The TPJ Fly Racing team travelled to East Rutherford, New Jersey for the second to last round of the Monster Energy Supercross series. We had an extremely busy week in New Jersey.
Wednesday, the TPJ Fly Racing team arrived early to Met Life stadium for a special event. Local high school vocational tech students came out to Met Life stadium to see TPJ Fly Racing Suzuki bikes up close, and learn about what it takes to be a motorcycle mechanic. The TPJ Fly Racing crew had a great time at this event; we loved the opportunity to instill our love of motocross with young kids.
Friday, the TPJ Fly Racing team was treated to a special experience thanks to Boyce Excavating. With the help of Garry Boyce and Boyce Excavating, we were able to take Feld Entertainment media staff and AMA Racing staff on a helicopter ride around New York, even jetting past the Statue of Liberty. Footage collected during the helicopter ride was seen on the live broadcast of Monster Energy Supercross. We are extremely thankful for the support of Garry Boyce and Boyce Excavating, they have been a massive help to the team and the sport.
The TPJ Fly Racing team also had the opportunity to participate in media day at Met Life stadium. Tyler Enticknap, Adam Enticknap, Chad Cook and John Short were on site being interviewed by local news stations, and riding the track for the videographers.
Come Saturday, the boys were excited to start racing. In qualifying, six riders were able to qualify for the night show. Tyler Enticknap was the second fastest qualifier of the first round of 450 B group qualifying with a best lap of 58.229.
We also welcomed the return of 250 rider James Milson, who had been on hiatus for an injury. Unfortunately for Milson, he suffered another injury in qualifying that kept him out of the night show.
The night show kicked off with Ted Parks leading opening ceremonies with the American flag. Once again he sported his wildly popular red, white and blue get up – including his new red, white and blue Alpine Stars boots.
In the 250 class, John Short came out swinging from the starting line in his heat. At the beginning of the race he held on to a top five spot, but things got crowded. He slipped back to 8th but was able to hang on to a qualifying position. He would go on to the main event directly from his heat.
In the 450 semi, Tyler Enticknap was feet from qualifying for his first ever main event. He collided with another rider, and their foot was caught between Enticknap’s wheel and fender. As Enticknap gunned for the finish line jump, he dragged the other rider and his bike with him. The load of another rider and bike caused Enticknap’s bike to stall, and another rider slipped around him. Officials were not able to remove the other rider from Enticknap’s bike until all the qualifying positions were filled. As we have learned, there are good days and bad days in racing. While this night was a rough one for Enticknap, he proved that he is capable of qualifying for the main event, and we can’t wait to see what he can do in Las Vegas.
In the 450 LCQ, Nick Schmidt started off in second place before quickly taking over the race. Nick went on to win the LCQ and advance to the main event – he also got the chance for a podium interview in front of thousands of fans. Chad Cook was extremely close to qualifying when he held an LCQ qualifying spot for several laps until another rider overtook him.
In the main event, Nick had a rough start, but went on to fight through the pack and finish in the top 15. Schmidt celebrated his best finish of the year in 15th, and we are very proud of his progress.
For our riders making the main event, DSC Construction helps the TPJ Fly Racing team refund their entry fees and fuel fees, and Dunlop provides them with new tires. We are very thankful to our sponsors who support the progression of our athletes.
We are looking forward to the final round of Monster Energy Supercross in Las Vegas. We hope to see lots of TPJ Fly Racing fans there!
TPJ RACING 