Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127982
• Brieflv..·. • Brothers Brian and Patrick Garraha.n now wear National numbers two and three. respectively. At the Heart On Classic. Patrick went down In the first tum and suffered a blow to his already-tender ankle. "I made it about a lap. but I couldn't do anything, so I pulled in." he said. "It's like a chronic sprained anKle.." It marked only the second time since the Heart On Classic became a National in 1994 that eithe-r brother has finished out of the top 10. Brian Garrahan plans .to compete in the entire AMA National Hare Scrambles Series again this year but will forgo the GNCC Series to ride the AMA National Hare & Hound Seri·es .. "It costs way too much money to do both the GNCCs and hare scrambles," the Northern California .resident explained. "The hare and hounds are closer to home." Australian Shane Watts used the· Heart On Classic to prepare for his assault on the United States.. "This. was a training run for the GNCCs," the ISDE hero said. "I'll miss one or two rounds because 'they clash with the World Endur£> Championships, but that's okay. because you don't have to ride 'all of them." He and mechanic Steve Kuczkc. a fellow Aussie. will also ride a few National enduros and qualifiers, as well. "I think I've {lot maybe two or three week- . ends off until October, but I like to ride. I'll probably go riding on those weekends, too." Asked whether he'll be based on the East or West Coast. he replied, "We'll be based out of the box van. We're pretty sim· pie Aussie guys; we've had it worse, People say, 'It's just a box van; it's not like home.' To. us. it is like a home. " Craig Wesner took top overall A honors and finished a commendable 10th overall in winning the 250cc A class on his KX250. He was the only A rider to complete all'six laps, doing so in 3;20:51. Rod Kreis's 'won the 200cc A class on his KX125 and finished runner-up overall A in 13th· overall. Steve Silvestri won 'the Four-Stroke A . class in what was his first race on a Hus~ aberg. The offer of a Husaberg ride .Iured the former ISDE' competitor back into racing after some time off, and he responded with 14th overall, third A. Cole Marshall picked up his Honda XR600R just days before the race, in which he rode to 12th AA and 15th overall. Honda loaned him the bike so he could get used to it. Why? He'll be teaming up with Honda-'s Johnny Campbell on a similar mount when the Best in the Desert's Silver State Series kicks off with the Kawasaki Team Green U.S. Hare Scrambles Championship in Laughlin, Nevada, on February 20. It's e one-race deal, but his aptitude 'f<;>r high~speed events could find him riding more desert races on an XR. So who was the rider who earned honors for traveling the farthest to get to the race? It wasn't Connecticut's Josh McLevy, nor was it Massachusetts' Luke McNeil. It was Larry Larrabure, who trekked in from Costa Rica. He borrowed an ex-Rodney Smith Suzuki RM250 for the event, and he worked his way up to second in the Vet A class before running out of gas and eventually finishing ninth in the class. "I felt right at home, because these conditions are just like in Costa Rica," he said, A former ISDE racer and Incas Rally competitor, Larrebure leads 'dirt bike tours in Costa .Rica for Motoadventures. Husaberg's Jason Dahners motored around in the lop 10 for a while before 'DNFing when his clutch .cal'ed it a day. "That's never happened to me belore," he said. "It lost all the free play,"