Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Swartz Creek. This particular finish was well-earned, as Parker had to come from behind to get into contention. After getting the holeshot, the champ was swallowed by the field coming off turn two for the first time and unceremoniously dumped to fifth place in the course of two laps. It took hard riding and every last one of Bill Werner's ponies for Parker to get into contention. He was up to the task, but just out of luck at the finish line, ultimately sandwiched by the TCR team on the podium. "Hey, I felt real good out there," Parker said. "Bill had the bike working excellent. They just jumped on me right away, and I was just making a bunch of little mistakes out there, and we got beat./I Seemingly the rider holding the best cards as the race progressed, the always flamboyant young Atherton was hugely disappointed with his third-place finish, and perhaps with good reason. Atherton, too, got an excellent start off the front row during the main event, and indeed appeared to have everything he needed to stay with Davis and make a challenge at the end. But his Dave Watts and Tom Cummings-prepared machine inexplicably lost its entire left-side footpeg assembly just three laps into the race, forcing Atherton to hold his steelshoe-laden left leg in the air for the duration. The Michigander hung tough, and even took the lead away from Davis for a lap, but as the race progressed, that left leg got heavier. And heavier. ''I'm pissed off, frustrated, upset you name it," Atherton said. "I felt I was fast, and I felt I could win it. How can you ride a motorcycle with your foot like that? Well, we got tbird. We'll get 'em next week." A rather lonely but well-deserved fourth place went to Suburban Motors Harley-Davidson's J.R. Schnabel, the 1996 AMA Grand National Rookie of the Year, who gained entry into the main event through the semis and who had to start from the third row. The 18year-old Wisconsinite made an excellent start from the outside of that row, and was 10th after the first lap. From there, Schnabel went to work, picking off one and sometimes two riders at a time, and also reaping the benefit of a pair of engine failures by USC Racing's Ricky Graham and 1-800-FASTHOG/ Moroney's Harley-Davidson's Mike Hacker to settle into the fourth position, where he completed the race well behind the lead trio to claim the best "legal" finish of his young Grand National career. "I couldn't believe it:' Schnabel said. "If I'd started two rows further up, I probably could have run with them (Davis, Parker and Atherton). But this was great. We needed a good finish after La Salle and West Virginia. I thought that I'd make mains a t both, and I didn't make either one of them. Now, hopefully, we can keep going from here." Schnabel was followed by another quiet yet determined finisher, in the form of USC Racing/Lancaster HarleyDavidson rider Kevin Varnes. Still adapting to his new Harley XRs, the 22year-old Pennsylvanian came off the second row and effectively followed Schnabel through the field, his only hang-ups coming from a brief early dice with veterans Jay Springsteen, Steve Morehead and Harley-Davidson of Sacramento rider Joe Kopp, an~ also when Varnes suspected that Graham's Honda may have oiled the track. Late in the race; Varnes kept his head down and picked off both Adkins Racing's'Geo (Above) Rich King (80) leads Geo Roeder II (66) and Kevin Varnes (89). Varnes passed both riders and climbed to fifth place, while King finished sixth and Roeder seventh. (Right) There was racing at Terre Haute: J.R. Schnabel (33) battles his way between Mike Hacker (67) and Kevin Varnes (89). Schnabel went on to earn fourth place in the main after starting on the back row. Roeder and Corbin Racil).g/R&R's Rich King to land the fifth spot just as AMA starter Steve Faraci gave the field the five-lap sign. "I just kind of snuck up there," Varnes said. "The track really came around. It got smoother, and I got faster. We still haven't ridden these HarleyDavidsons all that much, but they're working well." Varnes was followed to the line by King, Roeder, Kopp and Springsteen. Coziahr Harley-Davidson's Paul Morgan wound up 10th ahead of Morehead and 1-800-FASTHOG / Moroney's Harley-Davidson's Davey Camlin. Rose Racing's Willie McCoy finished 13th, in front of H-D of Missouri's Kenny CooIbeth, who ended the race on a flat rear tire. Corbin Racing's Lonnie Pauley m~de his Grand National feature debut and finished 15th. Due to mechanical failures, SchmulbachRacing's Dan Stanley, Hacker and' Graham occupied the bottom three spots. Davis' second victory of the season also vaulted him back into the series points lead for now. He sits atop the board with 77 points, three more than the second-placed King. Parker is third with 65, despite missing one Grand National and remaining winless thus far. Springsteen is fourth with 52, and the hot-and-cold Atherton is fifth with 43. HEATS When the 49 entrants showed up to get their first glimpse of the Action Track, they knew they were in for another rough-and-tumble race. Rain early in the week had punished the surface, forcing the track prep crew to dig the top layer off, exposing the drier, . rougher underside. Constant work made the wide, fast half mile raceable, but choppy. It was not until the main event tha t the surface finally offered several racing lines, but the riders attacked it as though it were the Springfield Mile, making for some intensely competitive heat-racing action right from the first green light. Parker.opened the regular program with the heat-one holeshot, followed closely by Varnes, Schnabel and Mike Hacker. The rejuvenated Virginian quickly displaced Schnabel and then pulled off a gutsy outside pass on Varnes in turn two. Hacker caught Parker four laps later and, when the chainp began to make mistakes, Hacker moved into the lead to take the win over Parker and Varnes, who also transferred to the main. "I can't say enough about my teain," Hacker said. "Everything has been going good. The bike is so good that it makes·it easy for me to do my job. I was waiting for an opportunity, and if he (Parker) made a mistake, I was going to put it on him." Though the track was not as bad-as the last time he had visited it - as Grand National Champion, nearly two decades before - and though he was in the minority, Jay Springsteen was sti.ll a bit grumpy about the hostile surface. "It's pretty shitty:' Springsteen said after. practice. "I don't know why they let tills ·happen. I don't mean any disrespect to RK (Straf:tr!lan, the event promoter), but we shouldn't have to race on . something like this. It's bad in one and two, and in three and foUr. I might just put 'er in the truck, I don't know." Springer hemmed and hawed, griped and grumbled. And then the ageless veteran threw his leg over his Joe Bishaprepared Bartels' Harley-Davidson and simply blew 'em away in heat number two. He led every lap, while staving off the challenges of some heavy hitters in the form of Kopp and King. Off the last 19

• Cover