Walton Fastest Survivor at Prairie Dogs GP
R
ockstar Energy Husqvarna
Factory Racing Team's Austin
Walton coped best with some
challenging conditions, kept his
bike going and collected the
win at the 28th Annual Prairie
Dogs Grand Prix, put on by the
Prairie Dogs Motorcycle Club at
Glen Helen Raceway, February
29-March 1.
In doing so, the first-year Pro
unofficially moved into a tie for
the points lead with Slam Life
Racing (SLR) Honda's Cole Marti-
nez, who was third behind Walton
and SLR Honda teammate Trevor
Stewart, the defending series
champ, after three rounds in the
FMF AMA National Grand Prix
Championship (NGPC) Series.
The $8000, 90-minute feature
race got underway just after a
heavy downpour complete with
hail changed the conditions
dramatically in the Intermediate/
Novice/Beginner race right be-
fore. Until then, it appeared that it
might be the first non-rainy Prairie
Dogs Grand Prix weekend in a
number of years, likely a factor
that enticed a record 1969 en-
tries for the weekend. Still, condi-
tions weren't as bad as in those
years of near-constant precipita-
tion, and the rain quit after 30 or
40 minutes with the sun breaking
through after that.
However, the deep mud
comprising much of the course
exacted an unexpected toll on
machinery that had a significant
effect on the final results.
For instance, Chaparral Mo-
torsports/Precision Concepts
Kawasaki's Zach Bell appeared
destined to make it three con-
secutive victories, but after
leading for about 30 minutes, he
found himself with a dead bike.
Preliminary assessments pointed
to a broken crankshaft in the Pro
Circuit/Maxima/Moose Racing-
backed KX450 that had less than
10 hours on it. (In addition, bike
issues took out Purvines Racing
teammates Justin Seeds, Blayne
Thompson and Tyler Lynn, as
IN
THE
WIND
P48
Austin Walton
managed his race
flawlessly to record
his career-first Pro
win at the muddy
Prairie Dogs GP.
