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AMA National Hare Scrambles Series Round 5: Shilo Inns Funky Chicken Hare Scrambles STORY AND PHOTOS BY DOUG KARCHER ELKTON, OR, JULY 7 [Jq) acing on a course that suited him ~ perfectly, big Brian Garrahan took the rest of the AA and A riders to school as he put on a demonstration of westem hare scrambles riding that no one could come close to in the Shilo Inns Funky Chicken Hare Scrambles. Kawasaki's Fred Andrews tried to match the KTM pilot's pace as they diced back and forth, banging bars all the way around the opening grass track section, with the rest of the AA riders in chase. In the end, however, he was no match for the Boulder Creek, California, resident who (with teammates Shane Watts and Pat Garrahan out due to injuries) rode as if it was all up to him. He added a full minute to his lead over Andrews on each of his six trips around the course. Smiling through the dust that had collected on his face, he wasn't even breathing hard as he rode his bike onto the podium and pulled off his helmet to be interviewed, Andrews having not yet crossed the finish line. ", just rode my own race: the KTM rider said. "It was good terrain for me, the big hills, it's kind of what I live in. It's just a shame that a little more rain wasn't there because we could have had some good racing out there. I 8 JULY 24, 2002' cue • _ (Above) Brian Garrahan put a minute per lap on second place In order to win the Funky Chicken Hare Scrambles. (Left! Rob Zimmerman rode consistently for the third and final podium spot. (Below) Round five of the AMA National Hare Scrambles Series was run at a typical westem venue. The start was mostly flat grass track, and the soil was dry. n __ lIS would have liked to bang bars with some people out there." Andrews was complimentary of his series rival: "I knew the start was everything, and Brian got around me as soon as we hit the trail. It was so dusty and the weeds were so tall, you couldn't see what was in them. My hat's off to him. He rode good, and he knew he had to beat me into the woods, and that's what he did. Second is okay, I'm happy - I'm walking. Maybe when we get east I can start beating him.· By the fourth lap, the leaders were getting into lapped riders. Many pulled aside to let them by, but some didn't, which left the passing riders little choice but to go off line, in the dust - a dangerous situation at best. Brian Sperle had been leading a chase pack that also included Rob Zimmerman and Craig Wesner, and although they were not within striking distance of the leaders, they had a good race going for third through fifth places. Sperle managed to stay in third until the fourth lap, when he took a hard spill in the dust and handed his spot to Zimmerman. Fortunately, he wasn't hurt seriously, though he did receive a black eye and a very fat lip. He quickly got back up, but by then Wesner had also passed him. Six laps, 78 miles, and two hours, 57 minutes after the flag dropped, Garrahan took the checkers, followed six minutes later by Andrews. Zimmerman was next, taking his second third-place finish in a row at this event. Team Green's Wesner was happy with his fourth place, and