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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127148
,.....; 0(') ..., rr.J ;j b/) ;j .-< Chris Carr (20) lost the lead and the race .to Steve Aseltine (2 2 T), who is seell he re taking an inside line past Carr with just two laps to go. , While Carr and tuner M ike Camphouse look on , Aseltine lets one and all know that he's excited about his National victory. , After 'passing Carr, Aseltine turned up the wick and Jackpine Gypsies-promoted National at Sturgis. AMA 600 National Championship Dirt . Track Series: Round 15 Aseltine pans Black Hills·Gold By Dave Hoenig Photos by Flat Trak Fotos STUR G IS, SD, AUG. 12 Rookie Expert Steve . Aseltine 'o f Canada continued h is late season charge in the 600 Nationals by winning the Stu rgis Short Track. H e slipped his Dave & Ri ta/ Cou gar Gulch/ Ida ho Gold & Silver Bran d/ Castrol/BBR P / Shoei/ Tsubaki/ Dee le H -D/T y . e':lffi Panther-sponsored, Bnan BIllings- tu ned Harley-Da vidso n in side current points leader Chris Carr with three laps remaining in the 250-lap race. " I just kep t a good pa ce and tried to keep it smoo th," said Aseltine aft er b e moved from sixth to win the Black Hills Motor Classic's featu red event ' on the J ackpirie Gypsies q uart er m ile oval. The Jackpine Gypsies rep orted a crowd of 5500 and p lan ning is already underway for their 50th anniversary race in 1990. An early afternoon thunderstorm sent everyone scrambling for .their van s and delayed the program, but left a dust-free and very fast racing surface for tim e trials. Chad Felicio . h eld the track record at 13.867 seconds, but the 20th rider out, Kris Kiser, pushed his Arai/Diamond/ Honda Mau ilKiser Honda/Bud Beck-spon sored Honda to a new record 13.273 lap. Dan Ingram fel1 on his first try and th e clo cks didn:t st~p o!1 .hIS second atte mpt, bu t hIS thud trip arou nd saw the Harley rider turn a 13.197 givin g him th e pole for heat one . Kiser reta ined second with th e remaining heat race poles going to Will Davis (13.400), Davey Durelle (13.463), Don Wilson (13.468) and Andy Tresser (13.475). Ri ck Weir led heat on e on lap one but the red flag came out when Steve Mayfield and Jeff Dietz tangled on the back stra igh t. Only Dietz co uld make the restart. In gram took over and went on 'to win with Speedy Kel1 holding second until the last lap wh en Weir put his Harley into the last transfer spot. The second heat belonged to Chris Carr on his H-D Motor Co.z'Shoei/ Hap Jones/R S T aich iiSunoco Racing Fuels/Hog Wash-sponsored Harley. Kiser cruised home in second. • Davis led every-lap of heat three o n h is Shoei / Avery Davis/ L i ve Wire/Cox H -D /Tex ' Peel -b acked Harley. Kevin Atherton moved into second but on lap three his ,fro nt wheel washed out and the secon d place man in the point standings was down and out for the night. Local rider Corey Brink finished second on his Wood- Rotax. Durelle took control of heat four pushing his Wood- Rotax to the win over Aaron Hill's Harley; '. The fifth heat fell to Peter H oo k who kept his Wood-Rotax ahead of a battle over secon d between Scott Adams, Wilson and Troy Norris. Wilson came out on top of that fig ht for second on his Wood-Rotax. The last.heat had to be red -flagged when Jaime Aguiler, Aseltine and Tim Spires fell In tu rn one. Aseltine took a hard fall and was hit in the head by Spires. "Helmets work, that's for sure," commented Aseltine later. When the race restarted _the shaken Aseltine j umped into the lead but Tresser moved his Wood-Rotax past Bobby ' McDowe ll and Aseltine . for .the win. Aseltine he ld on for second but would have a seco'nd row start in the National. Charlie Orr led the first semi until he lost his brakes-which ena bled Kell, wh o had worked his way around Rob Damron, to put his Haley