Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Costa Mesa S,eedwa, cosrx MESA. CA. AUG. 9 obby Schwartz proved he is like a fine wi ne: He jus t gets better with age. Schwa rtz celebrated his 41st birthday a day ea rly by winning the Scra tch main a l the Orange County Fairgrounds Saturday night. Sc h wa r tz . sparling new leathers. look the traditional roll in the dirt and then went o u t in h is heat race, rot the best gale of the field, and transferred to the Scratch semi. Kon Ball', in his fust Scratch rid e ever, was second and also moved up the ladder. Gary Hicks, hoping 10 repeal his viclory from last week. was in lop form as he broke ou l on top. Brad Oxley, oul of ga le three, dropped in right behind him. The two hugged the PVC in the quick four -Iapper and they also made it to the B semi. e The bo y s fr o m overseas w ere matched up in heat three. as Mike Faria and Charlie Venegas lined u p nex t 10 eac h o ther. I t was DiFrancesco w h o wen t out o n top, with Faria putting the pressure on in second. Venegas was working the outside and running third. It took until the while-flag lap before Faria was able to move DiFrancesco off the groove, and both he and Venegas were able to get by for the transfer spots. The final heat had reigning U.s. National and California State Champion Steve Lucero in gate one, and Shawn McConnell on the far outside. Lucero broke away on top, with McConnell dropping in behind him, in second. Ja son Daniels was running third but didn't get a lap in the books before his motor went sour. Ronnie Kemp wound up third. The firs t Scratch semi looked like a main even t, as McConnell lined u p in gale one and Schwartz in two. Venegas drew three, a n d Hicks w as in four. Schwart z. d eadly on the s tarts. cu t an other grea t ga te a nd wa s out first. wi th McConneU in second. Venegas was trying 10 make the o utside work, and McConnell was working hard to keep Hicks fro m getting a wheel under him. ' They fi nis hed in that order. Schwartz and McConnell were in the main. and Ven egas and Hicks had one more shot a t a spot. Th e second semi had Oxley on the pole, with Lucero in two. Faria lined up in three, a nd Baur was in fou r. Lucero gOI th e gate, dropped down low. and O xl ey locked in behind h im as they freight - trai ned 10 the checkered. Faria w ould have 10 fig h t it out in ' the last chance qualifier. Faria drew the pole in the LCQ. wi th Venegas in two. Baur was in three, and Hicks was againsl the wall in four. Venegas and Faria wen t o u t 1-2 and were close enough 10 shake ha nds. Fari a backed off and Venegas went on for the last transfer to the main. McConnell drew the pole fo r the Scratch main, with Oxley in two. This would be a tough combination. as both love to ride a dose. tight line. Venegas lined up in three, with Schwartz in four and Lucero in five. Sch w a rtz got the best gate of the night. touk the lead, and was not to be denied, McConnell was maki ng the inside work and was right behind him, hoping for a mistake he knew would never come. Oxley ha d the third spot, with Venegas trying lo fmd racing room anywhe re he could in fourth. Lucero couldn' t get anything working and he finished fifth. Schwartz got a n added gift fro m his 7-year -o[d daughter, Annemarie , as she won her Pee Wee 500c race. which was sponsored by Mission Yamaha. As in Scratch racing. in order to ma ke it to the Hand icap main, you have 10 move up the p rogram. Th e 'ei ght best Saturday night included Charlie Coo ley, who was all alone on the l o-yard line." Randy DiFrancesco had the 20 10 himself. a one was on the 30. but the 40 had H icks. Venegas, McConnell and Eddie Castro. Faria and Oxley, on the 5o-yard line. completed the field.. Cooley had enough of a handicap to lake the early lead. but Venegas got a start that had him almost to the front by the first 10m, and he was mnning third b y the end of one. He moved 0iFtanresc0 off the groove on lap two and moved Cooley out one lap later lo take the lead. McConnell had also moved through traffic and was down low. trying to get a wheel under Vmegas. Faria had made his way to the front and was running third by the end of four. The pressure