Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

GTU Victor Team Up's Yamaha heads Team Extreme (128) and Jam-Up Racing. Team Up beat second GTU Paul Smith Racing by two laps. Overall winner Team Lockhart leads Taylor Road Racing and GTU entry Front Row Racing (57) at Road Atlanta; Lockhart won by two laps. Team Sanibel's Mark McQuade, Tom Stevens and Dean Swims piloted their GSXR Suzuki to third overall. third GTO. AMA/MotoWorld U.S. Endurance Series: Round 9 Team Lockhart scores at Road Atlanta By Randy Marrs BRASELTON, GA, AUG. 9 . Team Lockhart bounced from its crash the week before at Mid-Ohio to win round nine of the AMA/MotoWorld U,S. Endurance Series at Road Atlanta today. Lockhart, minus the services of regular rider Lynn Miller .. d . f w h 0 was Injure In one 0 the team's crashes the week before 16 and may be out for the season, enlisted the services of Larry Shorts in taking the win. Shorts and Lockhart regular Wendell Phillips covered the 500 kilometers in three hours and 19 minutes for an average of 94.398 mph, giving the Suzuki GSXR llOO-mounted team theirfourth win ofthe 1986endurance season. "Keith Perry's great," a jubilant Phillips said in victory circle. "He had to rebuild the bike in three days from our crash the week before and the team would like to dedicate this win to Lynn (Miller)." This win, as was the case the week before, saw the leaders' competition eliminated by crashes, mechanical failures and rules infractions. Lockhart covered 124 laps 10 beat runner-up Taylor Road Racing by two laps and Team Sanibel by five laps. As has been the case for most of the 1986 season the front finishers were all Suzuki GSXR llOOs. Finishing sev- enth overall and first in GTU was the entry of Paul BrayandGregTysoron the Team Up FZ600 Yamaha. Team New Haven Suzuki second overall and first in GTO points coming into round nine, suffered a flat frOnt Dunlop tire and later a crash while challenging for the lead. This marked the second week in a row the team had been up front and suffered a mechanical breakdown costing them a shot at the win. The 2: 15 p.m. start saw 40 GTO and GTU teams taking the green. The High Tech Racing Yamaha FZ750 ridden by Larry Jeurink, Dave Lubberts and Kalvin Avink led the first three laps before Kevin Rentzell aboard the New Haven Suzuki GSXRllOOtookoverthenumberone spot. On lap six, Shorts and the Lockhart/Dunlop/Performance Machine/Mitchell Wheels/U.S. Suzuki GSXRllOO took the lead from Rentzell. Shorts wasted little time in turning up the wick and getting into the 1.34 lap time range. For the next 20 laps the difference between Shorts and Rentzell never exceeded more than five seconds. Running third until lap 19 was the Team Sanibel GSXRllOOand fourth came the RC Cola GSXRIIOO. On the next lap Dale Burroughs put the RC Cola entry around the Sanibel machine while the Schwing Racing FZ750 held fifth. The race for GTU was between six teams on the same lap. Team Up held a slim lead over the Paul Smith Racing entry. Third and last week's GTU winners at MidOhio was the Team Visa FJ600 while fourth in GTU was Out &: Out Racing's Kevin Eby and Rick BurnetL Fifth in GTU came the Jam-Ups Racing Yamaha FZ600 for Donnie Rowe and Tommy Sloan. The Team New Haven Kawasaki Ninja 600 which led the overall points and first in GTU did not show at Road Atlanta, making things somewhat easier for the lead GTU teams. Rentzell began to close slightly on Shorts and briefly took the lead on lap 22, only 10 have Shorts repa s entering turn one. Canada's top endurance efforl, Cobare Racing snapped a chain as they exited turn seven, but lost just two laps in the process of replacing it and returned 10 the fray. Schwing Racing's FZ750 ridden by Bill Kelly and Bryan Schwing ran out of gas dropping them from the running for a short time; the team had been on the charge and had been running second when they ran out of gas. Taylor Road Racing had also been in the hunt for the lead, but a wrong choice of tires for the Start had dropped them a lap down by the end of 40 laps. The Johnson &: Wood