LM: What were your overall results from Perris? Class? Result?
MG:3rd Place Amatuer Ski Open & 2nd Place Amatuer Freestyle.
Mark Gomez Am Ski Open at the Lake Perris Races
LM: Being that this race was as local as it can get for you? Was that an advantage for you?
MG: There was no real advantage other than it being really exciting to have an event so close.. on that note about being close I will answer question 2 bellow to explain how this didnt quite work out to be “local” for me haha.
LM: You rolled in pretty late right before the races please tell us what you have been up to?
MG: The Monday morning before the race on saturday I drove to my sponsor Kommander Industries in Phoenix, AZ. I spent nearly the entire week there putting together my new Trinity Matrix freeride ski. It came down to the wire in order to roughly finish the ski and make it to the races on time. I left Phoenix Friday around 6pm and arrived at a hotel near lake Perris around 2 am. I got 3 hours of sleep before I was up and at the gate to get into the race site around 5-6 am. So the whole local race thing didnt quite work out compltely in my favor in this situation.
Mark Gomez with Steve Webster Stoked on his New Ski
LM: How was it competing on the QSM Vengance ski in freestyle? Have you had much time to practice on that ski?
MG: Larry at Quickstyle Motorsports has been supporting me in the freestyle scene providing his new Vengance Freestyle hull to compete on at different events. The whole ski is still a work in progress as Larry and I test different things to improve the performance of the ski. However these events are so far apart It is always a bit of a rough start for me because I simply do not get time to practice on these freestyle hulls as much as I need to in order to make it happen like most other freestyle guys. It is still a ton of fun and I enjoy going out there and making an ass of myself with the slight possibility of landing something cool every here and there. It gets the spectators excited and something to laugh about and thats awesome because its all about fun in the end.
LM: How do you feel you did overall in everything you competed in Saturday?
MG: I felt like I did really well with the complete lack of sleep I had and practice leading up to the race. Both motos I had were super competitive and Im feeling better and better on the Tripple cylinder 1100cc Open class ski. I was really happy with myself for digging deep in my second Moto leaving the line dead last after a motor hick up and fighting my way back up to 3rd place. I need to keep working on that kind of mental and physical perseverance to be able to have a shot at the Amatuer ski Open class world title in October!
Mark Gomez Competing in Amateur Freestyle
LM: Are you planning on competing at the Sparks/Reno Race coming up in a few weeks?
MG: I really wanted to make it to this tour stop, however. The dates of the race are in direct conflict with my anual family vacation. Besides that The unexpected additional costs to build my new freeride ski have me in quite a financial pickle at the moment. I wish the best of luck to my fellow Liquid Militia team mates and friends that will be racing at that event.
LM: Anything you would like to add?
MG: Thank you very much to Liquid Militia and Hydro-Turf for supporting us team riders this weekend with the kick ass hospitality booth. The food and drinks you provided were really good and was super helpful to have during the long day. Big thanks again to Liquid Militia for making this race possible for me to participate in this weekend!