was on as they a ll wen! mnning dose. but no o ne would give an inch. and the finishing order would be set in stone from the fourth lap. Ven<>gas was back. and the season should really start to hea t up as they hmd toward the u.s. a lional. The Stan[ey's Cha llenge had two heats of four riders. The object was to not be last at the end of one lap. If you were, you were out. The finaJ two went two laps to determine the winner. The first Stanley ChaUenge had Schwartz on the pole, Ed Castro in two. a nd Faria and Hicks in three and four. Castro was eli mina ted on the firs t lap. wi th Faria falling by the wa)'5¥le in two. Hicks and Schwa rtz li n ed u p fo r the ru no ff . Schwartz gol the call and went out on lop. bul Hicks puUed off !be move of !be night as he mus cled h is way under (Left) Bobby SChwartz (left) _ r ated his 41 st b irthday by winning the Scratch ma in at the Orange County Fairgrounds. (Above) Charlie Venegas borrowed a motorcycle !rom U.s. NatIonal Champion Steve Lucero and won the Handicap main. (Right) Frank Pecce won the Support main. Schwartz o n th e final lap and literall y threaded the needle, bringing the cro wd 10 its feel as he crossed the finish line. The secon d Challenge race had Lucero o n the pole, with Venegas in two, and Oxley and McConnell in three and four. Oxley was the first one eliminated, followed by Venegas. Lucero and McConnell would meet in the runoff. McConnell outgated Lucero bUI had 10 re ally reach down deep as Lucero put on the pressure. McConneU came away with the win. It was McConnell's second Challenge race of the season, as he won a Coo rs Challenge last month at the Fair Derby. The Sidecar racers had a ro ugh night, one that was especially hard on equipment - not just their own, but the track' s as well, Earlier in the evening. the tea m of G len McC le ll a n a nd Ch r is Jones almost look out the starting ga te - not to men tio n the starter, Steve Morrow and Chris Chapman had a na sty spill, and Chapman possibly has a .bro ken leg. which will probably end their season. O f the fo u r teams t hat m ad e the main, three were sponsored by Mission Yamaha, th e odd tea m o u t being Bob Brayto n and Parke Weaver, w ho d rew the fourth gal e. On the pole were Peter Lewis a nd Jamie Macy. Bill Mathe rson and Dale Leeder were in tw o, wi th John Ma th e r s o n a nd Scali Cole in th r e e . Lewis and Macy ga l the holeshot , w ith Matherson and Leeder in second . By the end of lap one, Brayton and Wrover had barely inched ahead of Mather son and Cole for th ird . Brayt on a nd Wea ver' s best work was slill to come as they got tum four working for them, and on the second lap had mo ved to second ; one lap later, on the white-flag lap, they had moved in to first, where they remained at the checkered flag . Matherson and Leeder were second , and Lewis and Macy rounded out th e field in third. Johnny Walker ca m e from the 30ya rd li ne a nd p ick ed up th e Support main-event w in a s he got by Ma rv in So nnie r at the ch e cker e d flag. John DeFries came fro m the long yardage 10 come away wi th th e third. Frank Pecce to pped Corey Ru dolph a n d Ma rk Adams to win the Suppo rt B main. ~ Orange County Fairg ro unds Costa Mesa, california Results: August 9, 1997 SCR: 1. Bobby SchW;lrt% (eM); 2. Shawn McConncll (GM); 3. Brad Oxley (\Vn); 4. Charky Vmq;as (Jaw); S. Steve' Lucero (Cdn). HD CP: 1. Ch a r lie Venegas o" w); 2. Sha w n McC onnell (GM ); 3 . M i~ F. ri.a (G M); 4. Ed Uslro a (Jaw); 5. Orad Ch.Hoy CW",J. STANlEY CHAL t : I . Gary Hich CWo); 2. Bobby SchWilrtz (GM ); 3. Mike Faria (GM>; 4. Ed Cas tro (Jaw). STANLEY OlAL 2:: I. Shawn McConnt.>D (eM); 2. Steve Lucero (Gd n); 3. Charlie Venega s Oaw); 4. Brad OxWy(Wes l. SDCA R: I. B. Bray to n / P. weaver (Hon); 2. B. Mather:K)n/D. Leeder (Ya m ); 3. P. Lewis /J. Maey (Yam}; " . ]. Mathenon/S. Cole (Yam J. SUP: t . J. WaIm CWrs); 2. Marvin Sonnie1'" a a w); 3. John Of-Fri"", ew"",); .. . David L)'TtCh (ja w); 5. Ran .Jy Skinntr (J.tw) . su r 8 : 1. Fr a n" Pecce (jaw); 2. Co rey Rud o lph (Jaw); 3. M.u" Ad ams (Jaw); 4. Swtt Scarbrough (JilW); 4. Mike Lupo (JilW).

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