Andrea's Angle: Indianapolis
March 21, 2024
Welcome back to Andrea's Angle, a column showcasing my perspective as a newbie to Supercross. Let's chat about Indianapolis, in one of my favorite venues - Lucas Oil Stadium!
Covered Stadiums
Another week, another soft, rutted track. Luckily, we did not have to contend with any difficult weather due to the retractable roof on Lucas Oil Stadium. Absolutely love the benefit of not having to worry about weather conditions. On the flipside, the stadium isn't airing out, so exhaust smell really fills it up. The sound of bike engines revving also bounces off the walls and ceilings, making the environment very loud - I'd highly recommend bringing some sort of earplugs / headphones to protect your ear drums.
Triple Crown 2
I learned something new about Triple Crowns on Saturday - a rider's placement each race affects their gate pick in the next one. I have mixed feelings about that. There's a part of me that believes Triple Crowns are interesting because they offer three fairly equivalent races, giving riders more chances to potentially win. But with the gate pick rule, it seems like it's easier to build momentum if you win the first race. We even heard about that momentum building from Cameron McAdoo during the press conference, who said his strategy was to get a good result in the beginning, because that sets the tone for the night. He also mentioned that if your triple crown evening starts going bad, it can kind of spiral that way.
Is Cody Schock Superhuman?
Cody Schock, 250 East rider, suffered a broken collarbone after last weekend's run in with Deegan in the last lap of the main event. He flew out home to California to get surgery on Monday, had a couple days of recovery, and then was back on the bike in Indianapolis and ended up in 5th place! I have a hard time wrapping my mind around that fast of a recovery. There was some jesting on the PulpMX Review Show podcast, where Jason Thomas said that he saw Cody out at dinner following the race, and also wearing a backpack at the airport. Jokes aside, big props to Cody for his performance in Indianapolis despite all the odds. His Cinderella series continues.
Not the Best Day to be a Tomac Fan
Nothing but love for Eli Tomac, my favorite rider. But I was straight up not having a good time watching the 450 Mains. I had high hopes for his evening given his good qualifying times, but he struggled both with starts and passing other riders. All the races went pretty much the same - he'd have a middle of the pack start, and then get stuck behind one rider for the majority of the race. But, to give the guy credit, he's still coming off that Achilles injury, and the track did seem fairly difficult to pass on. Really hoping he can turn things around and still end the season on a higher note in the last few rounds.
Is This Thing Over?
For the past couple weeks, the sport has been discussing whether Jett Lawrence has the 450 Championship in the bag. After winning all three Triple Crown races, his fifth win of the season, he's now 21 points ahead of Cooper Webb. It's really starting to seem like he's in control of the championship, and the only way he loses it is if he makes a mistake on his own. The other 450 riders on the podium seem to be aware of this - both seemed somewhat checked out at points during the press conference, with Roczen even going on his phone and not hearing a question.
To end it off, I'll repeat a little mindfulness tidbit that Cameron McAdoo accredited to his wife Maddie - "Be where your feet are." It's a good reminder, both in the sport and just in regular life, to try to be present in the moment and not get too caught up in what lies ahead, or what cannot be changed behind you.
Until next week,
Andrea Ruggiero
