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Das Lachen in Jared Mees Gesicht als er auf dem ersten Platz stand zeigte, dass er mehr als glücklich über die diesjährigen X-Games in Austin, Texas, war.

Der Motorradfahrer Jared Mees war auf dem Weg das erste Harley-Davidson Flat-Track Rennen bei den X-Games in Austin, Texas, im Jahre 2015 zu gewinnen. Aber in der letzten Runde, in der Nähe der Zielgeraden, hatte sein Motorrad mit mechanischen Problemen zu kämpfen und er konnte nur zusehen, wie Bryan Smith über die Ziellinie fuhr und die Goldmedaille gewann.

Jared Mees ist voller Vorfreude auf den Start des diesjährigen Flat-Track Rennens der X Games

Mees war weniger als 15 Sekunden vom Ziel entfernt und erreichte Wende zwei der letzten Runde mit einem Vorsprung von 2,34 Sekunden auf Smith. Mees lag 18 der 20 Runden in Führung. Als er aufs Gas trat, um zu gewinnen, ist seine Harley-Davidson verendet. "Es fühlte sich wie ein falscher Leerlauf an" erklärte Mees später.

Er dachte ursprünglich, dass die Kette seines Motorrads brach. Stattdessen löste sich eine Mutter seiner Flat-Track XR750 Harley-Davidson, die letztendlich das Kettenrad von der Nabe trennte. Obwohl die Kette und das Kettenrad sich nicht vom Motorrad lösten, waren sie nicht mehr an eine Energiequelle angeschlossen.

Zu allem Übel entwickelte sich zwischen ihm und Smith eine Rivalität. Mees hat 2 Jahre infolge die AMA Pro Flat-Track Meisterschaft vor Smith gewonnen. Die zwei leben ca. 15 Minuten von einander in Michigan entfernt und es gab zwischen ihnen beim Kampf um die Meisterschaft schon immer Probleme. Gelinde gesagt war Mees über das Ergebnis der X-Games verärgert.

"In der letzten Runde mechanische Probleme zu haben, war eine riesige Enttäuschung" sagte er. "Darum fokussierte ich mich bei den X-Games 2016 auf eine Wiedergutmachung für die Niederlage."

Der 30-jährige gewann 4-mal die AMA Grand National Meisterschaften und fährt seitdem er sechs war auf Motorrädern. Zu jener Zeit gab ihm sein Vater, der auch Rennen fuhr, sein erstes Motorrad -  eine Yamaha PW 50.

Jared Mees wartet in Vorfreude auf den Beginn der Harley Davidson Flat Track-Rennen auf der diesjährigen X-Games.

Er sagte, dass er sich nicht anders als sonst auf diese Wiedergutmachung vorbereitet habe. "Ich sorge nur dafür, dass ich nicht den gleichen Fehler wie letztes Jahr begehe" sagte er.

Mees erklärte, dass er für das Rennen viel Konditionstraining absolvierte. Außerdem sagte er während der Woche in der Nähe seiner Heimatstadt auf einem motocrossähnlichem Motorrad gefahren sei

"Es ist fast wie ein Cross-Training" behauptet er. "Ich fahre nicht während der Woche auf meiner Flat-Track Harley, da der Unterhalt des Motorrads sehr kostspielig ist."

Der Tag, an dem er die enttäuschende Niederlage vom letzten Jahr hinter sich lassen kann, war der 2. Juni dieses Jahres. Diesmal gab es keine mechanischen Probleme und Mees gewann das Rennen mit einem 0,369 Sekunden Vorsprung vor Kenny Coolbeth Jr. und Brad Baker.

"Das Rennen hat Spaß gebracht. Ich hatte einen guten Start und überholte Einige. Coolbeth saß mir in den letzten Runden im Nacken, aber ich ließ mich nicht aufhalten und holte mir den Sieg" sagte er.

Jared Mees Team feiert den Sieg bei den X Games 2016 in Austin, Texas, am 2. Juni 2016.

Er gab zu, dass das Rennen eng war, aber es sei nicht das Engste gewesen, an dem er teilnahm.

