Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

AMA Ford Quality Checked Flat Track Championship year, and I think that I'm going to have an awesome year. I have an awesome team and a lot of support from my friends and family. We're just going to keep our heads down and go for it at every race. "Joe [Kopp] was kind of holding me up there," Coolbeth added. "If I had gotten by Joe when Kevin [Varnes] did, I think I could have followed Kevin up there. Joe was having trouble coming off the corners, and he was slowing me up." Cool beth finally got Kopp in the middle of one and two. "Consistency is what I'm looking for every year." Coolbeth said. "I'm looking for top-fives, wins, seconds, thirds. And we want to keep Chris Carr behind us as much as we can." As for Johnson, he is a little more reserved about making any sort of prediction of his end result this year. "It's too early to tell," Johnson said. "It's going to be tough. We have a lot of work to do. Chris Carr is a tough guy to beat. We just have to be consistent, try to do this week in and week out. But I have good team, and everyone gets along so well. That will make it easier." eN DAYTONA MUNICIPAL STADIUM DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA REsum: MARCH 10,2005 (ROUND 1 OF 21) HEAT I <10 laps; 10 riders, 1-2 transfer): Jake Brief'Y··· Continued from page 31 ting to Daytona for Bike Week. The story goes that Lager was asleep in the top bunk of the team transporter when the team made a pit stop in Kenosha, Wisconsin, en route to Bike Week. Unbeknownst to the rest of the crew, Lager jumped out to make a pit stop of his own and returned to find that the truck had left without him. Lager had to take a cab all the way back to Milwaukee and then catch a flight to Atlanta, where he was rendezvoused with his deserters and all was well. For the record, Lager is not the first flat tracker to get unceremoniQusly abandoned that way. Both Willie McCoy and Johnny Murphree can relate similar tales. Chris Carr commented on the unique Ford Quality Checked Certified Pre-Owned Racing KTM that he raced at the Daytona Short Track. The machine sported a stock chassis and bodywork, but with radically revised frame geometry that mimicked his standard short trackers. "This bike bridges the gap tremendously between a traditional flat track bike and a motocross bike. So far, from what we have seen, it offers the best of both types of bikes, and it looks like a motocross bike. I think it is the way to go." Although he did not use it in the Daytona Short Track, I.R. Schnabel had a similarly styled Memphis Shades/Part Unlimited Yamaha YZ450F in the pits at Daytona, which utilized stock bodywork over a complete CCM Racing chassis. "It's a CCM chassis," Schnabel said. "We tried it out during the week down here, and it works pretty well, but it's a little tall-feeling. We're going to go back to the drawing board and try a few different things, but it's definitely going to work out and be good motorcycle for us." A scary-looking crash on the opening lap of heat one punctuated the start of racing. Shawn Baer attempted to cut under Jake Johnson to take the lead in tum three, but Baer ran out of room and low-sided, col- Johnson (5u1.); 2. Bryan Smith (Han); 3. Mike Hacker (Hon): 4. Rob Pearson (Rot); 5. Jethro Halbert (Han); 6. Chartie ltalia (Rot); 7. Jesse Sanchez (Rot); 8. Logan Myers (Han); 9. Jared Mees (Han): 10. Shawn Saer (Hen). TIME: 3 min.. 13.491 sec. HEAT 2 <10 laps; 10 riders, top 2 transfer): I. John Raun Wood (Rot); 2. Nicky Cummings (Han); 3. Rich King (H-D); 4. A.J. Eslick (5u1.); S. Clayton Riggle (Han): 6. Bryan 32 finish here at Daytona. I have always loved this track, and to not even be able to make the main event here the last couple years really hurt, but we have an awesome bike now. The RM-Z450 is everything I ever wanted and more." Cool beth followed Varnes home