November 20,2006

The North American Downhill championship race was held on 11/19/2006, under
blistering hot skies, in this two day event held under the auspices of the
IGSA (International Gravity Sports Association www.gravity-sports.com ).
Temps soaring into the 90's had racers and course workers scrambling for
cover from the heat.

Gravity racers in Inline Downhill, Gravity Bikes, Downhill skateboarders,
Streetlugers and Classic buttboard came together and braved the heat to
challenge the awesome 50+ mph hill and the newly named "Seismic Corner of
Death".

Inline skaters suffered no crashes throughout the race, but other
disciplines were not so fortunate. For more stories on other disciplines
visit www.silverfishlongboarding.com for pictures and results. Radar results
from Silverfish record speeds of up to 51 mph for the Inline class, and up
to 53 mph for Gravity bikes.

#5 world ranked David Lambert, a United Airlines Avionics Engineer ,from
Castro Valley, California, won both his heats to become the North American
Champion.

Lambert, employing great skating form and strategy fought off #1 ranked
Scott Peer, #4 ranked George Merkert and #2 ranked Warren Focke in the final
heat to claim the gold and title.

in the final heat, Lambert and Focke leaped from the line as Peer and
Merkert held back a bit. As the four raced down the hill Lambert and Focke,
in their approach to the corner, started braking early, enabling the fast
Merkert-Peer train to close the gap. As the racers rounded out the corner,
the trains broke up, with Lambert maintaining his cornering speed better.
Merkert, in a mad dash to gain some ground with a hand over Lambert for the
win, failed but placed 2nd, with Peer taking the bronze and Focke placing
fourth.

Qualifying on Saturday, the order broke down to:

#4 George Merkert 1:04.980
#2 Warren Focke 1:07.725
#5 David Lambert 1:08.717
#1 Scott Peer 1:09:001
#7 Craig Ellis 1:09.372
#3 Mark Henley 1:10.814
#6 Keri Tishner 1:25:453

The racing broke down to brackets determined by qualifing order.

Heat #1 with Merkert, Peer, and Ellis with Peer and Merkert advancing.
Heat #2 with Lambert, Focke, Henley, and Tishner with Lambert and Focke
advancing.

The next race in the IGSA will be the final 2006 race in the California
Downhill series, and the 2nd race of the 2007 season, on December 2nd. All
info related to racing under the IGSA can be found at their website.

Special thanks and appreciation to Marcus Rietema and Bob Ozman and Art
Sanchez for their loyal efforts and dedication to Gravity Racing and for
holding this 2 day event.

This article may not be re-printed or published without the express
permission of the author. Email knitemarco@... for permissions.

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