Alta Redshift Makes History At Red Bull Straight Rhythm
Earlier this month we reported on Alta Motors’ plan to compete with the best in the business at Red Bull Straight Rhythm. Alta entered its Redshift MX racer in the Lites class, to be ridden by Josh Hill, a former MX star who retired three years ago due to a horrific injury. From the start, Alta has designed its Redshift to take on its internal combustion competitors in the Lites category, but instead of treading the waters in local or regional events, Alta decided to jump into the deep end to face the best of the best.
No one knew what to expect. Simply turning heads would have been one thing, but Hill and the Alta team completely shattered expectations. Hill easily qualified for the main event, and won the best-of-three showdown in the quarterfinals in dramatic fashion! The feat was nothing short of impressive. So much so that we’re going to show you the note sent to us from Alta CEO Marc Fenigstein, clearly displaying the emotions and gratitude of the moment. Be sure to click the link within, where you can watch the entire 2016 Red Bull Straight Rhythm event. If you just want to watch Hill and Alta make history, the timeline markers at the bottom of the video will take you right there. -TS
Last week I emailed out about Alta competing in the Red Bull Straight Rhythm. I just wanted to send out a quick follow up after an incredible weekend. Our rider, Josh Hill, qualified for the main event and won his quarterfinal bracket, beating everyone in the 250 class except for the three Troy Lee / Factory KTMs. This would have been a great result for an established company, bike, and team like Honda or Kawasaki. For electric, it is unprecedented and historic.
You can watch the whole event on Red Bull TV. The link goes straight to Josh’s epic three round quarterfinal battle with Suzuki rider Kyle Cunningham, including the lookback pass above (the crowd lost their minds… ok, I did, too).
Overall, we’re pinching ourselves. Our whole company is smaller than KTM’s MX/SX race program. This was Alta’s first ever motocross-style event and we skipped straight to a national level event against top pro teams. Josh is coming out of retirement and back from a horrific injury. We were literally handed our race suspension a few days before the event and not allowed to open it up. And then the tiny detail of completely new technology.
For us to run at this level on our first outing is crazy. I can’t describe the feeling after that 3rd run in the quarters, but you could see it on Josh’s face in the interviews, and everyone at Alta was feeling the exact same thing at the same moment. In one evening, we retired any questions about whether our bike, our technology, and our company are here to stay. And we’re just getting started.
Have a great week,
Marc
Troy's been riding motorcycles and writing about them since 2006, getting his start at Rider Magazine. From there, he moved to Sport Rider Magazine before finally landing at Motorcycle.com in 2011. A lifelong gearhead who didn't fully immerse himself in motorcycles until his teenage years, Troy's interests have always been in technology, performance, and going fast. Naturally, racing was the perfect avenue to combine all three. Troy has been racing nearly as long as he's been riding and has competed at the AMA national level. He's also won multiple club races throughout the country, culminating in a Utah Sport Bike Association championship in 2011. He has been invited as a guest instructor for the Yamaha Champions Riding School, and when he's not out riding, he's either wrenching on bikes or watching MotoGP.
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