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Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127796
(Left) Rich King was his usual consistent self all day. The Team Saddlemen rider wound up second and in control of the series points lead when all was said and done. (Below) Kevin Varnes (89) and Scott Parker (1) ran together for much of the main event. Parker waited until the closing laps to slip by Varnes... tied before Parker grabbed· the position for good on lap six. Landes then had to wait for his chance to get by Orr, which came in the right-hander on lap seven. In the meantime, Parker almost ran Atherton down for the win. "1 saw Scotty back there," Atherton said. "1 slowed down because I started pushing the front end at the apexes of the turns. r knew he was catching me, but it doesn't matter how fast you're going as long as you cross the finish line first." SEMIS Suburban Motors Harley-Davidson's teen sensation J.R. Schnabel earned his second Grand National berth of the year with a banzai last-lap pass outside both Orr and returning veteran Tim Mertens off turn four to win the first semi. Orr held on for second place off the corner.. Mertens crashed and had to be carted to the hospita I. "I was running third, so 1 had nothing to lose," Schnabel said. "Third or crash - it didn't matter, so I held it on as long as 1 could through there." Then I thought that I'd better get by him or someone would get me on the front straightaway. I got by, but obviously Joe did too." By contrast, Varnes was thrilled to finish fifth. "Hell yes," the USC rider said. "I was running third for a long time there. I felt I was getting faster over the jump every time I went out. I'm not a 11 guy. I ran a few back home in Pennsylvania, but they just had right-hand turns. There were no jumps. I never doubted that I could do it. 1 just planned to run on the outside edge of the groove and pass as many riders as I could aU day long." With the absence of Will Davis, the face of the points battle changed significantly. King now has control with 131 points while Parker trails him by a mere four with 127. Davis now sits third with 123, his early-season lead all but erased. Kopp is hanging tough in fourth with 111. Vames sits fifth with 95. HEATS Some 68 Experts showed up to attempt entry into the 48-rider field. After two rounds of scratch heats, Kopp and King found themselves the primary combatants in heat one. King grabbed the holeshot and led the 12-rider field off turn two, but the race was halted after Washington riders J.P. Simonsen and Jeff Annen crashed over the jump. Annen would return, but Simonsen was transported to a local hospital to get ch.ecked over. On the restart, King again took the lead, but Kopp was quickly by, and he opened up a huge margin. Kopp cut a flawless 10 laps to claim the win by half of a straightaway at the flag. King ran second for the rest of the race. 'Tve just got to get a good start," Kopp said. "I haven't had a good one yet today. At least there are plenty of places to pass out there. There's a lot of moisture out there, and it also helps to have a real hot rod. Our motorcycle is fast. We're two for two today (scratch and regular heat win). We're going for three for three. I'm just trying to relax. I've got the jitters like I've"never had before." "I was comfortable," King said. "There's a lot of guys out here who are faster than me, but there's a lot of year left. I want to come out of here with my butt intact." Dan Butler earned the final direct transfer by finishing a lonely third aboard the Gardner Racing/Walters Bros. Rotax. "A lonely third is better than having to come through the semis," Butler said. ~'I want to put in as few laps around this place as possible." Bostrom dominated heat two by a greater margin than Kopp as he rocketed off the starting line and never looked back en route to victory by a full straightaway over first-time National transferee Josh Butler, who rode the Coziahr H-D . Rotax to a well-earned second place. "I felt good out there," Bostrom said. "All it takes is a little luck. My brother Ben never had it here, but I'm hoping to reverse that." "This is my first Grand National," Butler said. "It's pretty cool. I'm only in my second year as a dirt tracker. We've been competitive, but this gives me a lot more confidence. It's kind of hard to explain how it feels." Former' 600cc National Champion Mickey Fay provided some color by squeaking the Cycle World/White Bros. Honda CR500 into the show by grabbing third after Steve Morehead bobbled off turn four late in the race. Tresser blew 'em away in heat three with another dominating performance, leading Washington rider Dan Stanley and Vames across the finish line, with aJJ three advancing to the main event. . "I'm trying to stay smooth," Tresser said. "I haven't trained a whole lot for this race, and not being on the circuit with these guys every week makes you a "little rusty 1 suppose. But I'm reaJJy focused. 1 think that pulling off second last night (at the 600cc National) has really given me some confidence." "I thought that I could stay with Andy," Stanley said. "But something happened to our bike. We think it's electrical, so we've swapped everything out. Hopefully that will fix it." Atherton, Parker and Team Undo's Brett Landes provided the fans with a thriller in the final heat as they finished 1-2-3. Atherton grabbed the early lead while Parker had to do battle with Scotty Adams Racing's Charlie Orr. Parker landed second when Orr bobbled in turn two on lap three but Orr was quickly back around him. The two riders bat- F&S Harley-Davidson's Morehead led soft-spoken Kentucky rider Tommy Hayden through to the main in the next semi. Morehead's victory was a popular one with the Peoria crowd while Hayden earned his first Grand National main event start. "My goal is to run in the top five now," Morehead said. "1 knew 1 could come here and make it in the show." Deeley Harley-Davidson's Steve Beattie steamed to the final semi win to gain entrance into the main. Beattie was well ahead of Annen, who had recovered well enough from his first-heat crash to earn the last ticket to the final. GRAND NATIONAL The best 11 riders in the country got off the start rather cleanly with Tresser grabbing the point position over King, but Kopp was quickly on the charge, coming from fourth to second on the opening lap. '1 knew I was faster than Andy, but I had to keep telling myself to relax," " Koppsaid.