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Let me be the first one to say this season was Awesome

The season got off to a slow start with races being cancelled due to rain and snow, but once it got moving it was a really fun one.

This was my second season running in the 700 class and I set my goal to go for the championship, little did I know at the time that I was going to have a tough battle on my hands. The 700 line had a lot of tough competitors this year, some came back from last season but there were also some new faces. Chris, Chad, Ryan, Silva, Dave, Devon .......... those are just a few of the guys that made this season a memorable one for me. Every time we lined up it was a battle, not just for a lap or 2, but for the whole race.

A few high points from my season, not in any specific order:
- Milford 1 - Took my first holeshot in the 700 class, only to lose first about 3/4 of a mile in by blowing a corner!
- Ryan chewing me out for parking an RV in front of his camper at Big Springs and blocking his view, only to later realize it wasn't my RV and apologizing later in the day!
- My first 700 Class win at Warrensburg!
- Second 700 Class win at Merwin, with Silva 10 feet off my rear fender the whole race!
- First series race at Thurman, that place is awesome and we need to race it again!

I met a lot of new people this season and made a lot of new friends. We can bang bars on the course and sit around a bs about it afterwards, that's what makes this series great.

Overall, I had my best year yet, and ended the season on top (barely, thanks for the pressure Chad!). There is my other high point for the season, 700 Class Champion!

Thanks to all the land owners, everyone who helped set up our courses, the people in the scoring trailer and of course Dan! Your the man and help make this series what it is.

It's a wrap! See you guys at the Banquet in January

(Now I have a few months to get this whole 500 class thing figured out!)

I'll have to agree with Scott this season was a blast! First and foremost thanks to the guys that make this all happen including Dan, Tim, Perry and all the land owners and whoever else I am for getting Not to forget to mention the scoring ladies for making sign up go smooth unlike when Jace is back there I started the year off in the B class with the hopes of moving up to the A Class after running away with the first race in B and racing a few other series in the A class I decided to make the jump to the A class at Big Springs I had no idea what I got myself into that was a fast group of guys I barely had time to breathe the first race! Never had a race where I was either on someone's rear wheel or they were on mine for a whole race it was a blast The rest of the season proved to be much more of the same close fun clean racing Like Scott said above we were all able to race each other hard the whole race then turn around and be friends off the track The new location in Thurman was awesome hands down race of the year really hoping to see it back on the schedule for 2014 Not only was the season great for racing but I made a lot of new friend and became better friends with quite a few to including Mr. And Mrs. Stretz congrats on the marriage by the way Another cool thing about this year was setting up at Drexel and Merwin Rj and Chuck Martin are both great guys who are fun and easy to help out I would recommend to those who haven't or don't help at the races to do so it's actually a lot of fun and you can learn to appreciate these events a lot more by seeing how much effort goes into each event! Overall this season was great I ended up 7th in the A Class and 10th overall, met all my goals for the year and learned a lot. Once again thanks to Dan the man Johnson and company for all you guys do for us and our series it wouldn't be what it is without you guys!

Ryan Grun #255

I would also like to thank Dan Johnson and all of the others that work behind the scenes to make this series what it is. I started off moving up to B this year to see if I can get any faster. After some rough races it started to take shape. Racing with Daron, Remy, and Colin all year was a blast. We had some close races together. Thurman is my pick for race of the year. It was fast flowing and the elevation changes were a blast. I really felt fast there. I was glad to finally get a good finish at El Dorado getting 2nd and 15 OA. One of my best races of my young career. Another favorite moment of mine was racing my old man Mark Shafer at WB 1 and 2. I was mimicking laps behind him all day on the 2nd race until the last lap I ran him down and finally got him. It was my first time beating him straight up, and I will remember that day for a while. So cheers to another fun year and I can't wait for the next to start.

Thanks again to all to help make this racing season the best ever for me too. I remember getting 1st place my Trailrider year and I was hooked. I always go into each race with an attack plan in my mind of what to do and what not to do. When the sign drops I naturally scratch the attack plan an end up improvising with the race as it unfolds. It was truly an electric - hair raising - goose bump producing season and going bar to bar with my row... Joe, Randy, Todd, Chris, Mike, Jim and Mr Ed. It is truly an honor lining up against you guys.

I also really must mention this one more time, running Carbondale against Paul was ....well...uh...frummph....crazy. I figure let him do a lap as he really wasn't slowing me down as I figure he is just getting a feel for the track and just wants to see it at race speed...ya know? Then after getting heckled at scoring I realize I got to put him down and move on...enough is enough. I click it up a couple of notches to show Paul I aint just playin any more and I attack him, rode him, squeezed him, click it up to ELEVEN, polished his rear fender, run him down, run him up, pin it in the straights, rail him in the corners, get on the throttle early out of the turns and... and... he just goes faster! WTH? After crashing myself and loosing a good deal of plastic, Meeting more than one pine tree and learning their family tree, damaging my chest protector, dropping the goggles and Paul is apparently completely unaware that I even exist! How cool is that! I realize that this dude has more than a couple of races under his belt. It was screwing with my head because at every place he could and even a few places he couldn't he would just pop off the track and let me have a clear path and my 3 hunny couldn't take his Fisher Price 125. It was down right humiliating! I was laughing inside my helmet!

I saw him just after the race. I came up on his his side and I yell out "HEY!". He whips around ready for anything. I say "Hey Paul! I just want you to know!!! Well, that you still got game my man!" He looks me up and down, looks at my number plate and goes from being bent slightly to the front and one shoulder higher that the other to standing straight up, a smile as big as Texas and flashes me those pearly whites and says "Well I held you off as long as I could!" He looked like he lost 20 years in 2 seconds. I know he had more in him if he wanted to turn it on, I know it.

I'm just saying I'm glad to be here at FMHSC right now and get to be around all you guys reading this because your as passionate about racing weekends, camping out, sharing parts, gas, air, help, and an ear for listening sometimes when necessary.

And Joe thanks for one hell of ride this year. Win, loose or draw, we always have our 2 cokes after every race and BS about the race. Sometimes we hang around and cook steaks.

Scott.........Your an animal!

As always I'm sorry, I just didn't have much to say!

Now it's time to pay up for that Axle nut at Walters Ranch!!!

Actually I paid Bart the very next open day after we got your nut off and he said he would put the new nut back on the showroom model that he removed to give to you. They are so cool about keeping their boys on the track!

(hee hee hee... he said "got your nut off")

Thanks to everybody who made this season happen. The 500 class was a cool bunch of guys. The competition was a lot of fun.

Well this was my first year of racing and it was awesome! Can't wait for next year.
If was great meeting and getting to know everybody and being part of the forward motion family. A big thanks to Dan and all the people that put in the long hours and make it such a success.
Sundays without racing really suck!!