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----'0 ~ a: 9 ~ z z « .1.~.J~~-"'9 011 z « ii: a:l > a:l VI ~ X 0.. George Bryce (top) won the Funny Bike class this year; Sam Wills (bottom I took the Top Fuel title. (Leftl Winner Terry Cunningham (Ieftl and fourth-placed Jeff Russell wait for the results. (Rightl Fritz Kadlec rode to second. only three points behind Cunningham. AKA National Enduro Championship Series: Round 11 Black Coal win, title to Cunningham By Brian & Ann Palormo LY NVILLE, IN, SEPT. 9 Husqvarna's Terry Cunningham ignored morning dust and afternoon downpours and emerged as the overall winner of the Black Coal National. Cunningham, the 1982 series champ, also picked up enough points to clinch the series title for '84. On the heels of Cunning- .22 ham's 13·point score were Husky's Fritz Kadle with a l6-pointloss and teammate Dave Bertram at 17. "The year turned out pretty good after all," Cunningham said with a grin after the run. "With my leg (broken just prior to the Six Days in 1983) and all, I wasn't even going to try riding seriously but things kept getting better and better. Maybe I didn't pick up as many overall wins as in previous years but I've finished all II rounds which is a first for me." Cunningham last took top honors here in 1981, and after a DNF last year had to watch a similar Black Coal win clinch the title for his teammate. Mike Melton. However, a hyperextended elbow sustained at the Iowa National may have sidelined Melton for the remainderoftheseason. Until then, the two were locked in a dogfight for top series honors, with teammate Kevin Hines in third place. It was a different story here as Husky rider Jeff Russell of Ohio fin· ished fourth overall and won the 250cc A class, draping 22 points. That score placed him higher than several AA riders, including Hines, Jeff Fredette and two-time Black Coal winner John Martin, who was testing 'In '85 Can-Am with less than total success. ""(be bi~ Wl. wclluoul tbe eod," said Martin, "where, like many oth· ers. I got tangled up with riders bat· tlingslick hills with no success in the rain." Heended up having to replace a fouled plug, which cost him several minutes more. Russell, on the other hand, has come on strong at the end of the season. 'Thin'gs have really been going well for me lately, he said. "I JUSt hope it continues at the Six Days. My goal is to do well there." Another rider with a big smile was Terry Meyer from Illinois, who walked away with High Poim B honors, dropping 30 points on hi Yamaha 175. Barely old enough to have four Black Coals under his belt, he also rides hare scrambles and the Black Jack Enduro Circuit. Originally he wasn't real happy starting on row nine but it was a different story when the rains came. "I was the third finisher and thankful. Things hadn't gotten that bad yet. I really had a good time." Not everyone was singing the same tune. To others, however, Black Coal '84 seemed a slightly weaker version of the challenging event that has become a tradition on the National schedule. An earlier date forced the organizing Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky M.e. to adapt a run designed for October's cooler temperatures to the variable conditions of early September. Near loo-degree temperatures a year ago caused considerable grief lor .rider.s.aod ub merober5 alike, and took their toll on the n umber of entrants for this year. To prevent a similar occurrence this year, the club added a total of nine mileage resets and provided several trail-side watering holes. Additionally, the weather was moderate with overcast kies greeting riders at the 7 a. m. key time. In the early afternoon, however. overcast skies gave way to downpours, which changed the perspective of the run completely. The rains arrived as the riders were entering the (inal 25-mile section of the run. Already one of the most difficult sections with a 19·mile tretch of woods trails, many in the virgin stage, three miles of reclaimed land and a final mile of oversiled motocross-style whoop·de-doos, and a special test-type sand trap just before the fi.nish. The rain glazed every urface and sent riders sprawling in all directions. It also took its toll on the riders' score cards: Smeared numbers added grief to the scorekeepers' job as they had to resort to back-up sheets to verify totals. Although most riders were in by 3:30, it was another 31> hours before results were official. It was oneof those rains that remind you it is an enduro you're riding. For most it simply meant there were better stories to share while waiting for results. Club mentor Jerry Schuler spent this time sharing tales of Black Coals past and present. "It is really hard to make this run what we want in early September, but we're trying," Schuler declared. "We've had a big challenge with combining the sections of land which were made available to us thi year into an eHective run." One Super Senior rider, Richard Lenover, was well satisfied with everything and even more satisfied with the end resuJt; top honors in his class - a trophy he had been pursuing for severdl years. "It feel good," said Lenover. All those who made it across the finish line shared his sentiments. • Results OVERALL: Terry Cunni"9ham (Hus). TOP 10 OVERALL: 1. Cunninghsm (13); 2. Fritz K.dlec (16); 3. D...... Benr.m 1171; 4. Jeff Russell (22); 5. Jeff Fred.tte (23); 6. Kevin Hines (24); 7. John M.nin (25); B. Jeff Irwin (27): 9. M.tt Cullins (27); 10. Tony Mitchel (271. M: 1. Fritz K.dlec (Hus); 2. D...... Bemam (Hus). 125cc A: R.ndy H.wt