While the nations top amateur athletes battled for titles in Florida last week, the industries biggest heavy hitters attended the 14th annual A Day in the Dirt race at Pala Raceway. The brain child of Kenny Alexander, one of Hollywood's most celebrated stunt men, and Troy Lee, one of motocross' most celebrated artists, A Day in the Dirt was created to bring awareness to the stunt community and as a way to give riders and enthusiasts an event like no other. And after attending the event for the fourth time, we can attest to the fact that this is truly a one of a kind race.

Red Bull stepped in as title sponsor this year and, as expected from any Red Bull event, everything and everyone looked the part. Friday marked the Troy Lee Practice Session and So Cal Reunion Race, where all the oldschoolers got a chance to bench race about their days spent at epic riding spots such as Saddleback, Carlsbad and Indian Dunes. Saturday was when the real racing went down, with everything from Vintage Grand Prix to the always-anticipated Pro Am Grand Prix taking from the gate.

This is one of the only races we attend where points or championships play a distant second to camaraderie and catching up with old friends. Bragging rights are the only thing on the line at A Day in the Dirt and Austin Stroupe was the one in charge of grabbing that, as he dominated the 450 Pro class over some of the fastest riders in the biz, past and present. Josh Grant also made his debut aboard a Jeff Ward Racing Kawasaki. Grant looked to have the team race locked up until Christian Craig and TLD Team Manager, Tyler Keefe put on a late moto charge to take the honors.

Another highlight of the weekend was watching Doug Henry race again. It always touches the heart to see one of our fallen riders throw a leg back over the bike and we weren't a bit surprised to see that Henry is still super fast on a bike.

If you've never had the pleasure of attending A Day in the Dirt, do yourself a favor and plan on spending Thanksgiving in So. Cal. next year. It's worth the travel.