Hetrick
Racing's Joel Hetrick Take First ATV Pro Podium
AMA
Pro ATV Motocross Championships– Round 5
– Sunset Ridge MX – May 7, 2011
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Hetrick Racing's
Joel Hetrick took his first AMA ATV MX
Pro Career podium at Sunset Ridge MX placing
second overall
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Oil City, PA (5/10/2011)
- Someday he will be a champion. Maybe
not today, maybe not tomorrow, but some day in the
not so distant future, Hetrick Racing/Makson Construction's
Joel Hetrick will leave a major mark on the sport
of ATV racing...bank on it.
During his Pro debut at the opening round of
the 2011 AMA-ATV Motocross Championship series
in Georgia, Hetrick came out of the gate smokin'
with a bundle of nerves wrapped around his neck.
He admitted he was concerned about the veteran
Pros behind him and after two motos of racing,
filled with looking back to see who was closing
in on him, he scratched out a 6th place overall
finish for the event. Not bad for a rookie Pro,
but unacceptable to Hetrick's higher expectations
of himself.
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Soon after
making the switch to a Honda TRX450R ATV
Joel Hetrick scores his best ATV MX Pro
Career Finish
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Rounds 2 and 3 proved to be trying times. Plagued
by mechanical problems and towed off the track
more often than he crossed the checkers, Hetrick
decided to make major changes in his racing program,
going so far as to change ATV manufactures completely,
a decision which is unheard of in the Pro ranks
due to the time necessary to adjust to a totally
different brand of quad. Did this set Hetrick
back?
Round 4, the "Rain Race" as it has
been tagged, in Maryland at Budds Creek was a
sloppy test of survival, not a proving ground
for a Rookie Pro who's on a new machine. Then
came Round 5. At Sunset Ridge in Illinois, Joel
Hetrick made a statement which was heard loud
and clear throughout the ATV motocross national
community..."Here's what I'm made of...Here's
my new ride...Expect more."
Hetrick suffered severe blisters and arm pump
from a stiff thumb throttle but didn't back off
in his quest to prove he can run with the best.
Not only did he capture both Pro moto holeshots,
but he ran up-front with the best of them for
twenty minutes plus two laps, never backing down
to nerves, never letting off the throttle. He
had found his machine and had rekindled the confidence
that had driven him to multiple amateur championships
in year's past. The decision to change brands
paid off. He crossed the checkers in the first
moto in third and the second moto in second. Thus,
his first Pro podium, taking second overall, a
feat not accomplished by any Pro rookie for well
over a decade.
Joel Hetrick's performance at Sunset Ridge is
just a sneak peek at what's to come during the
remaining six rounds of this year's AMA-ATV Motocross
Championship series. With a machine under him
that he can count on and a belly full of confidence
provided by his Round 5 run, Hetrick will be a
factor in the Pro class...a major factor...a deciding
factor...a factor that will have to be dealt with
on it's own terms, which happen to be...Joel Hetrick's
terms.
Hetrick had to put on his thinking cap to remember
his sponsors during all the excitement of his
first appearance on the Pro podium but he managed,
as always, to plug those who support him. They
are...
Hetrick Racing, Makson Construction, JB Racing,
Maximum RPM, Fly Racing, Elka Suspension, Walsh
Race Craft, MotoWorks, Easton, Maxxis, Lone Star
Racing, Tiger Racing, Pro Graph-X, Quad Tech,
Rage ATV, Rath Racing, Luke Nixon Racing, Precision
Racing Products, DWT, Oury ATV Grips, DP Brakes,
Fuel Customs, PowerMadd, Outerwears, Rebel Gears,
Kal-Gard, Intense Fabrication & Design, Hinson
Clutches, Pafford EMS and World Of Wheels.
www.hetrickracing.com
186 Oakwood Road
Oil City, PA 16301
814.676-0477 |
