Team Matt’s Racing/MDR Race Report
Savannah, Volusia , Daytona & Neeses
No one can say that they couldn’t get enough racing in this past week! Rob McClendon did a nice job with the Friday AHRMA race at Savannah and the track was in good condition for a night filled with excitement. The 450 Pro main had Pro and Expert riders combined & Matt got 2nd in his heat. He broke a shock in his bike and we scrambled a bit to get ready for the main. In the 750 heat he was fast and set pole, however he knew Carr was a multi time winner here and Matt wasn’t counting his chickens too early! In the 450 main he worked his way to 5th and finished there. He came in after the race and said, “I really miss my framer 450!” He jumped on the Harley and got the early hole shot, with Carr close behind, just waiting to pounce. He passed Matt about lap 4 or 5 and went on to win by a comfortable margin. It was good to see the big twins and hear the roar of the Harley down the back stretch; personally, I think that is one of the most exciting things about flat track.
Steve Nace and Kelly have worked tirelessly to put on the new “Hotshoe” series, now called the All Star National Flattrack series. Kudos to them for continuing this tradition which allows riders to race both 450 and 750 bikes in the same night. It helps the riders get more seat time and earn some extra travel money. Honestly, Matt would have lost money this trip if these other races didn’t exist. Thanks again to the whole crew at the All Star races-they did a good job.
Savannah the second night did not go quite as well, Matt’s worst track is a slick one. We tried all kinds of things with set up for the mains, but he didn’t finish as well as he’d like. He had one of the best races of the whole week with Slammin Sammy in the heat race of the twins class. Matt set him up and made the pass into the lead, with Sammy trying everything for the remainder of the race to get back by, but couldn’t do it. The 450 heat race was also exciting as he and Mees had a good battle, with Matt trying to pass for several laps, having to settle for a 2nd this time. He had a terrible start in the 450 class main, got pushed wide both turns and went back to almost last place. He worked his way to 9th with Jared on his heels most of the race. Not the finish you expected from the way the two of them looked all day, but these things happen. The 750 main saw some of the same action. Matt got shuffled back a few places and never found a line that worked until the last five laps, when he and Coolbeth closed the gap and caught Johnson at the checkers. He finished 8th, was somewhat disappointed, but felt he learned some.
The All Star Series continued the next two days at Volusia. The first practice Matt was loving the tacky, semi-rough ½ mile, while everyone else looked very timid. The track crew prepped the track after practice, graded the turns and smoothed it out. It was a fast track and once again Matt and Sammy had a great battle on the 750’s, this time with Sammy taking the spot. Matthew won the 450 heat race and finished 4th in the 450 main event. The 750main was going well, with Matt in 3rd behind Jared and Sammy. It was about half way when I noticed the back end sliding around, I thought he broke a shock. On the next lap, Pearson went by in turn one and as Matt headed into turn three, he threw his hand in the air, he had a flat tire. The next day at Volusia, the sun was in full force and it was windy. The track ended up extremely smooth and dry slick. Again, this is his worst type of track and we worked all day trying different set ups. He literally went from first to last in his heat and was semi bound. Guy changed just about everything he could and I threw the clock on Matt during the semi, to make sure we were headed the right way. In the 750 main he was on the back row and after several tries, he rolled around the outside of Pearson and in just a few laps caught Coolbeth. The race was done, he finished third, and it felt good to be on the podium with Jared and Kenny. He was on the front row of the 450 main, but spun terribly off the start and was in the back of the pack on lap one. It was difficult to pass, taking several laps to get by each person. He ended up 7th.
The Daytona Short Track was interesting, to say the least. Practice day went well and he turned some good laps. Day one the track was dug up and basically looked like a corn field with rocks ranging in size from golf ball to baseball size! It was deep and rough and Matthew loved it. He finished first in both the freebie round and the first qualifying round. He ended up third overall and on the pole of his heat. He was all over the back tire of Sammy during their entire heat race and he finished second. He was excited to make the front row and the dash. After qualifying, they watered and rolled the track, it was totally different from qualifying; smooth and slick. He finished last in the dash and George and Guy made some more changes to try and get traction. When Matt went to line up on the front row, he was on the outside where he had gotten last off the line in the Dash, so he decided to start on the second row. He worked his way to 8th place and was content with his finish.
The second day was even more slippery than Wednesday; Matthew struggled a bit and he finished 7th overall in qualifying. This was still good and he had a front row start in a very stacked heat. He was in 4th or 5th when a couple riders went down and they had a restart. Matt spun off the line and was back in the pack, he finished 7th and was semi bound. He was still struggling in the semi, but salvaged a third place which put him in the big show. To make Daytona both nights is a feat in itself. There were very fast riders who didn’t even make the 48 rider cut on the second night. Matt qualified for both nights last year, and once again put it in both mains this year. George Mack, (Mack Daddy Racing) was pleased that both Matt and Mike Avila had qualified both nights and the bikes were fast and handling well. Matt started the main on the third row and worked his way up to a 12th place finish. He said it was the most slippery track he’d ever ridden. Matt and I walked over to the printer and grabbed the results sheet. Matthew was listed last with a DQ next to his name. We had no idea what was going on, Guy was still in the tech tent with the bike, waiting for a fuel sample. No one had said a thing. When Matt asked Steve Morehead why he was DQ’d, he was told because he went outside of the yellow markers on the front straight. Apparently Steve Morehead had told all the riders who were lined up for the main event that if they went off the straights, there would be consequences. Somehow, Steve forgot to tell Matthew or just seemed to skip over him?
Friday we headed up to Neeses, SC where Paul, the owner, holds a yearly Matt Smoak Memorial Race. Matt had some adjusting to do after riding the MDR 09 Hondas for three days then jumping back on his 06 Honda. He finished 3rd in the Open Pro heat and won his Pro AM heat by over a straight. His third in the Open heat put him on the back row for the main and he worked his way up to 6th. The starts are critical here and he needed a good one for the Memorial Race. 19 riders took to the line and Matt was initially in 5th place going into turn one. He passed Carver, Jethro Halbert and was in 2nd, almost a straight away back from Luke Gough. Matt and Carr caught Luke in less than two laps and were turning record times for this racey short track. Matthew said they were racing through several lapped riders and going into turn 3, Luke tried to duck under one and hit the disc or cone that was on the inside and tucked the front. Luckily, Matt and Chris got around safely and finished the last few laps one-two. It was great fun and it helped boost Matt’s earnings for the week!

Matt has some new sponsors this year; Julian &Tonja Robertson, Whites Harley Davidson, Webcam, Millenium Technologies, and S100. Thanks to all his great sponsors who have been faithful to support him: George Mack with Mack Daddy Racing, Silkolene, Shoei, Tsubaki, Moose Racing, EBC,K&N, Motion Pro, Tuff plates, Weiss Racing, Saddlemen, Boughner Racing Suspension, CP Pistons, Works Connection, Vortex, Cometic, SuperTrapp, Chicken Hawk Racing, & Mr.Sign. Also a special thanks to John who let us use his house while in Daytona and to Mario B. for his help.