by: Shane Hartman

28TH ANNUAL MOTORAMA RACES & SHOWS

Motorama offers something for the entire family as host everything from Arenacross, Jump Styling contest, Speedshow, Tunerwar, Robot Conflict, Motorcycle trials, Go-Kart racing, Spina-Bifida Charity Auction and the Ms. Motorama Pageant all under one roof for just one weekend a year.

Day One - Saturday

Rausch Creek offered discounts on season passes

The event activities were kicked off with the Scion sponsored Tunerwar followed by a freestyle demo for thousands of spectators. The Speedshow and Dealer Expo kept many occupied checking out some cool rides and the latest products. Among the vendors were Rausch Creek MX Park and East Coast ATV. The ECA booth drew plenty of attention with a new Suzuki LT-R450 on display, but the real action was in the arena portion of the complex with its 7,000 seats filled to watch the motorcycle and ATV racing action.

The Arenacross racing event opened up with Hot Rod Bobby Cox entertaining the crowd followed by Diz Dean of the Spina Bifida organization thanking Motorama for raising over $200,000 for the organization over the years. Finally, just before race time, a group of four young women known as “The Chickz” sang the National Anthem.

A glimpse of the Motorama Arenacross Track

The arenacross track remains virtually unchanged from year to year, which gives those that have competed in the past a slight advantage in preparation for the event because the track may be short and small, but it is not for the faint of heart as there aren’t any easy jumps on this track. The track consist of a double- double combination with the second leap launching the riders over 40 feet followed by an immediate left hand turn or the alternative of crashing into the arena wall, which deters many from even attempting second double. Next up is a wicked series of five whoops followed by a small double, and then it is time to get on the gas for a high speed dash across the arena floor followed by a right hand turn, which leads to the largest jump on the track. The triple jump is just about a 55 feet in length, but with only a short run to the face and only a few feet to stop after the landing before hitting the arena wall, only the top pros even attempt the triple during competition. Even though the arena track is tight and technical is still doesn’t deter hundreds of riders from coming back year after year to display their motocross skills in front of a packed arena of cheering fans.

With ATV racers traveling from six different states, the classes quickly filled up and with 62 entries in the Amateur Production class alone, the promoter was forced to split the class into two groups with only the top two riders in each heading to the finals. Levi Hicks took the overall win in the first half of the Amateur Production class, and he was followed by Shaun Lawton and Richard Sweeny. Lost Creek Cycles’Robert Burbridge made his trip from Port Jarvis, NY worth while as he took the overall win in the second half of the Amateur Production class. The Amateur Open class win was taken by Dann Bressler. Rounding out the top three was Matt Price and Robert Burbridge

GNCC Racer, John Cunningham, took advantage of Motorama to gain some seat time in preparation for the GNCC Season Opener the first week of March. He finished second in both qualifiers and advanced to the Main Events Saturday Night where he finished in the top 10.	Steve Dibble may not be a household name for ATV MX Racing because he doesn't travel to all the Nationals, but when he shows up, he makes his presence known. Steve and Dunk were the only two ATV racers to attempt the 40 foot double at Motorama and he finished in 2nd place.

As the ATVA MX Nationals series takes a three week break before resuming in Florida, pro rider, Jason “Dunk” Dunkelberger returned to Motorama to defend his title from last year. Defend his title he did as he held a commanding lead over Bruce Wyland Jr. and Cory Atherton to the checkered flag for win in the Expert Production class. Dunk wasn’t finished as he returned to compete in the Expert Open class, where he once again put his Lost Creek Cycles machine in the winners circle followed by Steve Dibble and Andy Ehrenzeller, which wrapped up the first night of racing.

Day Two - Sunday

#19 Jason Dunkelberger dominated Motorama on his Lost Creek Cycles' Yamaha YFZ450.

The normally flawless program at Motorama would be interrupted several times on Sunday as the announcer’s booth was cut from power by the fire alarm, which sparked off some spectator anger as they were forced to evacuate the arena. After determining it was a false alarm, the spectators repacked the arena for the final day of racing.

The start of the Amateur Production class had the riders charging hard into the first turn with several of them getting tangled up, which resulted in the race being red flagged, which forced a restart of the race. Among those upside down in the first turn was Daryl Mallow, but in the restart, he would put his Honda out front and take the win. Jason Dunkelberger would have a repeat performance on Sunday by winning both the Open and Production Expert classes followed by Andy Ehrenzeller and Steve Dibble in both classes as these three riders dominated the competition.

The Hostetter family produced yet another great weekend of racing. This year’s Motorama introduced many new events as well as the expansion of previous events. If you missed it this year, be sure to catch the event next year on February 17th or 18th. For more information on events, visit www.motoramaevents.com

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