Issue link: http://trailridermagazine.uberflip.com/i/1535769
NETRA HS Round One NETRA HS Round One Believing in the Big Parking Lot Believing in the Big Parking Lot By Gavin Bacon By Gavin Bacon Photos By Tara Santheson Photos By Tara Santheson 8 Trail Rider www.TrailRider.com A er four long NETRA-less months, we gather in soaked fields, with wet shoulders and muddy umbrellas, smiling anxious smiles that only the premix-deprived are capable of. From the out- side, it verges on the line of insanity—standing in these wet fields for hours on end, dreaming of fresh-cut Connec cut single-track. But we are devoted people, craving an escape in the form of two wheels and good old-fashioned racing. I've been to the opening round of every NETRA Hare Scramble Series for the last thirteen years. That may not sound like a lot of me, but in 2012, I was eight years old. So for over half my life, I've spent one April weekend standing in a field somewhere in New England. It's an un- usual tradi on, and one I'm sort of proud of. It's something I've belonged to. Some NETRA mem- bers have me beat by decades. I can only imag- ine what that's like, seeing people come and go, kids grow into adults, race by race, season a er season. That's always my favorite part about the first round, seeing who's grown a li le taller or switched to a different brand. In the racing world, most things only last a season. The first race is the big reset bu on a er a bad year, a new beginning, another chance to prove yourself. And on a track like Blue Slope, anything is possible. The Salmon River County Riders are good people. You can tell they care about pu ng on a great event. Most clubs do, but an added weight comes with holding the first round. You're almost guaran- teed two things: large turnouts and bad weather, with all the chaos that brings. The club spent count- less hours building bridges and rerou ng swampy areas to create the best experience possible. It's a lot of work that not everyone wants to do. The Salmon River County Riders carry that weight well, and I believe their event is the gold standard—not just in NETRA, but in all of dirt bike racing. The track was similar to last year's, just reversed. The same chocolate cake dirt that dreams are made of, with that one skunk cabbage sec on in the back that makes your nostrils burn and your eyes water every lap. It gets me every year. I always make sure to bring a ssue when I walk that part.