Two rounds into the 2009 XDL Sportbike Freestyle Championship season the explosive growth and maturation of the sport were on full display. In 2009 30 athletes from 20 states are contesting the full schedule, up from 15 in 2008. Add in the 10 regional and local riders that go up against the national competitors and the first two events have generated fields of 40 individuals, an XDL record. Since 2007 the sport has doubled in size every year. The bigger picture is a transformation of the competitors from "riders" to "athletes". It is a trend that has been ongoing and was highlighted in an interview with Racing 905 team rider Warren James. James was injured at the inaugural Phoenix event in 2006 and had not returned to XDL competition until the 2009 season, thus providing him with an unclouded perspective of the changes since. He remarked that competing at Nashville made him feel like an athlete rather than a stunt rider because of the professionalism of the series, the quality of the facility and the high level of competition.
The Aprilia All Star Challenge portion of the schedule continued to grip fans with a fantastic combination of racing and stunt riding skills on a predetermined course. The athletes had to ride a rolling burnout through a set of cones, turn around, scrape the tail, complete a target stoppie, another rolling burnout slalom and finally race back to the start line. All on stock Aprilia SXV 4.5 supermoto bikes. Bill Dixon was able to avenge his Havasu loss to Dan Jackson by a half second with a final time of 26.87, tying up the points at 87 each.
Nashville was an incredible event in front of awesome fans at a venue that everyone agreed set new standards for the series. Next stop is Los Angeles. Check http://www.xdlshow.com for details in the coming weeks.
Aprilia All Star Challenge Points Standing (Top 5)
1. Dan Jackson 87
2. Bill Dixon 87
3. Brian Bubash 78
4. Eric Pettit 69
5. Rick Hart 36