Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Zemke beats Duhamel in Formula Xtreme By HENNY RAy ABRAMS PHOTOS BY BRIAN J. NELSON T e two riders in the two-rider Lockhart-Phillips USA Formula Xtreme Championship were at it again in Colo rado with the result the same as the previous week's finish at Barber. Erion Honda's jake Zemke built on his breakthrough win in Alabama by taking American Honda's Miguel Duhamel for the second week in a row. Today's win, on the 1.315 -mile Pikes Peak International Raceway was flag to flag, Zemke jetting , away from the pole position and not slow ing until the checkered flag. There was a moment of terror in the middle of the race when both Zemke and Duhamel were nearly taken out by a falling lapper. Zemke was in front and Duhamel was pressing when they had to take evasive action to miss the crasher, Bob 5iebenhaar, who fell just behind Zemke in the tum four carousel. Zemke's lead immediately grew by halfa second, and he kept stretching it. At the end of the 29.lap, 38.135-mile race , Zemke had a 3.019 second margin of victory. He averaged 83.993 mph, winning the race in 27 minutes, 14.500 seconds . HMC Ducati Milwaukee's Doug Chandler made a triumphant return to racing by taking third on the 749R, getting by Valvoline EMGO Suzuki's Vincent Haskovec on the 26th lap. Duhamel's points lead shrank for the second week in a row, now to five points, 175-170, with fIVe of I I races run. Zem ke said he was content to run the early pace in front of Duhamel as the pair edged away from third placed Haskovec. They were in traffic on the 10th lap, and six laps late r, it was Siebenhaar who nearly did them in. "I don't know if he hit the paint or if he just grabbed the brake that hard or what happened," Zemke said. " I heard the fiberglass scraping when he crashed , and I flinched. Because I had a similar accident here last year in the first lap of the 600 race where a guy ran into the back of me the re - same type of deal. The guy just put it in there and lost the front . So I was a little leery when I heard that fiberglass scraping. As soon as I got over to the esses, I couldn't hear Miguel behind me , which I'd been able to hear him the whole race. I knew that might have balked him up a little bit, and when I came by the start/finish I saw that I had a half a second. Like Miguel said, I just picked up the pace at that point. That's when I ran my fastest laps, those next few laps and able to make a little gap on Miguel and hold it to the end:' Duhamel thought Zemke was brave for passing the lapper on the outside. "He almost took jake out, and obviously I was right there, and he almost took me out," he said. Duhamel hit the brakes, the bike stopped, and he didn't lose the front . But he did lose the tow. "It was a crucial point in the race," he said. Duhamel knew he wasn't going to be 26 JUNE 2, 2004 • CYCLE NEWS caught fro m be hind. Haskovec and Chandler were going at it well back, Chandler in his first race in nearly a year. The last time he raced was at Road Ame rica last june. You wou ldn't know it from his riding. Aggressive and smooth as always, he hounded Haskovec until finding a way past entering the turn three left at the e nd of the back straight. In the final three laps, he opened up a one-second gap. "That was our ultimate goal - third place," said Chandler, looking like he'd never been away. PPIR has been good to him. His last Superbike win came here in 1999. "You always have high expectations, but really, I didn't really think I could race with those guys. But I thought if I could come off with them, I could kind of get a tow off them and at least run with them. That's what I was shooting for. But I blew that right off the start." Chandler was hesitant off the start and got boxed in the first corner, ending the lap in seventh. "Once I kind of got up into fourth [on the fifth lap), those two were kind of going away from me, and I just figured kind of set a good pace and put a charge on at the end , and that's what I did: ' Chandler said. Chandler ran Friday's promoter practice and had time on Saturday. Still , it was n't a lot to set up the 749R for its first race . "The bike worked great," he said of the Gary Medley-built Ducati. "If we 40th Anniv&rs ry were to race another race this afte rnoo n, I do n't think I'd change a thing." Haskovec had seven secon ds on Star Racing Suzuki's jason Pridmo re , the school teacher passing Erion Hond a's Alex Gobert on the 26th of 29 laps. After a pair of podiums in the prior two races , Gobert came sixth, two -tenths of a second beh ind Pridmore. Next was Hypercycle's jacob Holde n, all by himself, with KWS Motorsportsl Millennium Technologies ' Danny Eslick just in front of the Kosco H-D/BueJl of Michael Barnes . eN PIKES PEAK INTIRNATIONAL RACEWAY FOUNTAIN, COLORADO RESULTS: MAy 23, 2004 (ROUND 5) LOCKHART·PHILLIPS F-XTREME : I . Ja Zemke ke (Hon); 2. M;guel Duhamel (Hon); 3. Dou g Chand.". (OU<:); 4. Vincent Haskovee (Suz); 5. Jason Pridmore (Suz); 6. Ale x Gobert (Han); 7. Jaco b Holden (Suz) ; 8. Danny Eslick (Suz): 9. Michael Barnes (Bue); 10. Nicky Moore (Suz); II . M ickey Une (Yam); 12. Larry Pegnun (Yam); 13. Hea lh Small (Yam); 14. Mart in Sims (Y am) ; 15. Perry H e lneduc (Yam); 16. Hect or Mor eno (Hon); 17. Nathan Hest er (Yam); 18 . Shannon Moham (Suz) ; 19. Tim Knuston (Yam); 20. Chad Rolland (Yam); 21. Charles SIPI' (Bue); 22. Bob S-......,. (Hon) ; 23. Mkhael Appleham (Suz). Time : 27 min., I ~ . S sec. Dtstanee: 29 laps. 38. 13 miles Average speed: 83.993 mph HMgin of victory: 3.019 sec. hstest~: 55.934 , Doug 01and1er LOCKHART·PHIWPS FORMULA XTREME C 'SHIP POINTS STANDINGS (Alter S of II roun

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