RCH RACING SOARING EAGLE FLIES HIGH IN SEAHAWK AIRSPACE
April 15, 2014
Seattle, WA (April 15, 2014) - After great run that included three consecutive top 10 finishes and his first Heat race win of the season last week, Hill ran out of real estate and crashed in the first turn of the Main event in Houston. Although he was able to battle back from dead last up to 12th, Hill entered Century Link Field hoping to get things back on track at the Seattle Supercross. The evening certainly started off on the right track as Hill was 6th fastest qualifier, just 1.4 seconds behind German sensation Ken Roczen's factory KTM.
"Qualifying was really good," said Josh Hill. "I was the first guy to hit the big quad in practice and I felt really solid." By virtue of his fast qualifying time, Hill had third gate pick for the first Heat. Because he is from nearby Yoncalla, Oregon, the Fox Sports cameras focused on Hill in the starting gate.
Even more airtime came RCH Racing Soaring Eagle's way as Hill, newly signed RCH outdoor rider Weston Peick and defending SX champ Ryan Villopoto battled for the final transfer spot to the Main event all race long (top 4 transfer from the short 6 lap Heat race, the rest have to ride in a Semi). Peick proved he has what it takes by holding off RV on the night when he was looking to clinch his fourth consecutive Supercross title. This meant both Hill and hometown hero Villopoto had to race the Semis. "The Heat race didn't really go my way," admitted Hill. "I made a couple of little and didn't quite make it."
Speaking of TV time for the RCH Soaring Eagle team, just before the Semis, Fox Sports aired a teaser of an upcoming sit-down interview with team principal Carey Hart and his wife Alecia — A.K.A. Pink. The full interview with Fox Sports trackside reporter Jenny Taft is set to air in two weeks after the Easter break during both the live and follow up showings of New Jersey SX on FS1 and CBS. This is the first weekend off for the 450 SX riders since the season started in Anaheim in January — 15 straight races).
Hill heads into the break with his mojo rising. After getting a top 5 start in the first Semi, he went on a charge! He knifed through the pack into second, cutting some of the fastest lap times of the night. Then with two laps to go, Josh jumped into the lead! Once in front, he began playing to the partisan crowd with some stylish whips and riding a stand-up wheelie through the entire whoop section. "I had a lot of fun," said a happy Hill after his second Semi win of the season. "You know it was good to get a little win in front of the hometown crowd."
But before the break, there was the little matter the Main event in Seattle. Although he had a top 10 start, Hill couldn't find a way to move the mountains of riders between him and the podium. "I had a decent start… around 10th place, but then I kind of got bumped going into the second turn and went backwards."
Finally with just five laps to go in the 20-lap Main event, Josh jumped up into 9th, where he would ultimately finish. "I still felt good, and I was pushing for it, but I ended bending my rear rotor so my back brake was locking up on me and I couldn't really tell what was going on. It was a tough race," said Hill of his bad break. " tried to just ride through it and get into the top 10."
Despite a bad break losing team leader Broc Tickle to injury a couple weeks ago and now Hill's bad brake in the Main in Seattle, the season points total show RCH Racing Soaring Eagle with two spots in the top 10: Tickle still holds onto 8th and Hill moves up a spot into 9th overall.
Of course the RCH Racing Soaring Eagle pit was the place to be in Seattle. The popular Suzuki Holeshot experience and the sign ups for a chance to win an all-expenses-paid four-day/three-night get away to Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort continue to draw crowds. A new addition to the RCH Racing Soaring Eagle vibe is the new RCH Racing Fanwear collection from team riding gear sponsor Fox Racing. Show your support for both Broc Tickle and Josh Hill by flying the Soaring Eagle colors: http://bit.ly/RCHxFox
Seems like everyone is excited about next week's trip to Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, for round 16 of the 17 race season.
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About RCH Racing Soaring Eagle:
RCH Racing is in its second season of the partnership between Ricky Carmichael and Carey Hart to campaign the Feld Motor Sports® 2014 Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship season. Ricky Carmichael merged his Suzuki relationship and technical development with the established five year marketing giant of Hart & Huntington Racing in 2013. The RCH Racing Soaring Eagle Team continues its partnerships with Suzuki, Fox, Dodge, Sycuan Casino, Yoshimura and Bel-Ray. Stay up to date on all RCH Racing Soaring Eagle news, follow us on Instagram and Twitter @RCHRacing and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hartandhuntington.
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