Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

(Opposite page) Jeremy McGrath collected his fourth 250cc National overall win of the series. He now enjoys a 18-po1nt lead over Jeff Emlg. (Right) Uke McGrath, teammate Steve Lamson is on a roll, as he recorded yet another 125cc National win after topping both motos. Lamson is fourth in the series standings, just five points behind the leader, Mike Brown. Frenchman Mickael Pichon had a lackluster day that saw him fall 32 points behind the leader. McGrath's lead in the 250cc class has grown to 18 points over Emig, 302-284, with Kiedrowski and Albertyn fighting over third, 224-222. The summer-long heat wave that has burned up the eastern United States hit the western Ohio area with a vengeance this weekend, dumping loads of sunshine on the 8th Annual Kenworthy Nationals as well as some unexpected doses of rain. In fact, Saturd,!y afternoon's 800-rider amateur program had to be stopped at the halfway mark after a severe thunderstorm left half the track under water. Promoter and track manager Don Kenworthy and his Kenworthy GP Oub crew did an impressive job of clearing the water from the track but the damage was done. For most of Sunday parts of the track had one fast line that was surrounded by mud, which made passing a risky option for many riders. And a midrace rain and thunderstorm made matters even more difficult for the .riders as the dry, hard-pack lines became terribly slick. Still, the cooling effect of the shower had to have made the muddy going worthwhile for the heat-stricken riders. 2SOcc NATIONAL Albertyn shot into the lead at the start of the first 250cc moto with privateer Honda rider Jean-Sebastian Roy, Honda 0'£ Troy's Todd DeHoop, McGrath and Noleen/Sizzler/Xtreme/ Yamaha's Larry Ward all in pursuit. For one lap Albertyn would lead the field, ~ut at the end of lap two it was McGrath ut front. "We went through the whoops together but Greg tried the inside line in the next turn and I went to the bank on the outside," said McGrath of his pass . for the lead. "After that, I just rode the race." When 'asked about the heat, McGrath said it would have been worse if he had more pressure than the small amount he got from Emig at the end. "If I had to battle the whole way I'm sure it would've been bad because it's so hot. I felt strong but I had to keep telling myself to breathe well." Ward was in early contention but the semi-privateer got pumped up early. "My arms went away and rather than try to race those guys and crash I just slowed .down a little bit and got an OK result, not great." Ward ended up seventh. Emig had a terrible start and completed the first lap ninth. He would spend the rest of the moto working his way through the pack, arriving in fourth with four laps to go. . '1 just didn't have a lot of go in me for a while," said Emig. "At the end I wasn't doing anything spectacular, but I did finally make up all the ground. I just tried not to make mistakes." Albertyn, who had been stalking McGrath at a small distance throughout the race, ended up being the one to make a couple of small mistakes, allowing both third-place LaRocco and Emig around him. Then, with less than a lap to, Emig shot past LaRocco' going through the mechanic's area to improve to second. Emig ran out of time before he got to throw any moves on McGrath, who in turn was biding his time as the leader until the checkered flag fell. LaRocco was a disappointed third, followed by Albertyn, who tipped over as he crossed the finish line. Next across the line were Kawasaki's Mike Kiedrowski; and Yamaha's John Dowd and Damon Bradshaw, the latter of whom was admittedly having problems with the heat. '1 had the pace early but I just got tired," said Bradshaw. "1 got hot, tired. I hope I can do a little better in the second moto." Bradshaw's wish would not come true. After a midafternoon rain storm the track was slick and slow. McGrath, Albertyn, privateer Mike Jones and Emig led the charge, while Bradshaw was involved in an early crash. He spent the whole lIt0to making up ground, as did fellow crasher Kiedrowski, and rose to seventh with Kiedrowski right behind him. Early leader McGrath made his first mistake in several rounds when he fell on the 'first lap, surrendering five spots. Mud-master Dowd was the new leader, but he in turn was caught off guard by the changing weather, which dried the track out just as quickly as it soaked the place. "It was slippery and sloppy at the beginning because it was raining, but then it stopped and those guys had some better lines," said Dowd. "They were jumping things that I didn't know about until they got by me and I was like, 'Oh shit.'" Albertyn was in the thick of things before falling on the third lap. He was replaced in the lead mix by an energized Ward, who said that the presence of his team manager made all the difference between matos. "Clark (Jones) is here today and I told ·him some things that I felt were wrong with the bike between motos," said Ward. "He took care of everything and I felt like a new man out there. The bike was great and I felt great, so for 30 minutes I was running right with those guys. Then I got tired, but at least I was up there for a long time." LaRocco passed Dowd at the halfway mark and took the lead, and Emig follawed him right past his teammate. Emig appeared ready to make a move on LaRocco for the lead when suddenly McGrath passed both Dowd and Emig in the Dirty Dozen whoops. The move caught everyone by surprise, and for a moment it looked as though McGrath would go right past LaRocco as well. Instead, the race suddenly settled down and LaRocco, McGrath and Emig crossed the finish line in very close, fast . order. "That one lap just stoked me out," said McGrath. "I passed both of those guys and just started really hauling. I didn't have to get LaRocco because I had the overall. Emig's the guy I need to beat. He's fast every week and the other guys are going fast, but I'm getting more confident with each race. I'm having fun and I'm giving it a 10t of heart. That's what it takes." "Those guys just went a little bit faster than me at the end," said Emig. '1 have no excuses. I just need to keep trying harder." LaRocco, out of contention for the title after missing several rounds with a broken arm, was happy about winning the moto. '1 felt a lot better about winning that moto than I did the first one," said LaRocco, who led McGrath, Emig, Dowd and, Ward at the end. "The rain really didn't affect the track too much and I felt pretty good. I saw that the

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