Brandon Price looks to continue Fourth tradition at Barbara Fritchie Classic
Jun. 30—In recent years, a Brandon Price win at the Barbara Fritchie Classic has sort of been like fireworks at Baker Park — it's a Frederick Fourth of July holiday tradition.
Price has won the last three main events at the Barbara Fritchie Classic, a motorcycle race held each Independence Day at the Frederick Fairgrounds, and he'll be looking to make it four in a row on Tuesday, which marks the race's 102nd year.
Price, a Maryland native from White Hall, is among the racers expected to compete in this year's event. He'll be riding a Ryan Varnes Racing/Schaefer's Motor KTM in the Expert Twins class, which is the Barbara Fritchie main event.
Another racer slated to show up in Frederick is Cory Texter, who was the last rider to win the Fritchie Classic main event (he did so in 2018) before Price started stringing together wins.
Price's streak started in 2019 and resumed after the race was canceled in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
On Thursday, race organizer Richard Riley said there were 24 pre-entries at the time as well as verbal commitments. Also, Frederick is located between Parkersburg, West Virginia and Middletown, New York, where Progressive American Flat Track races will be held Saturday and July 8, respectively.
"So we're hoping some of those guys are chasing some money, a little extra traveling money," said Riley, referring to the Barbara Fritchie Classic's $10,000 purse and dashes for cash in Expert Twins and Expert Singles. "It can be a good pay day if you don't blow your motor up."
Price had to endure mechanical problems last year, when the Indian motorcycle he rode malfunctioned late in the main event. Holding a huge lead when misfortune struck, Price was still able to prevail, although he needed another racer, Raun Wood, to tow him to the podium.
That hiccup seemed fitting in a year when Price said he had a hard time finding rides to compete in races. In 2022, he competed on Indians, Kawasakis, KTMs and Yamahas. Although he didn't get in a full season of racing, he still performed well enough to place in the top 10 of the American Flat Track SuperTwins standings.
The Fritchie Classic is part of the Steve Nace American All-Star National Flat Track Series. The Frederick event, which is held on a challenging, half-mile dirt track, has served as a springboard for racers who become mainstays in the Progressive American Flat Track series.
"We see the guys that are now on top of the Grand Nationals, they came through Frederick," Riley said. "They cut their teeth on this track. It's a handful. They have to know how to ride. They continue to develop their skills, which is extremely important."
The Barbara Fritchie Classic will feature nine classes. The Expert Singles race, which features 450cc bikes instead of the 750ccs used in Twins, also often proves to be entertaining. Cameron Smith won last year's All-Star Singles race in Frederick.
"The singles competition this year is just so close, so competitive," Riley said. "That's really where some of the true exceptional racing is, so I think we're going to see some real exciting 450s in our expert class."
Front gates for Tuesday's Barbara Fritchie Classic open at 10 a.m. Heats should start around 11:30 a.m., the Dash For Cash races are scheduled for 3 p.m. and the finals are tentatively set for 3:30 p.m.
Talking about what it's like to watch racers compete in Frederick, Riley said, "The skill of handle bar to handle bar, sliding through the turn sideways. Until you've seen it, heard it and felt the pressure of it, it's hard to duplicate."
