Hi Chad, I’m a Kiwi !

The Supercross Connection

When you know you’re going to be in Vegas on business the very week the final round of the AMA Supercross is on, what do you ? Buy a ticket of course , even though, with all the seats already sold 4 months out from the event, you  know you’re going to get well and truly scalped.

With the strong premonition that this was going to be a once in a lifetime experience, Ian Hobbis did exactly that – and it was.

“Several of our suppliers were staying in the vicinity of the famous Vegas Hard Rock Café”, says Ian, “and it was rapidly obvious it was THE place to hang out and pretty popular with the bike crowd. I spotted several supercrossers and freestyle MX riders, including Dan O’Brien. I struck up a conversation with one guy called Robert  who turned out to be the owner of Motocross Giant, the second biggest on line seller of bike parts and accessories and whose  best buddy owns BTO which just happens to be the first  biggest! We were chatting away when he said “Look, there’s Chad Reed over there” “No way”, says I.  But it was Chad, so I strolled over to introduce myself.

“Hi Chad, I’m a Kiwi”  I said. 

“I’m sorry to hear that” he replied.

And so commenced our conversation. He was a helluva nice guy, taking the time to talk to a stranger.  He hadn’t long had his op but he was walking.  I said I was sorry about the injury, commented what a bummer it was that B.T was out of the equation and asked who would be doing the AMA Outdoor series for TWO TWO Motor Sports.  He said no one. He’s obviously an all or nothing guy and didn’t want someone who’d spend the series in the mid pack. The conversation  concluded with a photo. Yes, that’s me and Chad!

But back to Robert.  I already had my exorbitantly overpriced seat for the Supercross but Robert insisted I join his group in the VIP area. I could not refuse. It was a brilliant event and no matter where I had been seated, I’d have had a good view.  There wasn’t an empty seat (except perhaps mine) and the crowds really got going.  The racing was very fast and very close.  The 250s sounded like angry 450s. The sound and smell was unbelievable as they rev limited out.  As for the 450s, the speed they’re hauling and how high they jump is phenomenal. It was good to see Villopoto do a quiet lap of honour at the end even though he wasn’t racing because of injury.

 I had been a little disappointed about joining Robert’s group for one reason only. I had promised to try to get some autographs for my sons but we’d arrived too late for me to join the autograph queues that have a 1.5 hour wait time.  However, mid way through the second half of the event, Steve, the Marketing Manager for Geico Honda joined us and handed me a stack of signed photos of the team. Robert had sent a text.  It was a pretty special moment.

Meeting a friend in Robert and being in Vegas for the supercross was a fantastic experience. But it's not going to be just a once in a lifetime one.  I'm definitely going back.  Roll on next year.”

Click here if you're interested in the Geico Honda "Young Guns".