Back On Track: at Red Bud
By: Ryan Webb

As you went up the hill, you came to a right 180 that took you back down the hill to a left 180 that took you up a large hill that was a huge uphill jump that dropped off below you. As the pros jumped down the hill they had probably traveled about 100 feet. That's pretty big when there is nothing in front of you but the blue sky. When they reached the bottom, there was a short straight that took you into a bermed left 90. That took you up the side of a small hill and into a right 180 back down the hill. After you got down the hill, you had better build up some speed to carry through the left bermed 180, because you come out of that and look ahead to LaRocco's Leap. Now for those of you, who have never seen the Leap before, it is a very large uphill triple. This triple is something that you might never see an atv do. That's right this is something that the pros weren't making. This is a 115 foot triple from tip to tip. However, what makes this so impressive is the fact that the lip of the triple is about seven feet higher than the launch. Pretty much all of the pros were doing the double that measures out about 45 feet. However, the landing is still about four feet higher than the lip of the launch. The Leap will be one of those things that may show itself to be just out of reach for the quads.

After they doubled the leap, they would single the triple and then make a left 180 and head somewhat down the hill to the new 90 foot tabletop that had never been a part of the track before this year. Upon landing they would continue downhill and make a hard right 180 and head into the whoop section of the track. This is another new attraction that many of the riders had hoped would some day be added into the track layout of Red Bud. They added them and when they did they decided to go big. These were some of the biggest whoops on the circuit. They were about 200 feet long and were a little more than knee deep with dirt. Many of the riders were having some trouble in practice getting their lines down on these bad boys. However, come race time they had them planned out and running great. After the whoops, you come to a very tight 180 to the left followed by a tight sweeping right 180. After that you come up into the finish line tabletop and started down across the starting straight into a high-left bermed 90 that took you back into the first little straight section.

Just to recap, this track is not for the faint of heart. If you are not going to go big at Red Bud, you would probably be better off not going at all. Red Bud is one of the more challenging tracks on the circuit, but it is also one of the most fun tracks to be involved with. They have some nice high-speed straights and some great jumps. Add in the new set of huge whoops and you have a beautiful track that is laid out good for both riders and fans. Red Bud will definitely get your blood pumping as you see some of the best racing that has taken place all year.