Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

~ '" -= ~ I ~ , 00 00 O"l ....... Grant Michaelson (41 M) blasts to the front of the Open Junior field at the Hangtown Amateur Championships at Prairie City OHV Park. \ Steve Andrich (51) leads Craig Decker in 80cc Intermediate action during the Amateur Nationals held at Glen Helen Raceway. World Championship Observed Trials Series: Round 2 Saunders wins third British Trial H ANT S, EN G LAN D, MAR. 20 Steve Saunders, the five-time British O bserved Trial s Champi on, won his third consecu tiv e h om e co u n try World 48 Champ io nship ro u nd, before an enth usi astic crowd of supporters. Fantic-mou nt ed Sa unders wo n in convi ncing fash ion , dro pping 133 points. 20 less t han r u n ner-up Thierry Michaud of France, a former Wor ld Cham pio n a nd Sau nders 's Fantic tea m ma te, anoth er seven poi n ts less th a n the third p lace fin ish er, Diego Bosis o f Ital y, a nd a total of 35 po ints less th an the fo urt h p lace fin ish er , defending Wo rld Cha mp ion J ord i Tarress of Spai n. T he win by Sau nd ers moved him in to a tie in the point standin gs with Mich aud, a t 37 points each, as th e pair reversed th eir fini shing positions in th e ope n ing round in Spa in wh ich Mich aud won. T he tri al was cond uc ted in tryin g co n di tio ns as rain fell hea vi l y" throug hout the con test. As trying as were th e co ndi tio ns for th e compe titors, they were eq ua lly harsh o n th e specta tors and officia ls. That the event was successfu l a nd run effeciently can ' sta nd as a tribute to Wa terl oovill e clu b members wh o staged th e trial a t Petersfield. Saunders, whose p revious wins in the British World Championshi p ro und came in 1986 a t Pa teley Bridge a nd last yea r a t Merth yr , a n d Michaud finish ed the first 15-section lap in a tie a t 43 points lost. T he seco nd time a ro un d th e co u rse, which was located at th e fam ous Butser limework s, Saunders dro pped 53 whil e Mi ch aud d rop p ed 56 . Aprifia-mountedBosis also dro p ped 53 on th e second lap , but he had dropped 57 o n th e ope ning lap. The thir d a nd co ncl ud ing lap' cons isted of nin e sectio ns a t Butser and one extra section in the Q ueen Elizab eth Country Park 's car park. Tha t section saw Saunders shin e like a dia mond, desp ite the cont in u ing ra in , as he dro pped only 17 point s, ha lf as many as Michaud, 10 cli nch the win. Bosis dropped four points less tha n Michaud, but that wasn 't eno ugh to overtake the Frenchman for run ner-u p honors a nd Bosis had 10 settle for thi rd. . Teena ger Tarres, the Beta cha mp who is ad mi tted ly more at hom e o n dry rocky terrain rat her th an the wet surfaces he faced a t Bu tser, d ropped 35 on the last sectio n, after dropp ing 56 and 57 o n his first two la ps. H is fourth p lace finish co u p led wit h Basis's thi rd place performan ce left the pair in a tie for third pl ace in the point sta ndi ngs with 28 po ints apiece. Italian Fantic rider D onato Migli o finishe d j us t four points down on T arres