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(Left) Tim Feny came from the back of the pack in the 250cc main to finish second, behind teammate McGrath. Here, Feny chases down Sebastien Tortelli, who finished behind Feny In the 250cc main. In the Shootout, they swapped. Tortelli gamered a runner-up spot and Feny finished third. (Below) Like all 250cc competitors in the Shootout, McGrath had to pass all the 125cc racers that started on the first gate, like Nathan Ramsey (25), who finished third in the 125cc main, but could not muster a top 10-finish in the Shootout. The Shootout gives the 125cc field a slight advantage by placing them in the first gate. After the gate drops and is raised again, the 250cc class moves into position and the gate drops again. When the 125cc gate dropped, Schnell again seized the holeshot, with Vohland, David Pingree and Andrew Short in pursuit. Approximately 15 seconds later, the gate dropped for the 250cc bikes. McGrath rocketed out of the gate with Ferry, Tortelli and Voss giving chase. On the first lap, 125cc rider Vohland took the early lead but lost several positions after he and Schnell rubbed plastic in the turn before the finish line. Pingree went down and Roncada made his way from eighth into third, behind Schnell and Short. The 250cc-class riders quickly closed the distance on the 125s. By lap three, McGrath, Ferry and Tortelli had closed in and were picking them off. Passing a 125 on the outside of a turn became disastrous for McGrath, as the 125cc rider went over the berm, leaving nowhere for McGrath to go but down. McGrath recovered quickly, but the fall cost him several positions. Ferry and Tortelli, now the 250cc leaders, continued to take positions away from the 125cc fi-eld. By lap five, Ferry caught up to Roncada; Schnell was still in the lead. Knowing that once a 250cc rider got past him, it would be difficult to regain the position, Roncada fought Ferry at every turn. Second and third went back and forth through lap eight, with Ferry triumphant. Roncada was then passed by Tortelli on the next lap. During lap 10, the halfway point of the moto, Schnell relinquished first to Ferry, and then to Tortelli. This left Ferry with the lead, followed by Tortelli, Schnell, Roncada and McGrath. McGrath continued to chip away at the leaders, taking fourth from Roncada on lap 12 and third from Schnell on lap 13. Meanwhile, Tortelli closed in on Ferry, making a pass stick in the back jumps during lap 15. On lap 16, McGrath passed Ferry, setting his sights on Tortelli. Tortelli was McGrath's next victim, being his tire. At first, when I got up, I was kind of discouraged; then I made another mistake down here and almost fell again. I was like, 'Man, there's a lot of laps left.' And then I just charged, charged, charged. I knew I was fast through the whoops; I had to take a few chances. I was kind of all over the place a few times. But overall, my bike rode good. I just had to push a little harder. It turned out great. ' "I tired a little in the last laps, so (Above) FMF/Honda's Brock Sellards switched to a 250cc for the day and posted respectable results. In the main, he finished fourth, and in the Shootout, he managed sixth overall. (Right) The Glen Helen Supercross circuit was just as tight and technical as any Supercross track. Here, 250cc rider Feny (15) gobbles up the stadium whoops; chasing down 125cc rider Roncada. passed on the finish-line jump during the next lap. McGrath dominated the rest of the moto to the checkered flag. Tortelli claimed second, with Ferry, Roncada and Schnell rounding out the top five. "I got out in front, got a good start, came around a few laps and made a few mistakes, and Timmy (Ferry) was pressuring me there," McGrath said. "Then I came around and got some distance on him, came around a lapper guy, or passed a guy, Dostal, and he rode behind the berm and I had nowhere to go and I fell on Jeremy passed me, but it was a good race," said Tortelli. "We're still testing the bike. The bike is good already, but we're still working on it. I'm very happy." When asked about competing with McGrath, Tortelli said, "It's always fun; he's always fair and he's very fast, so it's always a pleasure to race with him." Ferry commented, "I took a pretty hard crash four days ago. I've got a little road rash on my back. It's not too bad, a little stiff, but overall I felt pretty decent today. I could have done a little better in the second race. n eye I e They didn't give us 250 guys much time in between motos." Chaparral team manager Larry Brooks added, "I'm actually pretty happy with how Timmy (Ferry) rode. That was more exciting to me than Jeremy winning, because everyone expects Jeremy to win. To have Timmy come from where he was when we first met to where he is now is a huge step. A lot of work went into it, and the season hasn't begun yet. After Thursday, we're just glad he's riding, to tell you the truth. It could have been bad. That shows a lot right there, to crash really hard, regroup and come back with a lot of skin missing off your back." The first of the 125cc riders, Roncada, was pleased with his performance in the Shootout. He acknowledged, "The 250s were doing the triple over there, so there was nothing I could do about it." In regard to the upcoming Supercross season, Roncada remarked, "It was a good test today." Chaparral's owner, Dave Damron, said (with a grin on his face), "We've always had a pretty good guy in Jeremy. He's finally honing his skills. Thank goodness, after this many years, he's finally coming together. I've had to straighten him out, you know, take him truck r\lcing, but he's okay now." eN Glen Helen Raceway Part< San Bemardino, Califomia Results: December 19, 1999 125 MAIN: 1. Stephane Roncadll (Yam): 2. Greg Schnell (Yam); 3. Nathan Ramsey (Kew): 4. Shae Bentley (Kaw); 5. Tallon Vohland (K8W); 6. David Pingree (Suz); 7. Justin Buckelew (Yam): 8. Andrew Short (Kaw): 9. Danny Smith (Hon); 10. Jiri Dostal (Hon). 250 M.AIN: 1. Jeremy McGrath (Yam): 2. Tim Ferry (Yam); 3. Sebastien Tortelli (Hon); 4. Brock Sellards (Hen); 5. Heath Voss (Hon); 6. Dustin Nelson (Y0!3m); 7. Jim Povolny (Hon); 8. Matt Bateman (Suz); 9. Grayson Goodman (Hon); 10. Zeb Annstrong (Yam). 125/250 PRO SHOOTOUT: I. Jeremy McGr.th (Yam): 2. Sebastien Tortelli (Hon); 3. Tim Ferry (Yam); 4. Stephane Roncada (Yam); 5. Greg Schnell (Yam); 6. Brock Sellards (Hen); 7. David Pingree (Suz); 8. Bobby Bonds (Hon); 9. D.nny Smith (Hon); 10. Heath Voss (Hon). e _ S • JANUARY 12. 2000 21