Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

through out th e da y afte r picking up so me wire in his back tire in a creek crossing. Andrews was deep in the field after the fi rst lap but never st opped chargi ng back through the pack. The Yamaha pilot m ad e it up to seventh before the checkered flag fell. Team Green 's Keith Johnson was also an earl y threat btit the GNCC rookie is still a little off the pace. Many trackside observers agree, however, that Johnson, 25, will soon be in the lead fray. "I guess it turned ou t to be a really good race betw een me, Ty and Steve," said Summers later . "They were riding really we ll and we probably made some peo ple mad at the end because we were rid in g re ally, really fast and bu mping into peo ple every where. All th ree of us were scream ing our lungs ou t at people. I apo logize to all of those guys. We were in a big hu rry!" Summers appeared to be in control of the race at the 5-miJe marker of the second-to- Iast lap, but then became stuck on a familiar hill. "It was the exact same hill th at I got stuc k on the lap before that!" e xcl aim ed American Honda / Answer / Pirelli-backed Summers. "I should have learned from that mistake bu t instead I ended up having both Ty and Steve pass me. I passed Steve back when he got caught behind three or four gu ys and I had a better line down low. H e fell in behind me for a while and together we probably saved a little bit of energy. Bu t then I just pou red it on the last half of the lap . Then I was following Ty and I had a good line off to the right while he got stuck or had a lapper in front of him or something. I never saw him after that. " "I hate to be the one to have bad luck on the last lap, but this is the second race in a row that it happened," said Davis of h is mi stake on the same hill th at cost Summe rs tw ice. "I got s tuck behin d some guy the same place." "I'm not sure how Scott got by but it was pro bably in the traffic," said H atch of the om inous obsta cle that lapped riders became o n the crow ded H ick ory paths. "Going up the h ills was kind of ' like Russian rou lett e - you ju st d id n't kn ow which way to go." "Wherever Ty goes he rides reall y well," Summers said of his newest rival. "He's like the new Larry Roeseler. I see why he has a lot of fans. I think it's great for the series that he's comi ng ou t and racing wi th us." " I wan t to come back later on this yea r for a race tha t is not conflicting with the other series I'm running and try to beat him," said Davis, who has led each of the first two rounds of the series at the whi te flag, only to lose the lead to Summers before the all-impo rtant checkered flag . "My sched ule is hectic but th is is what I want to do . You know, I've done professional motocross, supercross, the endu res, hare and hound, Baja - where speeds are like 110 mph all the time and a lot of other stu ff, but GNCCs are d efin ite ly the toughest! " And with a friendl y parting sh ot, Davis invited Summers out west for a race. "I was hoping for better than third again, but I guess I can be satisfied with it," figu red Ha tch, who added that he's been doi ng additional training since the Oca la ope ner in preparation for a w in. "Scott and Ty we re ridi ng really fast and we fre ig h t-traine d it together. At one point Scott and I were so close together that I kind of jumped into him. I didn't mean to do tha t to him, bu t that' s part of racing. At the next checkpoint I waved at hi m and I th ink he u nd erst ood . That's pa rt of the deal." Hat ch then congratulated Summers and Davis on a job well do ne. Loca l off-road hero Steve McSw.iin was the winner of the Open A class over Georgia's Mike Grizzle (best name in race). The 22-man 250 A class was won by Gear / Pro-Action /Sunstar / Dunlopbacked Gene Onail , who bettered fellow Ohioan Todd Morain by about four minutes. Jim Jarrett, the Buckeye State's newest cross country ace, topped the 200 A class as Honda-mounted Joshua McClevy fin.ished second. The Four-Stroke A group