Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

AMA Western Four-Stroke National MX Series, Round 1 Events By Don Schneider SAN BERNARDrNO, CA, MAY 8 cott Myers thumped his way to the overall victory at round one of the Yamaha/Maxxis Tires AMA Western Four-Stroke National Mo.tocross Series at Glen Helen Raceway Park. He went 2-1 for the Yamaha rider's firstever Four-Stroke ational win. Finishing second on the day was Nathan Woods, who was another rider who pulled off a career-high placing, with a 3-2 tally. Third overall went to Dustin Nelson with a 1-6 tally. elson landed the first-moto win, but a secondmoto crash denied him any chance for the overall. Two newcomers to the series - Byron Nelson (6-3) and Bakersfield YamahaponsoTed Josh Chisum (8-4) - rounded out the top five overall. Jimmy LaMastus put his Husaberg into the lead at the start of the first moto, only to have Myers, on the The Racers Edge/Applied Racing Yamaha, pass him before the first lap was over. "I got a good Q.rive up Mount St. Helens and saw Jimmy was fighting the bike a little as he was hitting some bumps," said Myers. Once out in front, Myers stretched out his lead to eight seconds, while LaMastus started feeling the heat being applied by Yamaha riders Robert Naughton and Dustin Nelson. Nelson, however, was the one on the move, and he slipped his YZ400F around both Naughton and then LaMastus to take over econd. '1 felt my pace was faster than anyone's," elson said. "I didn't want to go ballistic or anything - just ride a smooth pace." Nelson didn't stop there. He continued to press hard and started to reel in the leader, Myers. Nelson eventually caught and passed him, going on for the win. Myers held on to take second over Woods, who finished just ahead of a battling LaMastus and Naughton. Byron Nelson took sixth, followed by Todd Downs, Josh Chisum and Grayson Hart. Myers squeezed LaMastus out for the holes hot in the second moto, leaving behind a pile of metal and bodies. "1 wasn't going to give him that start again," Myers said. "No matter how I was going to look at it, [ was going to lead early again." As they were dicing for the lead through the first turn, LaMastus clipped a hay bale and went down, causing a chain-reaction pileup. "I was on the outside of Scotty and then 1 hit a hay-bale cover," LaMastus S (Top) Scott Myers (29) leads first-moto winner Dustin Nelson at the Western National Four-Stroke Series opener at Glen Helen. (Above) This secondmoto first-turn pileup took Nelson out of overall contention. Myers went on to win the moto. (Right) Nathan Woods finished third overall. said. '1 knifed under and went through the berm and crashed." Caught in the crash were first-moto winner Dustin Nelson, Downs, Naughton, Sten Rasmussen and Woods. The race for the win was, for all intents and purposes, over right then and there, as Myers, who had taken second in the first moto, came away in possession of a big lead. Myers went on to win the moto handily, scoring his first overall National win. "Hey, this is racing, and you never know what's going to happen out there," Myers said. "In fact, it usually happens to me - getting caught up in pileups. Everything went good today." Woods got back up to finish second in the moto, and he earned second overall for the day. Byron Nelson worked his way back up to third, followed by Chisum, Downs, Dustin Nelson and Naughton. eN Glen Helen Raceway Park San Bernardino, California Results: May 8,1999 (Round 1 of 10) MOTa ONE: 1. Dustin Nelson (Yam); 2. Scott Myers (Yam); 3. Nathan Woods (Yam); 4. Jimmy LaMastus (Hbg); 5. Robert Naughton (Yam); 6. Byron Nelson (Yam); 7. Todd Downs (Yam); 8. Josh Chisum (Yam); 9. Grayson Hart (J

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