a nd sits in fifth place in th e sta ndi ngs with a to tal of 22 poi nts after the openi ng two ro unds of th e '88 series. Results 1. Steve Saun ders (Fan) 113; 2. Thierr y M ichaud (Fan) 133; 3. Diego Bosis (140); 4. Jord i Tarres (Bet ) 14B; 5. Donat o M iglio (Fan) 152; 6. Eddy Lejeun e (Mer) 153; 7. Renate Chiabeno (Bet) 160; S. Peter Jah'n (Set) 169; 9. Philippe Berla tier (M on) 173; 10. M ichael Reit (Mon ) 174; 11. Daniel Crosset (M er) 17S; 12. Pascal Cout ur ier (Sot) 17S; . 13 . Gerald Richardson (Yam) lS0; 14. David Marchi (Ap r) lS1 ; 15. Thier ry Girar d (Yam) lS2. POINT STANDINGS: 1. (TIE) Saunders/ Mic haud (37); 3. (TIE) Tarres/ Bosis (2S); 5. Mi glio (22); 6. Berl atier (17); 7. (TIE) J ahn/ Lejeune (16); 9. Chiaben o (13); 10. Gabin o Renales (9). Button sews up Amateur Nationals win By Ken Faught SAN,BERNARDINO, CA. MAR. 26-27 H onda- sup ported J imm y Button used three solid fin ish es a nd a little bit of luck to beat Butch Sm ith a nd take th e 125cc Int ermed ia te titl e in th e 2n d Annu a l U .S. Am at eu r Na tio na ls a t G len Helen Raceway. In Satur day 's Grand Prix actio n Yama ha- mounted J erem y McGrath was th e quickest with th e hand-onhelm et sta rt a nd hol esh o t Button, Smith, Gen e Elzenberger a nd Chris Stro ng. Wh en th e pack cam e aroun d to comp lete the first lap, Smi th was in first with McGrath a nd Button battling fo r second. The two riders swa pped pos itio ns for severa l laps until McGrath cras hed, giving ButIOn an easy s econd. McG rath quickl y re mo u n ted to take thi rd a t the ch ec ke rs o ve r E lzenberger a n d Stro ng. In Sunday's mo tocro ss segment of the two-d ay event Bu tto n utilized hi s 2-1 mota finishes 10 wrap up th e title. When the gate dro p ped a t th e start of the first mot o Joh n Edw ards led Smith, Brian Peo pl es, Butto n and Ra ndy Moody into the first turn . McG rat h go t ca u g h t in th e backwa rds-fall ing starting ga te and was dead last. Smi th quick ly made hi s way to the fron t with Bu tto n very close behind. Smith contin ued to lead th e first few laps while Butto n stru ggled to figure o u t a lin e 10 defeat his fellow H ond a rid er. On the third lap Button fou nd what he wa s looking for and flew by Sm ith on a ro ug h down hill. H owever, But ton 's lead wasn 't meant to be as he got o n the throttle too soon a nd slid side ways , re t urn ing the lead to Smith. Button quick ly recovered and again set after the leader. Further ba ck . McGrath wa s rapi d ly pi cking up positi ons and at th e halfw ay point had worked hi s way int o fifth behind Peop les and Moody. Peop les event ua lly dropped off th e pace a nd fell back to sevent h , giv ing Cagi va-m ounted Bubba Eric kso n fifth. McGrath push ed Mood y a nd wi th o n ly five la p s remai n ing mo ved past him a nd into th ird. McGrath bobbled a few turns la ter and dropped one positi on, but immedia tely recove red a nd was ted no time in repassin g Mood y. Back up fro nt th e ba ttl e for fir st was still red ho t. T he two Honda p ilots cont in ued to