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I
AMA National Hare & Hound Series
Round S: Sand City 1 00
C!ff.::roa~
STORY AND PHOTOS BY
DOUG KARCHER
GRANDVIEW, 10, SEP. 15
fter a three-month break, the
"'" AMA National Hare & Hound
Series resumed with a Ill-mile race
in the Southwestern Idaho desert near
Grand View. Amid speculation that
this race would either cement Ty
Davis' lead or bring Brian Brown
closer to snatching it away, the two
rivals instead met with similar fates
and were left standing by the side of
the hot, dusty course, victims of
mechanical DNFs.
But Russ Pearson wasn't waiting
for fate to help him. At the drop of
the banner, he put his quarter-liter
machine in front of the more powerful
500s of Brown and cousin David,
Davis' YZ426F, and a 520 KTM ridden by Kurt Caselli (not to mention a
lot of other fast riders) and led the
field down the mile-long bomb run
and onto the start of one of the longer
courses the series has seen lately.
Pearson rode fast, taking advantage
of the clear air for much of the first
loop_ Brown, who had been following
him in second, made his move after
the first gas stop, but when he did, he
may have caught a rock with the
A
44
OCTOBER 2, 2002·
cue
I
water-pump housing, because shortly
after that he began loosing coolant
and eventually seized.
"I thought somehow the pipe
brackets came loose or the springs
broke or something, but unfortunately
not," said the Team Green rider and
former champion (who must now win
the remaining two rounds to reclaim
the title).
Pearson barely had time to breathe
•
n."".
a sigh of relief that Brown was out,
because as he left the pits to start
loop two, he looked back to find the
thumper of his teammate bearing
down on him. Davis had been on the
edge of his dust all through the first
loop, and a quick pit stop by Davis
had closed the gap. Now, as they
headed into the second half of the
race, Pearson was determined not to
give up an inch of his lead.
(Top) David Peanon pulls the holeshot
on his VZ250 before celebrating
Pnsetl his win with cousin DavId Petti.
who _
second overall.
(Above) Riding a borrowed KTM 520
four-stroke. Kurt Caselli rode to a
podium finish.
"I just pushed real hard," said the
Montclair Yamaha rider, who won the
Jackpot round on his YZ250 last
year. He managed to stay in front,
