Monster Energy Supercross Round 9 Atlanta - For Cooper Webb 3 Feet makes all the difference

38 inches.  Just twoinches past three feet. These 38 inches are the difference between first and secondfor riders in the Monster Energy Supercross, just add Cooper Webb.

On the heels of the Arlington, Texas race and the closestfinish in Supercross racing history, the Monster Energy Supercross season findsitself at the halfway point. Of the nine races, Red Bull KTM’s Cooper Webb has won five of thenine race thus far as Webb added his fifth win this past weekend in Atlanta.

Racing is simple, the person to cross the finish line firstis the winner, right?

Not quite.

In the Monster Energy Supercross and most other racingsports, a transponder loop is placed somewhere in the finish area that relaysan accurate time for when the rider crosses the loop signaling that they finishedfirst.

But this loop, it may never be in the same place race to race.

“We try to keep our placement as consistent as possible,”said Mike Muye, Senior Director of Supercross Operations at Feld Motorsports. “Thatbeing said, it is never in the exact same spot week to week.”

Well why not?

“A multitude of factors play a role in where the loopplacement is,” Muye. “The dirt and track layout is different at every race.Sometimes the finish line can get ruts in it and the deeper the ruts go, thewiring for the loop would become exposed. Plus you don’t want the loop to be solow that if a rider is jumping through the finish line, the transmission fromthe transponder to the loop is lost. The closer to the surface the better thereading of the transponder.”

Ok… but why not put it at the peak of the finish line?

“The peak of the finish line is the narrowest part of thetrack so there is not enough space to place the wires across the center peak tomake it effective,” said Muye. “This is why we mark the center of the loop withthe yellow markers so the riders know exactly where the center of the loop is.”

One can only speculate that with the race so close to callin Arlington that maybe the outcome between Webb and Team Honda HRC’s Ken Roczenmight have been different if the location of the loop was in a different spot.

But that’sracing!

In Atlantathough this past weekend when the gate dropped in the premier 450SX Class, itwas Webb with the holeshot. Within a few turns there were three KTMs out front:Webb, teammate Marvin Musquin, and Team Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM WPS’Blake Baggett.

Therewere some close moments in the race that were tense as the three KTM ridersbattled for the top spot but in the end, it did not matter where the loop wasas Webb went wire to wire from gate drop to finish leading the race to hisfifth win expanding his points lead in the overall championship standings.

Afterthe race, Webb was asked if his line selections made the difference,“Yeah, it was all about lines. For me I had to ride a little defensive butalso offensive. I knew there were a couple places they were catching me. I wassearching, I was skimming, I was trying all kinds of stuff. I think I got alittle tight in the middle but by the end I started finding my groove. I knewBlake was coming, he was strong in the whoops, I’m guessing. But this isincredible: I’m 23, and I came here every year since I was four years oldwatching [in] the old Old Georgia Dome, raced here on a KTM 50 in front of allthese fans with the Junior Challenge and got sixth that night, and now I’m ontop. It’s pretty cool, [it] just shows, kids out there, don’t give up, andfollow your heart and follow your dreams. And I just can’t even believe it,man. I have so many friends and family here from North Carolina and it’sincredible.”

38inches. Just over three feet.

Suremakes a difference for Cooper Webb.