It was an honor to ride at the AFA competition in North Carolina and take the #1 spot. It was a great event, and the level of riding was insanely high.
I had a feeling this was going to be a big contest because people were talking about it well in advance.
The pro class was stacked with 18 riders. Lots of heavy hitters made the trip to North Carolina including Terry Adams, Austin Luberda, Mickey Gaidos, and many others.
It’s always nice to ride in a cool venue, and the AFA in North Carolina did not disappoint. The competition was held inside The RamKat. The Ramkat is normally a concert venue featuring some well-known music acts. It made the perfect place for a BMX comp.
As anyone who rides knows… The condition of the floor is very important. Prior to the contest riders were talking about mopping the floor.
Since I mop the floor at my own indoor riding spot, I am pretty famliliar with what it takes.
It only made sense that I took over mopping duties.
The funny thing is that since I was wearing a bandana, many of the average spectators thought I was the janitor!!!
It made for a funny moment when I put down the mop, picked up the bike, and started to ride 🙂
They literally thought the janitor had entered the contest.
The format of the competition is that you get two runs, and only your best run counts. So you can crash on every trick in your first run, and still comeback to win in your second run.
Luckily, I had a great first run. I was really feeling the energy from the crowd, and it all just came together.
It was an honor to stand on the podium with Terry Adams (2nd place) and Mickey Gaidos (3rd place).
Terry and I have been competing against each other since 1999 as amateurs.
I can’t even count the number of times both of us finish 1st and 2nd. Many times he comes out with the top spot, so I never take this for granted when the order is reversed.
The makes three wins in a row for me, so I’m going to try to keep riding this hot streak and not question it.
A big thanks to Bryan Huffman, James McGraw, Todd Carter, and everyone else who helped to organize this event. A big thanks to the riders who came from all over the country to compete.
Hope to see you at the next one!!!
Matt
