MITCHELL OLDENBURG | GRIT-214 | 250SX

MITCHELL OLDENBURG | GRIT-214 | SX 250

Steadily climbing his way into fourth (in the overall championship) prior to action beginning in Seattle, Texas' Mitchell Oldenburg would yearn to continue that trek while racing in the Northwestern portion of the United States. Being a former Minnesota native, Oldenburg was no stranger to the cold; which encompassed the stadium in Washington while practice was underway for the afternoon hours. Sprinting into the corner that proceeded the mechanic's area, his stance on the foot-pegs prior to blistering the whoops would portray immense experience. Though it wasn't just on that facet of the layout where his expertise and anticipation would transfer to forward-thinking techniques, as he ultimately transferred into the night-show with a seventh-place residency established to his Honda machine. And his tenacity trickled into the first lap of heat race action as well, where he sought to push into the sand section as hard as possible before swaying the chassis to the left. He couldn't help but notice a train of riders echoing from afar and to his inside, including none other than Robbie Wageman. But the number forty-nine was having none of it, and protected as many pathways as possible in the moments that followed; even when tripling through the section that before the mechanic's area. Receiving cues from his mechanic that he was becoming solidified in the sixth-place position, he would glance to his left over the "SX" triple on lap five to see Yamaha's Levi Kitchen managing the race from the lead. He wasn't going to let up despite being a few seconds behind, and managed to continue his flow through the myriad of ruts that were now across the course, to eventually assemble a finish of sixth when leaping past the referee on the last lap. Next to come, would be the roughly sixteen-minute final expedition that equated to points being gained. And as the lights grew brighter, Oldenburg's incentive to do well would be amplified to the highest regard, leading to sixth-place being garnered on lap number one. The first four laps of action, were a platform where he attacked with his usual elbows-up style - almost if he were bracing for the ruts to constrict his wheel set and refuse to let go. Somehow, he was able to remain fluid and tranquil amongst the now peg-deep ravines, which combed throughout various jump faces in a uniformed manner. But the likes of Levi Kitchen, Pierce Brown, and Max Vohland were relentless in their pursuit of the MotoConcepts rider, where he did his best to defend his position(s) on the leaderboard throughout the duration of the eighteen-lap contest. And even with being passed by the aforementioned opponents, Oldenburg would still find a way to reside inside the top-ten with only laps to go. He eventually buckled down and concluded the round of Seattle within ninth, ahead of Cole Thompson; leaving the Northwest in a solid standing with the conclusion of the championship around the corner.

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