Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Jeremy Thom pson to take the first of his three titles. Th e Open ma in fea tured anoth er good ba tt le, as John ny Murphree jumped into the lead over Pau l Bergstrom and J.R. Schnabel. Schnabel took over second, then p u ll ed to Murphree's rear wheel. Murphree slipped off the track on lap seven and dropped to seco nd , but q uickly came back after Schnabel. Murphree close d .back on Schnabel but could not get by. After the race, Murphree was penalized one position for not reentering the track where he left and Bergstrom was credited with second. " Ha lf mile The blue-groo ved half mile track on Thursday produced more close racing. The 12Scc Schoolboy clas s saw Bryan Bigelow off the line firs t, only to have Joshua Knott and J.R. Schna bel roar by on lap two. Schnabel took over on lap three and Bigelow moved into second on lap six. Bigelow, a 12-year-old from Michigan, powered hi s w ay pa s t Schnabel on the last lap and held on for the win. Dennis Williams and Merlyn Wertz squared off in the Vintage main. The Harley-Davidson XR750 of Tennessee's Williams wa s too much for Wer tz's Triumph. Williams edged Wer.tz and went undefeated in the Vin tage cla ss thus far in the program . The 12Scc Modified class featured another Bigelow and Schnabel show . Schna bel led un til lap six, when on ce again, Bigelow took over. Joshua Knott finished a distant third . The 65cc Mod ified National sa w a five-ri der battle. Jacob Hold en , le d Scooter Vernon, K'C , Knodel, Roger Lee H ayd en and Brett Pankey in the early stages. By lap three, Vernon had moved to first with Holden , Pankey, Knodel and Ha yden close behind . Suddenly, the lon e rep resentative of the Ha yden clan, Roger Lee, found a good line and took the lead on lap six. Hayden looked to have the race wrapped up , but tum four bit him on the last lap. Vernon and Holden took full advan ta ge to finis h firs t and second, respectively, o ver Pankey . Hayden remounted for sixth. Todd Win sett took the lead in the 2S0cc DTX main from Schnabel on lap tw o but on the last lap, Schnabel dug d eep an d sna tche d th e wi n. Winse tt held on to finish a close second. Ron Schettl led the first five laps of the Over 40 race, only to have Kansa s' Bill Snyder thunder by on his Hond a for the win. A stunned Schettl held on for second. All the suspense in the Open Oass National cam e before the ra ce even started . Pole-sitter Murphree was not on the line as the field was staged. Back at the pi t gate, his cr ew mad e h urried " repairs to his Rotax: "Th e high sp eed coil had come unwire d ," sa id b ike owner Cory Perrau lt. Murp hree pulled to the line mere seconds before the start. When starter Billy Herndon pulled the light trigger, Murphree sh ot into the lead and was ne ver headed. Schnabel worked hi s wa y into second but couldn't close on Murphree. "I knew I had to get the holeshot to have a chance, After all the trouble getting started I was really surprised when I got out front ," said an elated Murphree after his win . Short track The last night of racing would crown not only the 20 short track National class winners, but the 20 overall championship winners as well. The order of events was reversed and Toby Jorgenson (l) was the ride r to beat in the a5cc (7-11) DTX and a5cc (7-11) Modified classes, claiming both class championships. . the Open class was up first. Once again, Murphree got the holesh ot. Schnabel gave chase but could not m oun t a healthy challenge and Murphree went on to win the main . In the overall class championship, Murphree won the overall ti tie with one pain t to spare ov er Schnabel , 53-52 Schettl and Snider argued over the point position in the Over 40 National. Schettl came under repeated attacks from Snyder, but Schettl held hi s ground. Snyder successfully defended his number one plate. The 12Scc Modified class National Championship came down to the wire. Bigelow and Schnabel had exchanged wins coming into the final e ve n t. Schnabel worked his way into the lead on the second lap and appeared to be on his way to th e w in . But on lap six Schnabel almost fell exiting turn four and Big elow took over. Though Schnabel came back and hounded the leader, Bigelow held on for the win. The " determin ation award" should go to 500cc DTX Champion Perry Phillips. The 19-year-old Pennsylvanian broke his wrist in a heat race spill, and kept his arm in ice until the main. In spite of the pain, Phillips went out and won the National, securin g the championship. Washington riders Jacob Holden and Scooter Vernon were locked up in a tight race for th e 6Scc Modified title. Vernon passed Holden at the finish line for the win and the overall title , while Hayden passed Pankey on the last lap for third. ~ Results IT OVER 30: 1. Warre n Deim (Ha n ); 2. Mark Burkholder (Ka w); 3. C reg Ch icoine (Ka w); 4. Mike Harritl (Rtx); 5. Kathie Verdugo (Rtx). 29

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