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/128363
My 4 Briefly... OWN RACE Lance Smail 2nd "I felt pretty good. In the middle I pushed it so hard I hit the wall just for a little bit, a couple laps, and had to regroup. Two pit stops hurt us. We probably could've just done one today, but we wanted to be safe. It enabled [Kiedrowski] to get closer, and I tried to get away from him, but I was fighting a couple blisters, like we all were. I just couldn't push all-out through the rough stuff. I kind of conceded to stay in second there near the end, even though Kiedrowski was slOWing down too, but I just didn't feel I had the energy to catch back up." 1S9 Tim Wiegand 4th After racing the Phoenix Supercross the night before, Wiegand admitted, "I was a little tired on Sunday, but not too bad. I just enjoy racing; it's more mental, I think, than physical. At first, I got a pretty good start, but I didn't know the track because I didn't get to ride on Saturday [in the Pro qualifying race for those outside the 2004 top 10]. So I was all pumped because I was kind of near the front - I think maybe like fourth or so - and as soon as we left the motocross and got out into the desert, I didn't really know where to go. Destry Abbott and I kind of got together, and I fell, he went over me, then four more guys got by me. That kind of put me in the back a little bit in the dust. Once Igot going and kind of learned the track, I think my laps got better and I felt more comfortable because I knew where I was at." ,--, S Destry Abbott 5th "I thought I rode well," Abbott said. "The top three guys rode really well. I was trying. Right after the hour mark I started getting some really bad blisters. Timmy Wiegand started catching me about an hour and 45 and passed me. The last lap, I tried to get back around him, but I think I came up about five seconds short. My goal coming in here was to get top fove. I think I did what I need to do to stay in the championship hunt. I'm happy about that, happy about the way the bike is, and it's going to be a fun series." The highest-ranked local racer, Destry Abbott, enjoyed the support he found: ''I've never been to a race and had all the people cheering me on all over the course; it was really neat. I felt like Uames1Stewart or something." Justin Williamson had a bad reaction to the poison oak at last weekend's Hollister National Hare Scrambles, and he had to bandage his throttle-side wrist because of it. That led to uncharacteristic arm pump in the Pro qualifying race on Saturday. KTM used the WORCS event to debut its new semi that will support its offroad racers. However, it will mostly see action back East at the GNCCs. Throttlehead.com Kawasaki's Josh McLevy crashed during the Pro race and was taken to the hospital with a broken collarbone and a possible hip injury. Teammate Steve Hatch sat out the race, as he's still recovering from a shoulder injury suffered three weeks ago and wants to be ready for six weekends in a row when the GNCCs and the Defending Champion Nathan Waads rounded aut the tap three, putting himself in excellent position to defend his title. Lance Small Injury, but this year front of the pack. they weren't going as fast as I thought, so I said, 'I've got to go by them, too.' I just rode my own race from there on and felt really good. My bike was working great." Smail led the first half of the race, trying to build enough of a cushion to negate the time he'd lose with two planned pit stops. Once Kiedrowski took over at the front, though, he managed to pull away a few seconds a lap. "That was kind of our game plan," Kiedrowski said. "I had to put in some good laps after I stopped the first time [for gas], because he kind of got a little lead on me. I kind of learned that with the AMNFMF Racing National Enduro Series kicks off. That leaves Cole Calkins as the only healthy team member at the moment; he finished I7th in the Pro race. Tim Wiegand didn't feel at a disadvantage riding his basically stock CRF250R practice bike. "I tend to like the 250Fs a lot," he said. "I feel more comfortable on it. I think I'd rather crash on a 250F than a 'ISO!" Asked how many WORCS races he planned to do, Wiegand said, "I'm going to try to do them all. I want to win It, or at least give it a shot and try to. As long as they don't conflict with any AMA thing that's going on that I need to do, I'll probably be there. I'll see if I can get an off-road ride next year or something. I'm tired of being a privateer. I've got to explore other options." Former WORCS champ Ty Davis had the flu, so he went into cruise mode and just tried to have some fu~, but he was surprised to find himself in the top 10. However, he lost the clutch completely on the last lap and was officially credited with 18th place. GNCCs; Rodney Smith tried to do that." Second on the opening lap, Woods spent the rest of the race solidly in third place. "I got a great start with my YZ450; the thing just rips," he said. ''About halfway through ... we just missed the bike setup a little bit. The suspension is basically stock; we did very little testing on the stuff. We'll be ready in a month; we'll be ready to go. I plan on being on top of that box a couple times this year. "Last year I started off with a fourth and continued to better myself and win the championship, so this year's looking good," Woods added. "I'm not bummed at myself; I rode what I could ride, and that's all I can ask. You don't want to take yourself out and be done for the rest of the year." Local favorite Destry Abbott held fourth for much of the race on his Team Green/FMF/THOR-backed KX250, though, like many of the others, a case of blisters took the edge off in the later stages. He'd surrender it to supercross racer Tim Wiegand, who rode his Hahm Motorsports/HMS Capitol-sponsored CRF250R practice bike after placing 15th in the 125cc main at the previous night's Phoenix Supercross. eN SPEEDWORLD MX PARK PHOENIX, ARIZONA RESULTS: JANUARY 16, (ROUND 1 OF 12) 2005 O/A: I. Mike Kiedrowski (Suz) 2:03:39; 2. Lance Smail (Kaw) 2:04:08; 3. Nathan Woods (Yam) 2:04:39; "'. Tim Wiegand (Hon) 2:06:15: S. Denry Abbott (Kaw) 2:06:23: 6. Bobby Garrison (Hon) 2:08: 16; 7. David Pearson (Kaw) 2:08:54; 8. Russell Pearson (Yam) 2:09: 12; 9. Kun Caselli (KTM) 2:10:12: 10. Robby Bell (Hon) 2,11,22. SEMI-PRO: I. Brendan Ritzman (Kaw); 2. Chris Johnson (Kaw); 3. Ryan Abbotoye (Kaw): 4. Justin Soule (Kaw); 5. Putter Ashford (Yam). CYCLE NEWS • FEBRUARY 2, 2005 2S