Michael Krikness, der letztendlich Fünfter wurde, behauptete zu Beginn die Führung und führte das Feld der 12 Rennfahrer nach der ersten Kurve an, bis Smith, der Favorit des Rennens, seinen Zeh am Rande der Strecke verhedderte. Er viel zu Boden und riss Sammy Halbert mich sich. Jake Johnsen schnappte sich die Führung für die nächsten vier Runden die Führung, bis Baker, gefolgt von Mees, in Kurve 4 übernahm. Als Baker Kurve 8 verpasste, nutze Mees den Vorteil und holte sich die Führung.

Es dauerte nicht mehr lange bis Coolbeth Mees angriff und so ging es die nächste 10 der 20 Runden weiter.

"Ich wollte dieses Rennen unbedingt gewinnen. Wir haben gewonnen und holten uns die Wiedergutmachung, die wir haben wollten" sagte Mees.

Übrigens wurde Smith wegen seines Sturzes nur 11ter.

Obwohl noch nicht sicher ist wo die X-Games im Jahre 2017 stattfinden, plant Mees auf jeden Fall daran teilzunehmen.

The Brickyard 400 is one of the biggest NASCAR races of the summer. The annual event, sponsored by Crown Royal, will be held on July 24th. Consisting of several events, fan activities, and 650 miles of racing (the Lilly Diabetes 250 and the Crown Royal 400), the weekend is guaranteed to be one you won't want to miss if you are within driving distance.

If you are attending the NASCAR Crown Royal 400 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this weekend, be sure to stop by the K&N booth, located right next to Gate 1.

This gorgeous Lucas Oil vintage funny car is one of the vehicles displayed in the K&N booth at the NASCAR 400 at the Brickyard.

Located right next to gate 1 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, the K&N booth will be the place to be this weekend.

For this event, K&N is teaming up with NASCAR to offer a one of a kind fan experience. A pair of K&N haulers are located next to Gate 1 and will be the hub for all K&N activities. For those unfamiliar with the area, gate 1 is on the corner of Crawfordsville Road and 1802 Georgetown Road next to the roundabout at Crawfordsville Road/Speedway Drive and Georgetown/Main. If you are looking for an intake for your daily driver, project car, or any other vehicle, our product experts will be on hand to help you with not only K&N product, but also Spectre and AIRAID as well. While you're getting insight to help your engine breathe a little better, your spouse can be spinning our prize wheel for a chance to win free merchandise, product, trips, or other great prizes. We didn't forget about the kiddos either. They can enter our coloring contest for a chance to win more free prizes.

We also have new apparel designs available for purchase as well as our latest and greatest product installed on several vehicles in the K&N 'Korral'. If you are in Indianapolis, swing on by. We are outside of the gates, so you don't even need a pass to get to us. Check back for all the info on events that K&N will be attending, or sign up for our newsletter so you stay in the know at all times.

The Jarrett Andretti sprint car uses K&N products and can be checked out this weekend at the Crown Royal 400 at the Brickyard.

K&N will have new apparel designs available for purchase throughout the weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Gate 1.

This 5th gen Camaro has Spectre Performance's newest product on it, the under hood caps and covers set. These parts are available for purchase on the Spectre Performance website.

Johnny Lewis joined the Lloyd brothers' team for the 2016 AMA Pro Flat Track season.

Lloyd Brothers Motorsport and Johnny Lewis Team Up Again for 2016
A short season won’t stop the Lloyd brothers from competing at the top level in this year’s series.

Johnny Lewis will ride for Lloyd Brothers Motorsport in select rounds of the AMA Pro Racing Flat Track Championship and the Second Annual Harley-Davidson Flat Track X Games. Lewis will be riding the newest version of the LBM Flat Tracker with title sponsorship from Dillard Family Racing.

Lloyd Brothers Motorsport races exclusively in the AMA Pro Racing Grand National Dirt Track Circuit as well as the Flat Track X Games.

