Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

Winner Chuck Sun holeshots 600cc mota two followed by Rick Burgett 1221. Gaylon Mosier 1141. Jim Gibson 1 291. Ross Willia~ 1751 and Ric k Sidle 1 9441. AMA 250/500cc National Championship MX Series: Rounds 6/3 Howerton hogties 250cc title By Tom Mueller Photos by Gary Van Voorh is HAMPTON, GA ,JUNE 8 Team Suzuki's Kent Howerton pulled out comefrom -behind wins. in both m otos .to clin ch the . 250cc N a tional Cham p ionship title , and H onda's Chu ck Sun got the edge on Yam ah a's Rick Burgett by virtue of his last moto win for overall in 500cc competition at the Atlanta International Raceway/Super Sports 10 Promotions/WQXI-presented Nation al rou~d . Heat was the factor to be reckoned with at the event . Temperatures climb , ed into the 90s. and many found it hard to deal with conditions. Howerton made it through both motos holding a steady pace and said he only felt a bit light-headed after the grueling 40 minutes plus two lap heats . Howerton's mechanic, Greg Arnette, did not fare as well, however. He passed out while working on Howerton's bike in the pitsl Burgett let everyone know once again that his 1978 500cc National title was no fluke by posting a solid 1-2 performance. But Sun pulled out the stops in the second moto and beat the heat after his first moto runner-up placing. Reigning 500cc National Champ Danny LaPorte was back in the groov e once again after two previous rounds of bad luck and crashes. LaPorte ta illied a 3-4 day , jamming from mid pa ck starts both times. "1 got a bone bruise from those cra shes in the past two weeks," said LaPorte before th e day's ra cing to u nde rway. "For a while 1 couldn't even bend my legs. But this week 1 progressed 70 percent . My bik e broke because th e 500s have more horsepower a nd weight than the 250s, and we all used the same front ends. 1 learned the hard wav." Team Yamaha's Mike Bell posted a 2-2 day in the 250cc ranks, and looks to be th e man to plug into th e runnerup position in the standings just as he had done last year when LaPorte beat him in the 500cc title chase. Bell was visibly dejected after Howerton's first moto win, knowing that Howerton needed only a 12th in moto two to clinch the title, even though one 250cc round remains to be run in Colorado. " I just want to try to keep on winning. 1 want to be a winner," said Bell when asked where his in ner- d rive comes from . 250cc National Honda's Steve Wise, Bell, Kawasaki's Warren Reid, Howerton, Jeff Hicks and Mike Loeffler found optimum traction on the loamy starting straight and put the rest of the pack in tow at the start of the first moto. It didn't take Bell long to see a line to the front and take it . Wise held onto second and Howerton displaced Reid. Things didn't come easy for Howerton. A few laps into the race he went down in front of the scor er 's tower and fell to sixth. Bell was pulling out a fast paced lead, with Wise and Reid giving the crowd what it wanted a tiglitly fought battle for second . Reid made his move and took an inside line into a fast sweeper, passing Wise. Some contact was made and Wise went down. Suzuki's Darrell Shultz took advantage of the situation and rammed into third. Wise got back in the game in fourth . Then Reid pulled off in the mechanic's area for a few seconds as Shultz, a jamming Howerton and Wise went by. Kawasaki's Larry Wosick was a steady sixth, . and by ha lfway Mike Guerra took his factory Husky to seventh after moving from the back. Bell was pulling what looked like a safe lead, but Howerton had other ideas. He turned up the wick and disregarded what the heat was doing to the other riders' paces, taking Shultz through a back section comer and going after Bell. Bell was slowed by lapped riders, and the moto came down to a frenzied skirmish between Bell and Howerton that took them away from the pack. Howerton went inside on the highspeed sweeper, took Bell over the double jump, and proceeded to skate away in style . Howerton, Bell, Shultz, Reid, Wise, Wosick and Guerra finished in the one through seven slots , spread throughout the field of riders . " I wasn't paying attention when 1 crashed," said Howerton about his early moto get-off. "I wheelied through a rut and went down. Towards the end 1 just picked up my pace and held it on ." "1 was running my own race," said Bell back at his truck.' ''1 guess 1 just wasn't ready for Howerton when he got there. 1 killed my engine after he got by, too. 1 had to downshift in midair and the bike started when 1 hit the ground." "Steve (Wise) tried to go underneath me , and we bumped," said Reid . "1 bent the shfit lever against the case that's why 1 stopped in the mechanics' area ." Re id , Bell, LOP's Mark Lawrence, Shultz and Guerra went into the lead in moto two. Wosick wouldn't fare as well this time, as he was caught in a banner lining the track half a lap into the race. Reid and Bell began pulling away, never more than a few yards a pa rt. Shultz moved to third and Howerton to fourth. Wise was closing on Lawrence - he got him with an ouside line on a straight. Reid took a run out front , bu t Bell got his front slot back a lap later. Howerton closed the gap, and found a way to take second. Bell, Howerton and Reid were running equidistant at speed. Shultz, Wise, and a precise riding Guerra were tailing. - Bell again had troubles with lappers, and Howerton used the situation to his advantage, passing Bell in a back section comer. He was never headed again for a perfect 1-1 day. Shultz pulled off the track, a victim of the heat. He poured some water on his head and retired for the day. Reid made a last ditch effort to get Bell , slamming into a comer on the white flag lap and crashing. Bell went around for a secure second. Reid, Wise and Guerra followed past the checkers. "We did it , man! We won itl" said Howerton's tuner Greg Arnette, hugging both Howerton and Kent's wife Jill after the 250cc title was won. "It's exciting to win the championship, but it's more exciting winning every race you can," said Howerton. What if former 250cc Nation al Cham p and premier MX rider Bob Hannah hadn't been injured and had been in the chase? " I would have beat him this year," said Howerton. "I'm stronger than ever, and my bikes are much better than before." "Reid stuffed me, and then he ate it. 1 don't know how he was planning to get by," said Bell. ''I'm glad 1 didn't get knocked down."

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