2016 RMSHA Season Opener
We just finished our RMSHA season opener at Klim the Mine in Bellevue, ID.
It was a hit for both racers and spectators. Klim (technical riding gear) was a big sponsor for this Hillclimb, showing support on both days. The course at Bellevue was set up on an old mining mountain side. The hill was only 3 miles away from Hailey, Idaho bringing in a fantastic group of spectators that came out to support our sport. The owners of the property we raced on were very accommodating, as was the town of Hailey.
Shelley Heap, charging up the course. Photo RLTPhotos
The course had a good combination of jumps, speed, and technical riding throughout. The first face of the hill stopped a few racers but as the day went on, courses changed. I was able to be the first one up the hill Saturday in the blue lane, dangling through the fresh powder. The new Polaris Axys ran very strong up the deep and steep hill multiple times for me. I can’t explain how comfortable it is to sidehill or dangle on the new Axys. I am very impressed in the machine’s performance both on the race course and in the backcountry. I ended up first in all four women’s classes (600 & 800 stock, 800 improved, and 800 modified).
The Bellevue Hillclimb has been cancelled the last two years due to lack of snow, as was the Jackson Hole World Championships. So far this year we’ve been getting a good amount of snow at all race cites, which leads me to hope the rest of this year’s RMSHA competitions will take place as planned.
Outside of racing, Gavin Balls and I made a trip up to Salmon Arm, BC the first part of January. We went up to visit and ride with Brandon Micku. There is some awesome riding up there!
– Shelley
The results from the first RMSHA race of the season, Klim the MIne, at Bellevue, Idaho can be found here. – MS