“We didn’t have the funding for the full series this year, but we are excited to continue with our rider from last year, Johnny Lewis. Johnny would not have been able to compete in a full season anyway because he and his wife are expecting a baby girl in the coming weeks. So we are skipping three rounds and will pick it up at the X-Games,” said David Lloyd, co-owner with his brother Michael of Lloyd Brothers Motorsport (LBM).

“Our Focus is to make sure that the team has every possible advantage to compete well at each race that we attend while at the same time gaining valuable experience together to move forward in the future,” stated team co-owner Michael Lloyd. “We had several top-five finishes last year running a partial season with Johnny. In addition to removing over 13 pounds from the motorcycle, we have made chassis and power plant changes that should move us forward,” added David Lloyd.

According to David, Michael and David have owned a team for 12 or 13 years. “We helped to develop the LBM Flat Tracker, which we have been having pretty good success with. We also participated in the Moto ST Series and won that championship two years in a row, back in 2007 and 2008.”

David and Michael’s primary business is building homes in the Columbus, Ohio area.

David started racing 30 years ago when he was 14 years old. “I grew up riding motorcycles. I did the pro series for a couple of years and we’ve been influential in getting new brands involved in the sport,” he said.

He first started getting interested in motorcycle racing when he was about 13. He noted that no one in his family was involved in the sport. It was a personal appeal that stemmed from the popularity of motorcycle racing in the rural area in which he grew up.

“We lived out in the country and I heard of people riding motorcycles,” said David. “The first time I rode one I was hooked. I got involved locally and a shop owner saw how well I was riding and he helped support me and got me into racing by the time I was 16.”

David turned pro when he was 16. “I turned to the then Pro-Am class at 16 and then moved up to the Junior pro ranks when I was 17 and I got my expert license when I was 18,” he said.

Johnny's featured bike this year is 13-pound lighter Ducati Scrambler with improvements made to the chassis and powerplant.

As a co-owner of a team David focuses on recruiting riders and collecting sponsors. “Finding riders for dirt track is just looking at the talent pool and seeing who is available each year,” he explained. “We are very excited to have Johnny Lewis moving forward. His talent, work ethic and personality are unmatched in the paddock.”

Building a program that attracts high visibility and provides a quick return on investment has allowed the team to lure sponsors.  They have attracted a lot of attention by using different types of branded motorcycles that have not been seen in Flat Track racing before. For example, Lloyd Brothers Motorsport has competed on motorcycles from Ducati and Aprilia as well as Harley-Davidson and Kawasaki.

David pointed out that the team’s biggest race victory occurred in 2010 in Prescott, Arizona. In their first race with Joe Kopp, who won the national championship twice, Lloyd Brothers Motorsport’s Ducati was the first to beat a Harley-Davidson motorcycle in 19 years. To say it was close would be an understatement. Kopp won by 17-thousandths of a second.

“Prior to that race Harley-Davidson and Honda had both developed motors for Flat Track racing that won every race for 28 years. The win got us in every motorcycle magazine around the world. It was pretty cool,” he said.

The racing team concentrates on Flat Track racing because it gives them the opportunity to develop new things for their motorcycles. “I like to develop new things so everything we do on dirt track is hand made,” said David. “For example, we design our own chassis. Every time we race we have a chance to test them and then improve them. It is a constant evolution process to make them better. That’s why Flat Track racing is so cool.

“Dirt track seems pretty simple,” continued David. “You just keep going left all the time. But the motorcycles and the riders have to be very much on point. We’re always in one gear, there are no front brakes and there are only four corners. Things have to work very, very well opposed to road racing when you have 15 corners, six-speeds and a front brake. You have to be sure that your motorcycle is set up and designed correctly so it can work on different types of tracks.”

This isn't the first time Johnny is running with the Lloyd brothers. However, this season will be a short one for the team.

David noted that tracks vary widely in Flat Track racing. Some tracks are hard and sticky, some are hard and slippery and some are deep cushioned.  “Racing Flat Track is like a moving target. You have to make sure everything fits right. It’s very challenging,” he said.

Members of Lloyd Brothers Motorsport include Lewis, who also runs a dirt track school, Daniel Kalal, and Richard Lambracht. “We’ve all been together for quite awhile. We have a good group of people. It truly takes a village to be successful,” said David.