swap posi tions aga in a n d aga in . As th e ri ders approached th e fin al turn Sm ith led Button, bu t no t by much . Button tried to set u p a pass o n Sm ith' off the fini sh line jump, and the fin al s tra ig h t saw a drag race to the finish with Smith edg ing o ut Bu tton by less than half a bik e leng th. McGrath fini shed a distant third followed by Mood y a nd Erickso n. When the rid ers lined up for th e start of th e second mo ta one important ride r was mi ssing, Sm ith. Du ring th e break sepa ra ting the two mo tos Smi th crash ed ha rd whi le battling with Derek Na tvig in th e 80cc Expe rt class . The cras h earned Sm ith a cardboa rd sp li nt around h is leg a nd cos t him h is cha nce at both tit les. At the start of th e second mo ta Moody hol esh ot Button, Luke Aici -_ diacono, McGra th a nd Eri ck son. McG rath q uickly d isp osed of Aicidiacono a nd sli pped into thi rd right behind th e leaders. Within a few laps Button was o u t front and stead ily increasi ng hi s lead. McG rath a nd Moody battled for severa l lap s before McG rath managed to mak e a pass stick. McGrath .co uld n 't decrease Bu tton 's sizeable lead a nd Button cla imed the win eight seconds ahead of McGra th, Mood y, Erickson a nd Edwards. Results SATURDAY 500 PRO: 1. Rex Stat en (Kaw ); 2. Dan Serg (Kaw); 3. John Posca (Kaw ); 4. Jim Ruth erf ord (Kaw). 125 PRO: 1. Joe y Tunobene (Hon). 250 PRO: 1. Eric Sandstrom (Kaw); 2. Loren Pochiro ws ki (Hon); 3. Joh n McGinn is (Hon). 125 INT: 1. Butch Smit h (Hon); 2. J imm y Button (Hon); 3. Jeremy McG rath (Yam); 4. Gene Elzenberger (Kaw ); 5. Chr is Strong (Hon). 250 INT: 1. J imm y Lewis (Yam); 2. Mac Benson (Kaw): 3. Jami e Morob ito {Yam); 4. Todd Brou ssard (Yam); 5. Jon Levey (Suz). . VET JR: 1. Br ian And erson (Yam); 2. Jo hn Maj or (Yam); 3. Rex Whit e (Kaw l; 4 . Ad rian Herna ndez (Yam); 5. Rick lass (Hon). VET MSTR: 1. Tracy Hrach (Yam). VET INT: 1. Jo hn Adams (Hon); 2. Jim Bader (Hon); 3. Bob Bladn (Hon). OT JR : 1. Gr eg Preston (Hon); 2. J im Nel son (Hon); 3. J ohn Lamore (Yani). VET PRO: 1. Edwin Woll enson (Yam); 2. Sobby Tippit (Kaw) . . SO BEG: 1. Jim my Butler (Suz); 2. Er ic Haug (Kaw); 3. Travis Preston (Yam) . SOOPEN: 1. Chr is Wh eeler (Yam ). SOJR 12 -16 : 1. J eff Lewis (Suz); 2. Craig Sm ith (Suz); 3 . A ar on W en strup (Yam) ; 4 . Shawn Mcintosh (Kaw). ADLT M INI: 1. Ji mmy Lewis (Hon): 2. Chri s Over land (Kaw); 3. Sean Marlando (Suz). 80 INT: 1. Craig Decker (Yam ); 2 . Eric Chav ira (Hon). SO EX; 1. Butch Smit h (Hon); 2. Derek Natvig (Kaw). W M N: 1. M ar ia Gonzal ez (Kaw) ; 2. Mela nie Par ks (Yam); (Hon). 500 (Hon); (Hon). 125 3. Lorie Milburn (SUl); 4. Roben a Kenn edy SEG; 1. Brian Legg (Hon); 2. Jim Alexander 3 . Denn is Cart er (Han); 4 . Frank Horton JR: 1. Derek Mey er (Hon); 2. Je ff Moore 3. Lance Tucker (Yam); 4. Chr is Evans (Kaw ); 5. Ray Mci ntosh (Kaw). 250 JR: 1. Scott Takacs (Suz); 2. Ryan Carl isle (Kaw); 3. Danny Pacheco (Hon); 4. Bill Saur50 (Hon); 5. Randy Noriega (Suz). 500 JR: 1. Kar l All en (Hon); 2. Keit h Johnson (Kaw ); 3. Robbie Lovas (Kaw) . 