Round four of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship and round 21 of the SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) bring us to High Point Raceway, just inside the Pennsylvania border and a stone’s throw from MX Sports in Morgantown, West Virginia. One of the cornerstone rounds of the series, High Point has seen some of the most historic races in the sport’s history. Unfortunately, most of those memorable races involved inclement weather. Back when the race was held in late May, the spring showers were always a worry and some portion of the weekend likely saw moisture. With a few weeks more for summer to arrive, we have seen less variance in the weather, even if the temps have gone up a bit as a result. This weekend should be a good one in that aspect with a chance of rain on Friday but that sets up for a beautiful Saturday.

The High Point Raceway track has a lot of elevation variance. It winds across several hillsides and oftentimes presents tricky off-cambered corners. Riders use the side of the tire much more than they would at a track like Fox Raceway where they are more “straight up and down” versus the lean angle of High Point. Those corners force riders to focus on technique more than some other tracks would. Techniques like weighting the outside peg, using a taller gear, and sliding forward on the seat to put more pressure on the front tire will all be pivotal. The reason for the emphasis is that those off cambered corners lessen traction levels, especially when trying to find solid grip with the front tire. The weight on the outside peg plants the outside tire knobs into the dirt and creates an anchor to pivot from, also lessening the chance of those knobs breaking traction and creating a low side crash. Sliding forward on the seat transitions the balance of weight and plants that front tire into the dirt when trying to turn up a tricky hillside.