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/127995
Round 6: Manahawkin GNCC AMA GRAND NA TIONAL CROSS COUNTRY SERIES By Mark Uth MANAHAWKIN, N), MAY 9 ustralian Shane Watts used a last-lap, come-from-behind charge to claim the overall win at the Manahawkin GNCC. Posting his fourth overall victory in five tries, the KTM 125-mounted Australian's success is no doubt turning U.S. offdoad racing circles on their collective ear. In the process, his success is threatening to upset the corporate apple cart of many national manufacturers' offroad racing teams that have invested nearly exclusively in this series. "Wattsie" got off to a mediocre start and encountered some troubles early in the race, whacking his left handlebar on a tree hard enough to shatter his roost guard and damage his clutch lever. It hardly proved fatal, however, as Watts spent the next couple of laps working his way to the front in order to set the stage for his final-lap victory. "The key was being in the position to win on the last lap," Watts said. No doubt it was. It wasn't accomplished, however, without a little misfortune on the part of the second-overall finisher, Team Suzuki's Rodney Smith. The defending series champ started well, ultima tely grabbing the lead position from early front-runner Fred Andrews and maintaining it on the third, fourth, fifth and half of the sixth and final lap. Unfortunately, lapped traffic, as it often does, played an instrumental role in Smith's misfortune. "A lapper had fallen down in the main line in a woods trail near the loop's midpoint," Smith explained. "I made a snap decision to blaze an inside line, and my Suzuki bottomed out on a stump - the bike flipped up and I went down. Wattsie was right there and he slipped into the lead." Still, a second-place finish proves that he and Team Suzuki are back on the right track. "I thought 1 was in good shape to take the win," Smith said. "My Suzuki is really working good now, after we spent A (Above) Australian Shane Watts came from behind to win the Manahawkin Grand National Cross Country in New Jersey· his fourth win in four tries. (Left) Defending series champion Rodney Smith ended up second overall. the first couple of races getting the '99 bike dialed. Unfortunately, just when things began to come together, I ended up getting sick. I felt good in West Virginia (where he took first place), but this lingering cold just won't quit." Team Suzuki claimed the third podium position as well with a strong showing by Englishman Paul Edmondson. "I was a little pumped up early on and had to back off some," said Edmondson. "There are really a lot of fast guys in this series, and the pace is relentless. The top guys up front were freight-aaining and setting a good clip." To his credit, "Eddy" hung tough,