Supercross at Gillette Stadium

"Justin Hughes" (justinhughes54) 04/24/2016 at 11:45 • Filed to: ama supercross

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Reading Lanesplitter turned me on to AMA Supercross, which I’ve enjoyed watching on TV ever since. When my wife told me they were holding an event at nearby Gillette Stadium, there wasn’t even a question that we and her kids had to go see it for ourselves. You can read detailed reports of the races elsewhere. I’m going to focus on what the overall experience was like. I had no special press access or anything, so it was the same experience anyone else would have.

No one there knows Gillette Stadium as well as Gronk. He was the Grand Marshal of the event. Of course, it had been transformed from the immaculate gridiron he’s familiar with into tight dirt track full of bumps and jumps.

It was a great show, with plenty of fireworks - literally. When they lit up the huge torches I could feel the heat all the way back in the middle of the stands. There was plenty of commentary between races as well as during them, and explainers on how the event worked, including the flags and such. There were plenty of ads and blatant product placement, too, but it’s how they pay the bills, so I’m OK with that. I like how there are many levels you can watch the race on. People like me can enjoy analyzing the passes and the different lines the racers took. Others who are more interested in the overall spectacle can enjoy the huge jumps and the crashes.

Because yes, crashes happen. The great thing about being there, as opposed to watching it on TV, is that you can see all of the track all of the time. If there’s a crash in the back of the pack, or an intense race for 6th place while the podium positions are already pretty well set, you can watch those instead of the leaders that the cameras focus on. Unlike Monster Jam, the engines aren’t very l0ud, and are mostly drowned out by the commentators and the music.

I was super impressed by 250SX points leader Malcolm Stewart. He placed 3rd today, and was one of the best sports about losing that I’ve ever seen. While of course he wants to keep his points lead, his whole attitude is basically “I’m just happy to be here, man.”

The 450SX race went similarly, with points leader Ryan Dungey also taking third place.

Ken Roczen and Eli Tomac fought their way past Dungey fair and square. I ride motorcycles but have never tried dirt, and I learned a bit by watching these guys. For example, Roczen is way off the traditional racing line here, but by dropping his wheels into the ruts he can literally corner like he’s on rails, maintaining a higher speed despite the less optimal line. Slower riders tended to clip the apex in a more traditional line.

I had a great time. Watching Supercross on TV is fun, but being there is well worth it. You can see so much more of what’s going on, and you can watch what you want to watch, not just where the cameras happen to be pointed. Even if you’re just a casual fan like me, I recommend checking one out sometime.

Diego Ruiz > Justin Hughes 04/25/2016 at 19:18

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If you want to watch an intense motocross/supercross/arenacross event come to Europe during October-November and go to places like Bercy, Genoa or Geneve. 14 bikes in much smaller stadiums and here in Europe we use ALL the seats, including the ones where you can see a footpeg fly by just 10ft from your face
With such stadiums in Europe the crowd can drown out the speaker and the engine bikes. I’m kinda interested in e-bikes because the sound of a crowd of 15000 going nuts on a small stadium might be quite an experience for both the people and the riders!

Justin Hughes > Diego Ruiz 04/26/2016 at 09:14

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That sounds awesome! Funny you should mention the seats. We bought tickets for the top section to save a few bucks, but ended up getting moved to the middle section - probably because they didn’t sell enough tickets. This was also the first time in over 25 years that AMA Supercross has run at this location. I hope they come back.