Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128178
Andrews (in the middle) had a great battle with Smith (1) late in the race. Andrews ended up second on the day and second on the year. little too aggressive in a rocky water crossing and ended up up-side down. This left the top three set, but Smith put on a last-lap charge and battled past Andrews in one of the season's best duels. With just my Own Race 1] ~ Mike Kiedrowski The four-time AMA National Motocross Champion was in the hunt for the GNCC title coming into the lronman, but it unraveled quickly when he crashed in the third tum, and then crashed again a mile later. "I just came into that tum too hard and lost the front wheel," Kiedrowski said of his first crash. "Then I got into this wash area with a lot of rocks, and I was stuck behind some guys who weren't going as fast as I was and crashed again." Down by well over a minute after the first lap, Kiedrowski put it on cruise knowing the title was out of reach. three miles left, the pair charged up the circuit's 1] 1] Chuck Woodford steepest hill nearly side-byside and dived for the same line in a corner. Smith managed to hold the pos-ition, and he didn't give in for the final few miles. Andrews might have been mix. GNCC trail boss Jeff Russell ran the course in reverse of last year's track, which made some steep climbs into steep descents. Rain Friday before the race left the dirt in perfect condition. Nearly 1200 riders raced the event, which has become one of the series most popular rounds for racers and spectators. Tensions were running high at the start of the race, with the title still clearly at stake. Kawasaki rookie Cole Calkins grabbed the start before Knight swooped past everyone and took the early lead. Lafferty had trouble starting his four-stroke, while Steve Hatch went down in turn one, and then Kiedrowski crashed in the third turn. Woodford got around Knight quickly, but then the Englishman got him back and tried to run away with it. Knight was especially fast through the track's many water crossings, and he consistently held off everyone's challenges through those sections. Andrews, meanwhile, was on a mission, and he bounced through the pack and got to Knight's rear wheel in a position to play dirty and try some aggressive racing to uproot Smith, but he raced honorably and took second. "I've been racing Freddy for a long time," Smith said. "I don't have to worry about him doing anything like that." Smith held on to collect his thirdcareer Ironman win. "I can't thank the fans here enough," Smith said. "They were cheering the whole way; that makes it easy and fun for all of us." RER Racing teammates Doug Blackwell and Josh McLevy claimed sixth and seventh in the race, with Kiedrowski taking eighth, Robbie Jenks ninth, and France's David Fretigne 10th. I:N "I was second off the bat, but [David] Knight was going really fast, and I wanted to get out front of him to try to control the pace." the Kawasaki rider said. "But then my arms tightened up a little bit and I felt a little tired early." Woodford eventually loosened up and got within striking distance of the leaders again, but one big crash cost him a shot at the win. "At the two-lap board, , saw I was only 19 seconds down, and I got a little too excited. I up-shifted through this creek and put my head down. I splashed up so much water I couldn't see and hit this rock. Next thing I knew, I was swimming in the creek." 7J Mike Lafferty After struggling through the last few rounds trying to come back from a broken shoulder blade, the New Jersey rider finally got back on pace at the Ironman. A terrible start cost him a shot at the win, though. Lafferty uses both the kick and electric starter to light his KTM 450 on the GNCC deadengine start, and he messed up the drill and took off last. "I just charged as hard as I could, I didn't want to settled into a groove and let those guys get away," Lafferty said. "' got hooked up with Chucky (Woodford], and we were picking guys off. But we couldn't close the gap enough. On the last two laps, , knew the season was over, so I just gave it everything , had." Despite coming up short in the championship, Lafferty is happy to be back on the podium and heading into the off-season with some positive momentum. ® Barry Hawk With a first and a second in the previous two rounds, Hawk was ready to be a contender at the Ir-onman, and he looked strong early. He latched onto Smith and Andrews in a bid for the lead, but then he ran into a downed lapper and got his chain caught in the lapped rider's footpeg. The incident ripped his chain off, and a disappointed Hawk had to call it a day. lronman &NCC Crawfordsville, Indiana Results: October ZO, ZOOZ O/A: 1. Rodney Smith (Suz); 2. Fred Andrews (Kaw); 3. Mike Lafferty (KTM); 4. Chuck Woodford (Kaw); 5. David Knight (Yam); 6. Doug Blackwell (Hon); 7. Josh McLevy (Yam); 8. Mike Kiedrowski (SUI); 9. Robbie Jenks (Yam); 10. David Fretigne (Yam). AMA GRAND NATONAL CROSS COONTRY SERIES FINAL POINTS STANDINGS (After 13 or 13 rounds): I. Rodney Smith (259/3 wins); 2. Fred Andrews (243/2 wins); 3. Mike Lafferty (239/1 win); 4. Mike Kiedrowski (225); 5. Jason Raines (203/3 wins); 6. Chuck Woodford (186/2 wins); 7. Robbie Jenks (173); 8. Barry Hawk Jr. (158/1 win); 9. Brian Garrahan (138); 10. Randy Hawkins (132). BRIEFLy•••• Ifs now hunting season. and Fred Andrews showed his sportsman ways by running camouflage plastic on hiS KX250 (right). This season's final Shane Watts report found the KTM piiot mounted on a new KTM 525 four-stroke. similar to the 520 on which he won last year's lronman race. "1 think this wili be a pretty good weapon out in those fields," the popular Australian said. Unfortunately. Watts was once again only able to ride three laps before his injured wrist started hurting him again. oolfs been a frustrating year." said Watts, who injured the wrist before the season began and was unable to finish a race this season. and tried to run with him. Smith followed him through the field and stayed on his rival's tail. The trio battled for several miles before Knight finally bit it in the water and broke his clutch perch. A brief stop in the pits Former series leader Jason Raines was absent from the race with a broken coliarbone. A leg injury effectively knocked Raines out of the series a few months back, and Smith made mention of it on the victory podium. "We can't forget that Jason Raines led this series ali year." Smith said. "He gave us a gift, and I didn't expect to be up here at the end of the season." fixed the problem, and he continued his impressive riding by charging back into the top five. Lafferty was moving through traffic The GNCC Series had been draWing racers from all over the world, and this was highly evident at the Ironman GNCC. Besides David Knighfs efforts. French ISDE Champions David Fretigne (right) and Sebastian Guiliaume and feliow Frenchman Guiliaume Porte raced at the lronman. Shane Watts helped his friend Kerry Green. and Mexico's Homero Diaz also rode. and he caught Woodford in a battle for third, while Smith and Andrews were left alone out front. The championship drama was building, as Andrews looked poised to get the win he needed, and while Smith ran just 30 seconds ahead of Woodford and Ryan Rodgers was the top GNCC Amateur at the lronman. finishing 15th overali and first in the 250cc A class. Women's Champion Heather Wilson tried her hand at the 200cc A ciass and finished and impressive ninth. In the morning race, Shane Nalley took the overali and the win in the Industry Class. with Tim Coombs coming home second on a CR500. Lafferty, the two riders who could bump him off the podium and help Andrews win the championship. The foursome chased each other around lap after lap, each time pushing the pace harder. Woodford was the first to break. He had closed to within 20 seconds of Smith, but got a Knight was one of many top off-road riders from Europe that attended the final GNCC race of the year. The World Enduro champ finished fourth. The Ironman wrapped what many feel was the best season in GNCC series history. with larger spectator and rider counts than ever. The race for the overali championship featured seven winners and nine different podium dweliers, and ali of it was featured on the Outdoor Life Network's GNCC TV Series. "Everybody has stepped it up over the years." Smith said. "The riders and the fans are putting their hearts into this series. and ifs really growing. ,. eye I e n e _ so OCTOBER 30, 2002 9