a level above

Like the ones that came before him,..

Scotty Q
The Pony
The Black Ace
Walker,
The Wiz..
Foshag.
Sven
York...
even Parmalee in his own right

In the past four years or more..Burke sought out something that could not be obtained purely in the Miscene..sure there were others in there..but the before mentioned all at some way shape or form sought out the small percentages..

percentages that normally dont effect you much in other disciplines like it does in crosss...percentages  that you can not get just racing solely in the mitten..a dab here..a few psi off..wrong choice in tires..gloves..warm up..and just plain racing against 15 or so other Toms is what it takes..some get it some dont......some it comes quicker..

But for Tom it took a little longer..i would bet it taste a tad sweeter..Sure he isnt a stranger to winning state titles..its probably safe to assume he holds more than most of his time period...but sometimes its combination of things..maybe the big man just makes you work a little more so you dont get cocky..maybe sometimes the stars just have to align..

 winning isnt easy..and when you think it is........................... poof its all gone soo quick..

sadly the saying holds true "If you aint first your last"

 Huge TMS props to Tom for collecting a set of keys to the club house..