Violation1.com/Shea Racing Race Report: Oakland
OAKLAND, Calif. – Round four of Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, saw the athletes compete at another new venue. This past Saturday, January 29 it was the Oakland Coliseum near San Francisco. Team Violation1.com/Shea Racing/Travisa/National Switchgear, powered by Munn Racing KTM, riders showed raw determination evidenced by Casey Hinson’s valiant ride in the West Region Supercross Lites main event.
The Oakland Coliseum track was created on the Oakland A’s baseball field. The course included a gnarly triple-triple rhythm section. Rain came down during the main events which slicked up the track.
The AMA Supercross Lites heat number one was on deck first. Behind the starting gate was Team Violation1.com/Shea Racing/Travisa/National Switchgear rider Howell #61 on his Eleven 10 Mods/DR.D-tuned KTM 250 SX-F. He had a poor start off the line and during the first lap was in 20th place. Howell was not satisfied with that position. He put his head down and rolled the throttle back to work his way through the pack. With ever-expanding skills and a potent motor, Howell finished 13th in the six-lap heat.
Hinson #149 in his FLY Racing gear was next up for the Shea Racing team in heat number two. He was quick off the line into fifth place on his KTM 250 SX-F driven by SuperSprox and IRIS Chains. Hinson was relentless and held that position for the entire six-lap heat race to transfer directly to the main event. This was his best heat race finish in his young career.
In the LCQ, Howell was on the line for Team Violation1.com/Shea Racing/Travisa/National Switchgear. He had another unfortunate start near the back of the pack and finished in 17th place. Only two riders transfer to the main from the LCQ. Howell will continue to improve in the eight-round West Region series.
Next on deck was the AMA Supercross Lites main event. Shea Racing’s Hinson was at the line with a solid gate selection. In the first turn, he was completely taken out by another rider’s crash. When he remounted, Hinson’s left grip was tore off the bike and he had several deep cuts in his hand. He was not about to give up. With his body fueled by PowerBar and his Outlaw handlebars intact, he pushed through it the entire race in the rain. Hinson finished in 18th place in his third consecutive main event. He moves into 18th in the AMA Supercross West Region Lites standings.
“An up and down day in Oakland where we saw our riders battled to the end,” said Tim Shea, team manager. “We’re proud of Casey [Hinson] and Austin [Howell]. The track was the toughest we’ve seen this season. The triple-triple rhythm section was difficult on 250cc bikes. Casey was awesome in his heat. Then to crash hard and ride with a torn-up hand and no grip was inspiring. Austin will continue to make strides. I know he can make a main event, and we’ll do whatever we can to help him get the extra edge."
Shea continued, "This Saturday, we are looking forward to supporting breast cancer awareness with our riders wearing pink in Anaheim. We already have some pink on our semi rig and on our bikes! Come out to watch Austin and Casey put in determined rides. After Anaheim, our West Region Lites riders will be on a one-week break when the East Region guys start racing.”
Team Violation1.com/Shea Racing/Travisa/National Switchgear, powered by Munn Racing KTM, will head to round five of Monster Energy AMA Supercross on Saturday, February 5, 2011 when it returns to Angel Stadium of Anaheim in Anaheim, Calif. This is a breast cancer awareness round where riders and teams are encouraged to wear pink. Fans be sure to attend the event to see the team’s West Region Lites racers #61 Austin Howell and #149 Casey Hinson competing in the night program on their DeCal Works-emblazoned KTM 250SX-F race bikes fortified by Renegade Fuels. During the pit party stop by the cannot-miss team’s purple and yellow semi hauler to meet the riders and the Violation Goggles girls, and watch videos on the flat screen TV sponsored by ActionSportsTV.com. Keep posted to the team at www.sheamoto.com.
About Team Violation1.com/Shea Racing/Travisa/National Switchgear powered by Munn Racing KTM
Shea Racing, led by Tim Shea, places emphasis on involving action sports fans in the team through pit parties and charity events which it has done the past four years while participating in professional motocross races. In its third season in the Monster Energy AMA Supercross series, the team has expanded, with factory KTM support through Munn Racing, with five Lites riders: Austin Howell #61 (West), Tevin Tapia #70 (East), Ricky Renner #94 (East), Vernon McKiddie #129 (East), and Casey Hinson #149 (West). The 2011 AMA Supercross team is made possible by the Violation Brand (www.violation1.com), National Switchgear (www.nationalswitchgear.com), Travisa (www.travisa.com), Munn Racing (www.munnracing.com), KTM Sportmotorcycles (www.ktmusa.com), FLY Racing, Power Bar Team Elite, DeCal Works, Dubach Racing Development (DR.D), Maxima Oils, Engine Ice, DT-1 Filters, ActionSportsTV.com, Matrix Concepts, ODI Grips, Outlaw Products, SuperSprox, IRIS Chains, Renegade Fuels, Enzo Suspension, Eleven 10 Mods, Lightspeed, TCX Boots, Stomp Designs, Devol Engineering, Moto Public Relations, Dunlop Tires, and River Valley Motocross Park. Its community partner is the James Marshall Project. Visit www.sheamoto.com to learn more.
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