Photography: Reiss Leonard

Random engine tear-downs and big-bore conspiracies did not tell the tale of the weekend in Millville, Minnesota, but phenomenal racing did. With big names and countless big dreams filling the paddock, the prestigious Spring Creek Motocross Park played host to the North Central Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Regional Qualifier. Here’s what went down…

The A classes featured some very stacked line-ups with the likes of Dean Wilson, Jason Anderson, Terran Odell , Gavin Faith, Nick Jackson, Randy Dibartolo, and Brandon Haas squaring off against each other—and a slew of other regional talents—to compete for only a handful of qualifying positions. Coming into the weekend, one could argue that Canidae/Motosport/Xtreme Team Green rider Dean Wilson was the hands-down favorite, but when the first gate dropped, there was no denying that he was going to have his work cut out for him.

The 250A class was the lead off class of the weekend and started the racing with a bang. KTM’s Jason Anderson grabbed the holeshot—one of many on the weekend—and started to gap the field with Wilson close behind. The two battled it out until Wilson finally gained the upper-hand on the final lap and grabbed the first moto win of the weekend. Terren Odell had mounted a charge after a mediocre start to round out the top-three. Intense racing marked motos two and three as well, but this time Anderson dug deep to find the speed he needed to take home two moto wins and the overall in front of Wilson. Taking advantage of a DNF in moto two by Odell, the hard-charging and consistent Gavin Faith garnered third place honors in front of Randy Dibartolo and Brandon Hass. This would not be the last time these names found themselves at the top of the results.

The 450 A class saw many of the same riders jump on the big bikes, only to show an incredibly similar performance, although, several riders showed a better liking to the four-fifty machines. Local phenom, Nicholas Jackson, was one of those riders that just looked a little more comfortable with more power available at the flick of the wrist. Unfortunately, after using great starts to get out front early in his motos, Jackson suffered a DNF in the second 250 Pro Sport moto and was forced to retire for the weekend.

Odell was another rider who was noticeably faster aboard his 450. Whether it’s his stocky body-type, his distinct riding style, or simply his ability to get better starts on the bigger bike, Terren just seemed like more of a threat every time he stepped into the 450 classes—although, his results in the 250 classes were still very respectable.

Controversy played a role in the outcome of the 250 A/Pro Sport class, as the gate was forced to drop while Dean Wilson stood behind it...without a bike. The word circulating the pits was that water had somehow gotten into the Kawasaki rider’s gas—whether it was sabotage, condensation, or an accident isn’t known—and it was quite clear to this journalist upon hearing the sputtering steed, that a major carb issue kept Wilson from starting the moto until two laps in. Wilson came back to sweep the final two motos with a vengeance but Anderson walked away with the overall, followed by the 371 Yamaha of Odell.

450 A/Pro Sport again pitted Odell and Wilson against each other but Wilson rode flawlessly in these motos—tracking down Odell on more than one occasion—and walked away with the win in front of Kawasaki’s Randy Dibartolo.

Like Wilson, the number 43 of Eli Tomac could’ve been considered the heavy favorite in the 250 B classes and, while he was extraordinarily fast throughout the weekend, bad starts kept him from dominating, Instead, New Mexico rider Killy Rusk consistently put himself at the front of the pack early and walked out of Millville on the top step of the 250 B Stock Class—Honda of Houston rider Tanner Krahenbuhl finished a strong second followed by Jesse Wentland, Tomac, and Beau Hudson to round out the top-five.

In the Mod division, it was the Eli Tomac show as the Colorado native rocketed to a clean sweep on the weekend. Behind him, it was another story. With a trip to Loretta’s on the line, Justin Summers, Austin Politelli, Beau Hudson, Zack Williams, Ed Allingham, Rusk, and Krahenbuhl all slugged it out to see who would emerge with the number two spot. Every moto was a donnybrook but Summers edged out the rest to take home second followed by Rusk in third. Every one of these guys gave it their all and each moto was an exciting battle to the checkered flag.

The aforementioned Tanner Krahenbhul was another rider who excelled in his 450 divisions; he promptly walked away with every moto of the 450 B Stock and Mod classes with style. Zachary Coons and Alex Ray rounded out the top-three in the Mod division while Ray was joined by Jake Loberg on the podium in the stock class.

Some other notable performances go out to Chad Pederson and his domination of the Vet 35 plus class as well as Dalton Carlson’s convincing sweep in the four Stroke class.

By the time the final checkered flag flew, Dean Wilson and Jason Anderson were the clear winners of the weekend. They were the two fastest men time and time again and their battle at Spring Creek should only heat up when it’s time to throw-down in Hurricane Mills.