The TPJ Racing team made their way to Salt Lake City, UT for team rider Dalton Oxborrow’s hometown Supercross race.
Dalton went into full celeb mode Friday by making appearances on local news and radio shows discussing the upcoming Supercross and the Party in the Pits experience. He ended his day by signing autographs for his many fans at Edge Powersports.
Feld Entertainment, the producers of the Monster Energy Supercross, decided to make the SLC race the second day race of the year. This week they pushed the schedule back 30 minutes, with rider track walk starting at 7:00 AM and the first practice session of the day starting at 8:40 AM. This week the TPJ Racing team only had one rider under their tent*, as Ben Lamay decided to give his body time to heal after last weeks crash.
“(Dalton Oxborrow #820 rode his Edge Powersports backed KTM250SX-F to an) impressive 24th overall in the world” said Ted Parks; owner/manager of TPJ Racing. To say it was a long day and a hard-fought battle to get there would be an understatement; each rider gives 100% during roughly 60 laps over the course of the day with hopes of making the main and gaining championship points.
Photo Credit: BrownDog Wilson
Take a look at a breakdown of Dalton’s day/results:
7:00 AM: TRACK WALK – Dalton and his Dad/mechanic Corb took to the track to dissect each section as they tried to gain perspective for the upcoming battle.
8:40 AM: 250SX GROUP B FREE PRACTICE – Riders were given 8 minutes to navigate their way around the track as many times as possible trying to marry their riding style, bike setup, and track design in perfect harmony.
9:30 AM & 11:55 AM: 250SX GROUP B QUALIFYING SESSIONS – Riders now have 10 minutes (each session) to lay down the fastest lap that they can in hopes of securing a spot in the evening program. The higher their qualifying position, the better chance they have of getting a good gate pick during the evening program (which at this race started at 3:40 PM). Dalton managed to keep his bike on two wheels and piloted his KTM to a 55.667 (seconds) lap time, placing him 27th overall for the day qualifiers.
EVENING PROGRAM
3:56 PM: 250SX HEAT 2 – This 6 minutes/plus 1 lap heat race made up of 20 riders was an all-out battle to the finish line as only 9 of the riders would advance directly to the main event. Dalton passed the finish line on lap 1 in 16th place and fought hard to navigate through the pack to finish the race in 12th. Dalton would have to ride in the LCQ (lasts chance qualifier) and place 4th or better if he wanted to make it into the coveted main event.
4:52 PM: 250 SX LAST CHANCE QUALIFIER – This 5 minutes/plus 1 lap race is the end all, be all for riders attempting to earn a spot on the starting line for the main event. Dalton started the race in 8th place, battled back and forth with many riders until his final push on the last lap saw him past two riders for a 6th place overall finish.
Dalton didn’t make it to the 250SX MAIN EVENT, but he put in an impressive ride, and made each one of his fans and sponsors proud. Looking at his day from Ted Parks perspective is the best thing Dalton can do; he can walk away from SLC with his head held high knowing he gave it 100% and finished his night 24th overall in the world. WAY TO GO DALTON OXBORROW!
Photo Credit: BrownDog Wilson
As the saying goes, “it takes a village”; the same is true for racing and the TPJ team couldn’t do what we do without the help of our sponsors. Thank you to our team sponsors: FLY Racing, Karcher Presure Washers, Lucas Oil, Boyce Excavating, Carl’s Cycle Sales, AllClear ID, Engine Ice, DSC Construction, Cometic Gaskets, Vertex, Hot Cams, Rekluse, Scott, Acerbis, Motool, Yoshimura, Mika, DT1 Filters, Magik Graphics, Galpher, Cylinder works, Bolt, MotoSeat, Pirelli Tires, Tokyo Mods, VP Racing Fuel, No Toil, and California Coast Plumbers, inc. Thank you to Datlon’s additional sponsors Edge Powersports, Jenson Companies, Factory Connection, FMF Racing, and Mom & Dad.
The series will now head to Las Vegas, NV for the final round of the 2018 season on May 5th. Champions will be crowned, dreams will be made reality, and the TPJ Racing RMZ250 giveaway bike will be presented to the contest winner in person. See you all there!
*TPJ’s transport rider’s Deven Raper #447 and Cheyenne Harmon #645 finished out the day with a 6th and 15th place finish, respectively, in the 450SX LCQ.
Words by: Kendra Keene
TPJ RACING 