Three Podiums At Grand Finale In Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Ross Martin And James Johnstad Combine For Three Podiums At Grand Finale In Lake Geneva, WisconsinThe AMSOIL Championship Snocross Grand Finale in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin is a unique end to the season in that Pro Open competitors have to race three complete programs on consecutive days. For Ross Martin this meant an extended opportunity to showcase his talents to family and friends at his hometown race. Once again he did not disappoint, riding to two podium finishes and just missing a third.
On Friday, Martin struggled with starts, including in the main event but worked from a mid pack launch and through a tough field of front-runners to secure the third spot. Saturday night was looking even more promising as Martin was able to get out to a great start and into the second position. He was maintaining his spot as the laps wound down but then came off his Polaris racer just as it was cresting the massive Lake Geneva downhill. “We were in contention and I just made a mistake, said Martin.” Fortunately Ross was uninjured and the sled stayed upright, however, he had to chase it on foot all the way to the bottom of the hill were he would remount and go on to finish sixth.
James Johnstad kept the team’s podium streak intact on Saturday, finishing third in a hotly contested Pro Lite final in which riders in that class were battling for every last point to determine a season champion. “I followed the leader Ryan Springer for quite a few laps and I was eating a lot of roost and just couldn’t get around him, said Johnstad.” We haven’t been on top of the box since the Fargo national so I was really hungry for a win and to end on a high note going into next year.”
Johnstad would back up his performance on Sunday with a heat race win and a fourth in the final.
Ross Martin completed the weekend with a strong second place in Sunday’s final which was broadcast live on the CBS Sports Network. In what will come to be known as the Tucker Hibbert era, second place is almost as good as a win, but for sure one that the team can go into the off season feeling good about as the result was critical in regaining the fourth overall spot in the championship.
Team Sponsors: Polaris Racing, Axalta, Jack Link’s Meat Snacks, AMSOIL Synthetic Lubricants, Rockstar Energy Drink, Klim, SSi Decals, Fly Racing, Walker Evans Racing, Midwest Industrial Coatings, Inc., Stud Boy Traction Products, Renton Coil Springs, C&A Pro Skis, Jeff Foster Trucking, Airgroup, Hayes Brakes, Kutzler Express, Camoplast, MBL, Champion Spark Plugs, Factory Pipe, Holeshot, Link Ford, CTech, V FORCE, Mo-Flow