Tough Day on the Clay for the Estenson Racing Twins Team
The 3/8-mile clay track at Weedsport Speedway presented challenges for Estenson Racing’s Twins team and its newly developed dirt tracker at round nine of the American Flat Track AFT Twins Championship, the New York Short Track. Jake Johnson crossed the line 15th, while teammates Roger Hayden and Kolby Carlile just missed the transfer spot into the Main Event.
Johnson led the way for the team all day, but across the board, all three members of the team were struggling on the slick track. Hayden and Carlile both put in a solid effort in their respective Semi races, but they were unable to transfer to the Main Event.
The two-time Grand National Champion was able to finish sixth in his Semi to get that transfer spot, but that still gave him a less-than-ideal starting position on the third row of the grid. With cooler temperatures and some track prep before the AFT Twins Main Event, Johnson was hoping that would play into his favor. Unfortunately, the track was still not ideal for Johnson and his machine and, no matter what he tried, 15th was the best result for the day.
There’s a two-week break before heading to Sturgis, South Dakota, for the Buffalo Chip TT on Sunday, August 4, and the Estenson Racing team looks to put in the hours and continue making forward progress.
Jake Johnson — AFT Twins #5:
“The day was going okay. We were a little off pace all day. Going out for the main event, I knew it was going to be tough starting on the third row. They went out and watered the track right before we went out. I thought that was going to help us, but it made the track greasy and just made it bad for me. I tried what I could, but nothing I tried worked. I’m looking forward to the next one, the Buffalo Chip TT. I think we should be good there. We’ve got some work to do in this time off. Hopefully we’ll get something figured out.”
Roger Hayden — AFT Twins #195:
“I struggled all day with trying to get the bike to hook up. Actually, the Semi was when I felt the best, but we still missed the Main by one spot. I tried to pass the guy on the last lap to get in, but I just couldn’t get the bike to stop. I’m a little disappointed, but I feel like I learned a lot on how to ride really slick tracks. That’s just something I don’t have a lot of time on. It was a difficult day, but the team worked hard. We threw a bunch of stuff at it, but we’ve just got to try to get better for the next one.”
Kolby Carlile — AFT Twins #136:
“It was cool being home in New York. I can’t give a big enough shout-out to my mechanic and crew chief. They worked really hard today, it’s just a new bike that needs more development. On the TT’s, we can get by, and on some of these tracks it’s just tougher for us. If you look in the main event, there were 12 Indians, two Harleys, one Yamaha and one Kawasaki. So there’s proof in the pudding right there. We’re making headway, but it’s just tough. We’ll put our heads down and keep moving forward.”
More, from another press release issued by Estenson Racing:
Wells Walks Away with Points After a Tough Day at Weedsport
Estenson Racing’s Ryan Wells crossed the line 13th on Saturday night, July 13th, to salvage points in American Flat Track’s AFT Singles Championship at the New York Short Track at Weedsport Speedway.
The day started out well for the New Yorker who was fastest in practice aboard his Estenson Racing Yamaha YZ450F. Unfortunately, the 3/8-mile clay short track threw some curveballs at Wells and his crew, and he was unable to find the comfort zone that he had earlier in the day. He qualified 10th and went on to finish fourth in his Heat and seventh in his Semi, which put the 2016 AFT Singles Champion on the third row of the grid in the Main Event. Wells got off to a good start and made some passes early on, but got shuffled back and ultimately ran a lonely race to the checkers in 13th.
The Estenson Racing squad gets a two-week break before heading to Sturgis, South Dakota, for the Buffalo Chip TT on Sunday, August 4.
Ryan Wells — AFT Singles #94:
“It’s definitely a bummer, especially since we came out of the truck swinging. We were the fastest qualifier in free practice and then it kind of seemed like we just went downhill from there. It sucks. I felt really good riding. Once the track got slick and blue-grooved, I didn’t seem to be able to do anything with it. I got off to a decent start from the third row in the main event. Made a few first-, second-lap passes, but slowly worked my way backwards and spent most of the race by myself. It definitely wasn’t for a lack of effort, Nick [Daniels] and I both, we know we tried our butts off. It just wasn’t our day.”
More, from a press release issued by Red Bull KTM:
DAN BROMLEY PUTS THE RED BULL KTM ON THE PODIUM AT NEW YORK SHORT TRACK
Round 10 – American Flat Track Championship – July 15, 2019
WEEDSPORT, N.Y. – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Dan Bromley captured his fifth podium of the season on Saturday with a solid third at the New York Short Track in Weedsport, New York for Round 10 of the 2019 American Flat Track Championship. His teammate, Shayna Texter, followed close behind with a top-five finish in the highly competitive AFT Singles Main Event.
Bromley qualified sixth earlier in the day, which gave him a front row start for AFT Singles Heat 1. In the heat, he powered his KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION to the holeshot and led every lap of the race. In the semi, Bromley grabbed a second-place start and worked his way into the lead on lap five. From there, he maintained his position to secure the win and carry a great start position into the Main Event. In the main, Bromley grabbed another holeshot and led the first two laps of the race. On lap three, he got passed by his teammate, Texter, and from there he continued to battle for the lead from the second-place position. With five laps to go, Bromley was passed by KTM-mounted rider, Morgan Mischler, but he continued to fight all the way to the checkers, ultimately finishing third in the Main Event.
Dan Bromley: “I’m happy to get back on the podium and gather valuable championship points in Weedsport! I feel like we made improvements all day and ended the night with a solid podium finish. I’m looking forward to a few weeks off to regroup and then get back to racing in Sturgis.”
Coming off a big win at the last round, Texter looked to continue her momentum with another great performance in New York. She captured the seventh fastest time in the first qualifying session but ultimately came in 14th with the combined times. Lining up in AFT Singles Heat 2, Texter got off to a fourth-place start and worked her way into third by lap three, where she ultimately finished in the heat. In the semi, she got off to a fourth-place start and quickly climbed into third on lap two. She held strong to secure another third-place finish to obtain a front-row start for the Main Event. She powered her KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITON to a good start in the main, settling into second early on behind her teammate. She was able to overtake Bromley on lap three to hold onto the lead for a couple laps before losing her footing and getting shuffled back to fourth on lap five. Texter maintained fourth all the way up to the second-to-last lap, when she made a mistake in turn two and the bike spun up and sideways, allowing another rider to get by. In the end, Texter was able to secure a top-five finish in the Main Event, which is a step in the right direction as she sits just outside the top-five in the overall championship standings with eight rounds to go.
Shayna Texter: “This was one of the tracks on the schedule that I was pretty nervous about because I struggled here last year and it’s one of my weaknesses as far as shape and style of a race track – it’s hard for me being so short. To come out of there with a fifth place is a huge improvement from last year and it really gets me excited for the future. I’m looking forward to heading back out west, we’ll continue to work and show that I’ve been making progress with the TTs.”
Next Race: August 4, 2019 – Buffalo Chip TT – Sturgis, South Dakota
AFT Singles Main Event
1. Dalton Gauthier, HQV
2. Morgen Mischler, KTM
3. Dan Bromley, KTM
4. Kevin Stollings, HON
5. Shayna Texter, KTM
OTHER KTM
17. Tristan Avery, KTM
AFT Singles Point Standings
1. Dalton Gauthier, 169 points
2. Mikey Rush, 156
3. Dan Bromley, 151
OTHER KTM
6. Shayna Texter, 108
8. Morgen Mischler, 90
11. Tristan Avery, 64