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/128399
AMA Ford Quality Checked Flat Track Championship Carr Works The Magic The ev ntime series champion wins the DuQuoin Mile STORY AND PHOTOS IY DAVE HOENIG/FLAmtAJ(fOTOS.COM Ord Quality Checked Certified Pre-owned Racing's Chris Carr finished off another of his championship-winning campaigns in fine style as the AMA Ford Quality Checked Flat Track Championship Series finished off the 2005 season on the Magic Mile of the DuQuoin State Fairgrounds. As usual, the Illinois Motorcycle Dealers Association and track personnel had the big oval in nearperfect condition. Despite a month-long layoff since clinching his seventh Grand National tide, Carr picked up where he left off in Springfield - winning. Carr led the IB-rider field into turn one, with KK Supply/Las Vegas HarleyDavidson/Shaffer's HarleyDavidson's Geo Roeder, Screamin' Eagle HarleyDavidson's Rich King, and polesitter Bryan Smith hot on his heels. Mid-America Hartey- F 40 Davidson/Jones Powersports' Kenny Coolbeth squandered his front-row start when he missed a shift going into the first tum and dropped to dead last. Coolbeth was qUickly back up to speed and slicing his way toward the front. Roeder was sporting some newfound mile speed, and although he dropped to OCTOBER 12, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS fifth, he remained in the lead draft. Moroney's Harley-Davidson & Honda! Content Control's Smith repeatedly worked his way into the lead, but it was the veterans, Carr and King, who were always leading at the line and collecting the $100 lap money. Even though he was brutally fast, mechanical gremlins kept handicapping Gerencer's Harley-Davidson/Kersting's Cycle's Kevin Atherton, who last year ran away from everyone. This time Atherton had started in the back after going through a semi to make the main, and he was in sixth and closing on the leaders when he was slammed to the ground in turn two on the sixth lap. After a long time on the ground, a shaken Atherton walked to the ambulance for a ride back to the pits; his night was over. One of the crowd's favorites, Bartels' Harley-Davidson/Rock Springs' Jay Springsteen, was cruising in the lead pack, and he took the point for the three laps leading to the halfway mark. By that time, Coolbeth had also come to the front, leading laps 10 and IS. The remainder of the race would be led by Carr and King as they tried to position themselves. Carr said that he did everything he could to make sure he led the pack off the last corner. "I felt that was my best chance of winning from the early part of the race," Carr said. "Every time I led off of four, I beat him [King) to the line. Ifigured that was my best shot. I struggled when I was following. I had a bike that worked real well through the corners when nobody was in front of me. It's kind of like NASCAR - I was good in clean air, and I wasn't good in dirty air." King said that he felt this was the second year in a row that he let the race get away from him. "I had Chris set up perfectly," King said. "I just bobbled across that little hump coming off of four. :rJ!=============================