Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Round 5 OFF-ROAD ~ Briefly••. AMA FMF Racing National Enduro Series Mike Lafferty said before the race, "Coming into this year, I was real hungry for another enduro championship after sitting out most of last year [with a knee injury and broken arm]. Before injuring my shoulder [last month], I was leading this series and was sitting in second place in the GNCC series. Then, when I broke my collarbone, it looked like I might be sitting out another year. It's been driving me crazy. We're not expecting much here, we're just trying to keep my points lead alive. As far as the GNCC series goes, I'm probably going to take some time off and let things heal." Gas Gas factory rider John Barber got news this week that he'd be traveling to Spain in June to do some testing with the Gas Gas factory. ""II be doing some testing with the '06s before they go into production," Barber said. "It sounds like I'll get a chance to run a Spanish National Enduro Series round before I come back to the States." Barber won the last round of the National Enduro Series last year in Indiana. (Left) Randy Hawkins rode the Leadbelt and got fourth. (Above) Billy Russell broke into the top five. his game," said Hatch, aboard the FMFfThrottlehead.com/Kawasaki KX250. "But I have to hand it to him, he bounced back big time. I think Mike just rode a great race, and my hat's off to him. Racing off-road is never a gimme, and Mike is the kind of rider that never gives up. Matt [Stavish] did a great job, too. Both ofthese guys have been riding great this year, and it's made for an exciting series." The Leadbelt Enduro, which was hosted by the Missouri Mudders, utilized 12 checks over a I 16.2-mile course. The club enduro used eight different speed averages and the checks were set up where riders were checked in and checked out, making for six different tests. The enduro used two 58. I-mile loops and was held entirely on the St. Joe ORV Park that is managed by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources. An overnight rain kept the dust down but made most of the course muddy. "The rain probably had the biggest effect on the race," Hatch said. "Saturday, it looked like it would be dry, so we went with that setup. Then, overnight, we got about a quarter-inch of rain, and it made a big difference. In the morning, it was very slippery, but by the afternoon, it got a little better. It was definitely a four-stroke race." "The four-stroke was the bike of choice for sure," said Stavish, on the Larson Cycle Racing/GoFasters.com/ Checkpoint Machine Honda CRF250. "With the rain, it was greasy everywhere in the morning, and in the afternoon it was 52 JUNE 8, 2005 • better, but it was still slick. Most of the trail was extremely rocky and some of the ATV trails were whooped out, so with the rain, it made it very technical. Yet it still had a good flow to it. The club did a good job with layout and used a wide variety of trails. This is one of the few technical enduros where you get to use every gear." Lafferty set the pace early by carding a I at check two, followed by Hatch and Stavish who scored 2s. Hawkins and Russell got 3s. Then, Lafferty, Stavish and Hatch scored identical 9s at the next outcheck, check four, while Hawkins and Russell slipped another point back apiece by carding identical lOs. By check six, Lafferty had I I points, giving him a two-point lead on Stavish. Lafferty enjoyed a three-point lead on Hatch. Russell finished the first loop with a IS, while Hawkins' combined score was 16. During the second loop, Lafferty put another minute on Stavish and Hatch when he got a 2 at check eight, while Stavish and Hatch both carded 3s. The trio scored identical 4s at check 10. On the last out-check, check 12, Hatch moved himself up from third to second by scoring a 3, taking back two minutes from Stavish, who carded a 5. Lafferty gave up one minute to Hatch when he scored a 4. "That last section was the only place I really had any trouble all day," Lafferty said. "My computer mount broke off, and I had to stop and disconnect the computer and stuff it in my shirt. I had such a good day going I didn't want to ruin it by having the computer fall off into the front wheel or something." eN CYCLE NEWS ST. JOE ORV PARK PARK HILLS, MISSOURI RESULTS: MAy 22, 2005 (ROUND 5 OF 9) OVERALL: I. Mike Lafferty (Kaw); 2. Steve Hatch (Kaw); 3. Matt Stavish (Hon); 4. Randy Hawkins (Yam); 5. Billy Russell (KTM); 6. Fred Hoess (GG); 7. Blair Bersano (Yam); 8. Tim Taber (KTM); 9. Russell Bobbitt (KTM); 10. Rich Lafferty (KTM). AMA FMF RACING NATIONAL ENDURO SERIES POINTS STANDINGS (After S of 9 rounds): I. Mike Lafferty (136/3 wins); 2. Steve Hatch (104/1 Win); 3. Matt Stavish (83); 4. Billy Russell (70/1 win); 5. David Lykke (62); 6. Russell Bobbitt (58); 7. Tim Taber (50); 8. Richard Lafferty (45); 9. Randy Hawkins (36); 10. Fred Hoess (3 J). MvOwN Randy Hawkins RACE 4th Once again, Randy Hawkins got off to his usual slow start but came on strong as the enduro progressed. ''After last night's rain, the problem here is not so much finding traction but being able to slow down to set up for the corners," Hawkins said. "I missed the flip a couple of times this morning, and that just put me behind all day. It started to come around in the afternoon, but it was too late to make up any places." Billy Russell 5th A couple of wrong turns were Billy Russell's undoing. "The dub just did an excellent job with the layout," he said. "It had a little bit of everything. I was kind of hoping it might be dusty and that might give me an edge. I made a couple of wrong turns in the morning, and that kind of sealed my fate. I picked it up later in the day, but I just fell a little short." Russell lost the tiebreaker to Hawkins by six seconds. Fred Hoess 6th Gas Gas rider Fred Hoess struggled with vision problems in the morning. "The whole morning, I was haVing trouble with my lenses fogging," Hoess said. "We just went with the wrong setup. The bike worked great; I just had to deal with poor vision. Tire setup ended up being critical Defending National Enduro Champion Randy Hawkins made the trip to Missouri even though he's chosen not to defend his title, riding only a select few of the series' nine rounds this year. "I just couldn't pass on this round," Hawkins said. ''A couple of my old Husqvama Enduro Team teammates [from the '80s,], Ron Ribolzi and Ray Mungenast, are members of the Missouri Mudders, and it was worth the trip just to see them." here. In the morning, it was real muddy; by the afternoon, it was a little better. But by the end of the day, with the rocky, technical trail, I had nothing left. A tire change somewhere in the middle of the day would have been perfect." Tim Taber 8th Tim Taber survived a big get-off to finish eighth overall. "I had a great time here," Taber said. "I rode with Billy Russell and a couple of buddies from Mexico. I crashed hard enough in the morning and thought about calling it quits, but they talked me into going back out, and I'm glad I did. We had a blast." David Lykke DNF David Lykke, the 2004 National Enduro Series runner-up finisher; was in a tight second-place battle right up to the last test of the morning loop, when he crashed. "I'm not sure what happened," he said. "I was coming up on the in-check and was actually going pretty slow trying to zero it, and all of a sudden I got pitched off the bike hard. I picked it up and started to get going, and I went over the handlebars again. This , time, I looked and I found a stick in the front wheel. I pulled it out and was able to get checked in on time. From there, I just couldn't get myself going. My leg hurt, my wrist hurt, and I just couldn't concentr

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