JOSH STRANG REPORT

JOSH STRANG REPORT
By Mike Webb
 
File Photo-Shan Moore

We just got back from the Yadkinville GNCC, round 6 of the series. It was a really tough day for the team,
but that is part of the menu in the GNCC’s. Josh got off to a great start despite a little drama in the pits prior
 to the race. We had a situation with the rear wheel right before the start and the team pulled together and got
everything fixed just as Josh was going to the line.
 
Josh and Charlie hooked up just like at Loretta’s and started to pull a gap on the field. We had planned to pit
 at the end of lap 2 so we let Josh know. I gave him the word at the 8 mile marker and he put his head down
 and pulled about 7 seconds on Charlie going into the pits. Unfortunately that’s when things went way wrong,
Josh said he swapped a bit off a breaking bump and clipped a tree with his left hand which pulled him off the
 bike, he held on with his right hand and in doing so he grabbed a handful of throttle which sent him straight
into a tree.
 
The crash was at speed and Josh is damn lucky he survived, he lay on the ground for quite a while trying to
get his breath and his bearings before slowly making his way back to the pits. Once back in the pits Shane Nalley
 and Chris Wolf went to work and straightened out the severely bent front end and Josh got back on after loosing
 nearly 10 minutes. He regrouped the next lap and then started getting back to speed as much as he could and
worked his way back up to ninth overall and more important 12 valuable points towards the championship.
 
Josh was really bummed after the race and the team reminded him that you win championships on your worst
day and today he overcame extreme adversity to get the points he got.
 
File Photo-Shan Moore

I want to send a huge shout out to the top pro riders that actually took the time out during the race to stop and let
the team know that Josh was down and hurt. Charlie Mullins stopped at our pits and said Josh was down and it
was serious as did Glen Kearney. And Paul Whibley actually stopped and waited to make sure that Josh was OK
on the trail and was passed by another pro during this time. I didn’t get to thank Paul after the race and I can’t
thank Paul enough, it’s a great testimony to these top pro’s that they will take the time during the race to do this.
 
 I don’t recall one rider stopping to see if Mike Allessi was OK after his massive crash last year during the
nationals, these off road guys are hero’s in my book.
 
Cheers,
 
Mike

Below: Paul Whibley, Glenn Kearney and Charlie Mullins all went out of their way to help the injured Strang when he clipped
a tree at speed.