Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

t. '- .·ROADBACE··..· . . : . :·: '.'A A25Dcc N tional C M a hampionship Series" Round 4: Laguna Seca Raceway AMAlCCS H 6 Sup-ers crt S ries P4 00cc e By Paul Carruthers Photos by Henn y Ray Abrams MONTEREY, CA, MAY 22 m o kin' Joe 's Racing ' s M i ke Smith made a mocker y of the cla ss that u sually pro vid es the cl o sest ac ti o n in AMA road racing as he rarr away and hid in the 600cc Supersport final at Laguna Seca Raceway: The G eor g ian topp ed Vance & Hines Yamaha's Jam ie James by an unheard of 8.619 seco nds after 22 laps and 48 miles o f racing - and, m ore importantly, the win moved Smit h to the head of the 60 0cc cha mpions hip poi n t s tandi ngs. ' While Smith and Jame s rode alone for the majority of the race , the battle for third was heated throughout. It was on ly in the late s tages of the race that Canadian Jon Cornwell eme rge d from the p ac k o n h is Pr inceton Honda/Hyd -Mech Saws/4&6 Cyclebacked Honda to fi n is h t h ir d - h is best- ever 60 0cc Su p ersp ort resul t. Behind C or n w el l cam e Muz z y Kawasaki's Steve Crevier , who could do no t hing to p r e v ent Smith fr om st ea ling aw ay the lead in th e champi ons h ip, an d Smokin ' Joe ' s Racing' s Mike Hale. Randy Renfrow had the Team Ch afong Ho nda in the heated battle for th ird place u ntil he encounte red a gea r-change problem la te in the race an d faded to fin ish sixth. P r iv a te ers Jamie Bowman and Robert Wrigh t fini shed seventh and eighth, res p ec tively, with Muzzy Ka w asak i' s Tripp Nobles n inth and Kawasaki-mounted Gerald Rothman Jr. 10th. Smith completed the 22-lap race in a record-se tting 34 minu tes, 48 .369 seco nds at an average speed of 83.964 mph. His w in also mo ve d him in to th e ch a mp ion ship points le ad with 128 poi n ts to Cre vier's 122. James is only a si ngle point behind with 121 while Ha le and Rothman round out the top five with 113 and 103 points, respectively. Ja m es le d th e field into turn on e and held tha t lead for the entire first lap - but that was it . As they headed in to turn two, Smith took the lead . And th at was all she wro te. Smith did what nob od y has been ab le to do up to this p o in t in the seaso n - ' he r an a way and h id, m aki ng th e 600cc Superspo rt fina l uncharacteristically dull. As if no t ha v ing a battl e for the lea d was n't ba d e nou gh, the re w as also no ra ce fo r second place with James having th ings pretty much his way throughout. Ah, but th ere was a battle for th ird. Ini tia lly it was Renfrow w ho held the p o sit i on , le ad ing Bowman, Hale, C revier, Rothman, Co rnwell, Wright and Kinko 's Jason Pri d more . The group would even tually dwindle to fo ur rider s - Renfrow, Hale, Crevier _ and Cornwell - and those four would fight it ou t to the finish. 5 Chuck Sorenson (90)and Chris 0 'Alulslo (2) battled for second place, but 0 'Alulslo was forced to slow late in the race. 10 " I kn e w Ch r is w as back there," Soren sen said . "I saw p lu s-zer o and I took a look back and saw he was right the re. I eventually saw that he had me goi ng into five . I looked ba ck a nd he was getting ready to pass, so I let him by. My intention from that point on was to hold onto him and that was wh at I sho t for." Once by Sorenson, D'Aluisio was having no trouble holding second and even pulled out a slight edge as the race progressed . Then, just as he appeared to be pu lling away with about five laps to go, he developed a misfire and had to worry about the finish. Sorensen came by on the 21st lap with D'Aluisio slowing dramatically, as if he were running ou t of gas. "First it felt like an electrical problem, then it went away. I tried to stay away from the rev limiter to mak e sure I was jus t in the power band. And, su re enough, coming out of 11 with the white flag in sigh t, it started to cu t out really bad and I barely mad e that lap," D' Aluisio said. "It's still running now, so I don't know what it was." There wasn 't much action behind the leading trio; there was another trio stu ck together, looking for openings, but finding few chances. Cornwell