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/128103
Moto xxx rider Michael Brandes a nd Yam aha of T ro y's Natha n Ramsey. M OTO 1 Dub a ch cla im e d the fi rs t - m o t o holeshot in typ ical Dr. D st yle . Only seco nds we nt by be fore Hughes took th e lea d, p la cin g Dub a ch and Walters in sec o n d and third . Fo r the ne xt t h ree lap s , Hughes cons is t en t ly inc re ase d h is lead o n Dubach a nd the rest of the fie ld . Wa lte rs k e p t pa c e with Dubac h, but Sma il had Wa lters in hi s si g hts . On la p fo ur, Sma il cleanly pa sse d Walters for th ird , but was unable to ca tc h the frontrunners before the checker ed flag flew . Hughes cruised to a first-moto win , follow ed b y Duba ch , Sm ail , Walters a nd Brande s . Between moto s , his wrist wrapped in ice , Hugh e s c o m m e nt e d , "It was easier to ra ce than I th ought. I'm ve ry happy. The wrist got a little tigh t, but I'll b e re ady for th e ne xt moto . T he b ike wo rk ed good ; I can put it a ny whe re I wa nt to. " Duba ch co mmented , "I d id what I've be en do ing fo r the past four years now. Hug hes is in a class of his own, a t the lev el of the [Ricky] Carm ic h a e ls . I hope to be a t him at the sta rt aga in, beca use I'm going to ride some of th e Nationals. I have a lot of re s pect for a guy like Ryan who c an have a lot of bad things go his wa y a nd turn it around ." MOT02 In mot o t w o , Du b a ch a ga in claim ed th e hol es h o t h on ors, but Hughes qui c kly com m a nded th e lea d. Br yan Nelson , Jos h Kellog g, Matt Karl s en and Br and e s and Wa lter s were in pursuit. A third-turn crash left Sma il at th e back of the pa c k. Moto two was a repeat of th e first moto for Hughes a nd Dubac h in firs t a nd s ec ond . Walters an d Bra n d e s work ed their wa y through the pa c k into third and fourth. Hughes crossed the finish line with a 4 5 -sec ond lead on Dubach. Wa lte rs , Brandes and Ramsey complete d th e mota third through fifth, also securing those po sitions overa ll. Sma il ca me in a res pecta ble 11th after com ing fro m the ba c k of the pack. Foll owing the race , Hug h e s remarked th at , co nsi d e rin g h e h ad not raced for th e previ ou s s ix months, "it was good , better than e x p ec te d . I've got a c oupl e m ore week s to get in a little bet te r s ha pe [before th e AMA National s] ." Wh en a ske d abo ut th e added weight of a fo u r-s tr o ke, Hughes responded , "I like it a littl e bit heavier ; for me it's a lot more stable ." A s mili n g Wal ters conce de d , "I di d n 't get the best start th at mota . Dou g and Ryn o we re rid in g great toda y. I'm ha ppy where I wa s ." MINIS After experiencing the thundering roar of 41 Open Pro racers charging for the first turn, th e idea of watching a min ibike race m ight seem comical. That picture changes when you take into consideration the fac t tha t th ere were n o fewer tha n 71 m in ibikes sto rm ing to the hol eshot tu rn . Add the fac t th at many of the bike s we re commandeered by Pro ra c e rs s uc h a s Lance Smail , J immy Lew is , Nathan Woods , Rich Taylor and Scott Myers , and you 've got a n e xciting ra c e. Leading the first-mota s wa rm was C ra ig C an o y , followed by T o m m y Tudge and David Farmer. By the end of the first la p , "Ba c ky a rd Prince" Le wis had ta ken o ver firs t, followe d by Ca no y, Myer s, Woods and Smail. Coming fro m beh ind, Smail wove h is wa y into th e le ad by the end of la p two . At the c hec ke red flag , S ma il took t h e w in , foll owed by Lew is , Woods , Myers and Taylor. Before th e second mota , S ma il commented, "I did n 't get the start I wanted in the las t one. I ran off the track . I was bac k about 15th , and th a t made it that much more fun . I'm not wanting to do that again , but if it happens , th at' s o kay." Lew is claim ed th e s econd -moto holeshot, a lea d wh ich he maintained until the wh ite -flag la p, when Smail again came from behind for the win and the overall. Tay lor finished the s e c ond m ota in third to g ive h im fo u rt h overal l. Woods ' 3-4 finishe s earned him a n overa ll third. BBR -backe d Lewis said , "I got a good drive a nd a really good sta rt. I knew there wa s no way anyone wa s IAbove) Doug Dubach a irs it out on one of the Glen Helen hills. Dubach plans to ride some of the Nationals th is year. (Left) Finishing th ird overall was Spud Walters, thanks to a 4 -3 moto ta lly. .. u .. I e n e _ 50 • MAY 9 ,2001 47