was late by versatile Bar ry Hawk [r., who is the three-time consecutive quadcycle GNCC overall champion. The very competitive, Vet A cla ss was won by popular Slovakian visitor Jan Hrehor, who used a Yamaha to top the 16-rider thi rty-som eth ing class an d fin ish 10th overall. Fini shing 15 seconds beh ind H re hor in the class and overall tally was Off-Road Specia lties/ She lby Motorsports / FMF-backed Vance Earl. Vet riders Tim Shephard and Tom Carson als o finished in the top 20 overall. C '~ Hickory GNCC Hickory , North Caro lina Results: Marc h 24, 1996 (Round 2 of 12) O IA, I. Scott Summer> (Hon); 2. Ty Davis (Kaw); 3, Steve H atch (Suz); 4. Ran dy Hawkins (Suz); 5. Duane Conner (yam); 6. Keith Johnson (Kaw ); 7. Fred And rews (Yam); 8. Gene Onail (Kaw); 9. Brian Keegan (Yam); 10. Jan Hrehor (Yam); 11. Vance Earl (Yam ); 12. Robert Benne tt (Ka w ); 13. Tim Shepha rd (Yam ); 14. Todd Morain (Ya m): 15. Steve M cSwain (H o n); 16 . To m Carson (Suz); 17. Scott McLau ghlin (Yam ); 18. Barry Hawk Jr. (Suz); 19. Blaine Mill er (Ya m); 20. Jim Iarrett (Yam) , PRO: 1. Scott Summers (Hon ); 2. Ty Da vis (K.1w); 3. Steve Hatch (Suz); 4. Randy Hawkins (Suz ); 5. Duane Conner (Yam ). OPEN A: 1. St eve McSwa in (Hon); 2. M ichael Grizzle (KTM); 3 . Rodn ey Ju d so n (H o n) ; 4. Richard Bryan (KTM); S, Jeff vealey (KI'M) , 2SO A: 1. Gene Onail (Kaw); 2. Todd Mo rain (Yam); 3. Blaine M iller (Ya m) ; 4 . Jeff Murgel (Kaw) ; 5. Darius Lattea (Kaw) . 200 A : 1. Jim Ja rr e tt (Yam ); 2. Jo shua M cC le vy (Above) After a ninth-place fin ish In the season-opener, Suzuki's Rand y Hawkins managed to push his way to fourt h ove rall on the day . (Left) Yamaha 's Duane Connor fought , his way to a fl ft h-overall finish on the dusty course. (Hon); 3, John Bennett (yam); 4, Ronald Johnson (Hon); 5.Jeremy Berw anger (Yam). 4-STRK A: 1. Barry Haw k [ r. (Suz); 2. John Schaffer (Suz); 3. Mik e Decherd (KTM); 4, Donald Bigley (Suz); S, Don Bohn (Hue). VEl' k 1. [an Hrehor (Ya m); 2. Van", Earl (yam);3, Tim Sh ephard (Yam); 4. To m Carson (Su z ); 5. Darryl Kuenzer (Yam). SR A, 1. Callie Ward (Yam) 2. Rick Kresic (Suz); 3, Tom Meyers (kiM); 4 . Michael Schwartz (Suz); 5. David Scottow (KTM). S1SR: 1. Wayne Beaty (KTM) 2. Albert O1uppa Ir, (Ya m ); 3. Joe Lojak (Yam); 4. Geo rge Yount (Yam); 5. Michael Thompson (KTM), OPEN B: 1. Ricky Loflin (Hon); 2. Richard Burbi ck (KT M ); 3, Tri p p Tha rpe (KTM); 4 , William Kaufman (k'TM); 5. lohn Rush (I..'TM) 250 B, 1. Chris Hicks (KTM); 2. Jason Rankin (Yam) 3. Peter Sebelski (Hon); 4 . Timmy Luckadoo (Yam ): 5. John McDonald (I..'TM) 200 B: 1. Ro be rt Blalock (Yam); 2. Terry Spencer (Yam); 3 . Dav e Ash Jr. (Yam); 4. Isaac Ackebs (Kaw ): 5. Luke McNeil (KTM) 4-STRK B: 1. Ronnie Lowe (H o n) ; 2. Ma nley Bradshaw (Hsb); 3. Brad Wa de (Suz); 4. Jeff Carra (Hon); 5. Ronnie Bumfield (Suz ). VET B: 1. Robe rt Pearson (KTM); 2. Gerald Greene (Yam) ; 3. Clark Munger (Suz ); 4. Randy Victor Gree ne (KTM); 5, Steve Cooke (Yam ), SR B: L Robin Miller (Yam); 2, Barry Lee (Yam ); 3. Ste ven H ashm a n (KTM ); 4. Lee Hermansen (Su z); 5. Richard Lanning (Hon). 200 C: 1. Sonny Morabito (Suz); 2. Shant" Sexton (Kaw ); 3. Steven Graves (Yam ); 4. Matt Beat}' (Kaw); 5. Justin Conkle (Hus). 250IOPEN C: L Sean Hastings (Yam); 2. C liff Perre n (Yam); 3. Chad Coleman (KTM); 4. Mike Deniso n (Suz); 5. Chad Jarvis (Yam) . GRAN D NATIONAL CRO SS COUNT RY C'S Hl P POINTS (After 2 of 12 rounds): 1. Scott Summers (40 / 2 wins); 2. Ty Davis (38 ); 3. Steve H at ch (36); 4. Fred Andre ws (30); 5. Randy Ha wkin s (29); 6. Keith Johnson (28); 7, Duane Conner (21); S, Brian Keegan (21); 9, Ge ne Onail (17); 10. Rod ney Smi th (17); 11. Sco tt Plessin ger (15); 12. Tun She p hard (14); 13, Guy Cooper (14); IS, Jan Hreho r (12); 16. Vance Earl (11); 17. Tom No rto n (11); 18. Todd Morain (10 ); 19 , F ra nk Keegan (10); 20 . R, J. Bennett (9), Upcoming Rounds: Round 3 • Hurricane Mills, TN. April 14 Round 4 - Clarksburg. WV, April 28

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