A technical track, which will act as the stage for the sixth fixture on the Monster Energy Supercross calendar, lies ahead of me as I type this. Although we are again overshadowed by downtown San Diego, this round has a slightly different feel. Military appreciation is the theme for one week only, so a lot of riders and teams have embraced it and are showing their support with custom graphics and gear.
The track crew are a little restricted in baseball stadiums, such as this one, so the circuit here does not stray too far from what we would stereotypically see. There are two triples, two smaller sets of whoops and a sand section. One element that stands out, however, is the return of the right hand first turn! It typically makes it tough on the riders, as it is more difficult to get on the back brake and also get your leg out. This one is a little longer than what we had at Anaheim 2, however, so should be a little safer.
The track is almost exactly the same as what you would have seen on the track map, but some of the rhythm sections are a little shorter. There are just six jumps before the final turn, for example, rather than the seven that were put in the initial design. It seems that going triple, triple through there will be too tough, because of the triple in, so double, triple, single should end up being the most used line. The sand section features some waves also, rather than jumps.
Some excitement has been injected into the 450SX class this week, thanks to the return of Blake Baggett, Trey Canard, Justin Bogle and Andrew Short. Those four riders should make it tougher on some of the privateers to break into the main, but one or two spots should still be available.
Free practice will get underway very soon, so we would recommend tuning into our various social media channels. We’ll be back with an update after practice!
Words: Lewis Phillips | Image: Sean Ogden
