GEICO Powersports Honda Seattle Report

Seattle, WA – The Lites Western Region returned to action at the Seattle round of the AMA Supercross Championship, and the GEICO Powersports Honda team brought 2008 Eastern Regional champ Trey Canard and Australian champ Dan Reardon out of moth balls for the event after an eight-week layoff from racing.

 

Reardon got progressively faster all day and nearly had the holeshot in the main event, but got tangled up in the first turn and went down.

 

“As the day progressed, I got better,” Reardon said. “I made some changes and I was comfortable out there, and then I came into the main and was confident about my start. I got a good jump and I was happy, and I thought I had the holeshot, and then all of a sudden there was another red bike on the outside of me and we ended up tangling and I went down. I couldn’t regroup properly, but I did my best.”

 

Despite a tough track for passing, he climbed all the way back up to 13th at the finish.

 

Canard, on the other hand, was fast from the start of the day.

 

“It feels good to actually ride strong,” Canard said. “I felt like the start of the season was, well, not great, but I feel like we’re heading in the right direction and hopefully by the end of this thing, we’ll be good to go.”

 

Canard actually started near the front in the main and worked his way forward, eventually challenging for second – and even passing for second for a moment – before he was re-passed and then fell down.

 

“Well, I passed him, and then he got me back, so I didn’t make the pass stick, but I don’t know, I was a little bummed on that,” Canard said. “I felt like I was riding really good, and I felt like if I could’ve gotten around him soon, I could’ve gotten [eventual winner Ryan] Dungey – or at least caught up to him. But shoulda, coulda, woulda, we’ll just keep working for next week.”

 

Canard still finished a strong third for yet another podium finish on the season.

 

In the 450cc class, GEICO Powersports Honda’s Kevin Windham had speed all day, and in the main he got a mediocre start and was working forward when he went down challenging for fifth place.

 

“I got off the gate pretty good, but then I got across the gate and just spun a lot and got beat to the first turn,” Windham said. “I had a good reaction time, and the bike was going good, and I got a great start in the heat race, but I think I just picked the wrong gate in the main and it cost me. I was coming up through the pack, riding really strong, and it was one of those tracks where it was easy to make a mistake, and I was cutting up the inside on one section, where I was doing it every lap, and I cut a little too far up the inside and landed on some Tuff Blox. Everything was bent up pretty bad, and there was only like three and a half laps to go, and it was just one of those things where it was hard to keep the bike going straight, so I did my best just to finish where I was.”

 

Windham ended up finishing 10th on his battered machine.

 

From here, the GEICO Powersports Honda team heads to Salt Lake City, Utah, for the penultimate round of the AMA Supercross Series, and the Lites West finale on April 25 inside Rice-Eccles Stadium, where rain is in the forecast.

 

Team Sponsors: GEICO Powersports, Honda, Planet Fitness, Unbound Energy, AM/PM, Factory Connection, Fox, Shoei, Gaerne, DVS, Amsoil Lubricants, Cycra Plastics, Dunlop Tires, EK Chains, Filtron Air Filters, Hinson Clutches, Leatt Brace, One Industries, Pro Circuit, Renthal, Shock Doctor, Showa, TAG Sprockets, Vortex Ignitions, VP Fuels, and Works Connection.

 

1.            Ryan Dungey            Suz

2.            Ryan Morais            Kaw

4.            Jake Weimer            Kaw

5.            Jake Moss            Hon

6.            Jimmy Albertson            Hon

7.            Kyle Cunningham            Kaw

8.            Chris Blose            Hon

9.            Michael Hall            Yam

10.            Jeff Alessi            Hon

 

1.            Ryan Villopoto            Kaw

2.            James Stewart            Yam

3.            Davi Millsaps            Hon

4.            Mike Alessi            Suz

5.            Andrew Short            Hon

6.            Josh Grant            Yam

7.            Chad Reed            Suz

8.            Paul Carpenter            Kaw

9.            Ivan Tedesco            Hon