Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Off-Road SAN FELIPE, Be, MEXICO, MAR. 19-20 0hnnY Campbell was the first rider to leave the start at the 13th annual Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 and the first to cross the finish line as the factory-backed XR628 was ridden to a winning time of three hours, 56 minutes and 35 seconds. Co-rider Cole Marshall from Boulder Creek, California, who has been a number-one plate holder in District 36 for the past two years, piloted the middle section of the 229-mile loop course. It was the second San Felipe win in a row for Campbell, while this was Marshall's first Baja venture. Team Honda fielded three solid teams in the Open Bike class (Oass 21) and left with first-, third- and fourth-place overalls. Exactly 19 minutes off the winning pace and second overall was Edy Garcia, of Ensenada, who rode with Tim Staab of San Diego. This team averaged 53.8 mph on a WR400 Yamaha using the same motor Garcia used at last year's Baja 1000 and Intemational500. "We hit some big rocks, bu t it was a good ride," Garcia said. Staab was aboard last year's winning bike while teamed with Campbell. Third Open-class bike and third overall were Honda teammates Greg Bringle and Craig Smith on an XR628 race-prepped by Precision Concepts. The team planned to have Smith ride the start to MoreIia and have Bringle ride from there to the finish. With Bringle crashing hard and badly bruising his shoulder, the team was fortunate to draft Shad Bodenstadt as a midrace injury replacement. He rode the bike to El Chinero, where Smith got back on to finish. "Tha t was the most painful four miles [ ever rode," said Bringle, who was wearing a postrace sling. SCORE Tecate San Felipe 250 l!i Mounting his own version of Desert Storm, a surprising sixth overall and first in the Sportsman class, was Ed Tyynismaa, who is a Navy Seal stationed in Coronado. In only his second Baja race, Tyynismaa soloed his Precision Concepts-prepped XR628, which was previously Tim Staab's prerunner. "The bike ran flawlessly and I was trying for a top-10 finish," Tyynismaa said, "but my real goal was to be in the top five." Second in class went to John Olen and Richard Jackson, on a XR600. Just 6 1/2 minutes ahead of Tyynismaa and fifth overall was Phillip Zeiger and Ron Wilson, on an XR628. "I got tossed while hammering the whoops on the power-line road in a sprint to the finish," Zeigler said. Cliff Matlock and Matt Barney turned in a time of 5:38:01 on a WR400 Yamaha to win Class 30. The only other entrant in this class was a DNF. Spectators scrambled at the finish line as Class 21 racers Rickey Fernandez and Edgar Espinoza collided while taking the checkered flag and veered into the crowd. The win went to Fernandez (Left) Greg Bringle leaves the start line at the Arches 'In San Felipe. (Right) Edward Tyynismaa won the G-25OCc Sportsman class. Johnny Campbell (left), here standing with SCORE's Sal Fish (center) and team manager Bruce Ogilvie (right), combined efforts with Cole Marshall to win the San Felipe 250. by 30 seconds on corrected time. Fernandez brought in his KX250 with a time of 5:05:18. Riding another Precision Conceptsprepared XR600, Gary Tepner and Vince Skandunas claimed Class 40 with a time of 5:21 :01. TheY-finished 21 minutes ahead of David Flores. Tepner, who lost a duel with a large rock, finished with a swollen throttle hand and was glad to see the finish line. The course, which started and ended at San Felipe's well-known Arches, was a little over 229 miles long. A loop course, it almost immediately headed south for 29 miles before folJowing the Azufre Wash east. There it connected with the Chanate Wash and traveled through the Huatamote Wash on its way to Morelia Junction. From there, it continued north across the Laguna Diablo Dry Lake almost to Highway 3 and on through Borrego Junction. TIlen the course went west to EI Chinero, crossing Highway 5 and continuing to Three .Poles. Finally, the course headed s utheast until reaching the power-line road for a 17.6-mile run to the finish. Mo t finishers told stories of bouncing bikes, lots of deep whoops and highspeed collisions with rocks. Baja highway patrolmen Roy ana Tato Buelna, riding in the Open class, said, "We both had accidents and were slowed a lot." Their bike, an XR600 prepped by Johnny Campbell and Bruce Ogilve, ran well, but crashes on the course cost them time. There' were two medical air evacuations. Jeff Yoder never had a chance to shake off his pre-race adrenaline, crashing two miles off the start and breaking his finger. He was in the process of passing a spectator's SUV that was on the course when he went down hard. Sportsman Ken Palienir was also airlifted to San Diego with a possible con· cussion. "He (Palfenir) got his bell rung so hard, he didn't know he was in th.e race,"· said Richard Jackson, who stopped to assist. "He thought he was still prerunning." Winners Campbell and Marshall had a clean ride, eventually building up a 20-minu te cushion over their nearest competitor. With Campbell back on the bike at TIrree Poles after a solid run by Marshall, Team Honda changed both wheels in their pits due to loose spokes and a squared front rim. Their time in the pits was less than two minutes. Honda reported good results using a MT18 extra-ply PirelIi front tire and the Metzler Karoo on the rear. "I just tried to keep my lines and not make a dumb mistake," said a happy Campbell after the race. "I had the bike pegged through the washes. It was a little rough ou t there, but dust was not a problem." No dust is one o(tho e perks you get from leading the race from start to fini h. Honda's Craig Smith paid the course a rare compliment. "The start was good to ride," Smith said, "because the early-morning sun highlighted the rocks on the course. You could go really fast out there." The locals must have figured the course was rough enough in its natural state - they reportedly left it free of booby traps. Campbell did report that he swerved to miss something that turned out to be shadows, roosting the nearby crowd on the course. Just after finishing, Richard Jackson, having soloed longer Baja races than this, undoubtedly spoke for a majority of the racers. "There are a lot of big rocks out there," he said. "This is one race I wouldn't want to solo." This time, Jackson teamed with Dave Olen to finish second in the Over 250cc Sportsman division. t:III San Felipe 250 San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico Results: March 19-20, 1999 CL 21: 1. Rickey Fernandez (Kaw); 2. Edgar Espinoza (Hon); 3. Tom Grisham (Hon); 4. Enrique Legaspy (Yam). CL 22: 1. Jol~y Campbell/Cole Marshall (Hon); 2. Edy Garda/Tim Staab (Yam); 3. Greg Bringle/Craig Smith (Hon); 4. Jonah Street/Torsten Bostrom (FIon); S. Phillip Zeiger/Ron Wilson (Hon) 6. Mike Dollar/Chad 34 PetreW (Hon) 7. Roy Buelna/Tato Buelna (Hon). CL 30: 1. OW Matlock/Matt Barney (Yam). CL 40: 1. Gary Tepner/Vince Skandunas (Hon); 2. O

• Cover