Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

- - - - SUPERMOTO UNLIMITED While he had to come from behind in Supermoto, Kunzel had no such difficulty in the 24-lap Supermoto Unlimited final. Aboard his factory Red Bull KTMS2SSMR, the 29 -year-old , formerly ranked third in the World Supermoto Championship, blasted off the pole and simply checked out on the field, leaving Dymond and Bagnis - the latter aboard a Vertemati that was one of only three non-KTM machines in the field - in his wake. "Th is [Unlimited) class, there is just one, two guys that are fast, but I make a good My 47 - - - - -- - --I SUPERMOTO Round 3 Septembe r 11 , 2004 start, and I find my rhythm and speed. It was not easy, but it was really good." There was a pileup off the start as the 24 riders jammed through the first turn, Justin Ross hitting the ground directly in front of a group that included Carlson, the young Wisconsin rider paying the price as he was stuck in I Ith place at the completion of lap one. Carlson managed to catch back up to the tail of Former Australian Supermoto Champion Mark Avard , who was aboard a brand new Husqvarna SM630R , the pair dicing with Ayler X Racing KTM's Steven Ayler. Dymond had a scare when he slid out while on the brakes going into turn one. The former AMA 125cc National MX Champion kept his bike running and quickly rejoined the fray. '" had a good chance to race with Jurgen today, and I feel better on the big bike anyway," Dymond said. "I don't know if I could have raced with him today, but I feel like I was in a good spot to do so , but then I lost the front end in the first turn . I think that I actually think that physically I felt stronger in that race than I did in the first one." Carlson shot past Avard in turn one on lap five, the two nearly colliding as Carlson expectations ," Pastrana said. "I got a good start, but then Fillmore came from the second OWN R ACE Alexandre Thiebault Supermoto 4th The French Thiebault, who is pullingdouble duty in the AMA and World Supermoto champ ionships, had a decent run in Nashville. Starting from the third row, he got caught up in that big fifth-place battle early before squeaking through to fourth by the end of the Supermoto race . "I tried to keep a good way inside and pass two or three guys." Thiebault said. "Ithink I was seventh during all the race , and I try to pass Chisum and Bagnis in the last laps. It was not a bad result because I finished fourth , and it is good for the championship. and I keep good points. But the podium misses me. I want on the podium, and it will be done for the next race, I hope . It is not so bad." 428 Josh Chisum Supermoto 7th This is the second top-10 finish in AMASupermoto for the Californianwho claims that he is 30 going on 18. "Me and Bagnis and Thiebault were chained up, and there were sections where Bagnis was faster and sections where' was faster. I think I was faster in the infield and over the jump, and I think he was faster in the sweepers, but I was proud of myself. This was my first time making Superpole . Starting up front is the key to good finishes." 31 Micky Dymond Supermoto 10th At Nashville, Pastrana showed all the talent and speed that has made him a household name , but he was saddled by an underpowered motorcycle. Nevertheless, he made the most of it. "I was all excited because I got onto the first row, which was beyond all my wildest 20 SEPTEMBER 22, 2004 • row and passed me. I got 10 feet out, and already I was getting passed, and I thought, 'What the heck is going on?' That guy is a phenomenal rider. I'lltell you what , our DR-Z... the guys have done an amazing job with it, but I really can't wait for the RM-Z450. We were losing just enough to the Hondas on the straightaway that it would take me the whole rest of the lap to catch up. We are about eight to '0 horsepower down and 40 pounds overweight, and that's a lot more to give up than it sounds . I was hoping for more dirt here , but you get what you get. I managed to get my stuck in a tire about halfway and it too k me a couple laps to , get my head clear from that. I'd go back three and then up one , back three and then up one . It was a lot of fun, and I am looking forward to next week ." 555 GregTrachy CYCLE NEWS Supermoto 15th The MarzocchifTrachy Honda rider had what he deemed "a very successful race, 1felt." Tracy, the brother of more the recognized supermoto racer Gary Trachy had shock prob, lems all day. "I chased the suspension all day long," he said. " I got the fourth-place transfer spot [in his heat], and then my brother Gary said, 'Let's change the shock.' I went into the main dead last and fought my way up to 15th, right behind Gary. That was my best race to date , and our team has gotten better every race." 7 Mark Avard Supermoto 9th ''Actually, I lucked into havinga good bike to ride in the 450 class, so I did," Dymond said. "It was good, but it was just a long day today. I knew it was going to be, but those guys in that class really push hard, and I learned a lot and got a lot of racing in today. I was hanging in there with that group of guys in the top 10, but we were off the pace a little bit. I was hung up behind Travis for a little bit, and then I got by him and kind of got caught in that groove where everybody else was. I just got stuck, and that's where I stayed." 199 Travis Pastrana charged up the inside and then stood it up, almost missing the comer. Ayler would drop back to I Ith before the race was over. Out front , Kunzel had an easy seven seconds on Bagnis by lap' 0 when Bagnis' Vertemati started to smoke. AMA officials black-flagged Bagnis, and he left the track. Dymond then inherited second place. He had been running another five seconds behind Bagnis, which allowed Kunze!'s lead margin go from seven to 12 seconds. Carlson also moved up to third , now clear of Avard , and Carlson and his HMC KTM teammate Da rryl Atkins appeared to be reeling in Dymond . Superrnoto 20th Unlimited 4th "The Supermoto is really tough at the moment," Avard said after finishing a disappointing 20th. "The start was real important because there are a lot of fast guys in there right now. I rode around and lost a few positions when Wardy and the leaders came through . I let a couple guys pass me who 1shouldn't have. We really need to get a little more horsepower out of the Husky. The development is just a little lacking." Avard's results did improve dramaticallyin the Unlimited race, though he could not match the pace of the leaders. "My Supermota Unlimited went good," he said. "We had fun with that. We had some horsepower, and luckily some guys went down , and we got fourth . I'm really happy with that . My focus is on the big bike until we can get the 4S0 really going properly. The level of racing is so high these days, and it is coming down to hundredths of a second. We need to be more on the ball in the 450 class." 40th Anniversary

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