phoenix....
Haro Bikes Welcomes Corben Sharrah
(click to enlarge)
Press Release:
Haro
Bikes Welcomes Corben Sharrah
February
22, 2013.
Vista, CA. Haro Bicycles is proud to
announce the signing of Tucson, Arizona’s Corben Sharrah to the BMX race team.
“Corben
is one of the youngest, most accomplished, stylish, humble, and driven riders
in the sport. A former USA Cycling National Champion in the Elite class, Corben
had already won a UCI World Cup abroad when he was only 18. I fully believe that
Corben, now 20 years old, is untapped talent. Though he’s accomplished so much
at such a young age, I think the BMX world has yet to see his full potential.
We’re really psyched to team up with him for 2013 and beyond.” said Derek Betcher, Haro’s
BMX Race Team Manager.
Corben
will join team mates Nic Long (San Diego, CA) and Brooke Crain (Visalia, CA) on
the full USA BMX tour in 2013, along with select UCI World Cup events.
“I’m proud to announce that I will be a part of the Haro Bikes team for
2013.” explained
Corben Sharrah.“I am honored to be
involved with such an iconic brand as everything Haro does is game changing. I
look forward to progressing in my career and elevating the sport on a Haro.
Something that I've dreamed of since I was a kid was to ride a Haro bike and I
couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity and what the future has in
store.“
Look for Corben to make his Haro
debut on our Race LT frame in Phoenix, Arizona at the USA BMX Winter Nationals
when the season kicks off next weekend.
About Haro Bicycles:
Haro is a
recognized leader in providing innovative performance bikes and parts to the
BMX Race, Freestyle, and Mountain Bike markets. The company
currently has over 1500 dealer locations throughout the United States and
distributors in more than 60 countries worldwide. Bob Haro, widely known
in the BMX industry as the catalyst for the sport and pop culture that would
become known as BMX Freestyle. founded Haro Bikes in 1978. For more
information, including recent company news and an online catalog, please visit www.harobikes.com.
Bon Voyage, Khalen Young.
I first met Khalen Young at the 2007 ABA Winter Nationals. At first I was thinking, "what is wrong with this turd?" His race pants were shorts, he had spandex underneath and the worst clip shoes ever. Aside from his terrible costume, you couldn't deny the fact that he was a character. From his cheeky Aussie accent to his home-made lingo that no one really understood, but still had a laugh about it anyway. I didn't make the final so as I watched from the infield, I was almost a fan of this kids energy and the chance that he might be able to hit the podium in the worst outfit the AA Pro class had seen in a minute. The whole main event crashed that day, other than Khalen and eventual winner, Randy Stumpfhauser. Not often does someone come from overseas and hit the podium their first weekend racing in the Elite Men class.
Shortly after Phoenix, Khalen won the World Cup in Madrid, Spain and that's when we decided to sign him to the Haro US team before he was even permanently living in the states. His first race as part of the team, he went on to have an epic battle for the UCI World title against the late Kyle Bennett where he finished 2nd, a race that will go down in history. In his six seasons riding for us, Khalen finished on countless podiums, won the ABA National #1 Pro Title in 2008, and most recently represented his homeland of Australia at the pinnacle of the sport, the London Olympic Games. Khalen has made his mark in BMX and we are honored to say that he's done it all on a Haro.
At the start of this year, we re-signed Khalen with the thought that this may be his last year racing, as he had been talking of starting the next chapter back in Australia working with his dad in the mining industry. With the season opener less than a month away, we received an e-mail Saturday morning that KY97 was going to close this 24 year chapter of his life, and move on to the next to benefit him and his family.
I'll speak on behalf of all of us here at the Haro offices along with Nic and Brooke in saying, thank you for all the good times, KY!! It's been an epic journey and we wish you nothing but love and success as you move along to the next chapter. -DB44
USA BMX Season Opener - Reno, Nevada
This past weekend in Reno was the USA BMX 2013 National Series season opener. Nic Long and I (DB44) made the 10 hour trip along with ABA's 2012 National #1 Amateur, Rusty Nesvig. Rusty is now a part of Haro via the Haro/Promax Factory team that made it's debut over the weekend. Donavon Long (Nic's dad) is the TM of the new squad, and he did a great job with the debut. The team had the brightest uniforms and were seen out front all weekend long. We are super excited to expand our presence at the races, as it's been several years since we've backed an amateur squad. I'd like to send a welcome out to all of our new crew as well as Toby and Michael at Promax and kind of a welcome back to our old bossman, Allan Cooke, who is on board as one of the title sponsors for the team, and that is Bell Helmets.
