Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/131019
the podium in 4 of the remaining 5 races, which would be an outstanding achievement by any conventional standard. But the off-road world isn't subject to conventional standards. In the small industry known as off-road racing, the competition is so intense and the opportunities so few, that a rider can rise suddenly, transit incorrectly, and crash and burn in this truncated and unprecedented way relative to the real world. With Steward Baylor earning the National Enduro Championship and a revitalized Mike Lafferty finishing second, a third place Russell Bobbitt was moved from the KTM to the Husaberg squad, leaving Nick looking elsewhere for support. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Russell and Nick awaiting the start of test 6 at the Lone Star National Enduro. The two would finish 2nd and 3rd overall, which is where they currently sit in the standings. minutes off the pace of the leaders and was a loud reminder of where he was just a few months back. "All the speed and work that made for a successful 2011 essentially evaporated during the off-season and crushed any momentum I had. I put a lot of pressure on myself to get back to the where I was in 2011, maybe too much, and it took a long time to get rolling. " The following round saw marked improvement with a sixth overall, but then an uncharacteristic 11th at the Sand Lapper followed by a fifth at the Rad Dad in Tennessee. It wasn't until the 6th round in Upton Wyoming that Fahringer gained a little traction in returning to his 2011 form. After that, things began clicking but it was too little, too late. By the end of the 2012 season, Nick had clawed his way to 4th in the National Enduro Series, landing on 18 Trail Rider "The support I got from the factory was great, but it was also a bit of a facade in terms of what I really needed. I considered a factory ride to be a an essential tool I didn't have in getting what I wanted - a national championship. In reality, being on the factory squad wasn't all that different from the support I received the previous year, or even this year, it was just added pressure. In some ways, this year is even easier for me as I've got multi-time SE&TRA Champion Mike Grizzle doing the prep work on my race bikes. Mike is meticulous and I didn't really have that last year. I still did most of the work on the bike myself. Now a lot of that pressure is gone". Late into the 2012 season , with the writing on the wall, Nick began talking with his current team, the Air Group Radiant as rumor got out about the changes to the 2013 KTM/Husaberg factory lineup. A deal for support was then hashed out. 2013: A Fresh Start www.TrailRider.com