250 SEG: 1. Mar k Senn ett (Yam); 2. Ray Eber lin (Suz); 3. Jimmy Whit e (Kaw); 4. John R. Mazor (Yam); 5. Duncan J ones (Yam). 125 BEG: 1. Trevor Barker (Yam); 2. Mike Dun kleberger (Hon); 3. Chr ist ian Holland (Hon); 4 . ( Hon~ Peter Gunt er (Yam) ; 5 . Jason McGuire (Yam). TEAM RACE; 1. Jon Levey/Scon Takacs (Suz); 2 . Bub ba Er ickson / Dav id Ch urch (Yam); 3 . W ill y M akit /B en y Dont (Yam); 4 . Philip Wurster/Peter Gun t er (Yam); 5. Ch ad Br own/Shan e W est (Kaw ). SUNDA Y 250 JR: 1. Scon Takacs (Suz); 2. Ryan Carlis le (Kaw ); 3. ty Bird well (Hon); 4. Frank Chavoll a (Hon); 5. Rich Schul enberg (Suz). 250 INT; 1. Steve Phill ips (Suz); 2. Ken Erb (Suz); 3. Jo hn Edwards (Hon); 4 . Jer emy McGra th (Yam); 5. Jason Williams (Kaw l. \ 250 PRO: 1. Loren Poch ir ow ski (Hon); 2. Eric Sand str om (Kaw). 250 BEG: 1. Chad Doggen (Kaw); 2. Ray Eberlin (Suz); 3. Chris Wall ace (Suz); 4 . Dean Mu llins {Hon); 5 . Tom Cressman (Han). 500 BEG: 1. Terr y Ben n ett (Hon) ; 2. J i m Al exander (Hon); 3. Tim Gille spie (Hon); 4 . Frank Hon on (Hon); 5. Dale Gunt er (Hon). 500 JR: 1. Keith Joh nson (Kaw); 2. Scon Bishop (Hon); 3. Karl A llen (Hon); 4 . Fred Hommel (Hon). SOJ R M OD; 1. Sean Pagel (Suz); 2. Chad Brown (Kaw); 3. Brian Teets (Kaw ); 4 . Steve Hengeve ld (Kaw ); 5. Tim Staufenbeil (Hon). SO BEG: 1. Jimmy Sut ler (Suz); 2. Er ic Hau g (Kaw). SO OPEN M OD; 1. Jeff Will on (Kaw ); 2. Ty King (Yam); 3. Dustin Nelson (Yam); 4 . Chris Wheeler (Yam); 5. Phil Richmond (Kaw). MIN I EX MOD: 1. Derek NalVig (Kaw); 2. Butc h Sm ith (Hon). SO INT M OD; 1. Craig Decker (Yam); 2. Damon Huffman (Suz); 3. Roben Naber (Kaw); 4. St eve And r ich (Kaw ); 5. Jaso n Carro ll (Hon). M INI EX 5TK: 1. Derek NalVig (Kaw ); 2. Butch Smith (Hon). SO INT STK: 1. Craig Decker (Yam); 2. Steve And r ich (Kaw); 3 . Eric Chavi ra (Hon); 4 . Colin Couto (Hon); 5. Damon Huffman (Suz). SOJR STK: 1. Sean Pagel (Suz); 2. J oe DePatto (Hon); 3. Chad Brow n (Kaw); 4. Brian Teets (Kaw ); 5. J eff Lewis (5 uz). SOOPEN STK: 1. Ty King (Yam ); 2. Greg Yearsley (Kaw); 3 . Chr is Whe eler (Yam); 4 . Paul Ito (Yam). SO SEG STK: 1. J ason De Patt o (Hon); 2. J imm y Butl er (Suz); 3. Tim Rit e (Hon). 60 9-11 : 1. J eff Willoh (Kaw); 2. Phil Richmond (Kaw); 3. Dustin Nelson IKaw); 4. Drai Nicho ls (Kaw ); 5. Je romy Biery (Yam). SO 0 ·8 : 1. J eremy Alemar (Kaw ); 2. Ceasar Galvez (Kaw) . 500 INT: 1. Tim Nash (Hon); 2. Robie Lovas (Kaw); 3. Kevin Fring er (Hon); 4 . Ken Faught (Yam); 5. Ja son Williams (Kaw) . 500 PRO: 1. Rex Staten (Kaw ); 2. Dan Berg (Kaw); 3. J im Ruth erfo rd (Kow). 125 BEG: 1. M ike Bull ey (Yam ); 2. Just iy Mesdibles (Kaw); 3. Cliff Schulenberg (Suz); 4 . Trevor Barker (Yam); 5. Peter Gunter (Yam). . 125 JR : 1. Cole Gress ( Hon ~ 2. Ty Sirdwell (Hon); 3. Tiger Garcia (Hon); 4 . M ike Fin ch (Hon); 5. Derron Miller (Hon). 125 INT: 1. J im my Butt on (Hon); 2. Jeremy McGrath (Yam); 3. Randy Moody (Hon); 4. Subba Erickson (Cag); 5. J ohn Edwards (Hon).

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