Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

(Left) Jeremy McGreth scored his fifth 250Cc National win of the series with 2-1 mota .scores, and appears to be well on his way to his first National Championship as well. (Right) Honda of Troy's Mike Brown scored hls.flrst-ever 125cc National . win with similar 2·1 scores. In the "premier" 250cc class, McGrath scored his fifth win of the series after swapping moto wins with Team Yamaha's Jeff Emig. The two riders were a cut above the rest at Washougal, and easily outdistanced the pack in both motos. Emig was the clear-cut winner of the opening moto, topping McGrath by over 20 seconds, but crashed hard early in moto two. While McGrath worked his familiar magic out front, Emig soldiered on in pain and was back in second at the finish. After picking his machine up in fifth,- the multi-time Washougal 125cc National winner closed within 10 seconds of McGrath at the finish. "I've been here five years in a row now, and I'd say that it's about time that I won," joked McGrath. "Jeff was flying in the first moto, but Skip (Norfolk) changed my bike for moto two and it was working a lot better. It's too bad that Jeff crashed; it would have been a hell of a race." Because the two riders swapped firstand second-place finishes, neither gained or lost ground in the series point standings. McGrath still enjoys a 33point lead over Emig; 426-393. TI'lird overall at Washougal went to Team Noleen/Yamaha/Sizzler's Kyle Lewis, who turned in consistent 5-4 finishes. The former mini star moved into sixth in the series point standings, overtaking the absent Greg Albertyn, who is out for the remainder of the season with a broken navicular bone. Kawasaki's Mike Kiedrowski had a terrible day at Washougal, but maintains third in the series point standings with 322. Oddball crashes kept the multi-time champion from realizing his potential, and his 11-10 moto and 10thoverall finishes were hardly up to par. Moto two featured a bright spot in Damon Bradshaw's return to racing, as the Yamaha teamster finished a solid third. Though it was his best result since his return, the placing was overshadowed by a crash-marred 17th in the opener. "I'm happy to finish third, but I want two good motos, not just one," said Bradshaw. As the series returned to the West Coast, racers were glad to take a break from the stifling heat and humidity that has plagued the Midwest in recent weeks. A cool breeze and constant cloud cover at Washougal kept the temperatures in the 70s throughout the day and kept the conditions ideal at the wellCliked facility. 250CC NATIONAL McGrath snared the holeshot in the first 3O-minute-plus-two-lap moto and led Emig, Kiedrowski, Larry Ward and Bradshaw through the first few turns and up the big uphill, but succumbed to Emig as they flew down the following descent. "It was wild," said Emig. "Jeremy and I were like side by side, tight as can be, for like eight turns. Nobody likes the roost here at Washougal; it hurts like hell." After soaring past McGrath and' into the lead, Emig was never again challenged aboard his Steve Butler-tl1ned YZ250. With each passing lap, Emig added to his lead over McGrath, and at· the finish line enjoyed a 22-second margin over the three-time Supercross Champion. "I've been disappointed in myself lately," said Emig. "I haven't been charging hard enough lately, but that one was good. That's my fifth moto win in a row here, and my first on a 250." McGrath did all he could to stay with Emig, but realized early in the race that there was no chance. "I don't know what happened," said McGrath of his second-place finish. "I wasn't tired at all, but he was flying, especially in the flat turns. His bike was working better. While he was hooking uj', I was swapping:,r ---Still, McGrath easily outdistanced the 'remainder of the field, and was well ahead of third-placed James Dobb at the finish. Dobb started well but was caught up in several early race pile-ups and dropped well into the back of the pack. But the Honda of Troy rider never gave up, maintained a_torrid pace, and methodically worked past his competitors until the bitter end. Ward was the last rider to fall prey to Dobb's incred.ib;e charge, and gave up third with only three laps to go. "I kept the same pace all race long," said Dobb, whose ride to the front was similar to his impressive charge at Mount Moms. "I've had so many injuries this season - it's good to finally ride like I am capable of. I need some good results like this. Hopefully someone will notice." Ward ended up fourth, comfortably ahead of his teammate Lewis. But what about Kiedrowski and Bradshaw? After starting well inside the top 10, both riders crashed together on the opening lap and spent the remainder of the race playing catch-up. . Kiedrowski...clipped_a.boulder that fell onto the track in the upper section of the course a nd went over the bars, and Bradshaw struck his downed machine. "I hit this huge, huge rock on the track," said Kiedrowski, somehow man· aging a smile about the incident. "It wasn't there on the parade lap, so it must have been knocked onto the track . by McGrath or Emig. I did a big cartwheel and Bradshaw hit my bike and fell too. I was yelling to him, '1 hit that r,ock: and he was like, 'I know, I know!'" Moto two looked like it might be a carbon copy of the first as McGrath holeshot with Emig in tow. This time, however, Emig failed to overtake McGrath on the first lap and shadowed his adversary as they began lap two. Emig's chances of the overall win were dashed when his front wheel washed out in the mud as he landed from a peaked jump. Emig crashed hard, and looked dazed and confused as he lay on the track for several seconds. "It pitched me over the bars so Goddamned fast," said Emig. "I don't even know what happened. I slammed my jaw into the ground and scraped up my back. I lost my bearings for a while." Emig picked up his bike in fifth, but was back into second before another lap was complete. Still, the damage was done and McGrath was long gone with the moto and overall wins. ''1 knew Jeff crashed," said McGrath. ''1t was a bit of a relief. I knew that I was going to have to pick up the pace in the second moto if I wanted to beat Jeff, but I was up to the task. My bike was work· ing a lot better. It would have been a good race."

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