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MOTOCROSS AMA 1251250 NAnoNAL CHAMPIONSHIP MOTOCROSS S~RIES Helen Raceway (Lett) Team Kawasaki's Jeff Emlg went 1-1 to win the Glen HelenAMA 250cc National Motocross. Emlg now leads the championship point standings by 36 points. (Below) Pro Circult/SplltFirel Kawesakl's Ricky Cannlchael dominated the 125cc class with a 1-1 moto tally, Carmichael has won all three 125cc Nationals run thus far In 1997. By Cameron Coatney and Eric Johnson Photos by Kinney Jones SANBERNARDINO,CA,MAY5 t would be hard to be cri tical of those who suspected that Team Kawasaki/Shift's Jeff Emig would play it safe in. the Glen Helen round of the 250cc AMA National Motocross Series. After all, Emig is the odds-on favorite to win his first AMA 250cc Supercross Championship in the final round at Las Vegas next weekend - thereby putting an end to Jeremy McGrath's four-year stranglehold on the series - and it would only be in his best interest to take it easy prior to that event. But that simply wasn't the case at Glen Helen. Instead, Emig battled his way to the front of the pack in both motos and in front of 15,400 fans turned commanding wins into his second National victory of the year. Emig's double-moto win didn't come via his usual holeshots. He had to work past the quick-starting Yamaha fourstroke of Doug Henry a few times in moto one and Thor IPrimal Impulse/ Bill's Pipes' Buddy Antunez in moto two. Emig also had to fend off the t-.... charges of Team Yamaha's John Dowd 0\ and Ezra Lusk in moto two, yet still won 0\ by a comfortable seven seconds. ...... "I got great jumps off the line today," Emig said. "But the start straight was so long and fast - I was in fifth gear. Our engine isn't set up for top-end, but out on the rest of the track my KX was awesome. Doug Henry was riding really well in the first moto, but once I got into. the lead both times I really tried to use my head and conserve energy. I wanted to focus on Glen Helen this week. It's not time for Vegas yet. It was tough this week with this being my home race and all - getting all the phone calls, all the pit passes I had to get, seeing all my friends, shaking hands and signing au tographs. I just wanted to come to Glen Helen and race hard. Now I can tUI:n my attention to Vegas and that championship." Last week's Hangtown winner, Team Suzuki/1-800-Collect's Greg Albertyn, stepped down a spot on the podium this week to finish second overall with a 2-3 tally. The South African finished second in the first moto and was charging hard in the second when he had a harrowing high-speed crash that saw him resume racing in 16th place. Riding a bent bike and in pain, Albertyn charged back to finish third at the checkers. "I'don't really know what happened today," Albertyn said. '1 was charging hard and just got into second behind Jeff (Emig). The next thing I knew I was on, the ground and it was a big one - kind of rung my bell a little bit. I injured my thumb, my back, my side - I got pretty banged up. I got into a rhythm after that, which made me forget about the pain. Last week I had an effortless win and this week I really had to work hard for second. I'm just really happy to be walking away and racing next weekend." Lusk proved that he is quickly com,ing to terms with his Yamaha in the outdoor Nationals as he finished third, via a 6-2 tally. . "My start in the first moto was great, but I ended up running into the back of Jeff (Emig) at the top of the hill and fell down," Lusk said. "I worked my way back up to sixth. I didn't get a good start in the second moto, but a few guys went off the track and crashed, and I just rode a smart race and tried to keep a fast pace as long as I could. I feel like my speed is where it should be - I learned a lot this weekend. I felt a little under the weather today, but when I get healthy, I think I can win one of these things." Team Nac'Nac/Suzuki/I-800-Collect's Jeremy McGrath was nursing a cut foot from a bizarre accident earlier in the week (see Briefly...) but still rode to a respectable fourth overall with 3-5 moto scores. McGrath is second in the points standings, trailing Emig by 36 points, 147-111. Albertyn is' third with 102 points. "My starts were okay today, but I couldn't ride at 100 percent," McGrath said. '1 just wanted to go for the starts and see how far I could stay up there. I tried pretty hard in the first moto but in the second moto, it was definitely a hang-in-there type of ride. I can do a lot better - I wasn't even trying, reaIIy. I won't ride this week until Vegas unless things get better." Dowd rode his Yamaha to fifth overall after turning in a 5-4 score. It was a good showing, considering he had returned to racing just a week ago after a five-week layoff with a broken hand. To further add to his woes, Dowd also suffered an injured thigh in his return race at Hangtown when he was .involved in a first-tum pileup. 'Tm pretty happy considering I really didn't know what to expect," Dowd said. "My starts were both pretty good, which really helps in this class because there are so many fast guys out there.