This past Sunday while MXPTV was filming and shooting away, we kept our eye out for the best riders of the day to be featured in this week’s Top Riders feature. Â Here’s what riders (we thought) stood out on the day at the opening round of the Northeast Classic and Xtreme Motocross Series at Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey.
Photos by Katie McKenna/MXPTV
New York pro Jay Weller kicked off his 2011 season at Raceway Park on his Kawasaki KX450F with a strong showing in the Open A class grabbing the 2-1 overall win over fellow New Yorker Sal Calamita. Â The 2 had some battling going on during their motos until Sal DNF’d his way out of the 2nd Open A moto but Weller seemed more in control and consistent throughout his motos and leaving everyone else way behind.
New Jersey native Mike Pettit was another top rider making his start on the 2011 season at Raceway Park. Pettit competed in the Schoolboy classes and ended up sweeping the Schoolboy 12-16 2 stroke class. Â But in the Schoolboy 14-16 4 stroke class, Pettit placed runner up with a 3-1 as New Yorker Kevin Tompkins threw down a 1-2 to earn the overall. Â Pettit looked very fast on his home track and looks forward to a fun 2011 season.
Probably the most exciting rider to watch all day long was Long Island’s Sal Calamita.  Calamita has shown great speed at Raceway Park in the past and this time, he sure brought it with him thanks to a lot of riding during the off season.  Calamita, who I’ve seen in the past to be very fast on the 2 stroke machines, had a “not brand-new” Honda CR250 to contest in the 250 A and Open A classes.  Calamita swept the 250 A class 1-1 with no problem but with an already under-powered machine and one of the fastest Northeast privateers (Jay Weller) to go up against, Calamita had his hands full for sure.  Calamita ended up battling with Weller during the first moto for a couple of laps before pulling a small gap at the end to win the moto straight up over Weller.  In moto 2, Weller had the holeshot and Calamita was dicing through riders left and right and caught up to Weller.  As Weller kept his head down, Calamita put everything he had in the first few laps which ended up tiring him out late in the moto as he made a series of mistakes and even hopped off the track at one point.  Then, with a couple of laps to go, Calamita made a mistake at the end of the finish line rhythm section that saw him fly off his bike and land on another rider’s bike that was pulled over to the side.  Calamita got up but didn’t finish the race.  Despite that, keep your eye out for the #301 wherever you go.
New England export Jacob Beaudoin has been hopping around the country catching all the amateur nationals the past few years. Â So, unlike Weller and Pettit who put in their first races of the year, Beaudoin was already warmed up and ready to roll. Â Beaudoin took the win in the 85 (9-11) class with a 1-1 sweep and a second overall in the Junior Mini (9-13) class behind Pennsylvania’s Schae Thomas. Â Jacob’s brother, Justin, was also racing as he trailed Jacob the entire day with a two 3rd place finishes in the 85 (9-11) and Junior Mini (9-13) classes.
Just two weeks ago at the LL area qualifier at Raceway Park, New Jersey’s Jeremy Smith was the most dominant rider and once again, he does the same by sweeping the 85 (12-15) and Supermini (12-16) classes at this weekend’s Northeast Classic and XMS race. Â Smith is easily the rider to beat in these classes. Â Smith also raced the Schoolboy (14-16) 4 stroke class on his Honda CRF150 and finished 2-2 behind the fast Mike Pettit.
Nick Desiderio put in another usual day at the office at Raceway Park sweeping the 250 B class ahead of Jesse Pierce, Jason Astudillo, and the rest of the fast group of B racers. Â With the B class staggered with the A class, Desiderio caught up and past most of the 250 A field in his motos. Â Desiderio is more than capable with his speed to do damage in the A class but it’s all about Loretta Lynn’s for the 5-7 this year.
Young George Doherty swept the 65 7-9 class with ease at Raceway Park. Â Solid speed and control was all he needed to get the win. Â Plus, George was running some MXPTV stickers on his bike so he’s automatically a top rider to us!
Yes, Barry Carsten dominated the Vet classes at Raceway Park. Â Is that a shocker or what?
Pennsylvania’s Schae Thomas has been at it at the local races in the PA, NJ, and NY area for some time. Â He’s also been to the ranch at Loretta’s before and this year, he’s looking faster than ever with great starts (great call Mr. Veety) and just fast all the way around. Â Thomas beat out national caliber rider Jacob Beaudoin in the Junior Mini (9-13) class at Raceway Park, which was not a shock but a surprise win for Thomas. Â With a new number this year, it could be a new and improved Schae Thomas for 2011.
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