Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127191
The defending National enduro champ, Suzuki's Randy Hawkins claimed third overall with 14 points dropped. He is the series points leader. Team Green's Kurt Hough claimed his third second overall finish of the season at the Cherry Pit National. He finished one point behind Hines. AMA National Championship Enduro Series: Round 4 Hines spits out Cherry Pit win By Jim Redilla Photos by John Korzog TRAVERSE CITY, MI, MAY 7 Temperatures in the mid-30s and snow flurries greated the 250-plus riders that turned out for the Cherry Pit National Enduro in Traverse City, but the unseasonably cold weather didn't faze former National Enduro I Champion from Massachusetts, Kevin Hines, from scor- Team Suzuki's Dave Bertram is currently sixth in points. ing his first overall victory of the year. In fact, it was Hines' fir t overall win since his Championshipwinning season of 1987. The factory KTM pilot dropped 11 points, edging Kawasaki KX250mounted KunRough, from Indiana, by one point. It was the third lime this year that Hough has played bridesmaid - once to Randy Hawkins, once to Terry Cunningham, and now to Hines. Third overall went to the defending National champ and current series points leader, Hawkins, who carded a 14. Rounding out the top five were Michigan riders Rick charphom and Alan Randt, both riders dropping 14 points. Kawasaki's Terry Cunningham, former four-time National Enduro Champion, captured sixth overall with a 15-point score, while teammate Larry Roeseler took seventh with 16 points. Ohio's jeff Russell, Illinois' jeH Fredette and California's Dave Bertram filled out the top 10. Following the Cherry Pit National, Hawkins maintains his series points lead with 99 points, while Hough is in second with 87. Six points 0[£ Hough's score IS Hines. The Cherry Pit National has become a favorite of the ational riders. In past years, trail boss Allen james of the Twin Bay Trail Riders has laid out 100 miles of single track trail, taking away 30-40 points from the AA riders and 100 or more from the B riders. But this year's course was not as difficult. It featured enough resets to get everybody back on time. Scores were also lower due to the fact that the leaves have not come out yet and the ferns have not come up. Consequently, visability through the hardwood forest was e«cellent. The 36.6 miles to the first gas was almost exclusively established single track trail. Hines had already a~gres sively attacked the trail, carding a score of three to the score of five that was held by Hough, KTM's Randt and Cunningham. The second loop was again made up of established single track trail. Most AA riders dropped a total of two points through the section. Local KTM rider Scharphom only dropped one, bringing him within two points of Hines. Cunningham experienced some minor problems entering the second loop. At check seven, a check-in, he dropped two, while all of the other AAs zeroed it. But Cunningham soon put his problems behind him as he ' only dropped one at check eight, he entered it two minutes late. At the end of the second loop, the scores read Hines with five, Hough seven, Scharphorn seven, and Randt, Roeseier and Cunningham with eight. The riders were given a 12-mile reset before entering the third and final section. Tension was high as the riders remembered previous years where the club took away 15-20 points in this AA and A only section. Clearly, the race would be won or lost here. The riders soon'learned why the club kept the Band C riders out of the 13-mile, third section. Within a few miles, the best riders in the country had dropped three points. Hawkins was making his move, being the only rider to drop two at the midpoint check. 1£ the leaves had been out, scores would definitely (Continued to page 25)