Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Briefly..• The Crash Team Kawasaki's James Stewart Jr. crashed hard and suffered a fractured left forearm during practice for round two of the AMA THQ Supercross Series at Bank One Ballpark on January 15. Stewart missed the race, and he could be out for several weeks. The 19-year-old Stewart had been practicing an approach that allowed him to triple jump in a rhythm section that included a tabletop jump near the left-field foul pole. Stewart appeared to be trying a different rhythm through the section when he lost control and slammed into the face of the tabletop. Medical personnel were on the scene quickty, and there was immediate concern that Stewart may have suffered a head injury. However, he was conscious as he was carted from the stadium floor. He was later released from the Asterisk Mobile Medical lCenter with a splint on the left arm, which was in a sling. "Obviously, it is not what we wanted to happen," Kawasaki director of pro racing Bruce Stjernstrom said. "He looked like he was riding very much under control. His lap times were really good, and it looked like he was doing everything the right way. I just think it was an unfortunate racing situation that happened, and there's not much more to say about it really." Stjernstrom did not speculate how long Stewart would be out, but did add, "He won't be at Anaheim Uanuary 22], that much I can tell you." According to Kawasaki officials, the plan is to have Stewart re-evaluated during the week between Phoenix and Anaheim II. ==::J an advantage over Windham, jumping completely out of the second whoop section by launching off the crown that divided the section in half. "I'd seen these guys doing it in practice," Carmichael said. "Kevin did it, and Chad did it on the last lap [of practice]. It kind of got greasy there. I couldn't get a good drive to blitz it, so I figured that jumping it would be better. I think it's fun to do that sometimes rather than the same old blitzing thing. I think the whoops should have been a little bit bigger for everybody to make it a little bit more challenging, but that's the way it goes. Everybody has the same stuff to do." While he may have done it in practice, Windham refused to attempt the same move as the track conditions became sketchy. Windham knew that he was losing time, but he elected to play it safe. "It takes hanging it out to win," Windham said. "That's a part of it, and you've got to take calculated risks. I just never really felt comfortable doing that [jumping the whoop section]. I mean, we still are going at it [in the points]. I just didn't get it down, and when you don't get it down, you just sometimes don't feel like you can push it for 20 laps like that. "The whoops got pretty chuck-holed, and it actually chewed up in weird areas, but then it also got shiny in places, and on top of it all some of them were like loose dirt on top of hard," Windham also said. "We were faced with several different dirt conditions all on one lap." There was still a lot of mixing going on behind Reed as the race wore on. Fonseca diced with Voss for fourth place, the two getting away from a sixth-place battle that raged between American Honda's Jeremy McGrath and Team Yamaha's Tim Ferry. Fonseca would wind up fourth, with Voss fifth, while both Ferry and McGrath would fade, McGrath yielding to the advances of Tortelli, MDK Moto Honda's Nick Wey and a rejuvenated Vuillemin. Ferry slipped back even further, ultimately landing 12th, behind Team Kawasaki's Michael Byrne who crashed early in the race but got up to finish I Ith - and Team ECC.com Honda's Damon Huffman, who finished 10th, right on McGrath's rear fender as they took the checkered flag. Continued from page IT don't want anyone measuring our fork angle." This is actually a policy that Kawasaki has implemented in the past. It is debatable as to whether Stewart's amazing speed is all in the rake. Over in the Yamaha pits on Friday, Chad Reed mechanic Darren Sorenson had Reed's factory Yamaha YZ250 on its side, replacing the clutch, something that Sorenson said he does for Reed after each and every praetke session. "It's just a routine thing," Sorenson said. "Chad is pretty hard on clutches, and there are couple special adjustments that we can make to get it to where he likes it. It changes from track to track." Even after seven AHA Supercross titles and over 70 wins, Jeremy McGrath admitted that he was feeling butterflies at Anaheim I, his first AMA Supercross event since coming out of retirement. '" was super excited, nervous, butterflies... I had a little bit of everything going on there," McGrath said. "I think if you're not nervous, something is wrong with you. When I got in the lead [first heat race], I was super excited about that, though. It was like I never left. It was a good feeling." McGrath said that any pressure he may have felt to prove that he still had the chops was washed away in the rain at Anaheim mud. "Having that mud race takes a little pressure off the second round," McGrath said. "Everyone was so high strung. Now that the ball is rolling, I think that everybody is more at ease this week. I feel better too." After the abbreviated and arguably lackluster opening ceremonies that were carried out at Anaheim because of the weather, series promoter Clear Channel Entertainment provided BOB fans with its more customary opening ceremonies spectacle, eN BANK ONE BAUPARK PHOENIX, ARlZONA RESULTS: JANUARY 15, 2005 (ROUNDS 4/2 OF 17/16) HEAT I (8 laps, 1-4 transfer): I. RIcky CarmIChael (Suz): 2. Heath Voss (Yam); J. David Vuillemin (Yam); 1. Travis Pastrana (Suz): 5. Nick Wey (Han): 6. Sean Hamblin (!