into the National. ' . The second semi was all Mclso- ' well 's wh ile Randy Roose and Dan McDonnell were second and thi rd and headed for the LCQ. McDonnell wasted no time putting his Harley out fron t in th e La st Chance Qualifer then held off th e challenges of Orr then Damron. Orr too k over second for two laps the n faded as McDonnell rode th e perfect race with Damron, Roose, Norris, O rr, Kell y La rkin , Phil Culver, Rex Fish er, J eff Dietz and Scott Adams rounding out the money earners. T he 30 Pro-Am entries were placed into three hea ts with wins going to J eff Annen, Dan Stanley and Gary Ferravanti. The Pro-Am final was all Stanley's as he put in a classy ride on his Budweiser/Cougar Gulch/-BBRP/ NYMO P lates-sponsored, Brian Billings tuned Wood-Rotax. Jimmy Sanchez was second over Faravanti, J eff Kirk land and J ohn Dillenberg. The stage was set for Sturgis' first National since 1954. When starter Dean Gapp's green light flas hed, Durelle was quickest off the . line. Durelle led Ingram, Carr, Davis and Tresser aro und on th e first lap but Carr q u ickl y took over on lap two. The action was fierce on the tight quarter mi le as Carr and Du relle led · Ingram, Davis, Tresser and a rapidly , closing Aseltine. The fu ll nigh t of racing had made a wide groove bu t one slip off it us ually cost several positions . . Aseltine moved into third on lap seven and searched for a way around Durelle, and Will David moved around Ingram into third a t the halfway point. " My sus pension was too soft. The frame kept dragging. T he ruts were deeper a fter all those hea ts and semis," said Ingram. . Aseltine finally disposed of Durelle on lap 15. . " Durelle was slowing do wn going into the tu rns, but when 1 was ab le to get by 1 was riding the same pace as Carr," said Aselune. H e was act ually closing on Carr. "I saw him mo ving up but I di dn't think he could catch me with the la ps remaining," said Carr. H o wever, Aseltine di d catch him , run ning under Carr in turn three on lap 23. "This is the second short track in a row that I've lost in the last three laps, It's disappointing, but I have an 87 point lead now with only five races left," said Carr alter the race. Davis held on for third. "This track is a lot like the tracks back home. I like it 'but with racing this close every lap is like your time trial lap. You just can't make any mista kes," said th e North Carolina rider. Durelle, wh o fin ished fourth, said, " I just wasn't hooking up as the tra ck go t slicker. " Ingram took fifth, and a fired Peter Hook was sixth until he lost con trol enteri n ~ turn one on the last lap and . fell. " I Just wore o u t. I ca n 't beli eve I fell like that," said a dejected Hook. Juniors Kiser and Tresser moved up. to sixth and seventh, respectively, ahead of McDonnell, Weir, McDowell and Bri n k. Kell and Wilson finished a lap down. • . Results 25 -LAP 600 NAT'L: 1. St eve Aselt in e (H-D); 2_ Chris Carr (H-D); 3. Will Davis (H-D): 4. Davey Dur elle (W·R); 5. Dan Ingra m (H-D); 6. Kris Kiser (Han); 7. Andy Tresser (W·R); 8. Dan McDonn ell (H-D); 9. Rick Wei r (H-D); 10. Bobby McDowell (Yam); 11. Corey Bri nk (W· R); 12. Speedy Kell (H· D); 13. Don W ilson (W-R); 14. Pet er Hook (W·R); 15. Aa ron Hill (H-D). 600 NAT'L POINT STANDINGS: 1. Chris Carr (187); 2. Kevin Athenon (100); 3. Will Davis (95); 4. Dan Ingram (85); 5. Davey Durelle (76); 6. Pete Hames (69 ); 7. Don Estep (67); 8. Ricky Graha m (65); 9. Bryan Ville lla (61); 10. Steve Ase lt in e (54 ). PRO·AM FINAL: 1. Dan Stan ley (Rtx); 2. Jimmy ' Sanch ez (Han); 3. Gary Ferravan ti (Rtx ); 4. Jeff Kirk land (Yam); 5. John Dillenburg (H-D); 6. Danny Cahoon (H-D); 7 . Brian Miller (Han); 8. Dale Jenneman Sr. (H-D); 9_ Robert Baco.. (Hon~ 10 . Shawn Granderson (Yam); 11 . Jeff Anneen (H-D); '12. Ken Bradley (Yam).