Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

(Left) Steve Lelvan kicked up some dust on his way to the overall victory In round 12 of the Missouri Hare SCrambles Chemplonshlp, held In St. Joe State Park. (Below) Casey Haynes topped the 250cc B class In round 12 of the Missouri Hare SCrambles Championship. Now there were only a few miles left in the race, and the two friends were separated by mere inches, virtually the same distance as when they started the lap. The trail entered the final section with Letellier still in control. Both riders were pushing the edge of the envelope. As they came upon lapped traffic within sight of the checkered flag. Letellier took the middle line, Leivan went to the left, and the lapper was on the right. "The guy started to swap into me and 1 chopped the throttle for j\lst a second to keep from crashing with him, and it blew my momentum," Letellier 14-rider AA class and was the first to cross the river on the edge of town, but he almost immediately missed a turn and allowed Leivan to take the lead. Leivan w~)Uld be joined by Letellier and Yount mIdway through the lap. Chris Thiele, Rusty Reynaud and Chad Busenbark followed in tight formation behind the top three. "Once 1 got in front, 1 tried to concentrate on the trail and not miss any corners," Surdyke Racing-backed Leivan said. "t knew from races here in the past that the first lap is kind of like 'follow the leader' until the course gets beat in, so 1 wasn't concerneq with trying to set a blazing pace, just one that would keep me near the front." Leivan and Letellier completed the first lap in about 42 minutes and opted to pit for fuel. While the pair were in the pits, Yount took the lead. Thiele followed, as did 1985 Flat River winner Reynaud and '95 winner Busenbark. Yount's day would end early with a seized engine at the beginning of lap two, and Thiele would fall early in the· lap, making the running order Reynaud, Busenbark, Leivan and Letellier. Busenbark took the lead shortly before the end of lap two, but when he and Reynaud stopped for gas, Leivan and Letellier moved back in the front. Reynaud, however, caught up and retook the lead before the completion of the third lap. Leivan and Letellier s~o!,ped for fuel at the end of the lap, glVmg Busenbark an even bigger advantage. "After we stopped on the third lap and Chad was already leading, 1 wondered if we would be able to catch hlln," Letellier said later. "1 couldn't see him in the woods, but when we got to the sand near the end of the lap, he was right there. 1 thought we could pass him then. That is just what happened. As Busenbark struggled in the sand coming mto the barrels to take the white flag, both Lei van and Letellier blew past. It was obvious that fatigue had set in for the local hero. "1 just got really tired the last lap and a half, and wanted the race to be over," Busenbark said. "All year, I've been just a little out of shape and it catches up WIth me late m the race." . So the stage was set for a dramatic last-lap battle. As Leivan and Letellier raced past the spectator area side by side, Letellier was able to push his KTM past and gain the upper hand. The two II \0 0\ 0\ ....... \0 .... ....... !-< Q) .g ... U o 48 Winning this event gave Leivan his fourth Missouri Hare Scrambles Championship. KTM-backed Letellier locked up second place in the series, saying. "I would have rather won, but at least we didn't let any of the young kids beat us." St. Joe State Park Park Hills, Missouri Results: September 22, 1996 O/A: 1. Steve Leivan (Yam); 2. Letgh Letellier (KTM); 3. Chad Busenbark (Yam); 4. Chris Thiele (Kaw); 5. Rusty Reynaud (KIM). Ak 1. Leigh Letellier (KTM); 2. Chad Busenbark (Yam); 3. Chris Truele (Kaw~ 4. Rusty Reynaud (KTM): 5. Allen Harnes (Yam~ A: 1. Brock Busenbark (Yam); 2. Greg Surdyke (Yam); 3. Dallas Marer (Yam); 4. Tanner England (Hon); 5. Charles ThIele (Yam). 125, I. Dale Rector (Yam); 2. Derek Zinchuck (Yam); 3. Mike Stout (Kaw): 4. Gene Thunnan (Yam); 5. Ryan Barron (KTM). 200: 1. Randy Wagahoff (Kaw); 2. Kevin Betts (Kaw)j 3. Scott Blair (Kaw): 4, Matt Mannering (Kaw); 5, leff Baforo (Kaw). 250 B: 1. Casey Haynes (Yam); 2, Chris Nesbitt (Yam); 3. Matt Pursler (ATK); 4. David Gerbes (Yam); 5. Ash Okorn (Hon). OPEN: 1. Ross Logan (Hon): 2, Dave H,aworth (KTM); 3. Duane Rambo ,KIM); 4. Steve McWhorter (KTM); S·l·R. Hansen (KIM). 4-STRK: 1. Les Busenbark (Hon); 2. Kevin Boyle (Hon); 3. lohn Yarnell (Hon); 4. Gary Pilant (Hon); 5. Travis Pilant (Hon). VET: 1, David Berry (Suz); 2. Kenneth Hulsey (Yam); 3. John Newberry (KTM); 4. Mike Vandiver (Yam); 5. !

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