after struggling with his KTM teammate, Joe Kopp, for most of the race. Coolbeth said that he was disappointed with his race but optimistic about his chances to take the championship away from Carr in 2005. "I got the shaft on that last restart, but that's all right," Cool beth said. "I was second the first time and first the second time, but fifth place is better than I did last MARCH 23, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS but Baer was down for several minutes. Although he was conscious, Baer was trans- Douglas (Rot); 7. Michael Varnes (Rot); 8. Tom McGrane (Rot): 9. Jason Goodwin (Han): 10. Rick Winsett (Rot). TIME: No time, due to red flag HEAT 3 <10 laps; 10 riders, top 2 transfer): I. JR Varnes, who earned a well-deserved fourth place after failing to make the main event the previous two years while the team struggled from behind the eight ball with DR-Z400-based machinery, It was a bit of vindication for Varnes, who has been considered washed up since his switch to Suzuki two seasons ago, "I couldn't be happier really," Varnes said. "I know a lot of people have been doubting me and thinking that I shouldn't even be on this team, but I belong here. Coming from behind in a 2S-lap race shows that I've still got the lungs to do it. I'm 30 years old, but I can still get 'er done. It feels good just to get a top-five er's wheel appeared to strike Baer in the tona Beach for further evaluation. He was Schnabel (Yam); 2. Shaun Russet! (Han); 3. Jeremy DeRuyter (Rot); 4. Greg Teague (Rot); 5. Merle Scherb (RQ[); 6. Dan Gedeon (Han); 7. Sam Halbert (Han); 8. Cory McDermitt (Rot); 9. Clint Erickson (Rot); 10. Shane Vance (Han). TIME: No time, due to red flag HEAT 4 (10 laps; 10 rider'S, top 2 transfer): I. Kenny Coolbeth (KTM); 2. Greg Tysor (Rot); 3. Paul Lynch (Rot); 4. Jason Tyer (Han); 5. Donnie Mullen (Rot); 6. Geo Roeder II (Hon); 7. Gary Rogers (Han); 8. Will5awnill (Han): 9. Robert McClendon (Rot): 10. Dean Standish (Yam). TIME: 3 min., 21.224 sec. HEAT 5 <10 laps; 10 riders. top 2 transfer): I. Chris Carr (KTM); 2. Kevin Varnes (Suz); 3. Sam Lowe (Han); 4. Willie McCoy (Rot); 5. Marc Williams (Rot); 6. Jason Isennock (Rot); 7. Andrew Royce (Han); 8. Butch Brandon (Rot); 9. Brian Vincent (Rot); , O. Kevin Atherton (Yam). TIME: 3 min.. 18.902 sec. HEAT 6 (10 laps; 10 riders. top 2 transfer): I. Henry Wiles (Han); 2. Joe Kopp (KTM); 3. Johnny Murphree (Han); 4. Bryan Bigelow (Han); 5. Terry Poovey (Han); 6. Chris Han (Rot); 7. Jay Springsteen (Rot); 8. Chris Klinefelter (Rot); 9. Steve Beattie (ATK); 10. Steve Murray (Rot). TIME: 3 min., 20.703 sec. SEMI I (8 laps; 12 rider'S, winner transfer'S): t. Mike Hacker (Hon); 2. Rob Pearson (Rot); 3. Rick Winsett (Rot); 4. Merle Scherb (Rot); 5. Cory McDermitt (Rot); 6. Clayton Riggle (Han); 7. Logan Myers (Han); 8. Jesse Sanchez (Rot); 9. Bryan Douglas (Rot); 10. Clint Erickson (Rot); I I. Jason Goodwin (Han); 12. Greg Teague (Rot). TIME: 2 min., 41.999 sec. lecting Mike Hacker in the process. Hackhead. Hacker was able to make the restart, ported to Halifax Medical Center in Daytreated and released. Team Suzuki Flat Track crew chief Travis Smith said that the team is over the moon now that it has Suzuki RM-Z450 engines. "Those things are the best things since sliced bread." Smith said. "We brought one of the old ones [DR-400s] just to remind our guys how good the new ones really are. Those old ones used to carry enough gas to run the Baja 1000 with. These new ones are real racers. Kenny Coolbeth appears to be more confident than ever, and prior to the Daytona Short Track, he made an optimistic prediction about his season. "My goal is to win the championship, and I'm going to be riding to win it all," Coolbeth said. "I think that if we come out of here with some good points, I think we've got it. My downfall is on the short tracks, so I have to Continued on page 34

• Cover