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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126420
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IAbove) Jeff Ward (26) led the charge before 76.~ fans.IBelow) Donnie
Hansen scored top privateer honors..
.
Kent Howerton now leads the Toyota Supercroa Triple Crown stIIndings.
banners wrapped up in the rear wheel,
and he had to be content with a
commendable fourth place.
Mosier and Bell went at it, swapping
. the lead again and again. until the
final lap when the race was decided in
a crash behind the L.A. Coliseum's
peristyle.
"There was a small berm - too far
to the outside to use, really - because
someone could pass inside you,"
Mosier explained later, "But I tried to
use it to pass Bell. It was muddy, and I
just slipped right over it."
With Mosier down, Bell rode to a
secure win which pleased his own
'special cheering section no end. '~My
mom brought 100 tickets," Mike said,
"and then sold them to all our friends
so they'd all be sitting together. She
wrote 'em a check for $1,500."
Mosier remounted to finish second.
Yamaha's 500cc National Champion
Rick Burgett finished third, as
Suzuki's Darrell Shultz and Scott
Gillman completed the top five
transfer positions. '
In the first of two semiflnals, Bob
Hannah led Can· Am's Tony DiStefano
to the flnish line. In the second semi,
Donnie Hansen and John Savitski took
the two transfer spots to the final.
Yamaha's Rex Staten scored the flnal
berth on the flnal event starting line by
winning the consolation race.
Final
16
For the second time that evening,
Kawasaki's Teeny Meanie Jeff Ward
found the quick line over the
backward·falling starting gate and led
Barnett, Howerton, Mosier and
Jennings through tum one, this time at
the start of the money· paying event.
Ward held flrm as they came around
for the completion of lap one,. and
Barnett kept the leader in striking
distance. But Howerton had bobbled,
dropping to fifth, and it was
Kawasaki's Gaylon Mosier taking his
place behind Barnett in third. Jenning
moved up to fourth ahead of
Howerton, Jimmy Weinert, Mike Bell,
Rich Eierstedt and Donnie Hansen.
Gary Sernics rounded out the top 10.
Mosier began an early sprint for the
lead on lap three when he got around
Barnett and wedged in behind Ward.
The top three were extremely clOle
with fourth place Jennings only a
second behind, and he was at the
pressure point in a four·way race for
fourth with Weinert, Howerton and
Bell.
Rex Staten, trying to better his out·
of-the-top-IO position, crashed in the
whoops just before the flnish line and
was shaken badly enough to call it
quits after receiving attention from
track medical attendants.
On lap flve, one-quarter through
the 20-lap event, Mosier held flrm, but
Barnett was harassing Ward' and
trying to take over second place. Bell
had gotten past not only Howerton
and Weinert but Jennings as well, and
the eventual secon.d placer rode in
fourth. Marty Tripes, 14th at the
completion of lap one, had just broken
into the top 10.
On lap six, Tripes suffered a setback
when he touched Hansen's rear wheel
and dumped the Honda. He
remounted quickly losing little time
and started charging again.·
Lap seven saw Barnett discover the
weak spot in Ward's defense and slip
his S~zuki past the Kawasaki rider into
second place. The order at the end of
lap nine had Mosier in the lead with
Barnett second. Ward was being
challenged by Bell for third, and
Howerton held a semi-stable futh
place. Completing the top 10 were
Jennings, Hansen, Gibson, Tripes and
Weinert.
Bell wasn't willing to settle for
fourth, and as they approached the
halfway mark, he slipped past Ward
into third place. Howerton, too, was
thinking about putting together a lasthalf rally, an4 !Ie followed ~Il past
Ward on the next lap.
Mark Barnett and Mike Bell began
their tire-rubbing battle just past the
halfway flags, and the entire second
half of the moto kept spectators on
their feet and yelling.
Finally, time ran out. With two laps
to go, Barnett decided the time had
come to go just a little bit harder, and
he put the move on Mosier. As the two
wound through the Toyota Tornado,
Barnett tucked his wheel inside Mosier
and pulled alongside as they shot up
the steep incline. Gaylon saw the blur
of yellow ,:at this side and tried to close
the door, but it was too late. Barnett
had the controlling line, and Mosier'
front wheel just bounced off as Mark
jammed past. The cheering was
deafening.
Bell was as determined to win as was
Barnett, and he also gave that extra'
inch of effort, finding a way past
Mosier on the last lap. He ~ .n
the Suzuki rider again, and for a
moment, it was a Suzulti/Yamabal
Kawasaki race with any marque Iikey
to win.
Bell closed on Bamett again. &ad
the pair pulled a slight lead on Mosier.
As they left the last tum on the last
lap, both were 100% wide open, ad
they sailed acrosa the jump/finish line
with Bell's front wheel at Barnett's
rear!
Mosier kept a secure third ahead of
Howerton and Ward. Marty Tripes
had worlted his way up to take sixth
place ahead of Donnie Hansen. Jim
Gibson took eighth place. Marty
Moates' LOP Yamaha rolled in ninth
ahead of 10th placer Jimmy Weinert,
a remarkable ride for Moates
considering he'd completed lap one in
20th place.
•
Resu~
ANAl: 1.
lSuzI; 2. _
. . CYomI; 3Geyton _
1KN; 4. It.- _ _ (Suzl; 5. JIll
Word 11Cawl; 8. Mooty T , - I _ ; 7. Dannie _
IC-AI; 8. Jim _lHan); 9. Mooty _
CY....k 10.
Jim W _ llCawl; 11. DomIlI Shultz lSuzI; 12. Ri:Il
E _ IC-AI; 13. _
Gftgoon CYom!; 14. S_
w.... lHon); 15. RicIt Bu