Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

.E National Championship Endure> Series Round 8: Ghost Rider National Enduro N U O·:· DR . .AMA think it's even more important to win different kinds of races." Still, the fac t remained tha t Davis was not in con tention for the title, and much of the attention focused on Steve Hatch and Kevin Hines, the two riders who have been fighting over the crown for the past few rounds. Hatch had a slight points lead going in, and increased it when he finished as the runner-up. But Hatch denied feeling much extra tension before the race. "Actually, there wasn't' that much pressure, and I ride best in that type of situation," said Hatch. "I think everyone does . I just did all my homework beforehand, and 1 figured 1 was ready. I had that roll chart memorized. 1 told myself tha t even if Kevin won and I DNFed, he'd still just have a seven-point lead, so it wasn't a bad worst case scenario." Hines finished fifth, which means tha t he'll be the one dealing with pressure at the final round in Delaware - an event where the '87 champ has suffered bad luck for the past few years. "I didn't do too good," said Hines. "I felt like I was riding well, b ut things just didn't work out. We'll have to see what happens in two weeks." In a field that included desert aces like Danny Hamel, Larry Roeseler and Dan Richardson, most people were By Chris Jonnum Photos by Kinney Jo nes LUCERNE, CA, OCT. 16 ith most National off-road series running from seven to nine rounds long, and each including two "throw-away" rides, four overall wins is plenty to earn the prestigious crown. Rodney Smith clinched the National Hare Scrambles title with three victories, and he won four events of the National Reliability Enduro Series to earn that title. Danny Hamel needed just four wins to clinch the National Hare & Hound crown, and Geoff Aaron topped four National Trials rounds to win that series. Even in the 12-race 12Scc National MX Series, Doug Henry garnered the title with just three overall victories. One would naturally assume, then, that Ty Davis has earned a number-one plate for his accomplishments this season . After all, his win at the Ghost Rider National Enduro at And erson Dry Lake gave the Kawasaki Team Green rider an im pressi ve four wins in Nation al offroad competition. But when it comes to titles, Davis will have to remain conten t with hi s 1990 125cc Western Regional Supercross crown - at least until next season. That 's because the likable Californian chooses to "leapfrog" from series to series, picking up w ins here W (Above) Ty Davis earned t he overall victory by a whopping eight po ints , giving hi m wins In four types of National off -ro ad competition th is year. (Right) Steve Hatch took a big step towards earn ing his lirst National Enduro title, f inishing second. and there. Some would argue that winning different forms of competition is actually more difficu lt than dominating a single type, especially when you consider the fact that Davis also won events like the Tecate Enduro and the Ade lanto and Virginia City Grand s Prix. Of cou rse, he was also the top Am erican rid er at the International Six Day Enduro, and there's a very good chance that he'll be a repeat winner of the Baja 1000 come November 12. "At the beginning of the year, I was sit ting and talking with (form er Team Green employee) James Degaine , and he said that since I wasn't do ing an yone series, I should try and rack up as many different kinds of wins as I could ," said the Te am Green /Fox /Shoei /Smith / FMF / MMF / Braking / Acerbis / Fo es Fab /PPS /LR Racing /Dunlop / Tsubaki /Fastline /Endura/Color Craz y / NStyl e-sponsored Davis. "M y sponsors would rather see me w in a champ ionship, because that's worth a lot, but I impressed with the third -place finish of woods specialist Randy Hawkins. "Anytime 1 can come out here an d go home .with all my fingers and toes, 1 figure 1 di d all rig ht," said Hawkins. " I went over the bars one time, but nothing too major." Hamel was fourth, despite burning three checks. "I burned one on the second loop, and th en I burned the first two on the third loop," said Hamel. "The lady let us start the third loop early, so I did, but I had reprogrammed my computer between loops, so when 1 started it, it was early." Colorado resident Kelby Pepper finished sixth in his first encounter with the California desert, saying simply, "It was hairball. 1 d idn't crash, because I never went fast enough to crash." Roeseler and Cycle World magazine editor Jimmy Lewis both survived computer problems to finish seventh and eighth, respectively, wi th Jim Gray and Donnie Book completing the top 10. The enduro consisted of three loops, with the first two being relatively easy fo r a National. Davis, Hatch and Hawkins all headed into the tough third loop with zero points accumulated , while Hines had carded a one. The final 32-mile circuit - run at a straight 24 mph - proved to be the decider.

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