Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Young finished second to Aaron on both days, and hinted that this may have been his last serious season of competition. ''I'm not a second-place kind of guy," said the Gas Gas JT35 rider. "I've always liked to be number one. I wanted to give Geoff a fair shake. He kind of woke me up last year. I hadn't been practicing, and I deserved to be number two. This year, I gave it 100 percent effort, and still came out number two. Competing at this level is very stressful on the family - practicing every weekend and being away from home. Maybe if I had ended up number one, it would have been worth it, but that's not the way it ended up." Third on day one .went to Olivier Cia magi rand, the former Belgian National Champion who now resides in Southern California. Clamagirand backed up his Saturday performance with a fourth on Sunday, securing his ranking as the number-three rider of 1995. "I did not understand how to get traction," said Oamagirand. "I am used to the Southern California terrain, and this was very, very slippery. I rode as best I could, but I was not really competing for myself. I was trying to help Ryan win - I could beat Geoff, but not Ryan. I was riding for Gas Gas USA this weekend." Home-state favorite Lonny Hallsted turned in his best rides of the season at his home event, nabbing fourth on Saturday and third on Sunday. Hallsted missed the opening rounds of the series after suffering injuries in a pre-season practice crash, and, until now, had struggled to regain his form. Hallsted was impressive in the slippery mess that he has become familiar with. "I had some really good rides this weekend," said Hall ted. 'The checkers were really strict - as soon as you put your foot down it seemed like they would give you a five. I had fun though, a great time, and this helps my confidence for next year." The two-day event was co-promoted by two local clubs. Saturday's event was laid out and officiated by NORA - the Northwest Off Road Racers Association - while Sunday's event was organized by COTA - the Columbia Observed Trials Association. Slick, muddy conditions greeted riders on both days, numerous logs and several creek sections had even the best dabbing repeatedly. (Left) Hom. state rider Lonny Hal/sted was fourth and third, enjoying his best finishes of the season. Hallsted missed the first few rounds due to an Injury. (Right) Ol/vler Clamaglrand wrapped up third overall with a third on Saturdey, and a fourth on Sunday. The former Selglen National Chemplon will wear number three In 1996. (Below) Dennis Sweeten broke Into the Nation's top 10 for the first time, thanks to a pair of strong finishes at his liome event. Sweeten went 6-8 In Oregon. SATURDAY Aaron set the pace from the get-go, turning in a first loop of 13. Young and Clamagirand were not far behind with 16 each, while Hallsted and Raymond Peters stayed within striking distance with 22 and 23, respectively. "I came into this event totally focused," said Aaron. "I knew that I had to get out front, right form the start." Aaron was assisted by his Cosmopolitan Motors teammate Ron Commo Jr., a former Championship class rider who recently wrapped up the '95 Expert National title. Having secured his championship, Commo opted to assist Aaron in his quest for the title, and served as his minder over both days of competition. "Ron and I worked well as a team," said Aaron. "As a former champ-class rider, he's an incredible minder." . Young was admittedly tight at the beginning of the day. "I started out horrible," he said. "Some of the opening sections were really hard and I seemed to be starting really cold. I don't know why. I start practicing about 340 minutes before the start of the trial. I'd four sucked, was the hardest part of the trial. It was just rock after rock after rock." San Diego National winner Jess Kempkes found himself with a surprising lack of technique in the slimy conditions. "It was real slick, all right," said Kempkes, who was a: surprising ninth. "I don't know what happened today. I guess my head just wasn't together and I had some bad rides. I didn't like it at it guess it was more nerves than anything." Still, Young's second-loop score was higher than his first. As a matter of fact, most of the top riders saw a higher second-loop score, including Aaron, Oamagirand, Peters and Hallsted. For Peters, the event was a bit frustrating, as he competed without the luxury of having a minder. "I was hitting everything plenty hard enough," he said. "I don't like falling back off of things. I didn't have a minder today, and that's not a good setup. I took several points that I didn't need, mostly because I didn't know what was under the bike, or how much room I had to back up. A couple of times I asked the checkers to help me, but that was hard because they're not really supposed to help you." Many of the reIIlaining championship-c1ass'riders struggled with the lack of traction. "It was really slippery," said Matt Moore, who ended up lOth on Saturday. '1t was fun, though. That's what counts. The loop between sections three and all." Both Aaron and Young rose to a level above the rest on their final loops. Both riders came home with a mere 10 points, but Aaron had 10 cleans to Young's nine. "Once I warmed up, it was a nightand-day difference," said Young. "I was hoping to win today so that I could have fun tomorrow, but I· guess I'm going to haye to be serious at all of the Nationals this year." '1 had a dumb-novice five in sections 12," said Aaron with a laugh. "I was heading for the exit gate and I started to bobble: Instead of taking a safe one I tried to gas it and leap for the gate. I fell down a few inches short and got a five." Still, Aaron was the clear-cut winner of Saturday's event, topping Young 4044. Clamagirand came'home third with a 53-point tally, while Hallsted nabbed fourth with 69. Peters was fifth, and a bit miffed about the inconsistent checking. "The checking here varied widely," said Peters. "Some checkers were tight, and others would give you a little. A five is a five, but if some guys are gonna give you a little bit, they should, all give you a little bit. It's the organizer's job to make sure the observing is consistent. Yoti shouldn't have to come to a section and try to remember if the checker is strict or not. I still had fun, though. They breed some pretty good slime here." Home rider Dennis Sweeten was sixth, ahead of Canadian Ryon Bell, New Mexico's Chuck Sutton, Kempkes and Moore. SUNDAY Tension was high in the morning, as Aaron's Saturday win s!'!t a winner-takeall stage for Sunday. Like Saturday, Aaron set the pace from the get-go, completing the first loop with nine points. Once again, Young was close behind with a 12-point card. Aaron had a spectacular crash in section three that saw him get ejected 19

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