AMA/FMF National Enduro Series
Round 5: Little Raccoon Classic
IF IT WAS ANY HARDER, NO ONE WOULD'VE FINISHED
By
GEORGE VILLANYI
PHOTOS BY ROBERT SCOTT F.A.S.T.
PRODUCTIONS
"T
WELLSTON, OH, JUNE 8
he toughest enduro I've ever
competed in."
"I think they're trying to kill us!"
"Whew!"
These were just some of the comments heard following the Little Raccoon Classic National Enduro in
Ohio. In what could be the final Little
Raccoon Classic Enduro to be held as
a National, the Appalacian Dirt Riders
put together a ride that no one will
soon forget. Riders were mumbling in
their helmets as they rode into the
final check, but they should've been
happy. After all, the enduro was
over, and they were
among just 13 riders
who actually made it to the final
check, guaranteeing them at least a
top-I3 placing and that sacred AA
point. Some riders technically finished the enduro but had houred out.
Others, on the other hand, had
DNFed or had just plain given up.
Understandably.
Mike Lafferty, however, proved just
why he is the defending National
Enduro Champion. "Junior" led the
dozen other competitors to the finish
line, riding his Allan Randt-tuned
KTM 450, dropping only 75 points.
Former champ Randy Hawkins was
second on the day, riding his Yamaha
to an 8I-point tally.
Ohio's own Robbie Jenks dropped
94 points, and David Lykke dropped
106 points for fourth place.
This finish order parallels
the championship points
standings so there was
no juggling of position
there.
Former champ Steve Hatch
showed up for his first National
Enduro in seven years, and he picked
a good to come back to. The FMF
Suzuki rider finished a respectable
fifth overall, dropping 109 points.
After the race, Lafferty spoke highly of his motorcycle, stating that it
was directly responsible for his
doing so well.
"We've made some
changes lately that
make my bike easier to ride in the
enduros," Lafferty said.
When asked about the fun factor,
Junior just shook his head and said,
"It wasn't that much fun, trying to find
the trail with the trees and leaves
being so lush and all; you couldn't
even see where you were going some
of the time. They WOTe
