This was another big weekend for Texas Devil Racing. It was Evan’s first Minimoto Jr race and his first race on his new GRC minimoto. The new bike also meant new mechanical challenges for Miles. He was dealing with engine flooding issues all morning, and it kept Evan off his new bike for the first two practice sessions. He went out on his Blata in the morning, and then switched over to the GRC once it was ready. Unfortunately, Miles forgot to remind Evan that the hydraulic brakes on his GRC are much more sensitive than the cable brakes on his Blata before he went out. His second lap into his first practice session on the GRC, he grabbed a handful of brake going into turn 1 and locked up the rear wheel. The back end slithered back and forth for about 10 feet before pitching him over the handlebars. It was a pretty hard crash, definitely his hardest so far, and Evan was pretty shaken up. Evan got back out on the track that afternoon, but it was obvious that his confidence had been shaken.
On Saturday, Evan gained a little more confidence during each practice session, but still wasn’t back to his old self. However, once the pressure of his qualifying session was on his shoulders, he made the greatest improvement he had made since the crash. He ended up qualifying on the second row all the way to the inside, which wasn’t a bad starting position for him.
Evan was excited for race day and his first Minimoto Jr race. His first race was underway before he knew it. Evan got a decent start and settled into fifth, keeping his qualifying position. He stayed in fifth place for the entire race, but dropped his lap times substantially. Minimoto Jr race 2 was much of the same with Evan starting and finishing in fifth place, and again slightly improving his lap times. It was a challenging weekend, but Evan is excited to rise to the occasion and loves his new Minimoto Jr bike. The whole team is looking forward to a great season!