Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Ron Tichenor (12) takes the inside while Canadian Cari Vaillancourt. (60) uses the wide line at the start of a 250cc Pro mo to, Tichenor scored the overall victory. Henry, Naumec, Tichenor nail RacewayPark wins By Nate Rauba · R 28 ENGUSHTOWN, NJ, ocr. 19·20 on Tichenor began his comeback from back and shoulder injuries by winning the 250cc Pro class at the 15th Annual Kawasaki Race of Champions at Raceway Park. Tichenor hadn't raced since breaking his shoulder blade, a vertebra and rib at a Japanese supercross race in July, and only began riding again two weeks prior to the event. " I haven't raced in a long time, so it was fun getting out there and battling," said Tuf Racing-backed Tichenor. Tichenor's ride was no stroll through the Garden State. He battled with Jason Edwards and Gene Naumec in the 250cc Pro class final and narrowly edged Kawasaki Team Green's Naumecat the end of the eightlap race. Tichenor also battled with loca l New Jersey rider Barry Carsten and DGY's Doug Henry in the 125cc Pro final, but had to settle for third as Henry stayed in front and beat runner-up Carsten to the checkered flag. Tichenor didn't compete in the 500cc Pro class where Naumec gave race-sponsor Kawasaki the win in the final. According to Ken Landerrnan, who is in charge of promotions at Raceway Park and runs the motocross ra ces with partner Jay Irwin, the primary sponsors are 37 Kawasaki motorcycl e dealers from New Jersey, New York , Pennsylvania and Connecticut who have supported the event for the past 10 years. The Race of Champions was sponsored by a local country club for the first five years. " T he dealers pool their money, which is matched by Kawasaki Motors," said !..anderman. . In past.events, Kawasaki's National MX team members were brought in, but Jeff Ward's wedding kept the factory stars in California this year. Kawasaki also supports the event with its Team Green support crews, which offer technical assistance to Kawasaki riders. "The dealers are really involved, so we're here to help them out and make it a better event," said Team Green Assistant Manager Jose Gonzalez. The Jay Irwin-prepared track, located in a field adjacent to Raceway Park's drag strip that is most famous for the NH RA Summernationals, helped make it a challenging race for the 578 pro and amateur entrants. The sandy course became incredibly rough before the end of the two-day event but received high marks by the rid ers. " 1like the track, it 's rough and there's more than one line ," said Tichenor, who has travelled from Florida for several years now to compete in the event. " My back got a bit sore by the end of th e day, though." Canadian ' Carl Vaillancourt agreed : "There's plenty of lines, and it's rough." "We work hard on the, dirt," said Irwin, who is a racer himself. Irwin, who moved to California several years ag o to pursue an acting ' career but returns to prepare the track for Raceway' Park's 15 motocross events each year, uses wood chips to keep the soil soft and loamy. "We have a big wood chip pile," says Irwin. "Mickey Kessler 's dad, who is a farmer, told me to always turn the soil with compost. That' keeps the dirt from getting silty, so the berms hold up well ." Although there are 15 MX races held at Raceway Park each year, the Race of Champions is considered the premier race due to the , cool autumn weather and colorful backdrop of trees with their changing leaves. The two-day event sawall amateurs compete in two qualifying motos on Saturday. Every rider fro m each class was automatically seeded into Sunday's final motos which were interspersed with Pro class races, and the overall score from the two qualifiers was co mbined with the fina l moto 'finish to determine the fina l overall order. Amateurs received large trophies and contingency prizes from both the motorcycle manufacturers and event sponsors. Pro racers also competed in qualifiers which were combined with the fin al finishing positions to determine an overa ll order. Each class raced for a $2025 cash purse, wh ich paid up to $100 for first place in both the qualifier and final, plus up to $200 for a first overall finish. The first of the Pro class finals, the 125cc class, drew the more than 3000 spectators to the bleachers or along th e white rail fences separating the pit area from the track. Jeff Dement led the pack through the tight, l80-degree first turn and was first over the three-story high, stair-step, artificial hill built with dirt excavated for a la ke that is used for personal watercraft races. But by lap two of the eight-lap race, Dement had been demoted to fourth by qualifier one winner Henry, who had taken the lead from Carsten and Tichenor. The top three remained the same for the rest of the race, with Carsten, who had won the second qualifier, challenging Henry in the early laps. Near the end, Tichenor had closed the gap and the last lap was a nail-biter as Henry took the win and Carsten hel d off Tichenor for -second. . "I couldn't pass ," said Tichenor. " Ca rsten is always hard to pass and he knows this track well ." " I felt Tichenor hit me, but I didn't loo k back," said Carsten, who lives about an hour away from the track in Bayville, New Jersey, and has been Raceway Park 's 125cc Pro class champ for the past three years. Butch Smith and Amateur National 'Cha m p io n Tim Ferry a lso passed

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