Kyle Larson steady at New Hampshire in runner-up effort - MotorSportsTalk

On Friday, Kyle Larson said he wouldn’t be disappointed if he did not have his inaugural Sprint Cup win before this season ended.

But if he continues to run the way he’s been running and still isn’t able to seal the deal in the final eight races of 2014, one wonders if he’ll get at least a little frustrated.

The rookie star once again dueled up front with the Chasers today at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and eventually dusted Kevin Harvick in the green-white-checkered restart to pick up a second-place finish.

That equals his second back in the spring at Auto Club Speedway as his best Cup result so far.

“Didn’t think we’d be a second-place finisher,” Larson said afterwards. “We weren’t a second-place car by any means – Top-5 car, I thought. [It was] crazy how many cautions there were at the end. [I] finally figured it out the last time, was able to get to second, hold off Kevin for two laps to get second.

“[I’m] happy about the finish. Hopefully, someday soon, I’ll get one spot better. Like I said last week, all these [races] coming close, finishing second or third, is going to make that win feel really special.”

Larson was unable to reel in today’s winner, Joey Logano, as the Penske pilot was simply too strong during the late restarts on fresher tires.

But considering today’s finish and his third-place run last weekend at Chicagoland Speedway, it’s clear that Larson and the No. 42 Chip Ganassi Racing team want some of the spotlight that’s being shined on those in the running for the championship.

When asked if his finishes in the first two Chase races had him thinking “what if,” Larson admitted that it was “a little bit disappointing” to not be involved in the post-season but was still glad that he and teammate Jamie McMurray (who finished fourth today) have been running well in this final stretch.

“I know other teams that are in the Chase notice that and I’m sure they’re worried about us for next season already,” Larson asserted.

Larson began to make a serious move toward the lead pack in the disjointed second half of the race after early trouble with handling on his car.

“The first couple runs, I was really loose on exit of the corner, tight in the center, loose on my entry,” he said. “After that, all three parts of the corner were fixed.

“Once we got the car driving good, we just had to miss those wrecks. We gambled on fuel a little bit, but all the cautions worked out, so it wasn’t really a gamble very much.”

Larson said he didn’t exactly know what adjustments were made to his car, but it’s clear that they worked. With 75 to go, he was running in the Top 5 and remained in that bracket for the rest of the race.

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Vicki Golden has earned a career worthy of a thousand stories and 805 Beer tells at least one of them, as “Inverted Perspective” premiered March 30 on the company’s website and YouTube channel.

Golden did more to break the glass ceiling in SuperMotocross than she ever thought possible. She knows this because riders have never felt the need to explain any of her accomplishments with the disclaimer, “for a girl”.

At this point in Golden’s career, she’s been the first woman to finish top 10 in AMA Arenacross Lites, the first woman to qualify in the Fast 40 in Monster Energy AMA Supercross and the first woman to compete in freestyle Moto X competition, earning a bronze medal by doing so.

Her love for moto came from childhood while she watched her dad and brother ride. By seven she was on her bike and making waves throughout Southern California.

Golden, 30, is still madly in love with the sport and has no plans on moving away but her career is already one to talk about. 805 Beer’s film series wanted to do exactly that.

“I’m taken aback by it all,” Golden told NBC Sports about the documentary. “It’s just crazy to see your story, it’s one thing to live your life and battle everything that comes about but it’s another to just sit there and talk about it.”

805 approached Golden about the feature by asking, “Do you even realize that what you do, and your story is special?”

Golden took the question as a blank canvas to map out the highs and lows of her career and life.

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The title “Inverted Perspective” came from a brainstorming session with Dominick Russo and it highlights Golden’s outlook on the sport of SuperMotocross and her life in general.

“My whole life, my whole career was thinking differently and looking at things that shouldn’t be done and aren’t there, while being able to make a place for myself, where no one thought there should be a place,” Golden said. “It’s inspiring someone to think in different ways. It sums up my life.”

*Vicki Golden is not “fast for a girl”; she’s just fast. – 805 Beer*

While Golden is no stranger to the spotlight, this was the first time she’s been fully involved with the storytelling and creation of a feature about herself.

“It’s not like a full new experience,” Golden said. “Obviously, you get your standard questions about your upbringing and accomplishments, but I’ve never really put into perspective things that happened in my past with my dad and putting that to light. Also, certain other things that maybe got overlooked in previous interviews or films. I wanted to touch on these and Dom wanted to create a story. It’s just cool to see it come to light, it’s a nearly impossible thing to tell somebody’s life story in 40 minutes.”

Golden’s father was left paralyzed after an ATV accident, robbing him the opportunity to ride again. This happened a few months before the father-daughter duo was set to compete in the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur Nationals when Vicki was 12. While she might have been unable to grasp the severity at the time, it’s something she carries with her. Golden continues to ride in his honor.

Years later, an accident in 2018 nearly sidelined the then 25-year-old Vicki when a freestyle accident almost resulted in the amputation of her lower leg.

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Golden 805 Beer — *Vicki Golden has ridden a variety of disciplines in SuperMotocross, which gives her a unique perspective. – 805 Beer*

“Inverted Perspective” highlights her father’s diligence in helping Vicki continue with her career and the kindness and strength he carried while fighting his own battle.

“My dad was the entire reason that I started riding in the first place,” Golden said. “So, to honor his memory and to honor what we went through and how hard he pushed to keep our dream alive and keep everything going – in that sense then, it was really special to be able to honor him and talk about him.”

The 40-minute feature was filmed entirely in black and white, a stark contrast from the oversaturated world of motocross where the brighter the suit the easier it is for fans to find their rider and follow him in the race. By filming in monochrome Russo and Golden had the chance to focus on the race and track from a different perspective.

“It was cool to be able to film it differently,” Golden said. “It created a challenge in the sense of what was going to be more visually impactful for the film.

“I couldn’t be here without the companies that back me but at the same time, it’s not like the logos or colors disappeared, it’s just different lights shed on different spots. It’s just a cool way to do it and to take color away and still be impactful. When you think of black and white, you think of old school, the OG way of doing things.”

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