Road Trippin': Budds Creek, Maryland

June 23, 2004

Story and photos by Brett Dailey

Where are the dangerous supercross obstacles? Heck, even I could ride that track!

Pierce Chamberlain raced his first AMA National at Budds Creek this past weekend. Entering a U.S. National these days is not as easy as it sounds. In the good old days, pro riders from Canada could simply show up on Sunday morning and sign in like they were going to a local event. Pierce has been trying to get into an AMA National for a while now but has been unable to get his name on the entry list.

After winning a D12 Loretta’s qualifier a few weeks ago, Pierce found out some good news: he was in for Budds Creek. Although he had not been to the track before, he was thrilled to try his hand at his first AMA national. John Nelson of Machine Racing decided to make the trip south to support his rider and I had never been to Budds Creek before so I jumped at the chance to tag along. After a 10-hour drive in Nelson’s bling-bling GMC, we arrived excited and ready – albeit a bit nervous.

Saturday practice

The track was not filled with tons of supercross obstacles like some of our national and provincial tracks. It was very wide and it had a natural, old-school feel to it. John and I stood by the side of the track feeling like we wanted to suit up and try the track. I don’t get that feeling when I see some of today’s supercross-style outdoor tracks.

In Saturday’s practice sessions, Pierce set lap times that put him around 40th in the field. He would have to rely on good starts and find a little more speed to make the 40-man gate on Sunday. The pre-qualifiers were cancelled for the 125-class so we prepped the bike and settled into a nasty Super 8 for the night.

Sunday Qualifiers

Troy Adams won the first qualifier over Brock Sellards and Brett Metcalfe. Other notable riders in the qualifier were: Gavin Gracyk, Matthew Goerke, Greg Schnell, Teddy Maier and Matt Barnes.

Pierce was seeded into the 2nd qualifier and needed a good start to finish inside the top 13 to transfer to the main event. A strong starter, Pierce spun on the concrete and rounded the first corner in an unfamiliar position, close to dead-last. He made a few key passes on the first lap and got himself close to the top 13. He charged for the entire race and passed #357 David Hill on the last lap to finish 12th, earning a spot in the program.

Looking relaxed and confident in the pits, Pierce had already met his goal of making the program. While Bill and John prepped Pierce’s YZ250F, I checked out the balance of the qualifiers. The 125-class is definitely stacked this year. Quite a few big names failed to qualify in the 125 last chance qualifier including, #53 Robert Kiniry, #65 Richie Owens, #378 Matt Barnes, #158 Justin Buckelew, #263 Sean Collier, #128 Jimmy Wilson, #80 Joshua Summey and #685 Tucker Hibbert. Pierce was pitting out of his Dad’s truck and trailer while the majority of the names listed above were in big rigs.

Moto 1

I was surprised to see Pierce grab such a poor start in his qualifier so I eagerly awaited a strong start for the first moto. He lined up beside Greg Schnell but appeared to spin off the gate once again and came through the first corner near the back of the pack. He found himself in about 30th place and he was under pressure every lap of the moto! He kept his head down and posted consistent laps, moving up to 26th by the end of the moto. He stayed on the lead lap and finished only 3 seconds behind Ryan Hughes to give you an idea of the depth.

Moto 2

For the second moto, Pierce lined up beside Ryan Hughes and was determined to grab a good start and try to run with the top 10 for a few laps. His plan did not work out as he found himself near the back of the pack once again. He charged until the end of the moto (he was surprised that he didn’t get overly tired) and finished a respectable 25th.

It was a successful outing for Pierce. He gained a lot of experience and confidence and he is looking forward to testing his skills at more AMA Nationals. Perhaps the best news came on Wednesday after Budds Creek. Pierce’s entry for Red Bud was dropped a few weeks ago due to too many riders. Bill Chamberlain received word from the AMA that he is back on the roster. Determination, effort and hard work does pay dividends.

Double-B: John Nelson gasses up the crew cab dualie.

Chamberlain came down early to race on Friday and won the A class.

The big leagues: You have to beat a few double digit guys if you want to make the program.

Happy Father's day Dad, I made the program.

You don't see this too often at our Ontario provincials - Pierce starting at the back of the pack.

Pierce ate roost throughout the entire first moto. He didn't fade and ended up 26th.

Talk about intimidating, Chamberlain lines up beside Ryan Hughes for moto 2.

Moto 2 featured another poor start but Pierce's lap times improved and he finshed 25th.

Pierce is now looking forward to Red Bud (his favourite track) on July 4th.

Moto 1 and 2 lap times. His lap times improved in the 2nd moto but Pierce is determined to work on his speed now that he has graduated from high school and can focus full-time (he wrote his final exam on Tuesday). Yes, Bubba lapped him in the 2nd moto.