settled into fourth after passing Ienatsch on th e sixth lap, Dutchm an Racing' s Chri s Taylor was fifth, with Salaverria sixth after getting s tuck midpack off the s ta rt. It w asn ' t until the eleventh lap, the halfway point in the race, that Salaverria caught up to Ie n a tsch . Ta ylo r had crashed a lap earlier. "As soon as I caught fourth and fifth, I found ou t their bikes were faster than min e," Salav er ria said. " Eve ry comer th ey'd sq ui r t o u t a good lea d. From (turns) eleven to two they'd bu ild up a 10-15 length lead. I'd su ck them up in two. Once I got up with them I was kind of tired from having to work that hard." Cornwell was suffering th e same problem, though for a d ifferent reason. Cornwell had raced to third in the 600cc Supersport final jus t prior to the 250cc race an d said that by the fifth lap he "was ru nning out of gas" p hysically. "The big problem I was havin g was I was consciously thinking of what I was doing instead of flowing. Once yo u do that, you go slow," Cornwell said. O n the 17th lap, Ienatsch passed Cornwell on the brakes going into tum t w o, a nd two la p s later, Salaverria would also make the pass. The orde r of the top six was set, though there wasn't a lot between them. The flu-st ricken Walker mo ved into sev enth on the 13th lap, passing Sullivan and easi ng aw ay toward the end , Su llivan wa s well clea r of Terranov a, who had enough steam to stay in front of Moto Uberty 's Mori at the end . CN Laguna Seca Raceway Monterey, California Results: May 22, 1994 QU ALIFYING: 1: Rich Oli ver (1:30.257); 2. Chris D' Aluisio (1:30,671); 3. Chu ck Soren sen (1:31.326); 4. Nick len.atsch (1:31.428); 5, AI Sala verria (1:31.477); 6, Donald Hou gh (1:31.544); 7. Chris Tayl or (1:32.063); 8. Jon Co rnwell (1:32.181); 9, Dann y Walker (1:32.459); 10. Mike Sullivan (1:33,124); 11. Michael Barnes (1:33.760); 12. Geep Terraova (1:34.290); 13, Bobby Keith (1:34.448); 14, Mark Fosler (1:34,718); 15. Aaro n Turner (1:34.864); 16. M iles Baldwin (1:35.084); 17. Christopher Rankin . (1:35.300); 18. Jason Pad en (1:35.505); 19, Bruce Lind (1:35.777); 20, Edward Sadvar (1:35,871); 21. Bill Qu inn (1:36.259); 22. Pet er Wen sl ol l (1:36.323); 23. Gr egory Prins", (1:37.153); 24, Rolan d Sand s (1:37.529); 25, John Fra nce (1:37.627); 26. Bill 80 rselli (1:37.687); 27. Dave Ave ry (1:38,089); 28, Leon Cortes (:38,162); 29, Bi lly Dal u (1:38.855); 30 , Don Gri ja lv a (1:38 .93 3) ; 31. Warren Dunaway (1:39.738); 32. Jell Ortlip (1:40,782); 33, Andy Edwards (1:41.005); 34. Fran k Aragaki (1:41.211); 35, Mike Oleary (1:41.534); 36. Gary Jervis (1:41.573); 37. De rek !Gng (1:42.533); 38, John Fuga te (1:43.591); 39. David Rare (1:47.218); 40. Aaron Nicho ls (1:47.266); 41, Christopher Thom as (2:46.563), 250 GP: 1. Rich Oliver (Yam) ; 2. Chuck Sorensen (Yam); 3. Chris D' Aluielo (Apr); 4, Nick Ienatsch (Yam); 5. AI Salaverria (ya m); e. jon Cornwell (Yam); 7, Danny Wal ker (Ya m); 8. Mike Sullivan (Yam); 9. Geep Terran ova (Yam) ; 10. Tak a h it o Mori (Ho n) ; 11. Christ opher Ranki n (Yam) ; 12. Miles Baldwi n (Yam); 13. Aaro n t u rne r (y am) ; 14. Jason Paden (yam); 15. Bobby Keit h (Yam) ; 16. Bill Q ui n n (Ya m); 17. Jo hn Fran ce (Ho n); 18. Bill Bc rsell i (Yam) ; 19. Gregory Pri ns ze (Yam); 20, Leon Cortes (Yam); 21. Roland Sands (Yam); 22. Dave Avery (Yam ); 23. Bill Da lu (Yam); 24. Edward y Sad va r (Yam); 25. Pe te r Wen sloff (Yam) ; 26. Fra n k Ar ag ak i (Yam ); 27. An dy Edwards (Yam ); 28. Dere k King (Yam): 29. JeffOrtlip (Yam); 30. Warren Duna way (Yam); 31. Micha el Barnes (H on ); 32 . Do n G rija lva (Yam); 33. Gary Je rvis (Ho n); 34, John Fosga te (Yam); 35. Chris Ta ylor (Ya m); 36. Mi ke O leary (Yam); 37. Bruce Lind (Yam), Ti me: 33 minutes. 37.100 seconds. Distance: 22 laps, 48.4 miles . Aver.age a~rd: 86 .93 1 mph. Mug in of victcryt 11.027 seconds. AM A 250cc G R A N D PRI X c -snr r PO INT STA ND ING S (All er 4 of to ro u nds! : 1. Rich Oliver (137/3 wins); 2. Danny Walker (108); 3. Nick len a tsch (105); 4. Chuck Sorensen (103); 5, Mike Sulliv an (91); 6, C hr is D' Alu is io (88) ; 7. Don a ld Ho u g h (77) ; 8. AI Sa laver ria (7 2); 9. Geep Terra nova (70): 10. (TIE) Ch ris top he r RankinlJon Comwell (69): 12. Bill Qu inn (68); 13. Aaron Turner (65); 14, Jaso n Pa de n (63); 15. , Chris Taylor (SO); 16, Greg Esser (47); 17. Bobby Keith (42); 18, Mark McDon ald (36); 19, Jim Filice (35/1); 20. Bill Borselli (32), 'Upcoming Rounds: Round 5 . Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin- June 12 Round 6 - Loudon, N.H. - June 19 Just when it ap pea red tha t Renfrow had mad e som e so rt of a break on the 14th lap, the other three were back on his heel s tw o laps later. By th is po int, Cornwell w as the m an on the move and he jumped into third for the first lim e on th e 17th lap. " He wa s r eall y bein g s m oo th ," Renfrow sai d of Cornwell . On th e 18th lap, Cornwell s ta rted to pull awa y. On the 20t h lap, Ren frow went from fourth to si xth - and was sud d enly out of the hunt. "The bike got out of gear going into 11," Renfrow explained later, " and it wo uldn' t go back in . I wanted to tip it in anyway, but I d idn't think the fron t would s tick with it out of gear. Th at was my best ride so far this year - and it was my best start eve r on a 600." Try as he mi ght, Crev ier could n' t mat ch Cornwell , bu t he did manage to hold off Ha le. "Wat chin g guys like Cornwell - he had no problems at all," Cr evier said. "T he things he co ul d do wer e amazing. He seemed to h a ve a lo t more ground clear ance ." Co rnwell w as pl ea s ed wit h h is best -ever 600cc Super spo rt fini sh; the resu lt wa s e ve n m ore im p ressive as hi s top -speed deficit to the others was obvious. "1 got a shit s tar t," he said. "There wa s really no t much I co uld do. I just tried to be smooth and consis te n t and not w ear the tir es o r myself out. I could carry a lot of spee d ou t of the comers, and once I got by I could use my own li nes. I just rod e th e rac e I could. You've got to go w ith yo ur str engths ." As far as Sm ith goes, the re wa s si m ply no matching the form er class champion on this day. "I just put my head down," he said. " It s h o w s w hat ca n be done w he n everything is right." (~ Laguna Seca Raceway Monterey, California Resul ts: May 22, 1994 600ec SUPE RSPORT FINAL: I. M ike Smit h (Ho n): 2. Jam ie Ja mes (Yam): 3. Jon Cornwell (Ha n); 4. Stev e Crevi e r (Kaw): 5. Mike Hal e (Ho n); 6. Ra ndy Ren frow (H on ); 7. Ja mie Bow ma n (Han); 8. Rob er t W ri ght (Kaw); 9. Trip p No b les (Ka w) ; 10 , Ge ra ld Rothman Jr . (Kaw): 11. Jas on Pr id mo re (Yam): 12. Thomas Wilson (Ya m): 13. Owen Weich el (H on ); 14. Dal e Kieffer (Han): 15. Geep Terranov a (Hon); 16. Todd Harringt on (Han); 17. Brian Pa rriott (Ho n): 18. An dy Milton (Ha n) : 19. Stu Mo rr iso n (Han); 20. Hikaru Miyag i (Ha n); 21. Jose G ra ha m (Hon); 22. Jim Lest er (Han); 23. lee Brown (H an ); 24. Mike Murph y (Han): 25. Walt Do r s c h (H o n); 26. Ala n 5c hwen (H on); 27. Troy Burs tyk (Ho n) ; 28. Todd Hoeft (Ho n); 29. Jack Pf ei fe r (Hen): 30 . Do n Becklin (H on ); 3 1. Ma tth ew Brown (Ha n); 32. Jam es. Milr oy (Kaw): 33. Jo h n H il to n (Hon); 34. Bre t t Me t zger (Ho n) ; 35 . Ron ald C hiara tti (Ho n); 36. An th on y Lup o (Kaw); 37. Da vid Cook (Hon): 38. Davi d Estok (Ha n). TI m e: 34 min., 48.369 sec. Dist .ance : 22 ta ps. 48.708 mile s . Avenge S pee d: 83.964 mph. Margin of Vic to ry: 8.619 sec . 600ce SU PERSPO RT C'SH IP POINT ST AN DINGS (Aft e r 4 of 10 round s): 1. Mike Smi th (128/ 3 wins): 2. Steve C revier (122); 3. Jam ie Ja mes (121/1 w in); 4. Mike Ha le (113); 5, Gerald Rothman j r. (103); 6. Jaso n Pridm ore (88); 7. Rand y Renf ro w (85); 8 . Jami e Bowman (82); 9. Rober t Wright (79); 10. Jon Co rn we ll (76); 11. Geep Terran ova (64); 12. Da vid Estok (56); 13. Larry Peg ra m (53); 14, Tripp Nobl es (44); 15, Stu Morri s on (4 1); 16 , M ike M u rr.hy (38); 17. An d y Mil t on (3 6); 18 , Dale Ke il er (35 ); 19 , To d d Harrington (34): 20. Ow en Weichel (32).' Upcoming Rounds Round 5: Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin - June 12 Round 6: Loudon, New Hampshire - June 19

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