Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

WERA National Endurance series, Round 7 (Right) Team Suzuki Endurance slapped a five-lap margin of victory on Its nearest rival to earn its 116th WERA National Endurance victory at Putnam Park. (Below) TKO Rayce Team Suzuki Too grabbed second oilerall and won the Heavyweight Superstock class after a race-long batte with Arclight Racing (not shown). Tea uzuk; t Ifes Iher By Aaron Mintz Photos by Lester Wilson/Greencastle Photo Service MOUNT MERIDIAN, IN, AUG. 9-11 earn Suzuki Endurance's Grant Lopez got off to a slow start and took his time gaining the lead position, bu t once he did, he never looked back and Team Suzuki Endurance rode . to its 116th endurance win. If Lopez had looked back he would have witnessed a great battle for second place overall and for first place in the Heavyweight Superstock class as TKO Rayce Team Suzuki Too and Arclight Racing battled on the tarmac and in the pits with Bloomington, Indiana-based TKO Rayce Team Suzuki Too emerging victorious. The race ran without incident or red flag, save a warmup-lap crash which sent one person to the hospital, Team Bear's Ed Guzik, who suffered a wrist injury. The absence of red flags allowed Team Suzuki Endurance to tally 279 laps on the 1.B-mile, 10-turn road course. Team Suzuki Endurance finished five laps ahead of TKO Rayce Team Suzuki Too. Team Suzuki Endurance's Crew Chief Keith Perry attributed the weekend's success to "good clean racing with no red flags." "I got off to a lousy start," Lopez said, "but the bike was handling well and helped me take the lead early in the race. At the start of the six-hour endurance race, Joe Prussiano ill of Arclight Racing grabbed the holeshot and ran hard into tum one, with Joey Gilleland, H&H Racing's Brian Lantz and Team Suzuki Endurance's Lopez in tow. Prussiano made his bike as wide as possible and maintained the lead through lap eight. The on-track rivalry between the TKO Rllyce Team Suzuki and Arclight Racing has been heating up all season and has been providing some of the best racing in the series this year. Carrying on that tradition, the two teams ran neck and neck throughout most of the first three hours until an extended pit stop in the third hour set Arclight back over a minute. "I neglected to get the pit crew together for practice and we lost time on two pit .stops, but TKO Rayce Ieam needs to be congratulated," Arclight Racing's crew chief said. "They beat us straight up. The time we lost in the pits would not have changed the outcome." TKO Rayce Team Suzuki Too ran flawlessly and enjoyed precision pit stops all race long. "The Metzler tires worked great," Joey Gilleland said. "After testing the suspension two weeks ago, the bike is set up for me and )ohn Jacobi. The crew's efforts have made the TKO Rayce Team Suzukis run fast and smooth. Close behind at the start of the race was Lexington, Kentucky's Team Bell's Suzuki with Roger Bell at the helm, and . team riders Brian Jones, Jeff Wilson and Tommy Hayden proving their abilities on the GSXR750. They kept the Bell's Suzuki running up front all day, finally finishing fourth overall and second in class. 1I It I Fifth overall and third Heavyweight Superstock was the team of TKO Rayce Team Suzuki with Steve Doolin and Gr.egg Blackwell aboard their '96 GSXR750 Suzuki. Early front-runner H&H Racing fell out with engine-bearing failure, relegating the team to 29th overall. New to Heavyweight Superbike and finishing third in class was Team Triad/Tapeworks of Greensboro, North Carolina, with state residents Lee Acree and two top novice rivals, Luke Yarbrough and Gregg White, at the controls of the team's Yamaha YZF750. They finished seventh overall with 265 laps, just five seconds behind top Middleweight Superbike entry Excel Racing with Matt Macheca and Mike Dye as the riders. This Yamaha YZF600-mounted team completed 266 laps, two laps more than the second-place Middleweight Superbike team of Ten 40 Racing. Excel Racing's victory moved the team into second place in points behind Team Ten 40 Racing and ahead of previously second-place Team Triad II/Tapeworks, (which finished 16th overall and fourth in class). The usual torrid battle in the Middleweight Superstock class continued as Mike Reed on the Triple R Racing Kawasaki ZX6 completed 265 laps, a mere 43 seconds ahead of SBR's Evan Semoif and Paul Youngman, aboard a Yamaha YZF600. The. two teams traded positions all during the race with additional heat applied by Canfield, Ohio's Thu~der Racing, which unfortunately lOW-SIded coming out of turn eight toward the end of the race. The accident sent Thunder Racing back to eighth in class and 21st overall. . Third in the Middleweight Superstock was Cycle Speed Racing which managed a consistent race, keeping the shiny side up all race long. . Triple R Racing continues to lead m class and is ranked fourth overall in points. Putnam Park Raceway Mount Meridian, Indiana Results: August 10, 1996 (Round 7 of 10) ENDUR O/A: 1. Team Suzuki Endurance (Suz); 2. TKO Racing Team Suzuki Too (Suz); 3. Arc1ight Racing (Suz); 4. Team Bells Suzuki (Suz); 5. TKO Race Team Suzuki (Suz). Sprints 125 GP, 1. Chris Ulrich (Han); 2. Paul Black (Yam); 3. Chris Pyles (Han); 4. John Ulrich (Han); S. Dan Clemens (Han). 600 PROD: 1. 'Luke Yarbrough (Han); 2. Gregory White (Kaw); 3. Chris Nonnand (Kaw); 4. Chad Feltner (Han); S. Brian Healea (Han). 600 SIBK NOV, 1. G,egory White (Kaw); 2. Chris Normand (Kaw); 3. Myron Bell (Han); 4. Christopher Allen (Han); 5. Steven Olechowski (Han). 600 SISTI< EX, 1. Mike Reed (Kaw); 2. Ma,k Reed (Kaw); 3. Joey Gilleland (Kaw); 4. Stoney Landers (Han); 5. Ray Litton (Kaw). 750 SIBK NOV: 1. Ragrough (Han); 3. Chris Normand (Kaw); 4. Gregory White (!

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