Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Prospectors Grand Prix (Above) Johnny Campbell struck paydirt with a second-place finish in the Prospectors Motorcycle Club's California Grand Prix Team race and overall wins in Four-Stroke and Open-class competition in Gorman, California. (Left) SpUd Waiters and Drey Dirks (not shown) were the winners of the Prospectors GP Team Race. By Matt Freeman GORMAN, CA, OV. 9-10 ImnY Campbell's trip to the Hungry alley SVRA for the Prospectors Grand Prix paid off as he and Jimmy Lewis finished second in the $4,000 Team race before Campbell went on to win in the Four-Stroke and Open divisions. The event also was part of the AMA District 37 Best of the West Series and it was the fifth and final round of the district's Grand Prix Series. With all this at stake, the Prospectors Motocycles Club reported nearly 700 entries for the two days of racing. The course was laid out over Gorman's Quail Canyon and consisted of nine miles of switchback hillside trails with a mile-long groomed motocross track serving as the starting and finishing area. early all of the riders found the course to their liking, especially Greg Zitterkopf, Dave Ondas, Campbell, and younger brother Jamie Campbell, who had spent all of Friday racing in a straight line at the Baja 1000. "I had to get used to turning again after going straight for a zillion miles in Baja yesterday," said Zitterkopf, whose team won the famous event. "The COj.ITSe here was really good and fun. It had sand washes, jumps and it was marked real well." The first event was the Unclassified race. Ken Ehlers pulled the holeshot, but it wasn't long before John Rudder and Charlie Morris made their moves for the lead. As the racers ripped through the moist motocross track and headed out of sight to the dusty trails of the back section, Rudder's YZ250 was in front. Eight miles and several switchbacks later, RMX250-mounted Morris took the lead. Morris got around Rudder on a hot ~ \0 0\ .0\ ,..-< "",,' l-< Q) S Q) u Q) o 16 line that he found halfway around the first lap. The two riders headed out on the second lap all alone, with third-place Paul Shafer and fourth-place Ron Griffo too far back to be a threat. Rudder couldn't make a pass that would stick, leaving him to finish in second. Griffo, how.ever, motored around Shafer for third. Ehlers had the holeshot again in the Seniors race, followed by Bob Archer, Rex Staten and Richard Kastner. Staten got around Archer's CR500 four turns into the race. Ehlers held the lead' for longer than he had in the previous race, but Staten's KX500 was too much for the 250cc rider. Bill Maxim was another KX500 rider on a rampage, turning a seventh-place start into a second-place finish. Ehlers held on to third overall, first 2SOcc all the way to the finish. Kastner took fourth on his CRSOO, holdin-g off the 250cc of Mike Ferro, who rounded out the top five. Archer dropped all the way to 15th. The last race of the day was the Team Race, in which Honda of Troy's Erik Kehoe ripped into the lead at the tart. Behind Kehoe were Spud Walters, Staten and Campbell. Staten blew by Walters in the weeds and focused on the lead CR250 of Kehoe. Heading out onto the second lap, Walters handed his CR500 over to partner Dirks and Campbell handed his mount over to Lewis. Dirks and Lewis passed Staten's partner, Abe Baumam, who had fallen, and then went for the first-place bike of Rob Healey, who had taken over for Kehoe. "Erik (Kehoe) handed me the bike in the lead by about 20 seconds," Healy said. "I had some trouble through the fast, sandy stuff and that's when Dirks and Campbell passed me." The Walters/Dirks and Campbell/ Lewis teams raged an all-out battle for the lead. Campbell's XR600 would pull up right on Walters' CRSOO in the hardpack of the back section, but as soon as the CR team entered the motocross section, they were able to leave the FourStroke team. The third-place Honda team of Kehoe/Healy ran out of gas just before entering the pits, giving third to the Staten/Baumann team. The YZ250 team of Rudder and Oakley Lehman also got around the parked Honda, securing fourth, followed by the CR250 of Donatoni and Damon Bivens. The fifth and final lap saw no changes in position, but the racing did not stop. Campbell once again reeled in Walters in the back section, but could not get around him. At the finish it was the Walter/Dirks team just seconds over Campbell/Lewis. Staten/Baumann held on to third and Kehoe/Healy were awarded fourth place when the teams of Rudder/Lehman, Donatoni/Bivens and Morris/Michael Briggs were all disqualified. Apparently, they all had found a line in the back section that was not that hot, according to the Prospectors. Ten of the 35 teams that started the Team Race got part of the purse. The winning team of Walters and Dirks received $1,200, but it was the secondplace team of Campbell and Lewis, who received $800, tha t seemed most pleased. "I am beat," said Campbell, who had ridden over 500 miles at the Baja 1000 the day before. "I got off twice pretty hard yesterday so they (Walters/Dirks) had a little more momentum." Lewis had nothing but praise for his teammate. "This was a last-minute decision to come out here," said Lewis, who won the event the year before with Campbell. "Considering Johnny rode so much yesterday, he rode damn hard." Campbell did not stop there. Sunday morning he lined up his big Four-Stroke at the gate two more times. Campbell wasted little time in the Four-Stroke race passing Lehman's smaller XR400 for the Lead. He had smooth sailing all the way to the finish, beating out Jamie Campbell by 30 seconds. Lehman, Brad Cameron and Mike Sandoval rounded out the top five. Campbell led the drag race to the first turn in the Open race. In the end, Staten was the only one who made a serious threat for the lead. "Rex is tough," Johnny Campbell said. "I had to get away from Rex because 1 knew he was back there." Campbell finished his third and final race about 30 seconds in front of Staten, followed by Jamie Campbell, Ondas and Shafer. Hungry Valley SVRA Gorman, California Results: November 9, 1996 UlC: 1. Charlie Morris (5uz); 2. John Rudder (Yam); 3. Ron Griffo (Han); 4. PauJ Shafer (l(aw); 5. John Wiltsey (Han). SDCR: 1. Morgan Bums (Kaw); 2. Victor Palfteyman (Hon); 3. Richard Myers (Hon), SR OPEN EX: 1. Rex Staten (Kaw); 2. Bill Maxim (Kaw)i 3. Richard Kastner (Han). S.R 250 EX: 1. Ken Ehlers (Yam); 2. Mike Ferro (Han); 3. Rhett Higgins (Kaw). MAG EX: 1. Denrtis Patterson (J(aw); 2. Earl ShuJer (Kaw); 3. Larry Mason (Yam). S/SR EX: I. S.B. G

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