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/128231
AM AIPr o g r e s s iv e Insurance U . S . Fla t Track S e r ie s R o u n d 1 3: H a le s C o r n e r s S p e e d w a y With only 60 starting positions available in the six Grand National heats, the pressure was on in the 12 qua lifying heats and five second-chance heats used to pare the 82 entries . Johnny Murphree and Jared Mees were the only riders to turn their four laps in the 1:19s. Murphree was faster by .027 of a second. There is nothing quite like short track heat race acti on. Ten riders, ten laps and only first and second go to the main. The first heat saw Domi nic Beaulac at the point with Murphree and Ricky Winsett right with him. Murphree got by Beaulac and brought former Dayt ona winner Winsett with him. Murphree held on for a solid win, but Rob Pearson was fly ing to the front. On the last lap Pearson dove inside of Winsett going into tum three. They exited turn four side by side; apparently there was contact between the two on the front straight, and Winsett got the worst of it . Instead of going to the m ain, Winsett was picking him self up off the dirt to go to the semis. Jared Mees handled the second heat with Tuni ca winn er Garth Bastian in th e last transfer spot. Monster Plates/Paradise Truck f, Tire's Tom McGrane Jr. made a late race charge payoff as he took second on lap eight. The third heat was a four -rider war as Jeremy Deruyt er, Bryan Bigelow, Kenny Coolbeth and Terry Poovey could be placed under the proverbial blank et. Bigelow eventually brok e away as Poovey and Coolbeth continu ed to entertain. Am erican Honda/! st Legal' s Poovey would come out on top. Chris Carr ran away with the fourth heat as Jay Spring steen and Mike Hacker fought over the last transfer. Springsteen pulled clear late in the race. Jethro Halbert got the holeshot in heat five, but Raun Wood had the lead at the end of lap one. Wood pulled to an easy win as Willi e McCoy worked his way around Halbert for second. Rich King took the lead fro m Don Mullen on the first lap and looked to have the race well in hand, but Steve Beatti e also fought his way around Mullen and really closed on King. Beattie would come up j ust short and was headed to a second-row start in the main. The four semi races are even more intense as there are 12 riders for eight laps and h e wa sn't com in g u nder me off turn four aga i n ," sa id K ing. " I, was p re tty W e ask a lot o ut o f th ese m o to rcy cl es con fi de nt, but I w ould ha ve fe lt better only the winner goes to the National. Just as he had done in his heat, Dom inic Beaulac got the holeshot in the first semi, Beaulac led the fi rst six laps before Mc Dermitt Racing /Lima Harley -Davidson's Cory McDermitt ruined his night. The second semi was also packed with action. Kenny Coolbeth , Jeremy Deruyter and Jake Johnson led into the first tum. KTM North America / Jon es Powersports' Cool beth and Jo hnson separated from the pack, with Cool beth openin g a slight lead at the finish. The third semi saw Henry Wiles in front of A .J . Eslick, Joe Kopp and Mik e Hacker. Wiles held a small cushion as Eslick, Kopp and Hacker fought over second. Suddenly , with two laps to go, Hacker brok e free and ran Wiles down. Hacker thrill ed the large cro wd with a last-lap , last -turn pass for the win. The last semi was rather anticl imact ic as National Cycle/ Kersting-Perry Harley-Davidson's Kevin Atherton ran away with it over Don Mullen. b reak more o fte n ." lap after lap; it's a wonder t hey don 't if h e had b een b es ide me d o w n the B eattie's con siste ncy paid o ff b ig ba ck st r ai g h t; t h a t ' s what I r e a ll y as h e rac ed b y th e l imping K in g on w anted . I was t ry ing to pla y for side his wa y to sec on d . th o ught , ' W h y no t ? H e a n d Log an [Pro -Sp o rt Ho t Shoe C hampio n Lo g an by side down th e ba ck st rai g ht. Then, " I h ad a sec ond -row sta rt, b u t I o n th e last lap , it j us t let g o com ing t h in k I w as th ird coming off t u rn two. Myers] run th is bi k e ev ery w ee k ; th ey o ug ht to know.' It too k a few la ps t o off turn tw o . I w an t ed to w in it b ad - I had a li ttle t ro uble ge tti ng t ra ctio n come in ; o nce it c ame in , I had to just the lOOth an niversary , b ein g on t he B last - it hurts. I rea ll y wanted it. If I'd fo r a few la ps. I rea ll y th ough t I co u ld g o f o r th e w i n , i f w e h ad a goo d h av e broke wh en I was ru n ni n g fifth s t art ," sai d Beatti e . "I w a s a f ew k e ep m o v in g h igh er and h igh er o n th e ra cet rack , right to th e ver y edg e. I j ust k ept plu g g in g away , not letting th e thing coast. I'd come into t he cor - o r si x t h, I'd h av e been , 'W ell , tha t' s t en ths off all n ig ht , a nd J ohnny Coop- racin g ,' b ut w he n y ou 're b attli n g for e r, wh o o w ns th e b ik e, sai d I need ed t he lead a nd th at close to t he end .. . to move t he rea r tire u p under me. I ner a litt le slowe r , p ic k u p t he throttle and j u st roll a ro u nd . Wow, it wo rk ed good . I co u ld go i n lo w o r h i gh ; I wasn' t just st uck to o ne lin e. " Weirba ch Raci ng/Zach's C ustom spo nsored Pe arson m ad e a l a st - la p pa ss of M ees tha t netted hi m h is fi rst G rand N at io n al p od ium. In t he co n fu sion of the exci ti ng fi nish , Pearso n didn 't know he b elonged at the sta rt / fin ish li n e and had to ri d e a pit bike out to j o in the celebration . w as a bout seventh or so co m ing off. I started workin g the top ; I fell ba ck a li ttle then st art ed work in g m y w ay up. I made a coup l e o f p asses, but if those g uys hadn ' t broken , fi fth wou ld hav e still b e en goo d . O n c e I fo un d tha t h igh line, I felt rea l comfort ab le ." M ees h eld o n fo r fourth . " I had to se t t le for fo u rth, but I want to ge t a podiu m bef ore th e end of the y ea r ," said M ees. "T he to p w as really worki ng fo r m e, and I was fo llowi ng Johnny IM urp h ree] , th e b o t tom wa s j u st so sli ck ." G ardner Ra c in g /Walters B rothe rs Harley -Davidson ' s Brya n B ig elow an d Su pe rT ra p p / Moro ney 's Harle y -Davidso n's Mike Hac k er we re right beh ind. th at far. I [B e att i e] h av e been ta k e third BB3 National T he 12-la p m a in event had to be red flagged on lap three as JT Motor sports' Joey T y e ry a r got i nto a violen t ta n k slapp er down th e front straig ht. Tyeryar hit t he ground h ard j ust p a ssed th e start/ finis h lin e. T he restart saw Rob Pearson main t ain hi s lead o n h is Za ch 's Cu st om [, Perfo r m ance / Outla w M a c h in e Shop Sp o rtster. Seri es p o in t s leade r Scott S ch erb was all o ver Pea rso n a n d pu shed his D o c ' s H arl ey -Dav idso n / J im [, Jenny Wagn er -ba cked Sportst er into th e lea d o n lap fiv e. O ne lap t o n i g h t. W e i rb a ch ' s b i k e ran g reat ton ight. I st a rt ed o n th e secon d row and got a good st a rt , too, bu t I t hi n k I lat er, and Pea rso n ' s ra ce w as o ve r. ' Sch erb wa s th en o n h is way to his t h i rd c o n se c u t ive H arl e y -D avid so n " I was just hoping to get a top 10 ton ight, " sa id Pe arso n . "I saw Ric h [Ki ng] d rop o ut, but everyone w as so sp rea d out, I had no idea I was th ird . I p u ll e d o ff, w ent t o te ch an d a sked how m any b ik es had to tech . Wh il e I w as th ere, Ga rth Bast ian sa id, 'I th in k y o u 're su p posed to be o n th e p od i urn. ' It felt g o o d b ein g u p w a s ru nn in g wi t h St e v e ea rly , so I p robably shou ld . fig ht ing for seco nd , bu t I' ll 36 S EPTEM B ER 10 , 2003 ยท c ue I e n e vv s