Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

~ La ~ Husqvarna factory rider Dan Smith cla imed his third National Hare & Hound win of the Season in Co lorado. Anot her Colorado r ider. J im Thompson. took second overall. Colorado local John Bruckbauer (44) surprised a lot of the competitors when he finished third overall . f irst 250cc Expert. AMA National Hare & Hound Championship Series: Round 7 Smith edges Thompson in Colorado H&H By Anne and Tom Van Beveren Photos by Tom Van Beveren CRAIG, CO , SEP T . 6 It was touch and go all the way for Husqvarna's Dan Smith, who overcame 105 miles of fast-paced terrain and some tough local competition to take the win in the 24 Colo rado National H are & I H ound, held near Crai g. The Team Husky ace battled with southern California, AMA District 37 rival Paul Krause in the early running, then went headto-head in the later stages of the race with Colorado's Jim Thompson. " There was someone right behind me the whole time so I was on the ga s all the way ," said Smith after powering in to take the win just 49 seconds ahead of Honda-mounted Thompson. "There wasn't any time to mess around ourthere ," Smith's win, his third in the series, padded his point lead and all but sewed up his bid for the National Hare & H ound Championship. The Visalia, california, racer o nl y has to finis h in the final two ro unds to claim his second consecutive title. ' Coors Extra Gold 's Je ff Miller claimed a wire-to-wire win in the 125cc' Expert class , adding enough points to his seaso n total to wrap up th e small-bore National title with two ro unds remaining. The race marked the first time the National series had visited Craig, a small town about 250 miles northw est of Denver, and the event caused numerous headaches for local organizers. Thousands of dollars were needed for archaeological studies along the course route and organizers had to team up with the AMA to defend their use permit in court just one week before the event. The competition . was, placed in jeopardy when two local ranchers filed a preliminary injunction to block the ra ce, citing potential damage to grazing areas on public lands where the event was held. The AMA Government Relations Department stepped in with less than 48 hours notice, hired an' attorney, and convinced U.S. District Court Judge R ich ard P. Matsch that the race should be held as scheduled. Matsch, who ruled to disa llow the injunction during hearings in late August, said he felt the Bureau of Land Manage- . ment wo uld properly oversee the event; the BLM turned out in force at the race. The Coors/KRAI Rad io / L ittle Snake M.C. -sponsored event went on, and judging from welcome signs all over town, the hospitality part y put on by local merchants and the many local spectators at the race, it was obvious that Craig was behind the event 100 percent. The banner dropped promptly at 9:00 a.m, The first wave of Experts powered off the line, across the brush -covered starting area and dropped into the first sand wash. Smith sliced in front of Honda privateer Krause to ' take the lead going into the wash, but the two series frontrunners were running side by side as the course headed into the hills. Thompson and Las Vegas entry Scott Morris, aboard a 250cc H usqvarna, were not far behind. Southern Ca lifornia's Da r i n Cartwright, riding a YZ250, grabbed the lead in the second wave o ne minute la ter, while Miller launched an all-out attack on arch-rival Kevin Case in the I25cc di vision. The Smith/Krause battle con tinued throughout the first half of loop o ne. The District 37 ho tshots ran side by side on the wide -open road sections, p layed tag through the pine trees and diced it out in the tight, twisty washes. "(The course) was pretty fast bu t I understand they had to use all existing roads and trails," Smith said. "The washes were the hardest part. T hey were really tight and you didn't go more than 50 feet without making a 90· or 180· turn." Krause was hard on Smith's heels as they raced toward the end of the first loop but his luck ran out just short of check three at the 47-mi le mark. " I ran out of gas and it was downhill all the way from there," said Krause , who is sponsored by Hallman/Escondido Honda/Shoei/ Answer / S m i th /Metzler /Clark Tanks/Spectro/ RenthaI. "I started to pick up again but the chain came off about half-way round the secon d loop and broke the cases. I had a good chance going into this race, but with only two races left, winning the championship is a real lo ng shot now." Wit h Krause falling back, Smit h started to relax but his time off did not last long. "I thought I had a pretty decent . lead in the wash, but whe n I got to th e alternate pi t (at check th ree), th is guy (T hompso n) was righ t on my bu tt and they told me to get on the gas," said Sm ith . " Yo u should've seen me comi ng in to the end of th e . loo p . I did the best bail-off in a wate rhole you' ll ever see. I had to dodge a guy who'd got hi s bike stuck ridi n g backwards on th e course and

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