At the halfway point of the 2013 Mtn. Dew ATVA national
series, the Wienen Motorsports duo of Chad Wienen and Thomas Brown sit first
and second in the championship points chase despite a challenging and rather
unique start to the season.
Every year, racers can expect a mud bowl for at least one or
two rounds, but 2013 has been uncharacteristically wet, with four of the first
five rounds raining out, creating incredibly muddy conditions. Some consider
rain a great equalizer and it has certainly had that effect on much of the Pro
class, making consistent finishes a challenge in the unpredictable and ever-changing
conditions.
Despite the less than favorable conditions, the GPS Offroad-backed
boys in blue have proven the most consistent finishers in the Pro class with a
combined nine podiums and four overalls.
Brown's third place finishes at four of the five rounds have given him a
points advantage over other racers who may have had better individual
performances, but have been unable to match Brown's consistency.
"This has definitely been the best season of my career," said
Brown. "Now when I come to the line I feel like I can win and that I need to be
on the box. Where it used to feel like more of an honor to make the podium, now
it's more of a feeling like I should
be up there."
Looking forward, Brown hopes to gain more consistency off
the line. Starting from the back not
only makes racers work harder but it allows the frontrunners to distance
themselves from the field, making them harder to catch. Brown truly believes he has the speed and
fitness to claim an overall and hopes at minimum to round out the season with a
few moto wins.
Although he's a self-proclaimed fair weather rider, Chad
Wienen hasn't let the dreary conditions deter him from his toppriority;
defending that No. 1 plate. Like Brown, Wienen has had a few less than stellar
starts, forcing him to weed his way through traffic, yet he's still managed to
come out on top in four out of the first five rounds and has yet to finish off
the podium in a single moto.
That's pretty impressive considering all the hats he's
wearing off the track this year, including running the race team and expanding
the Wienen Motorsports brand to include sales and service. While he does receive some help on race day,
the champ is also spinning his own wrenches keeping his machine running between
rounds. "My biggest challenge is working on my own machine between races," said
Wienen. "Between taking care of the program and playing team manager, it's a
lot of weight on my shoulders and doesn't leave much time to prep the machine
for the next round."
From a team standpoint, the Wienen Motorsports crew is in the
best possible scenario with consistent finishes at every round and holding down
the top two positions in points. When asked if he saw the season panning out
that way, Wienen said he was hopeful but unsure how it would all unfold. "I
felt that we could do this but you just never know. Considering the rainy
events, things can just get out of hand. We've just continued to make things
happen to get on the box."
Still very young as a company, GPS Offroad Products has
expressed its excitement to have both Wienen and Brown representing the brand
and demonstrating the durability of its products. The Wienen Motorsports team
competes exclusively on the Goldspeed aluminum beadlock wheel.
"We are incredibly pleased with the whole Wienen Motorsports
effort so far this season," said GPS Offroad president Ty Zimmerman. "Both Chad and Thomas
are top competitors and excellent representatives of both GPS and
Goldspeed."
After one more round, racers will enjoy a month0long break
to regroup and make any needed adjustments to their programs. With so many
racers making major program changes this year, the Wienen Motorsports team sits
at an advantage having a tested and championship proven program. If they can
continue to match the success and consistency of the first half of the season,
they should have no trouble coming out on top when the checkers fall at the
next round in August.
