Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Carmichael's failure to take either holeshot or lead every single lap (instead, he led "only" 27 of 30). "For me, that's a year-round, so I'm happy about that," Carmichael said. "I thought my starts could have been a little bit better; I was having a little bit of problems out of the gate, but my mechanic, Chad Watts, and everybody on the team at Honda is working hard to try to win. Things are paying off." The next-best rider on the day was another Floridian, as Timmy Ferry put together a 3-2 tally for the runner-up honors. The Team Yamaha rider couldn't get the starts he wanted on his big YZ426F, but he did a good job of passing on the slick track and is making the AMA look good for naming him to the Motocross des Nations squad. "The track today was the best I've ever seen here," Ferry said. "Typically, it's kind of slick, and this year it was only a little slick. I think the four-strokes work good here, and my bike worked This first-moto pile-up caught John Dowd (161. Sebastien Tortelli (131. Heath Voss (411. and Michael Brandes (441. among others. m ~@ Own Race: 2S0cc Nathan Ramsey After finishing a strong second in the first outing, it looked like this Team Honda rider might make the podium, but a crash in moto two while dicing with Kyle Lewis limited him to sixth in the moto and fourth overall. "It was aU going good until I fell over in the corner," Ramsey laughed afterward. "I got a little impatient and too aggressive and just fell over. It was all my fault. The first mota went real good. I just tried to ride patient once I got into second. It was kind of slick in a couple spots, so [being patient! worked out good... 1] [] Robbie Reynard This Planet Honda privateer raised some eyebrows at Washougal by making the top five with 6-5 finishes, despite a problem with his right thumb going numb and his left arm then pumping up. "That kind of slowed me down in the first moto, and I had to slow down the pace," Reynard said. "In the second moto, I got a worse start and started working my way up. I got up to about sixth and my thumb started going numb again. I backed off the pace, and Ramsey got back by me, but I picked it back up at the end and got back by around the outside on the downhill." @@ Sean Hamblin SeBe Suzuki's sale active 250cc rider made the top five in mota one (despite a crash) before slipping to 12th in the second olitin9 for a ninth-overall finish. "I wished I wouldn't have crashed in the first one . I think I would have ended up on the podium," Hamblin said. "The front end washed out, and I had to regroup. In the second moto, I never really fell into a good pace or anything. I don't know - something was wrong with either me or the bike. I don't know what it was. No excuses. I just didn't ride the best that I could have, but I feel pretty good for just coming back. It just makes me more determined.... ~® NickWey One of the several Moto XXX riders who had strong showings at Washougal, Wey finished eighth overall via a 7·9 tally. "This track, I've really struggled on in the past, and I came out here today to go out there and do the very best I could." Wey said. "Pro Circuit built me a good bike, and I got two good starts today. In the first moto, I had a little problem with my back brake in the beginning and lost my rhythm, but I came back on a bit in the end. I moved forward today, and it was definitely an awesome day for the team. I think I'm taking a right step in the direction where I want to be." cB~ Paul Carpenter Just outside the top 10 overall was this White Brothers Honda rider, who went 8·10 on his CRF450R. "I'm happy, but a little disappointed," Carpenter said. "I thought I could have done better. In the first moto, I rode a little bit tense, and even though I finished lower in moto two, I'm happier wIth the way I rode. I came from 20th or something on the first lap. I rode strong, and I'm happy to be out of Washougal. It's definitely a tough track - slippery and fast-paced. A lot of guys rode good today." o 0 Spud Walters Carpenter's teammate had a weekend he'd like to forget, finishing out of the points in the {irst outing and posting a DNF in moto two after getting caught up in a crash off the start. "Basically, my starts were pathetic," Walters said. "The flfst moto, I was in probably 12th or 13th, and I went past [Guy] Cooper, and he kind of took me a little bit wide and kind of stuffed me. I crashed, and when I got up, my clutch was all jacked up. It was kind of slipping, because I had the handguards on, and it took all the play out. In the second mota, I got a midpack start, and going through the first tum, there was bikes all over the ground. I couldn't see, and I clipped one of the bikes, went down and hurt my side a little bit. My bike was all bent up, and I was done - bad day." @cB@ Guy Cooper This Xtreme Machine KTM old-timer was 16th in moto one, but transmission problems (see Briefly... ) kept him out of the points in the second outing (though they didn't prevent him from whipping it again and again for the appreciative crowd). "For an old guy, I was riding all right," Cooper said. "The Chuck Sun Jump, a lot of guys remember me from the '80s there, so I couldn't let them down. It was a lot of fun. It's a bummer, though, 'cause I've been fmishing top-20 in every national, and I don't know if I'll be top-20 overall today." As it turns out, Cooper finished 19th. ® Steve Lamson This Fast by Ferracci Husqvama rider was one of many to have his day ruined by a crash on the start of mota two. "I kind of hurt a muscle in my lower back in practice this moming, and it was killing me in the first moto," Lamson said. "I was doing good in the beginning, but then it started pounding on my back, so I just kind of backed off. In the second mota, I crashed, and the pipe got pretty much tore off my bike. The front end was all twisted, so I couldn't even ride. I was lucky I even got up." {§) Mike LaRocco Putting in a pair of signature through-thepack rides was this Amsoil/Dr. Martens/Jour· neys Honda rider. "That was a lot of work for a 9·7, I'll tell ya," LaRocco said. "It just wasn't my day. I felt pretty good on the bike, but I went down early in the flfst mota and played catch-up. In the second mota, I worked up through the pack and battled Timmy [Ferry] for second, and I lost the front end. It was just an error, and I dropped back. It was just one of them days_ I made two mistakes, and it cost me huge." LaRocco was seventh overall. 1] ® John Dowd This Cernic's/PC Worldwide KTM veteran just missed the top five overall with 12·4 motos. "The first moto started off kind of bad," Dowd said. "I was in that first-tum pile-up. I was moving up pretty good, but I did fall one other time. Second moto was much better. I got a better start, and I felt pretty good. I don't know if I found some lines in the fi(St moto, because I was always looking around, because I had people to pass all the time. It seemed like it was working good for me in the second moto. I stayed right in there. There was a big battle for second that was pretty fun. Me and Ferry tangled a little bit, and then laRocco went by me at the same time. I got pretty roosted the whole race." eye' e n e _ s • AUGUST 7, 2002 23

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