Rubbin's Racin'

Long before Travis got to the stadium, fans were sizing up the rivalry between he and former motocross champ, Ricky Carmichael. The last time the pair was pitted against each other, they had 2-wheels instead of four and a supercross track instead of a dirt oval.

Practice one and qualifying heavily favored Carmichael, who's familiarity with the racing style showed as he outpaced Travis by 0.5 seconds. Travis came charging back with some consistent laps in his feature, smiling as he climbed out of the car.

The main event started with Travis spinning before the green flag even went out. It was probably for the best, maybe some pre-race jitters, because from that point on, Pastrana was an animal. While Jimmie Johnson led a flawless race up front, 14 cautions in 30 laps gave Pastrana enough track time to dial in his lines. Carmichael on the other hand, found his way backwards into the clutches of Travis after a spin-out hindered his steering. The two played cat and mouse, giving every motocross fan exactly what they'd hoped for. At one point, Travis even jumped over the front of Carmichael's car, after Ricky got a little out of shape.

While the race seemed like something out of a Hollywood script, so was the ending. On the final restart, with one lap to go, a rock popped up and hit an exposed kill-switch on Pastrana's car. As the checkered-flag waved, Travis' #199 rolled to a stop at the exit of turn 2. He was credited with 19th after being penalized 3 laps for passing on a caution, a rookie mistake that Travis shrugged off. Carmichael, who was trailing Pastrana when his engine quit, finished in 15th.

The race format being team-focused meant that the charity Travis raced for, Levine Children's Hospital, benefitted from the combined finishes of 6 drivers. Fortunately for Travis, the rest of his team crushed it and Team Levine took home the overall win.

06.09.2010