Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

AMAlFMF Racing National Enduro Series Round 1 : Quicksilver National Russ Pearson continues to impress - this time in Enduro the top four on a 250F.) Five-time and defending series champ Mike Lafferty ended up fifth overall, dropping 56 - the first non-blue machine. Lafferty suffered through a very frustrating day, running out of gas four times on his KTM 450 EXC. While conditions were perfect on Saturday (the Clear Creek Management Area had received rain on Wednesday), rain on Saturday night promised to turn the course soupy though the skies cleared a bit by morning, making for muddy trails that a slight breeze and sunlight dried slowly. Pearson got off to a fast start from row 23 - he and Hawk were the only riders to zero the first check. Most of the likely contenders zeroed check two, with local favorite Brian Garrahan the sole entrant to lose just one point at check three. Hawkins, Lafferty and Pearson dropped two, with Hawk and Robbie Jenks going three. Hawk and AMA District 36 enduro number one Billy Russell both dropped eight. Check four saw uarrahan drop an asto~ four, followed Lafferty with a six, tiMl:I Hawkins 'Pearson with sevens. That gay arcahan the eacl - a J'act even iPcredible when considef1hlllthe ~rac- STORY AND PHOTOS BY MARK KARIYA COALINGA, CA, FEB. 16 t the very muddy opening round . of the AMA/FMF Racing National Enduro Series, Nevada's Russ Pearson took the win in the 31 st annual Quicksilver National put on by the Salinas Ramblers Motorcycle Club, though it'd be difficult to label it a true upset, even if he did ride a YZ250F. In the past month, Pearson has taken great strides toward establishing himself as the best all-around rider in the country, starting with his desert victory at the opening round of the AMA National Hare & Hound Series. The Montclair Yamaha/Pro Circuit/Moose-backed racer then tried his hand at the opening round of the AMA National Hare Scrambles Series and finished third overall (for the second year in a row) in the trees, followed by a runner-up finish at the motocross-biased second round of the WORCS tour at Glen Helen. Carding 38 points for the day, Pearson led a Yamaha sweep, with six-time former series champion Randy H the tunner-up at 39, David getting third with 44 and wk fourth at 56. (A A f the tw 16 MARCH 5. 2003' eye • EO n EO _ S tically the entire loop stuck in third gear! "In about the first 10 miles, my shifter snapped off: Garrahan said. "We tried to drill it out so I could back it out [at the gas stop], but the EasyOut snapped off in there. So I just went back out with no shifter on the second loop, just third gear. I was doing good; I zeroed the three checks." Loop two found the going quite a bit easier, though those slated to tackle the third and final loop knew it was going to be the only time they could even think of relaxing. Somehow, Garrahan maintained his lead, but he was riding on borrowed time. Before check nine, his bike finally cried "no mas" and refused to go on, leaving Garrahan searching for a ride back to the pits. "The clutch just gave out," he reported. "It didn't heat up; I didn't fry it. I think something broke internally because we rode a long road section with just a reset - we were doing about six miles an hour - then dropped down a canyon and went up one hill. When I got to the top of the hill, my clutch was gone. The story of my life." That put Pearson in the driver's seat, and he clicked off 7 -6-11 in the last three checks with Hawkins and Lykke matching him. Lafferty started off better, going 66, but he ran out of fuel three times in the final section. Combined with his running out on the first loop as well when he - and a number of others didn't see the remote fuel stop, the day turned into one to forget. Asked what part of the race was most difficult, Pearson quipped, "Pretty much from the start to the finish. Man, usually the first section is kind of kickback. This time, they took a left off the road, and it was just, 'Oh my gosh.' I started looking down [at my computer], and time was adding up so I picked up the pace, and time just kept adding. We went down 10 points on the first loop! That's where I

• Cover