David noted that K&N Filters has been sponsoring Lloyd Brothers Motorsport for 13 years. “They’ve been fantastic. We have built a personal relationship with them,” he said.

“You know, some cushion tracks are incredibility dirty and violent environments where motorcycles get hit with 100-mile an hour rooster tails. For us, K&N is our only choice as far as air filters are concerned. They take a beating and still come through,” he concluded.

Lloyd Brothers Motorsport will compete next in the X-Games on June 2.

Shea is regarded as a tough competitor and is not known to give up ground easily.

Few of us can point to the exact moment when our life turned around 180 degrees. And even fewer of us have had it happen in the passenger seat of a car someone else was driving. But that’s exactly what happened to 15 year old Shea Holbrook.

Moving into the top-level Touring Class of World Challenge has suited Shea well.

A promising young competitive water skier in her native state of Florida, she was given a ride in one of the Richard Petty Experience Sprint Cup replicas around Daytona International Speedway by a program instructor. Before she had even unbelted herself from the car in pit lane, Shea knew she that wanted to become a professional race car driver.

The move from water skiing to auto racing isn’t as unlikely a move as you might think. Both emphasize control at speed, optimizing weight transfer, and controlling the interface between the ski and water or four tires and asphalt.

All of the vehicles in this photo has a K&N air filter on it and most have oil filters too. Shea even runs K&N fuel filters on her race rig.

So with the help of her parents, together they built her first race car in the family garage, and in 2009 had won the Central Florida Class H1 championship. In 2010, she went into the SCCA World Challenge series where she finished sixth. In 2011, Shea won the Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car race at the Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach, only the second female driver to win a World Challenge Touring Car race.

For 2012, not only did she record her best finish in World Challenge (fourth), but she began to attract the attention of the media. Shea was made a member of the all-female TRUECar Racing Women Empowered Initiative, while Honda Canada made her the star of one of its TV commercials. She was even featured in an article in Teen Vogue, sharing with young women the infinite possibilities open to them.

Shea Racing wears its K&N logo with pride, using the company’s products on its race cars and tow vehicles.

In 2013, Shea finished seventh in the Pirelli World Challenge Touring Car B class, and then moved to the faster A class for 2014, when she finished second overall. She was also the subject of a national TV commercial for sponsor TRUECar.

For 2015, Shea was forced to operate on a shoestring as TRUECar had dropped their program prematurely. Despite the fact that she was only able to compete in four World Challenge TCA races, she still managing to record three top five finishes.

Shea Racing is returning full force, fill-time to the 2016 Pirelli World Challenge Touring car championship -- the first time since 2012. The team is campaigning a pair of Honda Accords V6’s with Shea Holbrook, 6-time PWC winner s back into a Touring Car number 67 joined by the 2015 Trans Am TA3 “Rookie of the Year,” Jason Fichter in car number 7. Shea currently sits a very competitive third in points after eight of 19 races, and Shea Racing occupies third in the team championship, thanks in part to the seventh place in standings held down by Jason Fichter.

And while Shea Racing uses K&N oil and fuel filters on its tow rig, and K&N’s high performance oil filter on its race cars, it’s the K&N air intake about which Shea is most enthused “We use the K&N 69-1212TS Typhoon air intake which guarantees us an increase in power before we ever tune.” In fact, in K&N’s own chassis dyno tests, the installation of a 69-1212TS on an otherwise stock Honda Accord increased power by 7.43 horsepower.

Not surprising Shea is a K&N fan. That first high-speed ride was in a Petty Experience car equipped with a K&N air filter.

50 Years ago, if you had boasted to your friends about buying a brand new Chevy Nova, they might have laughed at you, and shrugged you off while getting into their Camaro, Charger, or Mustang. Well, as the great Bob Dylan once said, "the times, they are a changin'." And so they have.

These days, the Chevy Nova, also called the Chevy II, is one of the most sought after cars for restoration projects. The Nova dates all the way back to 1962 - the year of the Tiger - and with a 327ci motor and 4-speed manual transmission option, the Nova was no kitten.

