Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

just got better and better, and about the time I got ready to make my move, I started having t ro ubles with t he bike . The first time it happe ned , I sta lled the bike when I came up short on a jump, and it just got worse from t here. I got it started, and then it happened again and again. Eventually it wouldn't start at all." Early race le aders Jarrett and Watts took turns setting the pace for the first three laps of the six-lap race, with Jarrett giving up the lead to Watts in the tighter woods sections. "I'm just not into the MX stu ff," Watts said, " I don't like tak ing cha nces on all of the big jumps. So I just let Jimmy take th e lead . But once we got back to the technical stu ff, I would make my move." "W it h all of the mud , the woods were really difficult to ride in," Jar rett said. "O n the motocross track, it was w ide open, and in the woods it was more like 'slow down and be careful : For the first co uple laps, I rea lly didn't have trouble with Shane taking the lead . It was n't like he was going anywhere." Jarrett and Watt s he ld the lead positions , with Calkins in third, until they stopped for gas at the end of lap three. Kanney said: "When they all stopped, I moved into the lead , and that's when the race started for me. I used the next lap to put as much time on t hem as possible:' Kanney's late -race fue l stop paid off, as he built up en oug h of a cushion on Jarrett to be able to make his gas stop fast en ough to main tain his lead. "I made a quick stop and was able to just beat Jimmy to the next corner, Kanney said. "It was a flat-out drag race, and I just edged him out: ' Fro m t here , it was Kanney, Jarre tt , Calkins and Summers riding in the lead group, w ith Williamson and Watts follow ing 30 seconds be hind. By the end of lap five, Calkins started having mechanical trou bles, and Watts settled into fifth place after a series of crashes slowed t he Australian's pace . "It wasn't unt il I stopped for gas t hat I drop ped out of the lead [into fourth], and from there I started having troubles," Watts said . "First I fe ll over in a mudhole and was totally mudded out. By the time I picked myself up again, I started to make a cha rge, but I got ou t of shape a little and ended up swapping out and went down hard. I wasn't much into taking any risks after that and pretty much just cruised to the end : ' Jarrett eve ntua lly let Summers by on the last lap, thinking there was anothe r lap to go . "When Scott started pushing me, I let him by, thinking I cou ld pass him back on one of the motocross tracks," Jarrett said. "But as it turned out, I missed the white flag and I let him by: ' Summers said: "I'm happy with my finish. I had a two-kick start and pretty muc h had to work my way up from last place. It wasn't hard to catc h the lead group, it was just hard to pass." Kanney now moves to within four points of Kanney, who now leads the eightrace O MA Series w ith I 17 points. eN My OWN RACE Justin Williamson 4th JustinWilliamson fi nished just of the podium for the second race in a row. The 19-year-old said, ''I'm real happy to finish right behind this group of riders." For the first three laps, Williamson rode just off Scott Summers' pace before he stopped for gas and Kanney and Summers broke away. Tony Joiner 7th After runningas high as second place, TonyJoiner finished 10 minutes behind Kanney's winningpace. "I'm not sure what the deal was today:' Joiner said. "I had a good start , but I just couldn't stay focused. I've been fighting a cold this week, and I guess it reallyshowed. Allday, it felt like I was going backwards." Charlie Deutscher 10th Charlie Deutscher salvaged a lOth-place fi nish after getting a nat tire. "Before I even got to the end of the first moto sect ion, I had a nat front tire: ' he said. ''At the end of the first lap, I stopped and switched rims back at my truck. From there , I just went to work to salvage some series points. " Tim Taber 15th Tim Taber pulled out of the race at the end of lap one after having clutch problems. Taber said: " I ended up losing the clutch just as we entered the woods. It was funny - I had just commented before the race that this bike has been bulletproof since I started ridingit last Octobe r. I should've kept my mouth shut." SPRING CREEK MX PARK MII1V1W, MINNESOTA REsuLJS: AUGUST 22, 2004 (ROUND S OF 8) PRO: J. Nathan Kanney (Yam); 2. Scott Summers (Hon): 3. Jimmy Jarrett (Yam .04 . Justin Williamson (Yam); ); S. Shane W,tU (KTM); 6. Kyle Nelson (GG); 7. TonyJoiner (Yam); 8. Adam McKillip (Yam) ; 9 . Chuck Garretson (Hon) ; 10. Charlie Deu tsch er (Yam); I I. Jesse Bloombe rg (GG); 12. T"

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