American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 223 February 2018 | Page 8

Congratulations Jared Mees- 2017 Cycle News Rider of the Year

It doesn’ t happen often that Cycle News chooses a dirt track racer as its Rider of the Year, but they have given Jared Mees the nod for 2017. It has only occurred twice in the last 24 years: Legendary Scotty Parker back in 1996, and the late, great Ricky Graham in 1993, when RG won a dramatic
Grand National title on a Johnny Goad-tuned Honda after being written off as a has-been. Aided and abetted by tuner, Kenny Tolbert( Chris Carr’ s longtime tuner), owner of 11 Grand National Championship titles Jared Mees posted a number of firsts in 2017- he won the very first Daytona TT; won 10 of 18 races; was the first to win on the new Indian, and the first to capture a Championship for them. Mees became one of the few to win a Grand Slam- winning a TT, short track, half mile and mile in one season, and Mees recorded the most podiums in a season- 17 out of 18.

Daytona TT to be“ Bigger, Better, Faster”

A thorough track redesign made possible by utilizing the NASCAR pit road at Daytona International Speedway as part of the racing surface means the 2018 DAYTONA TT race track will be“ bigger, better and significantly faster” when American Flat Track launches the 2018 season there on March 15, 2018.“ By extending the track design from the tri-oval and taking
over pitlane, seven-time Grand National Champion Chris Carr and his design team gained over 40 feet of width and were able to double the radiuses of the two book-end corners. The result will be faster cornering speeds, more passing opportunities for competitors, and more excitement for fans.“ The higher cornering speeds will obviously result in faster
straightaway speeds, which means negotiating the 6-foothigh jump incorporated into the second straightaway will be pivotal to the success of the racers that night. Carr’ s redesign of the jump
section will make it the largest jump the competitors will face all season long.”
8 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER- FEBRUARY 2018 www. AMDchampionship. com