<.aw); 7. Robbie Reynard (Hon): 8. Erick Vallejo (Yam); 9. Joe Oehlhof (Hon): 10. Jimmy Wilson (Hon); II. Gregory Crater (Hon): 12. Kyie Lewis (Hon); I). Damon Huffman (Hon): 14. Brian Mason (Hon); 15. Robb Flath (Suz): 16. Dennis Ewing (Hon); 17. Rusty Holland (Hon): 18. J.ri Dostal (Hen): 19. Mike laRocco (Hon): 20. Scott Howe (Hon). Time: 6 min., 51.760 sec. HEAT 2 (8 laps, 1-4 transfer): I. Chad Reed (Yam): 2. Kevin Windham (Hon): 3. Jeremy McGrath (Hon): 4. Michael Byrne (Kaw); 5. Tim Ferry (Yam): 6. Tyler Evans (Suz); 7. Emesto Fonseca (Hon): 8. Sebasuen Tortelh (Suz): 9. Jeff G,bon Thomas (Hen): II. , _ Johnson (Yam): 12 J""'" Buckelew (Hen): I J. James PovoIny (Hen): 11. Keth johnson (Yam): 15. Jocob Maron (Yom): 16. Clark Stile> (Hen): 17. [hn;ej a,." (Yam): la. Bnndon Thomas (Hen): 19. Bnndon Budeo- (Hen): 20. Anlen" Jorge Balbo J'. (Hen) Time: 61Tl11. 53 840 SEMI I (6 laps, I·S transfer): I. ~co; 2. We;. 3. V .....: •. HambI;n: 5.l.ew>s: 6. Huff""",: 7. 0<=01: a. Reynanl: 9 Wilson; 10. Holland: II. Carter, 12. Roth; 13. Ewing; 14. Oehlhof; 15. Mason: 16. Howe. Tme.: 5 rTWl, 22520 sec SEMI 2 (61ap>, '-S !Tamfer): I. Fooseca: 2. lOrten.: J. Gb.on: •. Feny. 5. f>o",lny: 6. Johnson: 7. Thomas: a. Maron: 9. Bud, 1-2 o-amIer): I Ev.ons: 2. Huffman: J. johnson: •. """": 5 Thomas: 6. Buckelew: 7. 0eNh0f: a. complete with flash pots, fireworks, laser lights and top rider introductions. For his introduction, Jeremy McGrath entered the stadium in an exotic black Lamborghini sports car. "I stalled it [the car] on the way out," McGrath said. "So I apologize for that. I wanted to do some doughnuts." On the exhibition lap during opening ceremonies, Jeremy McGrath and Chad Reed pulled off a synchronized dual nac-nac over the first baseline triple, which was wellreceived by the sold-out Phoenix crowd. Speaking of the sellout crowd, the Phoenix Supercross boasted a new attendance record, as 49,822 fans jammed the BOB, eclipsing the previous record of 49,236, which was set in 200 I. Mike laRocco and Emesto Fonseca received Tissot watehes for their wins in the 250cc semis, while Tyler Evans and Christopher Gosselaar also scored watches for their respective wins in the 250cc and l25cc last chance quaJiflef"S. Tissot is the official timepiece of the THQ Supercross Grand Prix Series. Mike laRocco's mechanic, Brian Kinney, received the MMI TDp Tech Award in recognition of his quick work to repair laRocco's bike after LaRocco and David Vuillemin collided and crashed in their heat race. The two riders tangled in the main event as well. The 250cc LCQ had to be red·nagged due to a multirider pileup in tum one consisting of Tyler Evans, Brandon Thomas, Jimmy Wilson and Jiri Dostal. Wilson got the worst of it, however, when his left leg was sucked almost completely into the rear of Dostal's Honda. Wilson's leg was so entangled in the machine that track workers had to unbolt Dostal's subframe just to free it. Asterisk Mobile Medical Center's Dr. John Bodnar, who attended to Wilson at the scene, said that damage to Wilson's leg may not have been as bad as it looked. Bodnar said that it appeared as though Wilson suffered a severe dislocation and possible fracture. Wilson was transported by ambulance to Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix for ~uation. The second- and third-place finishers from the Anaheim I 125cc podium did not even make the main event at Phoenix. Secondplace finisher Josh Woods finished out the last chance qualifier in eighth place, while last week's third-place finisher, Akira Narita, finished fifth in the same race. Akira Narita received the $250 Asterisk Medical Card, which is paid to the highestfinishing nonqualifrer for the I 25cc main event. Isaiah Johnson received the $250 Samsung Wireless check and the $750 Racer X Gas Card for being the highestfinishing 250cc nonqualifier. James Stewart Jr. wasn't the only top-ranked rider to crash hard during practice at Phoenix. Ricky Cannichael crashed while running through the second whoop section at a high rate of speed during the final practice session on Friday. "It was a stupid mistake on my part," Carmichael said. "I was hitting this one line, and it threw my nose down a couple times. I broke this peft] wrist, and every once in a while I'll just lose my grip and it'll come off the bars. That's exactly what happened, and then it [the bike] went over. But we're all going to have our bumps and bruises and crashes. It ain't the first time I've crashed, and it damn sure ain't gonna be the last time." Continued on page 20 CYCLE NEWS • JANUARY 26,2005 19

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