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even have enough speed to feel comfortable about the cliff. The next thing I knew, I was on top and pointed the right way, so I rode on over. Billings' Ed Taylor was the only other rider to get over the cliff and make a stab at continuing. He ended up at 349 feet. All 23 of the other riders who finished in the money ended up within eight feet of each other. The class saw some really innovative machines, with former AMA National Hillclimb Champion Jeff Thomas, and Jason Smith running vintage Yamaha 650 twins on 100percent nitro! The bikes are thoroughly modern in other ways, though. They run Rocket Science perimeter frames with KX suspension and modern bodywork. It was Thomas' first trip to Billings, and his first attempt at the 700cc unlimited cliff looked like a freestyle high-jump contest. Photographers were able to motor-drive 12 frames while Thomas was getting air, for over three seconds of hangtime. "This hill is a real family-jewel check for me, but it would be for anyone from Indiana," Thomas said. "I wanted to make sure I got up on top of that cliff, and that nitro Yamaha really accelerates hard. Even though I jumped that high, I landed fine. If I had just let the clutch out, I might have been able to keep going. I'll keep coming back. I need to get the suspension setup figured out for these rough hills, and then I think I'll be competitive. " Former champ and BMC club member Shannon Chamberlain won the Open Rubber class on his GSX-RII00 Suzuki-powred special. "The engine is finally running right this year," Chamberlain said. "I had some valve problems, but I got them straightened out, and the power helped. I had the fastest time of the weekend, so I felt good about that." lAbove, above rlg"" Arguably the gnarliest hili In the world, the Great Amerlcan Hlllclimb never falls to deliver spectacular spills, as these competitors found out. Chamberlain earned the second largest chunk of the purse, with $3175 via his fourth-place finish in Open Unlimited. He also made money in the 600cc Rubber class, though he failed to score in the 700cc Unlimited class. Chamberlain recounted the time that the sheer cliff cost him a badly broken ankle. "I don't like that hill, and I never have," Chamberlain said. "I told myself to go up easy, but then I was 20 feet in the air looking down at the catchers. I thought, 'You dummy, you know better than that.'" Despite the money total and the fastest run of the weekend, Chamberlain was still disappointed at losing the shootout. The emphasis on the shootout always seems a bit odd. "I made plenty of money getting into the shootout, and the feeling of being the champion is great," Chamberlain said. "I took a real fart-knocker when I fell down the cliff in the 700cc class, and it spooked me. I was looking right in front of my front tire all the way up, and you can't beat Dusty that way!" Beer was second in the class, with Mel Kimball, Pete Krunich and Whitlock rounding out the top five. Beer came out blazing in the Open Unlimited class, and used his 200horsepower Kawasaki to good effect with a run nearly a full second faster than second-placing Krunich. It was also a great weekend for Krunich, who rides older equipment without a lot of support, though that may change. He purchased a used Ninja 900-powered machine for the Open class and finished right with the big boys. He even finished in the money in both classes on his 1989 Honda CR500R. Whitlock, Chamberlain and Jon Smith rounded out the top five. More and more people are making the hillclimb, and Billings was the place to be on the last weekend in July. Even with the rain, there were at least as many spectators as the 18,000 in '01. This is one old girl that shows no signs of aging. CN Bini.........rcyc.. Clsb B1l1in,.,M_ lleaalta: Jaly Z7 -ze 0·600 RUBBER TIRE: J. Robie Peterson (Han) 18.707; 2. Ryan Dicks (Han) 19.794; 3. Kenny Kimball (Hon) 370 ft.; 4. Kelly Braswell (Han) 365 ft.; 5. Pete Krunlch (Hon) 360 ft.: 6. Travis Whitlock Hon) 360 ft.; 7. Jon Smith (Kaw) 360 ft.; 8. Dan rooms (Hon) 354 ft.; 9. l..ltrry Grooms (Han) 345 ft.; 10. Eric Cherry (Han) 343ft. 0- 700cc UNUMITED; 1. Mel Kimbell (Han) 23.752; 2. Ed Taylor (Hon) 349 ft.; 3. Jon Smith (Kew) 341 ft.; 4. l..ltrry Colemen (Hon) 340 ft.; 5. Pete Loomis (Hon) 339 ft.: 6. Jeff Thomes (Yam) 339 ft.; 7. Bnmdon Whitlock (Hon) 338 ft.; 8. Travis Whitlock (Hon) 338 ft. 9. Jeson Smith (Rtx) 337 ft.; 10. Kurt Koester (Kew) 337 ft. OPEN RUBBER 1. Shannon Chamberlein (Suz) 13.146; 2. Dusty Beer (Kew) 13.216; 3. Mel Kimbell (Hon) 14.031; 4. Pete Krunlch (Kew) 14.288; 5. Travis Whitlock (Yllm) 14.588; 6. Jon Smith (Kew) 16.376; 7. Pete loomis (Suz) 16.489; 8. Kurt Koester eKew) 16.706; 9. Kenny Kimbell (Hon) 16.751; 10. Ched Lorenz (Yem) 17.164. OPEN UNUJIIITED; J. Dusty Beer (Kew) 14.342; 2. Pete Krunich (Kew) 15.245; 3. TnllVls 'Whitlock Yem} 15.261; 4. Shennon Chamberlain (Suz) \ 5.383; 5. Jon Smith (Kow) 15.788: 6. Jeson Smith (Rol) 16.064; 7. Todd Cipale (H-D) 8. Kevin Bromenshenk (KDW) 9. Rick Stauffer (Yem) 10. Kenny Kimbell (lion) 17.334. SENIOR: 1. Dave Johnston (Hon) 15.007. CHAMPIONSHIP SHOOTOUT; 1. Dusty Beer (Kew) 14.419. g nRE: Former AMA National Hillclimb competitor Jeff Thomas showed up to do battle In Billings aboard a very trick Yamaha-powered machine. Thomas finished sixth in the 0-700cc Unlimited class. eye.e n e _ SO • AUGUST 21 • 2002 45