Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Formula USA K&N Filters Pro Series Round 4: Heartland Park STORY AND PHOTOS BY HENNY RAY ABRAMS TOPEKA, KS, AUG. 9 erry Poovey had just won his heat IbJJ race, and now it was time for dinner, a slice of pizza and a Coke. "I'm about to turn 45, and I can't believe I'm still doing this," the youthful Poovey said with a smile. It's not that he's still doing it, he was told, it's that he still wants to do it and that he still does it so well. Racing against riders with fathers his age, American Honda/lst Racing/Dallas Honda's Poovey showed his experience, not his age, en route to winning the Topeka Half Mile National at Heartland Park in Topeka, Kansas, round four of the Formula USA K&N Filters Series. Poovey was comfortably in front when a crash in turn one brought out the red flag on the 16th lap. Was he worried he wouldn't be able to be maintain his lead? Just the opposite. "I was thinking I could do it again," he said, and he did. Off the single-file restart he had company for a few laps then motored away to his first win of the year. Second went to Apex Sports/General Engineering's Davey Durelle, with Cummings Harley-Davidson's Nick Cummings third. "I'm used to racing with Chris Carr and Joe Kopp, and this here is a lot easier for me," Poovey said. "I'm kind of the teacher here. It worked real good. And I'm good on these lit. tie bikes, too." o AUGUST 20, 2003· eye I (Left) T eFT)' Poovey dominated the Topeka Half Mile at HearUand Park, round four of the Formula USA K&N Pro Series. The defending series champion bested riders less than half his age in the main event. (Below) Poovey (1) got the holeshot over his teammate Bryan Smith (42) and Dave Durelle (58K). Durelle went on to finish second, while Smith slipped to fourth. Poovey didn't look like the favorite and warm qualifying and slickest coming into the main. He'd finished during the third heats and beyond. second to teammate Bryan Smith in F-USA's Mike Kidd, a former AMA his heat race, the second fastest of Grand National Champion, noticed the night. The fastest went to Durelle, Durelle was using Maxxis tires and who'd won the first heat. thought they might give him an edge. Durelle had two factors on his side, Durelle said he'd run Maxxis tires the setting sun and Maxxis tires. The last week at Sturgis and they'd first two turns fell into shadow as the worked. sun was setting, turning those corners that's been involved and wanting to were at their best during the sunny e "Maxxis is just a good company slick as the evening went on. They get involved," Durelle said. neVIl's "It's so hard to break these guys of the old tradition of running Goodyears." Poovey went to the front when the main began with Durelle quickly into second, not threatening, but not too far back. Then his tires started to heat up, and he fell back to fourth behind Henry Wiles, in his first F-USA dirt track, and Jethro Halbert. Wiles was in second going into turn one on the 16th lap, when contact was made and they both ended up in the hay bales, bringing the race to a halt. "I came in, and my front started pushing a little bit so he was probably driving in a little bit harder," Wiles said. "All of a sudden my back end just took off up the track. He just hit me pretty hard. That's just racing." The restart would be single file with Poovey in front of Durelle for the final 10 laps. Poovey got the jump and sped away to a comfortable win. "I don't like to ride high, but I rode high tonight because that's where the traction was," Poovey said. "I just made the racetrack as big as I could." Poovey said he only looked back once at the halfway point, "just to kind of see how hard I needed to go, but that's it." Poovey was thankful to have done it for two reasons: his sponsor and his best friend. "It took me a while to get dialed in," Poovey said. "The good news - my spon-sor's been real patient." His best friend, Mark Wal-

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