The Internet makes everybody a know-it-all. But not your Pesky Fly. Because I know I’m clueless about so much stuff, I sometimes ask experts to enlighten me. This is what Miss Americross, Lindsey Alkire had to say about her favorite motorsport.
Fly on the Wall: I can’t lie to you Lindsey. I don’t know anything about Arenacross.
Lindsey Alkire: I can tell you anything and everything you want to know about Arenacross.
Can you tell me what I’ve been missing?
Right now?
Yes. Sell me on Arenacross. Make me a believer.
Well, Arenacross is the most intense motocross racing on the planet. We take the world’s fastest Arenacross competitors and we bring them into hockey-sized arenas like the Landers Center down in Southaven. What makes it exciting is it’s condensed. We bring the thrill of outdoor motocross inside, so we bring the intensity up like 16 levels. Outdoor motocross tracks are about 2-3 miles. When you condense that down to an arena you go from 2-and-a-half minute laps to something like 20-to-25 second laps, but still keep all the same action. We have jumps, and turns, and a starting line and a finish line. You have a winner that’s declared. And part of what makes it awesome is there are 16 riders out on the track at one time. A lot of racing that goes on, but no race is ever the same. There are always different competitors, and there’s always gonna be different occurrences that happen — different crashes. These riders have a win-at-all-costs mentality. Because everything is a little bit more condensed there’s minimal room for error. There’s not a lot of places to make passes sticks so that’s why passes can get a little aggressive.
[pullquote-1]So it gets pretty aggressive?
You have to make your pass count and don’t have a lot of time to do it because we have a 20 to 25 seconds a lap. You’re only talking a couple of minutes for the main event. These guys’ adrenaline is through the roof. They have a very high heart rate when they’re doing this. And one of the cool things about being inside these arenas that you can actually hear the fans cheering you on. As a fan, what I like most is you feel so close to the action. It’s right in front of your face. You can see absolutely everything is happening out on the track, and sometimes you wish you actually had three sets of eyeballs just to maintain every proportion of the track because there’s so much happening.
I always wish that, actually. So what’s your Arenacross story?
My story is pretty awesome. This is my life. I don’t know anything other really then Arenacross. I started riding when I was eight years old. I’m 28 now, so it’s been the majority of my life. 20 years, I’ve been involved. For me, it started off as a hobby. My dad and I both entered our first race when I was 11. I started traveling to amateur national races when I was like 14, then turned pro when I was 16, and toured the country racing in the women’s professional series. When I was 19, I saw there was an opportunity to become the next Miss Arenacross. She’s the official spokesperson for the series. She did interviews. She was the floor announcer, and technically just the face of Arenacross. So I applied for that, and I got the job. I’ve been involved with Arenacross ever since. I’m so passionate about it.
Arenacross Racing at The Landers Center in Southaven. Friday, March 3, Saturday, March 4, Sunday, March 5 – Amateur Day
Tickets start at $15. For details, here you go.
