AMAIProgress;ve Insurance U. S. Flat Track Championships
Round B: Iilinois State Fairg ounds
STORY AND PHOTOS BY
DAVE HOENIG/FLAT TRAK FOTOS
SPRINGAELD, IL, JOLY 6
rn'7
hen the Illinois Motorcycle Dealers Association took on the
AMA's Amateur Dirt Track Grand
Nationals, they decided to cap the
week-long extravaganza with round
eight of the Progressive Insurance
Grand National Championship. Appropriately enough, a bullring short track
was built in the Illinois State Fairgrounds rodeo arena. Unlike the two
previous short track Nationals at the
facility, this year's track was a little
longer and very much egg-shaped.
The tight turns one and two dictated the action all night, but caused
very few problems for Pro Honda
Oils/American Honda/White Broth-
I.:..:.J
ers' Nicky Hayden, as he easily
walked off with his fourth-career AMA
National dirt track win and also
became the the first two-time
winner on the 2002 AMA Progressive
Insurance U.S. Flat Track Championships tour.
"A lot of people were complaining
about the track having two different
(Abovel Nicky Hayden became the first
two-time winner on the Progressive
Insurance U.S. Flat Track
Championships tour this season after
winning the Springfield Short Track.
Hayden won the Springfield TT at the
same locale on Memorial Day
Weekend.
(RightJ Hayden (691 got away from the
field early, leaving Bryan Bigelow
(outsidel, John Hlebo III (701 and Chris
Carr (11 In his wake. Bigelow would
eventually finish secOnd.
18
.JULY
17. 2002'
...
U
.....
neVIIs
shapes, but I liked it. It was really
challenging," the part-time dirt tracker, Hayden, said. "The slow turn off
the start like that wasn't that great,
but I like a track that's real challenging, instead of being two corners that
are the same. Each end was a little
different. That made it so you could
make up time."
Making up time was really no
problem for Hayden.
"I got a good holeshot, put a couple of good laps together," Hayden
said. "I got a little lead, then just
maintained. It's just really cool to
come get another win. I can't believe
I'm the first two-time winner this year.
Especially coming to a short track, so
