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/128222
m Own Race Scott Summers 7th The five-time GNCC Champion retired from racing two years ago, so he surprised everyone when he showed up unannounced to race the Vet A class on an XR650R. "There were ULlII.......... just a few little things that were off." Summers said. "I cooked my rear brake on the first lap, I think from having to get past some slower riders in the dust. They would slow down, and you would really have to get on the brakes. Also, my suspension was just a little stiff. I thought starting on the third row could be an advantage, but it didn't work out.· Still, the Kentucky native gave everyone a thrill by giving it another ride. "It was great to be out there again and have the people cheering. It felt great." Summers may race another event this season, but he doesn't have plans to make a full-time comeback soon. I'T.=''''' 7J Mike Lafferty Shane Watts cD DNF After leading a few laps at the last race, the Australian could have been a contender in Maryland. Instead, he got massive arm pump early and decided to pull into the pits until it went down. After 20 minutes, he parked his KTM 200 for a 450 four-stroke and went back out, a no-no in AMA racing. "Timmy Coombs came up to me and said I was going to get black-flagged for switching bikes," Watts said. "So I just stopped in the woods and hung out for awhile. The four-stroke was great in the rocks." Fred Andrews 4th Steve Hatch 5th Hatch continued to have trouble early in the race, as he crashed several times on the first lap and had to .~~~ ... mount a big comeback charge. He made it to fifth at the finish. "I was probably 30th early on," said the FMF Suzuki rider. "If I could just make it through the first lap okay, I could be up on the podium." 1] cD Andy Shea DNF "I just didn't have it today, mentally," said pro rookie Andy Shea. "I crashed early, and then I crashed again. I couldn't get anything going. I was just making mistakes." With a poor finish a certainty, the young Ohio pilot pulled into the pits and called it a day. 6th As always, the National Enduro Champion from New Jersey was battling with the lead pack early on. However, a bolt backed out of his KTM's clutch assembly, and he was left to struggle _. __..through the final lap and a half without a clutch. He dropped to sixth at the finish. "I'm really disappointed," Lafferty said. "The clutch was a problem when you were trying to stop. If a lapper was in front of you and slowed down, you were done." ~ 1] Fast Freddy was riding his National Hare Scrambles bike well at Wisp. He was in fifth trying to catch the lead pack, but he feJl and landed on a rock. "I hurt my hand, landed right on it," he said. "I don't think it's broken or anything. It just hurts a little." Mike Kiedrowski DNF Last year, the MX Kied finished fifth, even though he wasn't a big fan of the rugged Wisp track. This year, he liked the track better but had a much worse finish. He went down early and found himself buried among the A riders who started behind him. Then he highsided big-time on a grasstrack trying to make up time. He hit his head hard and ended up with a black eye and a bruised elbow. He called it a day after that. "I liked the track a lot better than last year," Kiedrowski said. "It had more open stuff but still had some of the technical stuff." 1] 1] Chuck Woodford DNF Woodford came in hot after winning the last two GNCCs, but his ignition fizzled on the first lap, leaving him out of contention. cue I e n e _ s • JULY 9, 2003 31