Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

(Left) USC Racing's Terry Poovey (18) took control early before slipping to fourth. TCR Harley-Davidson rider Kevin Atherton (23) hung tough for the distance and wound up third. (Below) Mike Hale Improved upon his 11 th-place finish at the Springfield Mile on the American Honda RS750 with an eighth at Sacramento in his final appearance on the machine. Eaken Racing/LA Racing's Larry Pegram. The three riders ,then drafted their way dear of Morehead and engaged in a three-rider sprint to the finish, with Poovey being in the right place at the line for the win. "I thought I had them covered," Poovey said. "We'll put a different tire on in the main event, but that's about it. " Camlin pulled off one of the more the heroic maneuvers of the evening by railing past Pegram and Poovey in turn three to lead off the last corner before falling back to second at the stripe. Heat three featured a two-rider dogfight between the Honda of Jones and Eddie' Adkins/Winchester HarleyDavidson's XR-mounted Kenny Cool. beth Jr. The 1993 rookie of the year has clawed his way into the top 20 of late, ' and he appeared to have Jones figured out in the heat race, drafting him at the line to lead each lap. But the crafty Oklahoman didn't tip his entire hand until the last lap when he switched up on the youngster and forced him to lead into turn three. Jones then drew alongside Coolbeth on front straight and got the nod in a photo-finish at the line. "He was running it in deeper than I figured I could get in there, and be ran it off the groove, so I guess it was harder than he could too," Jones said. "I was drafting by him on the back straight and he was drafting by me on the front straight, so I just set him up and waited on him on the back straight." After facing an early threat from a solid-running Hale, Atherton turned on the burners in heat four to take a runaway victory. The reigning Indy Mile champ,was clearly pushing it as he sped to the Scott Zimmerman checkered flag to finish several lengths abreast of the Texan road racer, who was enjoying his second - and final - outing on the exBubba Shobert Honda RS750 miler (see Briefly). "That was basically a tire test to see how good or bad it was going to be," Atherton said. "We looked at it, and we know that we're going to need to be conservative in the main event." SEMIS Jenneman picked up where he left off . in the first heat race with another brilliant performance in the first semi, topping Morehead and Deeley HarleyDavidson's Steve Beattie, who pulled off a courageous final curve to catch and pass TCR/Ben Ford/Supertrapp's Dan Butler for the final transfer spot. Michigan madman Garth Brow topped semi number two on TCR's "test" miler, besting the Hondas of Davis and King to gain entry into the main. Pegram was on the gas to take the win ahead of USC Racing's Kevin Varnes and Roeder H-D/Red Line Oil's Geo Roeder II in the third semi, a race which was low-lighted by a potentialfy disasterous collision between Bartels' Harley-Davidson's Jay Springsteen and the returning Ted Taylor. The two were battling for a transfer spot when they came together in turn three, sending both riders off the groove and Springer into the hay bales. Miraculously, the three-time champion stayed on the gas and powered his way out of danger, but he was forced to pull off with a dislocated pinky finger on his left hand. "1 don't know how I saved it," an excited Springer said. "Somebody drilled me, and then I was in the hay bales, but I pulled out of it. I looked down and saw that my, pinky was out of joint, so 1 just popped 'er back in before I pulled in." GRAND NATIONAL By virtue of his fast heat win, Parker had the first choice of starting positions at the line and chose the extreme au tside· to start on a groove that had clearly not yet seen all the rubber it was going to. Carr, meanwhile, elected to start on the inside pole, several feet away from his nearest competitor. "There was moisture down' there," Carr said. "I didn't want to start in the fuzzy stuff." Poovey got a big holeshot when the light turned green, but as the field poured into turn one, King and Jenneman smacked together and tumbled into the hay bales, bringing out a red flag. King got up immediately, and Jenneman was conscious and moving around as he lay on the track, but the Nebraskan was taken by ambulance to a nearby hospital where he was treated and released. On the restart, Poovey again blasted into the lead followed by Atherton, Carr and Parker. Hale, Jones and Camlin were in the hunt as well, but the pace was quickly established by the front four. Poovey was abLe to lead by a wheel at the line on th,e first three laps before Atherton got an excellent drive off of turn four to lead lap five. Poovey