I'm still trying to get used to seeing RC with an X Games gold medal around his neck, but if tonight's Step Up win was any indication of what's to come, it will be a normal occurance in no time.
Surprised? Ya, me neither. But, as much as Ricky owned tonight's Step Up, last year's X Games gold medalist, Ronnie Renner kept the G.O.A.T. honest and on his toes. If you witnessed Ricky launch the Step Up lip at the Moto X World Championships in April, than you know just how unstoppable RC can be granted he keeps it on two wheels—which he did tonight. What started off as a stacked field of bar hopping talent including Mike Mason, Ronnie Renner, Tommy Clowers and Brian Deegan, quickly diminished as the bar began to reach the 32' mark. Step Up rookie, Mike Mason was the first to get eliminated, but not without putting up a strong fight on his Honda CR250. Ya, I said 250 and yes, that's a two-stroke. In fact, Mason was the only rider donning a two-stroke, which in my opinion put the Mase at a major disadvantage. "Man, Mason looked so good and I honestly thought he had a chance at winning, but it's easy to see that his bike selection hurt him", exclaims Best Whip winner Todd Potter. "I rode Step Up at the MXWC this year and discovered first hand how difficult it is to compete with the guys on the bigger 450 four-strokes", finishes Potter.
After Mason got knocked out of contention, the rest of the field shortly followed preparing Renner and Carmichael for a head-to-head battle. Both Ricky and Renner were able to clear the 32' bar, but once it got bumped up to 33', it was all Carmichael. This years Step Up marks the second time that a dedicated Supercross racer won gold, with Jeremy McGrath being the first in 2004. It'd be interesting to know how this gold medal stacks up to winning a Supercross championship, but if I were to guess I'd say it's right up there, especially since it's a first for RC.
Ryan Leyba
Best Trick bronze medalist and Best Whip gold medalist, Todd Potter was on hand to witness Carmichael nearly boost through the roof of Staples Center.
Ryan Leyba
Though he's not as famous as Potter, Lil' John deserves a mentioning for making an appearance at Staples during Step Up.
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Contributors
Ryan Leyba
Leyba is a bitter, retired FMX rider that likes to sit in his cubicle and call the professionals of the sport wussies for not pulling 360s and double backflips. He claims he quit riding FMX before flips were even invented... yeah, right.
Cliff Talley
Making FMX videos exciting is easy. Making them look good is not. Cliff Talley does both of these well and still manages to find enough time to piss off his neighbors with his Travis Barker-esque drum skills.
Chris Tedesco
You've seen his photos on the covers of Transworld, Racer X and more. You've also seen his tequila shooting skills at your local dive bar. Ladies, Chris is single and looking to mingle.
Grant "Goba" O'brien
FMX in Australia wouldn't exist if it weren't for Goba. Well, maybe it would, but it wouldn't be nearly as cool. I don't know why, but we can't quit calling him gobalobadingdong — it just rolls off the tongue.
Tes Sewell
Tes is the dude that's always involved in everything that's going on in FMX. How he does it, we don't know, but that's the reason we hired him to share his plethora of FMX wisdom in the form of a monthly column.
