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AMA National ISDE Reliability Qualifier Series Round 1: Idaho City David Pearson continued his winning ways at the Idaho Cily ISDE Qualifier. He came away with the overall victory. STORY AND PHOTOS BY DOUG KARCHER IDAHO CITY,ID, MAY 31-JUNE 1 week following his first National Hare & Hound victory, David Pearson showed up in Idaho determined to secure a trip to Brazil and perhaps prove that he's not just a desert racer. The 19-year-old Kawasaki rider did both in commanding style, turning in a flawless ride, winning both days and posting the fastest times in nine out of the 12 special tests (he was second in the other tests, tying Kurt Caselli in one of them). And that wasn't an easy task. In spite of the absence of the entire prepicked World Trophy Team, there was plenty of top-level competition. A 40 JUNE 18. 2003' cue I • Ron Schmelzle, Greg Gillian and Brian Sperle, members of last year's World Trophy team, along with Morgan Crawford, Jonathan Seehorn and Wallace Palmer, who also represented the USA on the Junior Trophy team in 2002, were present. The perennial Jeff Fredette, Alan Deyo and two of the Mastins who competed as a family last year, along with a host of other riders with Six-Days experience on their resumes, came to Idaho in hopes of qualifying for this year's ISDE in Brazil. Kurt Caselli didn't give Pearson any rest over the weekend. At the end of day one, Caselli was just 13 seconds behind the leader. But Pearson stayed with his plan and successfully held onto first place. Although he tied Caselli on day two, the "26 seconds n e vv s that Brian Garrahan gave up to his KTM teammate on Saturday relegated him to third place overall. Ben Hale, fourth on day one but by only one second over Ron Schmelzle and Paul Neff, stayed tough on Sunday and added to his cushion to hold on to fourth. Schmelzle bested Neff by five seconds on the second outing to secure fifth. Deyo edged out Fredette to secure his slot on the Senior squad. Fredette will now have to try to qualify in New York. And Carol Williams easily qualified for the Women's team with her class win and 67th overall. This year's course was as close to perfect as you can get for a qualifier. One hundred seven miles in length, it featured big elevation changes with terrain that switched back and forth between fast and technical sections in relatively short bursts that assured the ride never got boring. From the traditional start in "downtown" Idaho City at 4100 feet, they ran up one ridge and down the next and topped out several times above 6500 feet. Just over 280 riders signed up for Saturday and 257 on Sunday, a big turnout for this always-popular event. The sw~tchbacks at Greenland Gulch caused some bottlenecking, and one steep uphill prompted a young lady, who competed on the same minute with her father, to rename it "Kill Dad HilL" Of the 115 LOI riders who started, 90 of them finished both days. David Pearson came to Idaho with a clear picture of what he wanted to achieve. "My main objective this weekend was to not crash in any of the special tests and not to blow too many corners," Pearson said. "I raced all weekend, 12 special tests, and I never tipped it over, and I figured if I could do that, I'd be in the top three, and I ended up winning it. "The course was really good this year - a little dusty - but being from Nevada, I can ride pretty good in the dust," Pearson said. Pearson, who lives in Panaca, Nevada, and is sponsored by Kawasaki, GPR Pro Circuit, Pro Cycle Racing and IMF, has been on a roll as of late, and when he was asked what has changed, he said, "Actually I've been on a diet for the last couple months. I've shaved off about 20 pounds. I don't get as tired, and it's helped me tremendously." Another 19-year-old, Caselli, nipped at Pearson's heels all weekend. At the end he finished less than a minute back. "I felt pretty good in most of the specials," the FMF/Answer-backed