FZ750which had been battling with the Cobare . entry and swapping positions before the Cobar GSXR lost its chain and moved inlO fourth a lap down 10 third place New Haven Suzuki. Heat was a factor in the race wi th tern ps hovering near 97°. Most of the teams were runningstints of 50 to 55 minutes each before making a rider change. Jeff Heino, Dave Schlosser's team member on the Taylor Road Racing effort was using one of the new Fox ice vests and this seemed to keep the rider cool in the heat. As the race entered lap 41 jusllwo teams remained on th lead lap; Lockhart and New Haven Suzuki. The GTU race still had eight teams on the lead lap in the class with the Team-Up FZ600 continuing to lead. Rowe and Sloan had moved the Jam-Ups FZ600 into second, Paul Smith Racing held third, Out&: Out Racing fourth in class and Front Row Racing fifth (Yamaha FZ600). By lap 50, Schlosser and Heino on the Taylor Racing GSXRII 00 moved back to third, Burroughs and Bill Trowbridge on the RC Cola GSXRIIOO were fourth, both on the same lap but a lap down to the leaders. fifth was the Team Sanibel entry of Mark McQuade, Tom Stevens and Dean Swims. sixth the Johnson &: Woods entry and the Norwegian Caribbean Lines GSXR II 00 had taken over seventh. Team Up held seventh and first in GTU just three laps behind the front GTO teams. As the race neared the halfway point Lockhart and New Haven continued 10 battle for the lead. On lap 63, Rentzell was black-flagged. "The zipper on my leathers came loose, I tried 10 get ilZipped up butcouldn'tand they black-flagged me" said Rentzell. On lap 64 Taylor Racing moved back into second, Lockhart's race contin ued 10 be trou ble free and ew Haven dropped 10 third. Five laps later, New Haven gOt around Taylor for second. By lap 68 the front three were back on the same lap until lap 72 when Taylor went down a lap. At the end of 80 laps Lockhart Led with ew Haven second and both were on the lead lap, Taylor third a lap down, Team Sanibel fourth four laps 0[£ the pace, fifth was the RC Cola Suzuki. RC Cola had been penalized a lap when one of the pit crew was over the wall on a fuel SlOp without a shirt. The GTU race had been narrowed 10 the Team Up entry who now held first, a lap up on second place JamUps Racing. Tysor and Rowe were having a great race for the lead; Rowe hanging with Tysor and turning very fast 1.38s on the FZ600 and Tysor just a tick faster. On lap 97, RenlZell pitted with a flat front tire. Just a week before the Forbes Duguid crewed team had been in the hunt when mechanical troubles ended their ride and a shot at the win. Round nine would be no different for the New Haven crew. "That's the second Dunlop we've had go flat this year while going for the lead. Dunlop's looking at it now," said a visibly dejected Duguid. The three and a half minute pit slOp to change the front tire dropped the team out of second as Taylor passed New Haven while in the pits. Edgar Hinton III gOl.on the New Haven Suzuki and started alter Taylor. But on lap 112 Hinton crashed hard in turn five ending what had been another promising weekend for New Haven. RC Cola's run ended when Trowbridge retired the Suzuki with mechanical troubles. Twelve laps later Lockhart took the checkered, Taylor Racing followed two laps behind in second with third going to the Sanibel entry, fourth the NCLGSXRllooSuzukiofJohn Long and John Szoldrack and fifth was the Johnson &: Wood FZof ScottJohnson, Nigel Gale and Keith West. Taking the GTU win was Team Up, second in GTU and 10th overall was the Paul Smith Racing FZ600and rounding out the top three in GTU was the Front Row Racing FZ600 of Greg Goulding and Tom Watson finishing II th overall. • Results 1. Team Lockhart (Suz); 2. Taylor Road Racing (Suz); 3. Team Sanibel (Suzl; 4. Norwegian Caribb. Lines (Suz); 5. Johnson/Wood Racing (Yam); 6. Never Ready Racing (Suz); 1. Team Up (Yam); 8,. K & K Racing (Suz); 9. West Florida Racing (Hon); 10. Paul Smith Racing (Yam). RACE TIME: 198:36.920. AVERAGE SPEED: 94-398 mph.

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