Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Best in the Desert Silver State Series Round 1 : KTM Parker 250 KTM's Kurt Caselli and Joey Lanza came from near the back of the starting order to pick up second overall in their series debut in the Open Pro class, finishing second overall on their FMF/Michelin/Motorex 525MXC in 4:06:03. New Montclair Yamaha/ Arai/Gaerne YZ450F racers Danny Cooper and Mike Childress rounded out the podium with third overall in 4: 12:56, despite a Cooper get-off late in the race. Though the original Parker 400 race was a popular event on the SCORE calendar for many years, not many of the current generation of desert racers participated in it. Best in the Desert's Casey Folks is one of the veterans of the sport who raced the Parker 400 in the past, and he succeeded in both staging one of his events in Arizona for the first time and in doing it in Parker, near the Colorado River. The KTM Parker 250 finished next to the water on the property of the Blue Water Resort and Casino. Folks laid out a 75-mile loop that had much in common with the old SCORE Parker 400 course, including the popular Osborne Wash spectator area that roughly parallels Shea Road. Competitors had to complete three laps to be declared finishers. A pit just after mile 44 provided relief for those unable to make the entire loop on a tank of fuel. Abbott got things off to a good start. Having drawn the first starting position for the 7:30 a.m. green light, he jetted off to an immediate lead, heading east from the start on the outskirts of town, often directly into the rising sun. STORY AND PHOTOS BY MARK KARIYA PARKER,AZ,JAN.4 he off-season is a myth for today's professional off-road racers, since there really isn't an "off" season anymore. This can be good for some and perhaps not so good for others. For Team Green's Destry Abbott and Shane Esposito, it is certainly a good thing, as the pair started the 2003 Best in the Desert Silver State Series in the same manner in which they finished '02 - as winners. Having not missed a beat, the defending series champs rode their Chevy Trucks/IMS/Maxima-backed KX500 to an amazingly easy win at the first round of the new BITD season. The duo completed the 225-mile Parker 250 race in three hours, 56 minutes and 28 seconds. T 26 JANUARY 22,2003' eye (Above) Destry Abbott (shown) and partner Shane Esposito picked up where they left off by winning the opening round of the 2003 Best in the Desert Silver State Series in Arizona. (Right) Joey Lanza (shown) and Kurt . Caselli teamed up on an Open bike for the first time and sliced through the pack to earn second overall. I e n e vv s "It was a huge benefit for us," Abbott said. "I don't think I've done that in years." Fellow Team Green racer Brian Brown settled into second place on the Chevy Trucks/IMS/Maxima KX500, while Russell Pearson moved into third place on the Montclair Yamaha/Moose/Acerbis YZ450F. Honda's Steve Hengeveld hit the 25-mile mark of lap one in fourth on his Precision Concepts/Dunlop/VP Racing Fuels XR650R followed by South African Elmer Symons on his Malcolm Smith Motorsports/MSR/ GPR KTM 525 MXC. Abbott handed off to teammate Esposito at the alternate pit, and the pair maintained their lead over David Pearson, Brown's partner. "I had a minute and 40-second lead over Brian," Abbott said. The two Team Green duos apparently planned to use the same strategy of rider one starting and going to the alternate pit, rider two then doing a complete lap (alternate to alternate), rider one doing another complete lap (alternate to alternate), then rider two going from the alternate to the finish. Hengeveld roared past mile 60 in third place physically, followed by Lanza, who was making good time after starting near the rear of the class. David Pearson cartwheeled when he hit a ditch early on lap two, bending up the bike extensively and handing second place to Hengeveld. Lanza also benefited from the Kawasaki crash by slipping past into third place, while Symons - soloing since his original partner was unable to attend - advanced to fourth, with

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