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/128339
AMA Chevro let 2S0cc Cham pionship Motocross Series Ricky Carmichael still perfect with two rounds remaining nce again , the amazing Ricky Carmichael domi nated the racing act ion in the AMA Chev rolet 250cc Championship Motocross Series. Week after week, it seems, eac h time the gate drops, the Mike Gosselaar-tuned Honda of Carmichael's somehow finds that "extra" gear and blasts out into the lead . This weekend at the Broome-Tioga Sports Center in Binghamton, New York, the scene was pretty much the same , as Carmichael seem ingly easily opened up big leads in both motos to record his perfect 10th overall win and t he 20th moto victory of the 2004 series. "It was a good day," Carmichael said. "I felt good . The bike was set up really, really, really good in the second moto, and I O 20 felt I could go anywhere I needed to go." And go anywhere is exactly what he did. In the first moto, Carmichael jumped out to the front right at the drop of the gate . Behind him was Amsoil/Factory Connection Honda rider Kevin Windham , who has been right up there allseason but just can't quite find the drive that took him to two overall w ins last year. Carmichael knew this, put in fast laps and waited for his rival to fade back. "Kevin [Windham] was right on my tail," Carmichael said. " I just kept my cool and didn't make any mistakes. I knew that if he [Windham] didn't pass me right away that he wou ld kind of break. Then he lost my wheel, and I knew that once I started pullingaway that Chad [Reed] would gobble him up." And that is, in fact, exactly what Reed SEPTEMBER 1, 2004 • CYCLE NEWS did. The factory Yamaha rider, who was in third, rode a smart moto and waited until the time was just right to make his move on Windham for the second spot . As soon as Reed went by, Windham began to fall off of the pace a bit but was still able to hold on to the third spot for the moto - a position that he has become quite familiar with this outdoor season . "It was a good finish to be able to chase Kevin down and get second ," Reed said of his inspired ride. O nce the checkered fl ag flew at the conclusion of the first moto Carmichae l crossed the finish line over 20 seconds ahead of Reed, with Windham in third. Finishing fourth was last week's thirdplace finisher, Team Suzuki's Sebastian Tortelli. The second moto was much like the 40th Anniversary By BRENDAN LUTES P HOTOS BY STEVE BRUHN first, as Carmichael again grabbed the holeshot and promptly checke d out. With Carmichael riding all alone out front, Reed again settled into a comfortable pace in the second position. However, not everyo ne had it so easy. On the very first lap Windham went down hard on a downhill triple jump, effectively knocking him out of contention for a podium finish. By the end of the moto, Windham would work his way up to 12th giving him sixth overall for the day. With Windham crashing, Team Hon da 's Ernesto Fo nseca inherited third but was not without company, as he and To rtelli batt led it out for the third spot for much ofthe moto. Toward the conclusion of the moto, Tortelli, who had been charging up to the front all moto after a bad start, began to put pressure on Fonseca . For the final