Unlike last race, which was on the soft and muddy side, the ground was hardpacked and dry-slick. There was some dust out in the field sections, but in the woods the trees and shade had kept the ground just damp enough to keep the race from being a dustbowl. This was also the first really hot race of the year, with temperatures creeping into the 80s during both of the AM races. There were a total of 127 females racing this weekend, the largest women’s turnout so far. Of those, Kate Osburn took home her first win and Becca Sheets kept her four-round winning streak intact in the premier WXC classes.

The ATV WXC race got off to a very exciting start, as Alicia McCormick came into to the first corner too hot and got tangled up with Traci Pickens. Meanwhile, Sadiee Gorrell took the holeshot and was followed into the woods by Abbi Troy and Hannah Hunter. By the end of the first lap, Kate Osburn had worked her way into the lead. Pickens had recovered from the rough start and was only a few seconds out of the lead. Hunter was still in 3rd. The second pack came through about thirty seconds later, and was comprised of Morgan Solesbee, Angel Magee, McCormick, Sydney Sams and Gorrell, all separated by only a few seconds apiece.

The top three were in the same positions at the end of the second lap but actually came through the scoring zone closer together than they had been before. Despite a course that was a little dusty and relatively tight for the ATVs, McCormick was able to work her way past both Magee and Solesbee, moving into 4th place and catching up to the lead pack. Sams had also moved up along with McCormick and was close behind in 5th.

On lap three, Hunter began experiencing bike issues and fell back into 4th. Osburn and Pickens, meanwhile, were still locked in a tight battle for the lead, with McCormick only a handful of seconds behind them. Sams was still in fifth, but within striking distance of Hunter. Although the top five were still close and battling, the bottom five had spread out and settled into the positions they would finish out the day in. Magee took 6th, followed by Solesbee in 7th and Troy in 8th. Jaida Phillips took 9th after riding near that position most of the race. And although

Gorrell had been off to a promising start, running out of gas on her third lap dropped her back to 10th place, a lap down from the rest of the field.

Pickens made a mistake on the final lap, running a minute slower laptime, which was enough to drop her from second into fourth. After stopping to pit on the final lap, Hunter was able to charge her way back up to Osburn and McCormick, and the three of them engaged in a fierce battle for the win – all of them were leading at various points. When the checkered flag waved though, it was Osburn out front, the way it had been for all three of the previous laps. This was Osburn’s first win, after struggling earlier in the season with a 10th place finish and a pair of thirds. When asked what was different about this race, she said “I went into this round with a fresh bike and a fresh mindset. Early in the season I was struggling with some stuff in my personal life. Racing is mental and if you’re not all in, it shows. I came into this one ready to do what I love and not hold back!”

Hunter finished second and seemed a bit disappointed after her win and overall podium at the General last round: “I ended up second on the day after struggling with some bike issues. I was able to catch back up to Kate [Osburn] on the last lap and battle with her, but she got around me in the end. I finished second, which is not what we wanted, but was still a good points day, considering.” McCormick took a close third, her first podium of the season. She was excited about the finish but sounded more excited just to be back racing again: “After what seemed like forever, we finally got to go racing again and man does it feel good! Life is difficult right now, but for those two hours I just got to focus on the race, and getting to do that really means a lot – so thank you to everyone who helped make it happen!”

In the Girls SR (12-15) Class, Hannah Moore took the win by about thirty seconds, with Emma Propst and Mackenzie Luckadoo finishing neck-and-neck, in second and third, respectively. In the Girls JR (8-11) class, Ava Wolf, competing for the first time this season, was the winner. Khyler Davis finished second, barely edging out points leaded Alyssa Rodgers. Outside of the regular Girls classes, Morgan Johnson had the highest overall finish of all the girls, taking 6th overall and in YXC1. Chloe Harper (10th O/A) also opted to race YXC1, and Madison Harrington (22nd) competed in YXC2. Addisyn Slocum (67th) and Gabryella Whitehead (69th) competed in 70 CVT and 90 Limited.

In the Women’s class, Karlie Martin made it two in a row with a second win at the Bulldog. She now sits fifth in points despite sitting out Wild Boar. Second place once again went to Andrea Rodgers, who is still the current points leader. Jessica Elioff rounded out the podium in third.

In the Micro ATV race, Khyler Davis was the top finishing girl, placing 5th overall. She was followed by Adeline Nicely (21st), Raelynn Dickerson (23rd), Ashlynn Ostrich (29th) and Camy Crump (36th).

In the WXC bike race, Rachel Gutish had a good jump off the start, but overshot the first corner, allowing Mackenzie Tricker to aggressively block pass from the inside. She took her fourth $100 Trail Jesters WXC Holeshot award in a row. They went into the woods, with Becca Sheets and Rachael Archer hot on their tail. Tricker blew a corner early in the lap, putting Gutish out front, but was able to quickly pass her again for the lead with by taking an alternate line in one of the tighter bike-only sections. Gutish went down trying to pass her back, allowing Sheets to move into second. Gutish then came together with Sheets – Sheets stayed up but Gutish went down, allowing Archer into third. By the end of the lap, Gutish had passed Archer again. Tayla Jones had recovered from a crash in the middle of the first lap and passed Archer as well. Sheets worked her way around Tricker and came into the scoring zone in the lead. Heading into lap two, all five were within roughly ten seconds of each other.

Jones passed Gutish early in the second lap, and then passed Tricker as well when her back end slid out. In the ensuing crash, Tricker went down hard, breaking a piece in her clutch that allows it to engage. She rode as best she could with the issue, and her mechanic tried to fix it, but to no avail. Her second lap ended up being her last one, and she dropped well outside the top ten for the day. Meanwhile, Gutish went down a third time, and though her bike remained intact, she was passed by Archer and lost sight of the top three. She rode alone the remainder of the race, finishing 4th. 

There were a few battles still raging in the bottom half of the top ten, but only a few. Brooke Cosner took 5th in her first race aboard her new Sherco 300f. Korie Steede was able to battle her way through the field to take 6th after a dead-last start. Longtime WXC racers Shelby Rolen and Samantha Steiner fought for seventh most of the race, with Rolen coming out on top. Taylor Johnson finished in 9th, a ways back from Steiner, but just barely ahead of motocrosser and road racer Jamie Astudillo, who was was able to pass Elizabeth Perez on the final lap to take 10th place.

On lap three, Sheets ran into a bit of trouble with a lapper, giving Archer the opening she needed to take over the lead. Sheets was still close behind her in second, while Jones had fought though the dust and the lappers and was right on top of them in third. It looked to be an intense battle for the win headed into the final lap. Sheets put her head down and charged, extending her lead significantly, taking her fourth win in as many races. win by just over twenty seconds. Nobody has won all of the first four rounds since 2017 when Tayla Jones had her perfect season, so saying Sheets is off to a good start this season is a bit of an understatement. When asked about it, she replied: “It’s been a really awesome year so far on the Yamaha. I rode Yamahas for a lot of years before my three-year hiatus on KTM. So, I feel really at home on the bike, and the JDP suspension is icing on the cake. We know how to work together and make a really great team!”