Speaking of Bell, Nic raced [and won] the Friday night pro open race in his new Bell Moto 9 helmet. We changed gear suppliers and the Haro pro team of Nic Long, Khalen Young, and Brooke Crain will all be wearing Bell helmets with NEMA gear and DEFT gloves. We had 5 long years of support from Troy Lee Designs and for that I'd like to thank them.
The pro team makes their debut on the first weekend in March, at the ABA Winter Nationals in Phoenix, Arizona. After that, the pro series has two back to back weekends with the first one being in Oldsmar, Florida, and the next in Desoto, Texas.
USABMX Grand Nationals - TULSA, Oklahoma
Just got back from the USA BMX Grand Nationals and what an event it was!! Nic Long and myself [DB44] drove the Haro truck and trailer from San Diego to Tulsa, a total of 3000 miles, to attend the race dubbed, "The Greatest Race on Earth." It lived up to it's name.
This was the biggest Grand National to date, with nearly 700 motos. All of our riders were in attendance, but with such a focus based around Olympic Games, none of them were in the hunt for the National #1 Pro title. Still though, the race action was solid and our crew was in the mix the whole time.
Saturday morning at 7:30am was the Pro qualifying rounds. Talk about brutal! The 5:30am wake-up call was a rough one but the race action was intense. Nic and Khalen were winning all their rounds, while their team mate, Brooke Crain, was top 3 in all of hers. Each of them qualified to the big show which is the Pro Spectacular, later that night.
The Pro Spectacular is one of the most highly anticipated events of the year, and the stands are always packed. The energy was going to be crazy inside the Quiktrip Center as Sam Willoughby and Marc Willers went head-to-head to decide who would come out as the National #1 AA Pro for 2012, but the opening ceremony was one that none of us wanted to ever have to witness. ...
As the lights went down inside the packed arena, all of the competitors of the NAG 5 Challenge and Pro Spectacular aligned the first straight to show their respect for the late Kyle Bennett. In the gate was Kyle's race bike, held by former coach, Sean Dwight, alongside Kyle's mother. A five minute video tribute to Kyle played on the jumbo-tron, followed by one final call to the gate by USABMX announcer, Mike Redman. "Calling three-time UCI Elite Men World Champion, Kyle Bennett, to the gate." The arena was silent for a moment as the cadence turned on and the gate fell. Sean and Kyle's mother walked down the middle of the nights participants and I have to say, it was one of the saddest moments I've ever witnessed in more than 18 years in this sport. RIP Kyle, you've inspired a generation.
Pro semis were staged up just after opening ceremonies and Nic and Khalen were in semi #1 of AA Pro. Nic went straight to the lead group while Khalen got a bit of a bad start and fought his way through traffic. Nic was 3rd at the line, and Khalen's night ended early. Elite Women went straight to main event, so 2 of our 3 riders were in the finale.
After three action packed main events for both the men and women, Nic ended up 5th for the night while Brooke brought home a podium 3rd place. Congrats to both on an awesome ride and way to end a long season.
Sam Willoughby ended up coming out on top of the AA Pro title chase, while Dominique Daniels won her 5th consecutive cup in the women. Congrats to both.
Congrats also goes to San Diego's Rusty Nesvig for winning the ABA National #1 Amateur title on a Haro Blackout. Rusty will be riding for the Haro/Promax amateur squad next year, and he went ahead and debuted his new bike in Tulsa, absolutely killing his 17-18 expert main event.
The highlight of my weekend, was the debut of our plastic frame mold that will soon be Haro's very first carbon fiber race frame. It was well received with a lot of traffic past the Haro booth to check it out, and the team and I cannot wait to start testing next month.
It's 9pm and I just drove 500 miles, and 970 miles yesterday. My brain is cooked, and I need to hibernate. Thanks for reading. -dB