No detail was overlooked in this build. Can you spot the billet rearview mirror?

Paul lives in Claremont, California, just a few miles from the iconic Auto Club Raceway at the Fairplex in Pomona.

A thin red stripe breaks up the black and white paintjob by Gage Motorsports, in Arlington, Washington.

Currently the most sought after Chevy Novas are the 68-74 models, bearing the classic "muscle car" look. These came with a multitude of engine options, ranging from a 153ci 2.5L inline-four, all the way to a 402ci 6.6L V8, and almost anything in between. It also had a variety of available transmissions, with the 2-speed Powerglide and 4-speed Borg-Warner T-10 manual as an option. Some Novas even came off the assembly line with disc brakes, to stop all the power behind them. A popular option was the 4-barrel 300 hp 5.7L setup with a three-speed Turbo Hydra-matic 350 (THM350)

The front suspension consists of a Santuff 4-Link Coilover setup, sitting under a 427 LS7 GM motor.

Black and red Kirkey race seats adorn the interior with G-Forge 5-point seat belts and an Art Morrison cage.

An E-3770 6 x 14-inch round K&N air cleaner sits atop the powerful 427ci LS7.

Paul Summers, of Claremont, California, had a similar idea in mind when he bought his 1969 Chevy Nova, although the 350ci motor wasn't going to cut it for him. He sought the definitive power of the Chevy LS7. "I bought the car in 2013," Paul says, "my goal was to have a street car that ran high 9s on the strip." He got what he wished for - a robust Nova that had power, style, and a beautiful paintjob done by Gage Motorsports in Arlington, Washington.

Paul moved to Southern California in 2014 and began to show interest in the wealth of car shows that SoCal has to offer. He began to show off the enhancing qualities of the car, like the black and red Kirkey race seats and the Art Morrison cage with G-Forge 5-point seat belts. The aforementioned LS7 features L92 heads, Doug's headers, and a Flowmaster exhaust to let the LS7 roar. It's also fitted with Aluminum Champion wheels wrapped in Mickey-Thompson tires contributing to the smooth look and feel of this car. Paul's drivetrain consists of an Inland Empire Driveline driveshaft and a Mark Williams 4.11 ring and pinion. The Nova is also equipped with a Santuff 4-Link coilover suspension setup, to make sure the handling is excellent.

The cowl hood is necessary when running a 6" filter setup.

Paul takes no nonsense, and lets his competition know about it.

The classic 427 badges let everyone know what's under the hood!

Needless to say, Paul definitely has a great taste in highly customized cars and enthusiasts at the many car shows he attended agreed. He was prosperous in winning multiple trophies including 25 best-of-show awards amongst numerous car shows in Southern California. Paul also won the Super Chevy Editor's Pick award at the 2016 Grand National Roadster Show and took home a trophy from the Street Machine Muscle Car Nationals. Trophies were great, however something was missing, his need for speed. He started taking his car to the local drag strips and proceeded to run low 10s at around 120 mph. One day, he was able to make a 10.20 pass at 128 MPH but the rear end concluded his session quickly when it gave out, thus pretzeling the driveshaft, and cracking the transmission case in the process. He replaced the rear-end with a Mark Williams 40-Spline and had the transmission rebuilt. While the car was indisposed, Paul decided to take off the stock front-end and replace it with an all new tube chassis chromoly front end. He is now ready to hit the track again, and test out his new and better than before 1969 Chevy Nova.

The car is now running high 9's and Paul couldn't be happier. He doesn't have any issue pushing his T-400 Transmission to the limit in the name of a little speed addiction. You better believe that Paul drives the car on the streets too. If you ever pull up next to a black and white Nova with a massive cowl induction hood, let him be, you don't want to get your feelings hurt.

A Wilwood brake setup with drilled and slotted rotors sits behind the Mickey Thompson clad Aluminum Champion wheels and are responsible for bringing the Nova down from top speed.

Despite all the modifications, some features on the vehicle remained, like the side fender badges.

The Nova is equipped with a Hurst shifter outfitted with a trans-lock switch.