Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

- --------------- OFF-ROAD Round 6 . . . . . . AMA National The HEAT Is On' K M's Mike Lafferty made it four wins in a row after over- coming extremely dusty conditions and near 100-degree mperatures to take the overall victory during the Loose Moose National Enduro in Marquette, Michigan. Lafferty tallied a score of 43, while Team Throttlehead.com/Kawasaki's Steve Hatch finished second with a score of 47. Lafferty's win extends his lead in the AMA National Enduro Series over Hatch, 166 to I 29, with just three races left in the nine-race series. Lafferty, the six-time National Enduro Champion, edged out Hatch by one minute in four of the enduro's six special tests, which featured tight, rocky, single-track trails. Hatch tied Lafferty in the remaining two tests. "Without the heat, this would have been considered a hard event. With the heat, it will probably be the toughest race of the series," Lafferty said. "I'm sure some B and C riders didn't have a lot of fun out there today. If they finished, my hat's offto them." Rounding out the top five were KTM's David Lykke, Yamaha-mounted Blair Bersano and Gas Gas rider John Barber. They carded scores of 53, 54 and 55, respectively. "We're actually real happy with our results," said the 36-year-old Hatch, who won the National Enduro Series title in 1994. "Mike [Lafferty] has been riding so good lately that the only race seems to be who's going to finish second. This is just my second year back [after concentrating on the GNCC series for eight years], and we're still getting back on track. The important thing is we're having a ton of fun, and that's what it's all about." Lafferty, who calls New Jersey home, credited his success to his fast pace early in the race. "I got off to a good start this morning when they threw an 8.8-mile test at us right away," Lafferty said. "I've always been a good starter, and I knew if I got off to a fast start, I could carry that lead into the afternoon before it got hot." Lafferty's fast-paced strategy drew first blood when he carded a two in that test while Hatch and Russell Bobbitt scored threes and Bersano and Barber tallied fours. "Right out of the gate, I wanted to pick up enough of a lead that if I had any problems, I would be able recover," Lafferty said. '~ it turned out, 1broke my shift lever during the next test, and I had to ride that whole section in third gear. We got it fixed at the next available gas, but we didn't have any time left to make some needed suspension adjustments. So, we waited until the 64 next reset and made those changes." Lafferty and Hatch both went seven in the first test and six in the second, while Bersano went 8-6. Bobbitt and Lykke went 8-8. The total scores at the halfway point were Lafferty, 15; Hatch, 16; Bersano, 18; Bobbitt, 19. Lykke and Barber both had 21 . Test four saw Lafferty increase his lead again when he turned in a nine while Hatch, Bobbitt and Lykke all tallied lOs. Bersano went I I, and Barber went I3. Test five was the turning point for many of the riders as the dust and midday temperatures quickly separated the top riders. Lafferty again set the benchmark with a fIVe while Hatch went six. Lykke, Bersano and Barber went seven. Test fIVe is also where Bobbitt's thirdoverall ride qUickly evaporated when he missed a comer marker and went on to drop 19 points. "I actually had a good day going until I got lost, missed a comer marker and rode on follOWing somebody else's dust," Bobbitt said. "I finally got turned around and headed for what I thought was the course and ended up getting lost worse. By the time I found my way back, I was way down. I was so mad. Midway [in that test] I caught Barber and was really making good time. By the time I got to the next restart, I didn't have enough time to stop and replenish fluids, and during the last section I started cramping. My body had just had enough." Bobbitt's misfortune dropped him from third to 13th overall for the day, effectively moving Lykke, Bersano and Barber up. "I had no real problems here today other than the dust," Lykke said. "I felt I went as fast as I could without taking any chances. I could have rode a little more aggressively, but I crashed myself out [at round five of the National Enduro Series] last month, and today I chose to ride a little more conservative. The heat was a big factor as well. I saw a lot of riders slOWing up as the day went on. What it comes down to is that I would rather be safe than sorry." Lafferty and Barber each posted a 14 in the last test. Both Hatch and Lykke finished on 15. Bersano carded an 18 to finish out the event. eN looSE MOOSE ENDURO MARQUETTt, MICHIGAN RESULTS: JULY 16, 2005 (ROUND 6 OF 9) OVERAll: I. Mike lafferty (KTM); 2. Steve Hatch (Kaw); 3. Dam Lyi

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