First Lady of ICE

By Mandy Brodil Cervantes 
Photos by JG Photowerx.com 
The brand new Huntington Center in Toledo, Ohio hosted ICE racing for the first time ever. I was there and fortunate enough to meet the many ATV fanatics that showed up. One in particular was this adorable little girl who went to the race simply because her dad wanted to but quickly became an instant fan. It was a smaller crowd than the week before if you counted actual seats filled but the cheers and jeers were twice as loud as round one!

I like to get to the arena first thing in the morning, pick out the perfect pit spot and check my quad over since I say goodbye to it during the week. After I inspected every last one of my 2000 studs in my tires and wiped down my ESJ Graphics, it was time to go eat. J&M Racing, (my dad and I incase you didn’t read my first column) headed to Tony Packos, a world renowned restaurant known for their hot dogs. My boss, a native Ohioan said this place was a must stop and it was. I snubbed my nose at their fried pickles but ended up liking them. After eating a sausage dog and their great chili we headed back and got ready for another awesome night of ICE racing.

We learned of some good news in the rider’s meeting, we would be throwing out a heat race. While some racers don’t like the extra time on their motors, I embrace the extra four laps to re-acquaint myself with my Honda, test the ice and my setup. Remember, there is no practice like dirt so having an extra heat to throw out can prove valuable, which it did. The ice was super soft in Toledo. I was spinning off the line and coming out of the turns during acceleration. In the back of my mind all I could think was that the four-strokes were going to have a big advantage.

Already half defeating myself, I headed out for my first official heat. I drew pole position which was great but had Steve Palmer lined up in the 3rd spot. I knew I had to get the holeshot. The gate went up, I popped my clutch and didn’t see any tires on either side of me for the entire heat. Whew, one down and one to go! Next up was #56 of our J&M team (aka Dad). He got out of the gate in second and looked aggressive. I was leaned over the gate, yelling and whaling my arms to go but it didn’t work he finished runner up. The rest of the heats went smoothly with Ebbing, Berquist, Kaufman and myself claiming firsts.

Round 2
The second round of heats weren’t going to be easy for anyone. I had Ryan Kaufman in my heat, not only is he very fast but he also had the number one position. I lined up next to his orange beast and had another orange beast to the right of me, a 1200cc Harley engine stuffed inside a custom frame driven by Sammy Wiggins. I say driven because you can’t just ride something that powerful and his nickname is “Slammin” Sammy which after last weekend everyone knows why. While I spun off the line, Kaufman grabbed a handful of traction and was gone. I had nothing for him, he was dialed in and I did all I could to salvage second place in hopes of a front row start in the main event.

To help my hopes of a front row start in the main, I needed my teammate to beat Palmer in the next heat. Coming out of turn two, dad was in 3rd and Palmer in 2nd. In first was Shane Robbins on his brand new YFZ 450R. He must’ve pushed his NOS button for that extra burst to the front. It was short lived as Palmer and Brodil passed him going into turn three which is how this heat finished. Justin Ebbing (the current point’s leader) was set to face off against Daniel Berquist (the reigning champion). Not mentioned in round one as he had informed everyone he had quit but after being a spectator he either got the itch again or thought he could go out and show us all how it’s done. Either way, this was going to be the first test for each to claim their ‘Spot’ in ICE. When the checkered waived it was Ebbing: 1, Berquist: 0 by a straight away. Now granted, Ebbing had round one in his belt so we’d have to wait and see what the main had in store.

Main Event
Fortunately I transferred straight to the main. I started at the wall with Ebbing on pole, Kaufman second and Berquist in the third spot. Let me set the stage another way…. The current points leader, rookie of the year, reigning champion and a 3-time champion all on the front row! This was setting up to be one heck of a main event. The back row was pretty stacked as well with Calvert, Palmer, Daddy Brodil and Lee Mills. Calvert, Palmer and J. Brodil are considered the veterans of the sport all trying to show the young guns how it’s done while Mills is Justin Ebbing’s TNT teammate. Jeff Brodil was set to start seventh but took the Motion Pro challenge in hopes of moving from 8th to 1st for some extra cash. The lucky dog position was given to Mills and round two was officially set to go down in the books.

The starter got the nod from each racer; everyone was on the gas waiting for the tape to make the slightest move. It was four wide heading into turn one. There can only be a max of two coming out so I cut under Berquist and tucked into the third position behind Kaufman while Ebbing led the way. Knowing how my quad was handling, I was quick to think like a chick and ride SMARTER not HARDER. I was in third, I rode hard but made sure I did not give up the inside line. If I did, the thumping CRF-450 of Berquist would have been right there to swoop in. I lapped my dad who had been knocked into the wall by Mills off the start. Thankfully he had got himself going before going down two laps. In turn four of the third lap I came across the carnage of Chuck Calvert who remained in there like a dead duck until the end. As I completed each lap I gave myself the same piece of advice, “be smart Mandy” and pulled off my first podium of the season…Woo hoo!

As I parked my Sparks Racing 250R in the middle of the track for awards I noticed Palmer and Calvert having words. Evidently, Palmer decided to just race harder, so hard in fact, he drove the right side of his banshee over Chuck’s quad. I guess that’s one way to pass. While all of this happened, Mills was able to get around both of them and J.Brodil was able to make his way back up from last to 6th salvaging a few crucial points. J&M Racing came out of Toledo, Ohio on a high note. We both made it to the main event and moved up on the point’s ladder heading to the next race.

Rounds 4 and 5 are up next (round 3 has been cancelled). We will be welcomed by some fr
esh new west coast blood in Portland, Oregon and Kent, Washington. As some of us focus on the new competition, we will have to wait and see if the Calvert vs. Palmer feud heats up on the ice as it almost did off the ice at the end of the night.

As you will soon learn, I always try to take at least one thing from each race. This weekend, I am taking something from my dad. I have always been taught to never give up; we don’t know the final outcome of the race until we see the checkered flag. Well tonight dad, you practiced what you preached and instead of sitting on the track after being lapped, you kept going and moved up a couple of positions. Way to go dad, I am one proud daughter!

On a side note, special thanks to Don and Daniel Berquist for not only helping but lending my dad a spare tire for the main after his went flat in the LCQ.

On another note, if you’re a fan of girls and ATVs you should visit atvsmostwanted.com I’m their Miss January 2011 girl!

Find me on facebook under Mandy Brodil and message me if you’re interested in buying one and I’ll send you one personalized. You can also get them at any ICE event!

Points after Round 2:
Justin Ebbing 122
Ryan Kaufman 73
Jeff Brodil 65
McGilton/Palmer 51
Mandy Brodil 50
Dan Jensen 47
Eric Vanderploeg 47
Daniel Berquist 41
Chuck Calvert 34

Mandy Brodil Facebook
www.icespeedway.com

Tags:

Comments

comments