America Direct
Tyler Steiner to the Mini Os
Tyler Steiner was absolutely gutted when he broke his collarbone at a Whakatane club round in August.
He’d had great plans to compete in the Australian Nationals but these plans were all wiped by one "silly mistake" on a jump. Racing in Australia was to be the first stepping stone in a career path that would hopefully see him as a pro-rider in the USA.
But this particular cloud has had a silver lining. Instead of the stepping stone, Tyler now has the opportunity to take the giant step and head to America direct.
Thanks to MX Antix USA and MX Antix NZ, Tyler is booked to go to the US to compete in the 2014 Mini Os in the school boys’ 125cc class. The Mini Os is a bit like Loretta Lynn’s and the riders who do Loretta Lynn’s race the Mini O’s as well. The Mini Os are officially the Annual Thor Winter National Olympics and promoted as a week of premier motocross and supercross racing. This year will be the 43rd annual event and will take place at Gatorback Cycle Park in Florida.
According to Wes Williams, film director at Vurb Moto, “there are six really big amateur races throughout the year in the US, and even though it’s at the end of the year, people consider Mini Os to be the first one of the season because new contracts have been signed and kids are on new bikes and in new gear. This race is really unique, compared to all the others. The racing format’s different – it has a supercross portion and a motocross portion. They seem to cram twice as much racing into the week as a normal event. A ton of people come from all over the country, and that makes it one of the biggest and best races of the year. The Mini Os is definitely one of the places to see the “next big thing” in racing. A lot of people are here from the industry with big eyes out for kids they want to take into the next year”.
What an opportunity! So, yes, a bike is being organized, and accommodation and travel, so Tyler will be off with his Dad in November for three weeks. The first week will be bike setup and practice, then there’s the 6 days of the Mini Os event (24th-29th Nov) – with a traditional American Thanksgiving bang in the middle -followed by a few days of rest and recreation and perhaps a tiki tour of Washington.
As Robyn from MX Antix NZ says, “I often ask kids "where do you see yourself in 5 or 10 years time" and their answer is usually "racing in America". With the contacts MX Antix now has in the USA, I am lucky enough to be heading back there in November for 3 weeks to watch our USA team race at the Mini Os, but I am also able to give one young rider the opportunity of experiencing 'racing in America' – Tyler Steiner & his dad Dion will travel with me to Florida. I would like to thank the support of our manager Erika Born and the USA team riders and their families for making this happen.”
Dion and Tyler join in these thanks. It’s a great opportunity for the up and coming Te Puke rider. We wish him well.
