My Blog

 NBL / UCI Golden State Nationals

Day & Stumpy move up in Elite Standings

05.20.07 -- Prunedale, CA,

Attendance: 8,700

GT PARTICIPANTS:

Randy Stumpfhauser:
Day One: Elite Men: 5th (semi)
Day Two: Elite Men: 1st

Mike Day:
Day One: Elite Men: 2nd
Elite Open: DNQ
Day Two: Elite Men: 3rd
Elite Open: DNQ

Joey Bradford:
Day One: Jr. Men: 1st
Day Two: Jr. Men: 1st
Elite Open: 5th


Eric Rupe:
Day One: Elite Masters: 3rd
Masters Open: DNQ
Day Two: Elite Masters: 2nd
Masters Open: DNQ


One of Randy’s favorite tracks on the NBL circuit is the one in Prunedale, CA. This weekend, as for almost every weekend that there had been a race here, Randy would show just how much he likes it. He smoked the competition in the heat races both days looking like he was definitely the guy to beat come main time. Unfortunately, in his semi final on Saturday, he got pushed off the side of the track while in qualifying position. The ended his chances at the win right then. Sunday would be a different story, as he blitzed his way through the motos, the semi AND the main event. Great job Stump!


Mike Day had a really good weekend at the Golden State Nationals. He rode smooth and with precision to make the Elite Men’s final both days. In those mains, he really put on a show of skill as he seemingly passed guys at will to finish second on Saturday and third on Sunday. With those strong finishes, Mike has put himself in NBL National Championship Title contention. His next NBL event will be the South Park race. Mike has done really well there in the past and should move even further up in the Elite Men’s standings after that. Stay tuned.


Joey Bradford has really been looking good this season and this weekend would be no exception. Having a bit of a local track advantage wouldn’t help his competition any either. Joey was making it look easy all weekend as he totally annihilated the Jr. Men’s class both days. On Sunday he raced in the Elite Open class with the big boys and was the only Jr to make the final. In that main, he had a really good start, but unfortunately came unclipped from the pedal about three strokes out of the gate. He came back from dead last to finish fifth, but was REALLY disappointed. No worries, as he has shown that when the time comes, he’s gonna make one fine Elite class rider.


Big Daddy Rupe was looking and feeling much better than last weekend when he had to race all weekend with a sore lower back. Here at the NBL Golden State Nationals in Prunedale, CA, he made it through the heat races with ease to earn a spot in the Elite Masters final both days. In those finals, he rode consistent and smart as he took a third place on Saturday and an even more impressive second place on Sunday. With younger and faster vet riders coming into the class all the time, it’s harder and harder to finish near the top. With his GT Ultrabox under him, Rupe keeps earning spots on the podium even at age 40+.



See Randy Stumpfhauser, Mike Day, Joey Bradford, Eric Rupe and GT next, at the ABA Spring Nationals in Albuquerque, NM on May 25-27, 2007.

The GT BMX Team is proud to be sponsored by:
Kenda, Sun Rims, Fly Racing, OGIO, SDG, SRAM, RSP Products, and Pearl Izumi.

GT BICYCLES ABA NOR CAL RACE RPORT

Attendance: 12,500

GT PARTICIPANTS:

Randy Stumpfhauser:
Day One: AA Pro: 5th (semi)
Day Two: AA Pro: 1st

Mike Day:
Day One: AA Pro: 7th (semi)
Day Two: AA Pro: 3rd
Pro Open: 8th

Joey Bradford:
Day One: A Pro: 1st
Day Two: A Pro: 1st Pro Open: 1st


Eric Rupe:
Day One: Vet Pro: 8th
Day Two: Vet Pro: 8th



Randy has been in a bit of a slump for the past few events and looked to make the ABA Nor Cal Nationals the weekend that the slump ends. As it turned out, on Saturday his slump continued as he BLAZED through the motos with huge leads, but couldn’t get past the semi finals. Come semi time, he got a bad gate start and found himself playing catch up. A fifth place at the line was all he could manage, as he would then have to watch the mains from the side lines. Sunday would be the day the slump would end. As usual, he smoked his way through the heats and was faced, yet again, with the dreaded “semi main”. He got an “okay” start and was third heading into the first turn. After a tangle up of some other riders, he was sitting pretty in a solid transfer spot and made the main event. Slump over! Now he could focus on the task at hand and worry about “winning” instead of just “making” the main. That’s exactly what he did, as he blistered the track and went on to finish with a 1-2-1 score for an impressive overall win. Nice job Stump!


Mike Day is by far one of THEE most talented and skilled riders in BMX. The Nor Cal Nationals track didn’t give him much of a chance to showcase those skills, but that didn’t stop him from giving the fans a good show. He was passing guys left and right as he made the AA Pro semi on Saturday. In that semi, he was running in fifth heading into the last turn with only one real shot at making a pass for fourth. Not being a dirty rider, he chose not to blast Bubba Harris (Redline) over the last turn, which would mean that Mike would have to watch the mains with Stumpy, from the side lines. On Sunday Mike would make up for it by making the main by riding smart and consistent. In the three mains, he finished with a 4-4-3 that earned him a well deserved third place overall for the day and a place on the podium. Good job Mike.


Joey Bradford has been recovering from a lower back injury he suffered at the Winter Nationals a couple of months ago, but now looks like he is 100%. He smoked everyone in almost every lap this weekend of the A-Pro class INCLUDING the main events. He went on to finish 1-1-1 in those mains both Saturday AND Sunday. Congratulations Joey you are now officially the newest member of the AA Pro class. If you are wondering how Joey will do in that class, a good measure might be of how well he did in the Pro Open class on Sunday at the Nor Cal Nationals. After making the main and being the only single A Pro in it, he had an awesome start, blazed the first straight, was first into turn one and never looked back. He looked like he’d been there before and wasn’t afraid to take it to the other AA Pros. He’s gonna make a fine AA Pro. Good job Joey.


Big Daddy Rupe was looking and feeling good during practice on Friday. He was riding the new UB2 prototype carbon frame and was sure getting lots of compliments on it from the fans as well as the competition. Come Saturday morning though, he was suffering from a strain in his lower back that would subsequently cause him to ride mid pack most of the weekend. He managed to dig deep enough to qualify for the Vet Pro mains each day, but it was all he could do just to ride the track and keep up with the pack. Not a great showing for the winningest Vet Pro of all time, but being in the finals each day is no easy task in the Vet class.


See Randy Stumpfhauser, Mike Day, Joey Bradford, Eric Rupe and GT next, at the NBL/UCI Golden State Nationals in Prunedale, CA on May 19-20, 2007.

The GT BMX Team is proud to be sponsored by:
Kenda, Sun Rims, Fly Racing, OGIO, SDG, SRAM, RSP Products, and Pearl Izumi.