Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

PHOTO BY TRI$H HALE Rod lakE RacllHl AMA WEst Coast AmatEUr Nationals Round I: CastlE Rock RaCE Park Martin Books, Baker Cooks! By JOHNNY GUITAR CAsm ROCK, WA, MAY 27 eautiful weather and a perlecdy prepared racetrack greeted a huge turnout of riden; from at least fIVe different states at the fim round of the Rod Lake Racing AHA West Coast Amateur B Nationals, presented by Hinshaw's Motorcycle Store. All the hard wot1< put in by the Mount St. Helens Motorcycle Club off with an abundance of good, close racing in all classes! paid As. the start of the BScc Modified [1-11) main, Michael Martin led fellow Californian Michael Avila into tum one, with Brian Martinez Jr. and "Earthquake Jake" Burton close behind. Burton was desperate to get by Martinez so as not to lose touch with the leaders; he passed Martinez on lap two and went to work on closing the gap. The laps clicked off with Martin leading and Avila never more than one or two bikelengths behind. Avila tried everything but had to settle for second, with Burton a close third. Twins action saw Todd "Racy" Tracy grab the holeshot on his Yamaha 7S0, but when he ran way wide entering the infield, that opened the door for Gary Hite to take the lead on his "Heavy Duty" XR750. At the same time, Dale "Recreation" Parks slipped his Triumph into second, while Tracy recovered in third. The order stayed the same to the finish, with "Rocket Ray" Carroll a strong fourth. The Over 30 class was all business, as Kirk Strong and Tracy battled into the first tum, with Strong taking the lead into the infield. Matt Schweitzer was third, with Vince "Headhunter" Holt breathing down his neck. Schweitzer picked up the pace and passed Tracy on the fourth lap. Now Schweitzer could see Strong ahead of him, and he lit the afterburners. Within two laps, he was allover Strong, and he came up no more than half a bikelength short at the finish line! Out of all the "young guns" in the "5Occ Modified class, Stevie "Banzai" Bonsey was fastest on the trigger, as he shot into the lead, with Joe Hernandez and Scott Baker in hot pursuit. Hernandez wasted no time taking the lead with a power move off the last tum on the first lap, and then he proceeded to open up a small gap on Bonsey, who now had his hands full with Baker. As. the checkers, Hernandez scored a solid win, with Bonsey just barely holding off Baker for second. Lots of hard chargers in the 250cc DTX main made for a crowded first turn - evidently roo crowded, as Brad Baker, Chad Cose and Garrett Slate all hit the ground. Thankfully, they were all able to continue, and Baker made the most of the restart by snatching the lead heading into the infield. Baker tried his best to break away, but Cose and Slate had other ideas. Lap after lap, Case gave it all he had, trying inside, outside, over and under, with Slate always within striking distance. Cose figured that with a great drive off the last tum, he could surprise Baker and beat him to the finish line. It almost worked, but Baker took the win by no more than a wheel's length over Cose, with Slate a fine third. When it comes to close, hard~fought racing, these kids don't take a back seat to anybody! CII CASTU ROCK RACE pAJIJ( ROCK, WASHINGTON REsULTS: MAy 27, 2005 (ROUND CASTU I) 50 OIL-INI' I. Adorn Head CoH; 3. Garrett Slate. 1501·5TRI(: I. Chad C0$8; 2. Cody Pet~; 3. Jxob L..etvnann. 150 4-STRJ<, I. B<-ad 1loJon y,I",.,;ch. SO Sft, I. Scotty H.mpton j<.; 1.. ~ Anderson; J. Evan om. 65 MOD: I. Jake Burton; 2. Brian Martinez Jr.; J. jared Slate.. 6S DTX:: I. Brian Martinez Jr.; 2. Brock]=: 3. Wyatt Andenon. 85 MOO (7-11)' L Michoel Martin; 2. Michael Avila; J. Jake Burton. 85 MOD (7-15): I. J.D. Beach; 2. Danlelte Diaz; 3. Wyan Maguire. 85 OTX: I. J.D. Beach; 2. Michael Avila; 3. Michael Martin. 115: I. Cody Peterson. 150 DTX:: I. Chad Cose; 2. Brad Baker; 3. Jacob LehmVln. 250 1·STRK: I. Scott Baker; 2. Cody Peterson; 3. Chad Cose. 250 4-STRK: l. J.D. Beach; 2. Brad Baker, 3. Garrett Slate.. 450 HOD: I. Ste"lie Bonsey; 2. Joe Hernandez; J. Scott Baker. 505 HOD: I. Scon Baker, 1.. Br.dy M _ 3. lYle< CIariL 600 MOD, I. joe Hernandez; 2. Tyler Clark: 3. Chris Williams. EVO: I. Kenan Duncan; 2. Garry Roller; 3. Drummond Evans. VINT: I. Nick Ohge; 2.. Allen Morinville; 3. Cody Shiptey. TW: I. Todd Tracy; 2. Ray Carrol; J. GMy Hire. )0+: I. Kirk Strong; 2. Todd Tracy: 3. Jamie Nkety. 40+: I. Trey Gooch; 2.. Jamie Nicety; 3. Jim Speers. 50+: I. Gary Hite; 2. Steve Power; 3. uWTence Morris. PRO SPT: 1. Derick Oquist: 2. Trent Hansen; 3. Keith Anderson. OPEN PRO: I. Ryan Anderson; 2. Scooter Vernon; 3. Christian Vernon.

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