GRAND FORKS, ND

When the Bad Boys of Arenacross Series rolled into Grand Forks, North Dakota, few would have guessed that ironically, in the bang-'em-up world of Arenacross, a nice guy would dominate the Pro class. But that's exactly what happened when Tanner Reidman (737) lined up to race in the Alerus Center.

Fresh off the Monster Energy/AMA West Coast Supercross Series, Reidman used good starts to jump into the lead quickly in both the 250 and 450 Open Pro divisions. As one of only a few riders to smoothly triple through the track's rhythm section on every lap, he inched away from the rest of the field and easily grabbed the checkered flag at the end of each Pro main.

"I felt pretty fast in the whoops, and I made up some time in the triple-triple section," recounted the RBR Motorsports/MonDak/Rau Designs-backed Suzuki rider after completing his sweep of the night. "It helped that I was comfortable right away, too, and wasn't rusty at all."

Behind Reidman, the racing was anything but smooth sailing. With $1,000 on the line in the 450 main, a slew of regional Pros from the United States and Canada made the trek to Grand Forks, resulting in some very close, intense racing for the final two spots in the top three.

In the 250 class, the battle for second raged among Richard Wuori, Charles Lacy, Steve Drewlo and Justin Fisk. Wuori used the triple-triple section to slowly distance himself from both Lacy and Drewlo, but it was Fisk who - after rounding the first turn in dead last - was on the move. By the end of the race, Fisk had managed to take his KTMhutt.com machine past all but Wuori and the long-gone Reidman to round out the 250 Pro podium.

In the 450 Pro main, Canadian riders Josh Penner and Adam Pfeiffer battled it out for second with Wuori and Drewlo. Wuori faltered first; while trying to force a hard pass on Pfeiffer, he stalled his 450 and narrowly avoided taking both riders down. But all is fair in love, war and arenacross, and it was Drewlo and Penner who benefited, moving into second and third, respectively. As the laps wore on, Drewlo started to fatigue, and he eventually relinquished second to Penner. Drewlo and Penner flanked Reidman on the podium, visibly happy with their performances.

"You know, I'm old and fat, but it still feels good to get up here," Drewlo laughed afterward, while Penner's smile did the talking for the friendly Transcanada Kawasaki rider.

The Amateur class racing also kept the nearly 6,000 fans in attendance on the edges of their seats. The Intermediate classes were stacked with talent, and one 50cc rider even had a 10-person-long line for his autograph at the pre-race pit party.

It had been five years since the last professional arenacross visited the Peace Garden State, but after this great racing event in this nearly flooded city, you can bet it won't be another half-decade before it returns.

Results

50 (4-6): 1. Gunnar Koland (KTM).

50 (7-8): 1. Jake Anderson (Cob).

65 (7-9): 1. Jake Anderson (KTM); 2. Madison McAlinden (Kaw).

85 (7-11): 1. Madison McAlinden (Kaw).

85 (12-15): 1. Jacob Eaton (Hon); 2. James Freudenberg (Hon); 3. Paul Tharalson (Kaw); 4. Shaquille Dubois (Hon); 5. Cole Gaudry (Hon).

250 NOV: 1. Kole Devisscher (Kaw); 2. Josh Wilson; 3. Kayl Brown (Kaw); 4. Brett Johnson (Hon); 5. Matt Chandler (Yam).

250 INT: 1. Corey Parent (Hon); 2. Kyle Defoe (Yam); 3. Austin Lindberg (Hon); 4. Paul Landis (Suz); 5. Seth Bair (Hon).

250 PRO: 1. Tanner Reidman (Suz); 2. Richard Wuori (Suz); 3. Justin Fisk (KTM); 4. Charles Lacy (Kaw); 5. Steve Drewlo (KTM).

450 NOV: 1. Scott St. Lawrence (Kaw); 2. Alex Stursa (Yam); 3. Robert Nelson (Hon); 4. Ben Larson (Kaw); 5. Brett Johnson (Hon).

450 INT: 1. Corey Parent (Hon); 2. Josh Rohr (KTM); 3. Scott Vetter (KTM); 4. Paul Landis (Suz); 5. Mike Larter (Yam).

450 PRO: 1. Tanner Reidman (Suz); 2. Josh Penner (Kaw); 3. Steve Drewlo (KTM); 4. Richard Wuori (Suz); 5. Adam Pfeiffer (Suz).

SCHBY (12-15): 1. Kole Devisscher (KTM); 2. Hunter Hougard (Yam); 3. James Freudenberg (Hon); 4. Kayl Brown (Kaw); 5. Tory Severson (Hon).