Elk River, Minnesota (March 1, 2016) – Front row qualifying and continued holeshot progression propelled Carlson Moto to its strongest finish of the season as Ryan Springer nabbed a fourth-place finish at the Ram Trucks Snocross National in Mt. Pleasant, Mich. The AMSOIL Championship Snocross tour set up shop at the Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort for rounds 11 and 12, where unseasonably warm temperatures created challenging track conditions that deteriorated throughout the weekend.
The long and challenging season for the Carlson Moto team has been met with consistent improvement and gradual, but measurable victories. Michigan saw those small wins come together for the best team results of the season. One of those challenges has been starting line performance, and master tuner Jayme Cheney has been working with the Carlson Moto crew to develop a package to give the team a definitive edge at the line. The work started to pay dividends in Michigan, where both Carlson and Springer garnered strong performances throughout both days of racing.
Improvements on the starts, combined with smart, calculated decisions on the track, led to a weekend where both riders made the finals Friday and Saturday night, including a front row start for Springer on night one and Carlson earning a top-four qualifying spot on Saturday. Friday was a particularly strong day for Springer, who punched a ticket to the front row of the final and laid down a charge towards the front of the pack in the final. Once there, he rubbed elbows with the top runners through much of the race, but incidental contact ended his hopes for a top-five finish and Springer crossed the line in the back of the pack. Carlson was not without his own challenges as the back row start created challenging visibility issues which he had to push through to earn an 11th place finish at the line.
The tables turned for the Carlson Moto riders the following day, with Carlson posting strong qualifying runs with a fifth and a second, putting him easily in the front row for the main event. With another solid holeshot in the final, things were looking up for Carlson, but a turn one tangle collected him and several other riders, ending his bid for a strong finish in the final.
Ironically, the turn one turmoil gave Springer a slim window from his back row start, and a savvy line choice had Ryan in the top-five by the end of the first lap. Springer then vehemently defended his position and went on the offense, moving up another position to fourth, eventually giving him and the team their best Pro-Open finish of the season.
“I’m super pleased to come away with a fourth,” said a relieved and confident Springer after the race. “We’ve (Ryan and Andrew) both been up at the front a few times this season…I know I have the speed to run with those guys, but just couldn’t catch a break. Tonight I just felt more confident and ran clean…I’m pumped about the finish and really looking forward to Chicago.”
The next stop on the AMSOIL Championship Snocross tour takes teams and fans to the Route 66 Raceway outside of Chicago, March 4th and 5th, 2016. You can catch the Michigan race on CBS Sports March 6th at 10:00am and March 13th, 2016 also at 10:00am. The Chicago National will be broadcast live on snocross.com/Livestream. You can follow Carlson Motorsports on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, as well as on CarlsonMoto.com.