Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

AMA Grand National Cross Country Series Round 1 2: Power Line Park By JASON WEIGANDT PHOTOS BY RAY GUNDY ST. ClAIRSVIllE, OH, OCT.? (ii: red Andrews stayed hot by taking IJ' his third straight AMA Grand National Cross Country win at Power Line Park in St. Clairsville, Ohio, but Rodney Smith stayed cool and finished second, clinching his third GNCC title in the process. Yamaha's Jason Raines put in another strong performance by finishing third, with Smith's teammate Mike Kiedrowski in fourth and AMA National Enduro champ Mike Lafferty in fifth. Smith's second-place ride was all part of the bigger picture. "I came in here with a mission, and that was just to get top four and win the championship," said the Suzuki/FMF/ MooseRacing/Dunlop/Smith/HJCbacked Smith. "I never really had it in me to win the race. I just rode a little conservatively and didn't make any mistakes." Not making mistakes was Smith's trump card all season long. In a rule change for 2001, every race counted toward the series championship. (In previous years, riders could throw away their three worst scores.) This made consistency the key ingredient in the 2001 title campaign, and it was Smith who came out on top. Andrews, meanwhile, had problems early in the season, missing the first round due to injury. But the Kawasaki/Cornwell Tools/Pro Circuit/Moose Racing-backed rider's remarkable late-season charge brought him back into the series in the late going. Andrews is now well aware that a rider needs a full season of solid finishes to land the championship. "I wish we still had throwaways," said Andrews from the top of the St. Clairsville podium, "although I was one of the main ones pushing to get rid of them. But I think that's the sign of a true champion like Rodney. He was consistent all year long, and that's what it takes to be a champion." Andrews' strong second half contrasts that of 2000 GNCC Champion Shane Watts, who started the year strong but ended on a weak note. As a reminder of how his title defense has gone, Watts led the St. Clairsville race early and looked unbeatable, Smith played it safe at the second-tolast round of the GNCC Series, wrapping up the 2001 We with. second-place finish. n _ _ .. only to crash knee-first into a tree and drop out of the race. "I got the holeshot and was thinking, 'C'mon, let's go, let's see what we can do,'" explained the Australian of his early-race speed. "I was thinking this was the start of my 2002 comeback, but then I got off the track a little bit and smashed into a tree." Watts is a veteran of six knee surgeries, but this is the first injury to his stronger leg, and he hopes to return for the season finale in Indiana in two weeks. With just one round remaining in the 2001 season, Smith clinched his third GNCC title, with 300 points. Andrews locked up second in the series with 284, but the man on the move is Raines, now just four points behind Watts in the battle for third. The SCR Yamaha/Yamaha Motor Corporation/Dunlop/FMF -backed rider has been improving steadily throughout the series. "The big difference, to me, is confidence," said Raines of his dramatic improvement. "I used to come to the line and think, 'Wow, there's Shane Watts! There's Rodney Smith!' But now that I've become friends with these guys, it's kind of like we're just out there on a trail ride together." All the riders had great conditions for their trail ride, and everyone had positive things to say about the St. Clairsville track. For the first GNCC ever held at the venue, Racer Productions trail boss Jeff Russell, a former GNCC contender, was able to create Team Suzuki's Rodney Smith clinched his third GNCC title at OhIo. a tight, technical layout that challenged even the best riders. "The track was good," said Kiedrowski, a four-time AMA National Motocross Champion. "It got a little rough and powdery. It had a good variety of terrain, and there were some big mudholes." The Pro riders' lap times hovered around the 25-minute mark, making for a seven-lap race around the 11mile track. The course was hit with a lot of rain earlier in the weekend, but it turned out great by Sunday. Temperatures barely touched the 60s, which gave this event a different feel than the heat of the previous rounds. When the race began, it was Watts getting a surprisingly good start on his 200cc KTM, as he grabbed the holeshot and immediately started putting time on the field. Smith started safely in second, while Andrews headed into the woods around 10th. Watts has struggled mightily in 200 I, but he was back to his old form at Power Line Park. The KTM-mounted rider used his trademark effortless style to pull away from the field, leading Smith by 10 seconds on the first lap and 22 on the second. Watts looked ready to notch his first win in months, but he got off track on the third lap and smashed his knee on a tree. The crash knocked him back to second, but as

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