This past Saturday, amateur FMXer's of all levels got a chance to show their stuff and mix it up with other am's from around the country at the first-ever FreestyleMTX Open, which took place at 3 Palms Raceway in Conroe, Texas. As you may or may not know, am contests aren't anything new, but they're finally starting to become a regular occurrence across the country. FMX East's Clint Esposito has been holding amateur events for the past few years, and the newly-formed AFMXA held its first-ever event late last year in So Cal. Both organizations (FMX East and AFMXA) sanctioned the FreestyleMTX Open, and in fact, it was part of AFMXA's new amateur series called the Moto X Challenge, which is giving amateur FMX riders all over the country something to be excited about.

In the Novice class, a few local Texas racers tried their hand at competing and coming all the way from Colorado, Deake Hinton and Thomas Wilton showed their dedication by sleeping in tents for four days just to ride the Novice class. Event promoter Chuck Carothers did everything he cold to keep the Novice jump safe, making riders of all abilities feel safe. For me, it was a blast to watch these guys put together a run and give it their all, even if it wasn't for X Games glory.

The Amateur and Expert classes got a little more involved as riders were judged more seriously and were open to hit any jump on the course. Unfortunately the quad class got eliminated since there were no other quads to compete with J.R. Hinds, so he ended up competing in the Expert class on his quad.

Tre Ridings/photographictendencies.com

Mexico City's Erik Ruiz throws down a perfect double grab Hart Attack.

14-year-old Erik Ruiz from Mexico City looked great in practice and stomped every trick in the book until a cliffhanger gone wrong forced him to be carted off the course with a broken femur. Winning the Amateur class was Antonio Martinez, and Josh Wilson turned heads in the Expert class. He didn't flip like some others in his class, but he flowed around the course, stomping big tricks on both jumps with authority. Every rider in the Expert class rode amazing and the level of riding was very close to what was being thrown down in the following pro demo.

To finish out the night, Derek Cook, the Villegas brothers (Javier and Gabriel,) Clint Esposito and a few of the guys from the expert class put on a pro demo for the fans. Javier's picture perfect tricks were X Games worthy and anyone in attendance would agree that the kid has a bright future.

Finishing out the pro demo, Arizona's Paris Rosen showed up to throw down a 75-foot front flip. Not taking any warm up jumps, Paris ran straight past the ramp once or twice to get his speed down before hucking his first front flip. He slid out on his first one, but he quickly got up to prove to everyone that he isn't scared to throw it and stick it perfect. All in all, it was an amazing event and I can't wait for the next one! Stay tuned to ESPN FMX for video from the MTX Open.

Click here to view a gallery from the event.

Tre Ridings/photographictendencies.com

Paris Rosen pulls another one to dirt.

Freestyle MTX Open Results

Novice:
1. Alton Brown
2. Deake Hinton
3. Stefan Diehl
4. Thomas Wilton
5. Davi Johnson

Amateur:
1. Antonio Martinez
2. Franko Guevara
3. Will Berry
4. JC Chappell
5. J.R. Hinds

Expert:
1. Josh Wilson
2. Greg Schaaf
3. Ed Rossi
4. J.R. Hinds
5. Alex Cervantes
6. Doug Cossey
7. Robert Haslam

Posted: June 03, 2010

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1st AFMXA AMTAEUR EVENT OF 2010

So you all have been waiting patiently for the next amateur event, well here it is…and the good news is, it’s the first of three in the MOTO X CHALLENGE! Come out and compete in the series and win your way to a spot in the AFMXA Nationals that will be held at the Pala Raceway on October 30th , 2010!!



Posted: May 03, 2010