“Even if I couldn’t race, I’d still come along just for the views.” Little did I know at the start of our trip how prophetic my awe at the beauty of the Nevada highlands would be.
The secound round of the WERA West series was hosted at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a course I am very familiar with and comfortable on. I was entered in seven races, including two solo endurance races and a make-up race being carried over from our first round at Auto Club Speedway. I was very excited to race, as holding the first round’s make-up race at Vegas would put me at an advantage points-wise because I had much more experience at LVMS than at ACS and would do much better.
Unfortunately, Murphy’s Law has a funny way of jumping into the mix of things, and my race weekend was cut short before I’d completed even two laps. At the end of the out lap of my first practice, just as I was slowing for turn 1, another bike slammed into me from the rear and sent me flying over the handlebars. My bike, I’m told, stood straight up onto its nose and then launched into the air, thankfully and only by the grace of God narrowly missing landing on me or anyone else. I felt like I’d been hit with a bomb as I tried to figure out which way was up, dodge the bikes frantically splitting me at 80+ mph, and scramble off the track.
In the ambulance, and later at the hospital, I would learn that I’d broken my left arm in three places: I snapped my clavicle (collarbone), fractured my radial head (elbow), and chipped my scaphoid (thumb/wrist). Apparently, I tried to Jackie Chan my landing and stuck my arm out to catch myself. Always a great idea! The hospital released me after a few hours with a splint, a sling, and a bag full of pills, and with that I headed back to the track to cheer up the other guys, who were without a doubt too distraught to ride in the face of my injury. The show must go on, after all 
After hearing that I wouldn’t need surgery and that I would heal up in time for the next race – in April, a convenient 9 weeks away – the guys dried their tears, suited up and went out to kick some Vegas ass with Northwest talent!
So, even though I didn’t end up competing, I owe my sponsors thanks for giving me the chance: Studio819 Photography, Pennell Powersports, Bridgestone Tires, Performance Source, R-Tech Fuels, Adrenaline Freaks Trackdays, and last but never least, PNWRiders.com, the best online motorcycle community out there. My sponsors support me, so do what you can to support them!
Chris Sarbora @ Las Vegas Motor Speedway, 2008
Tags: Las Vegas Motor Speedway, WERA