battled right back to head the fifth lap while Carr broke through on lap six. "Those guys (Atherton and Poovey) were roaching their tires," Carr said. "1 could smell the rubber burning off of them. 1f Atherton then led again for two more laps before losing 'ground as Carr took the lead on lap nine and Parker put a heart-stopping move on both Poovey and Atherton to go from fourth to second in turn one. The champion took control of the race for the first time on lap 10. "I was trying to set it up as best I could," said Parker, whose conservative pace left him with plenty of tire to step up the pace in the late going. "I wasn't getting into three and four as good as I wanted to." Atherton was still blazing in an attempt to seize control of the pace and led another pair of laps before falling behind Carr at the halfway point and then both factory riders on lap 14. Poovey started dropping back ever so slightly. "I burned the tire up," Poovey said. "I knew it was the tire, because I was getting so loose comin' off the corner. But I was still hopin' that they were going to slip of the groove, and then I'd win the race because they were going at it so hard." In the meantime, Camlin had broken free to run alone in fifth while Pegram fought to gain control of a second pack containing Hale, Coolbeth, Jones and Davis. Up front, Parker remained in control for five straight laps, ~ting that he had more than enough on reserve to get the job done at the finish. Carr and Atherton hung tough and each took a turn in the lead on laps 19 and 20. But then starter Zimmerman flashed the five-lap sign, and that was the factory duo's cue to get it on. Parker and Carr jockeyed back and forth for three laps, with Parker holding the front-straight draft advantage on la ps 20 through 23. Atherton dropped back, an.d any hope that he might have had for victory perished on the last lap as his former teammates got an excellent drive off turn four to all but guarantee a 1-2 factory finish. Parker held the lead with Carr in his draft on the last lap, leaving it up to the '92 champion to decide whether or not to attempt a pass on the final run down the back chute and lead through three and four. Carr elected to follow. "Every time I or anyone else led off the corner, they were a sitting duck," Carr said. "I chose not to be the duck." Parker then exercised his only option, running it into four as deep as he could in the hope that Carr would not be able to make up the gap on the front straight. It wasn't enough. "I wanted to run it in even harder, " Parker said. "But I didn't want to fall of the groove and give it to him. Maybe I should have. Still, I thought maybe I got him, but he came around at the last second." Carr remained tucked in tight and motored by on the front straight to claim his eighth Sacramento Mile victory. "I looked back on lap 23 and 24 and saw that Kevin was pretty far behind us," Carr said. "I knew it was going to be Scotty and me. There's a good chance that this could be the last one I ride here, and to be able to win makes it that much more special. Almost as special as winning my first mile National here." If in fact this Sacramento mile was indeed his last one, then Chris Carr should be at peace with himself, secure in the knowledge that he gave the fans what they came to see. This farewell tour stop will go down in motorcycle history books as a success. 883 NATIONAL The AMA 883cc National main event turned out to be an excellent opening act for the Grand National finale as no less than three riders had a chance for victory at the finish. Key in the chase were Spectro/Moroney's/DunJop rider Mike Hacker, and the Bartels'-backed Springsteen, wbo came to Sacramento with a 13-point lead over the 19-year-old Virginian. Hacker, Modesto Harley-Davidson's Matt Wait and the Bartels' trio of Springsteen and brothers Ben and Eric Bostrom set the early pace, drafting for position while Riders Harley-Davidson's Lance Jones put forth a Herculean effort to catch the lead draft after coming from well down in the field. A red flag halted the proceedings on lap 10 when John Wincewicz crashed, giving all of the entra,nts a cbance to regroup. On the second green light Hacker, Wait and Eric Bostrom began to run at the front while Springsteen, Ben Bostrom and Jones were factored out of the chase. On the final lap, Bostrom led it off the comer with Hacker in second and Wait in third. Hacker shpped to the inside to claim an important victory - his third in the series - while Wait just beat 'Bostrom for second place. "On the last lap I was thinking that I was just going to hang back," Hacker said. "But then Eric Bostrom came by me and I had to develop a new game ..... ..... IlJ ""' ..0 ~ o ...... u o 5

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