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AHRMAIClassic Bike Magazine Dirt Track Series: Round 3 Jackson Motorsports AHRMA's Florida Finale By MATT BENSON OCALA, FL, MARCH 9 HRMA's vintage racers ended their Florida Bike Week on the Jackson Motorsports blue-groove quarter-mile, attracting 89 entries for the afternoon event. Unlike the other two AHRMA flat tracks during this busy week, there were no multipleclass winners, but there was plenty of close action. The Classic 250cc division was highly competitive all week, and it was no different this day. Riding a Harley-Davidson Sprint, Wendell Ware was hounded by Mike Connell on another Sprint and John Bova on a Bultaco. Connell tried all he could, but Ware wouldn't yield the lead. Bova held third all race, with Mike Metzler in fourth on a Triumph. Another tight one was Sportsman 750cc. Bill Snyder led from the green flag, but the man on the move was Darrell Bryant as he worked his way into second spot. Snyder, Bryant and Nick Taylor - all on Yamahas - distanced themselves from the pack, running nose to tail, and finishing in that order. The wildest finish was in Seventies Singles. Mike Gilkey and his BSA B50 led from the start over John Hildebrand on another BSA and Darrell Bryant on a Yamaha. By the third lap Kenny Parker had moved his A Yamaha up to the second spot, but then a crash brought out the red flag and a single-file restart. Gilkey again led Bryant, Nick Taylor, Parker and Roger Vieth. No one got close to Gilkey in the final charge to the checkered flag, but Taylor nabbed Bryant at the line, with both riders plowing into the turn-one fence after crossing the line. David Wills also got sucked into the crash and wound up breaking off the front end of his Yamaha thumper. In the other classes, George Wills and his Harley handshifter handily won the Dinosaur class and finished second to Metzler's Triumph with an Harley-Davidson KR model in Classic 500/750cc. Yamaha-mounted Parker took a big win in Sportsman 250cc, while in the 600cc class it was Bob Graves and his Yamaha crossing the line ahead of John Hildebrand and Gig Hamilton. The Veteran class went to the Yamaha of Ray Gorney, as Martin Lewis continued his domination of Senior, and William Burr was the man to beat in Super Senior. CN Jackson Molorsports Ocala, Florida Results: March 9, 2000 DINO: 1. George Wills (H-D); 2. Bena Rodi (Enf); 3. Jerry Ficklin (Nor). elSe 250: 1. Wendell Ware (H-D): 2. Mike Connell (H-D); 3. John Bova (Bul); 3. Mike Metzler (Tri); 4. Leland Prewitt (Tri); 5. James Paden Jr. (HD). elSe 500/750: 1. Mike Metzler (Tri); 2. George Wills (H·D): 3. Scott Fluck (Tri); 4. Dan Seher (BSA); 5. Bob Hovden (BSA). SPTMN 250: I. Kenny Parker (Yam); 2. Leland Prewitt (Yam): 3. Dave Scheffer (H-D): 4. John Lewis (Yam): 5. Jay Stuiso (Kaw). SPTMN 600: I. Bob Graves (Yam); 2. John Hildebrand (Tri); 3. Gig Hamilton (Mai); 4. Gary White (Hon); 5. Quinton Bigalow (Yam). SPTMN 750: 1. Bill Snyder (Yam); 2. Darrell Bryant (Yam); 3. Nick Taylor (Yam); 4. Ray Gorney (Yam): 5. James Tumlin (Tri). '70s SNGLS, 1. Mike Gilkey (BSA); 2. Nick Taylor (Yam); 3. Darrell Bryant (Yam); 4. Roger Vieth (Yam): 5. John Hildebrand (BSA). VET: I. Ray Gorney (Yam): 2. Quinton Bigalow (Yam): 3. Brian Eckhart (Tri); 4. Wade O'Connor (Tri); 5. Jay Stuiso (Kaw). SR: I. Martin Lewis (Tri): 2. Gig Hamilton (Mai); 3. Bill Snyder (Yam); 4. Beno Rodi (BSA); 5. Duwayne Montgomery (Yam). S/SR: I. William Burr (BSA): 2. Duane Spence (Han): 3. Charles Pickren (Han); 4. Jack Joyner (Tri); 5. Curt Zeiter (Yam). Martin Lewis won the Senior class during Thursday night's dirt track at Ocala. Dressed for the occasions: Frank Hardman had checkers on his tank, on his leathers, and - after he won the Classic 5001750cc class - in his left hand. AHRMAIClassic Bike Magazine Dirt Track Series: Round 2 Orange County Raceway Slidin' Senior Citizens fought his way past White into second, but the Honda rider couldn't track down Dave Valiket, who led from the second lap on. When the big bikes took to the oval it was Triumph-mounted John Skinner who took the point and never yielded. Darrell Bryant was second on his Yamaha. The always-competitive Seventies Singles went to Mike Gilkey, riding a BSA thumper against a field of Yamahas and Hondas. CN BY MATT BENSON BITHLO, FL, MARCH 7 aine's Booker Poirier continued his winning ways at the second of AHRMA's trio of Bike Week dirt track nationals, capturing the Dinosaur, Classic 500/750cc and M Orange County Raceway Bithlo, Florida Results: March 7, 2000 Sportsman 250cc finals under the lights at Bithlo. Poirier rode a handshift HarleyDavidson WR to an unchallenged win over Beno Rodi in the Dinosaur class, but in Classic 500/750cc George Wills, on another WR, kept the pressure on. An intense battle for third went to Carl Forkey, nipping Mike Metzler at the checkered flag. Both were riding Triumph 500cc twins. The 2] -entry Sportsman 250cc final was a back-and-forth duel to the finish between Can-Am-mounted Poirier and the Yamaha of Parker. Poirier got a better drive coming out of turn four for the last time and won the sprint to the checkers_ Another excellent contest was the Senior race between California's Martin Lewis on a Triumph and Hondamounted Iowan Bill Berger. The two Over 50 riders traded the lead more than once before Lewis could manage to keep hold of it long enough for the checkered flag to wave. It took Duwayne Montgomery a while, but he finally got around Bill Snyder to take third. Frank Hardman seemed to be entered in every class, but the Vet class was his this evening, as the Colorado rider put some distance between his Yamaha and the Honda of Gary White. Mike Connell and his Harley Sprint led Classic 250cc from wire to wire, with class champ John Bova bringing his Bultaco home second. In Sportsman 600cc, Connell cue I e DINO: I. Booker Poirier (H-D): 2. Beno Rodi (Enf); 3. Chris Tanner. ClSe 250: 1. Mike Connell (H-D); 2. John Sova (Sui); 3. Joe Gately (BSA); 4. Dave Perkins; 5. Leland Prewitt (Tri). elSe 500/750: 1. Booker Poirier (H-D): 2. George Wills (H-D); 3. Carl Forkey (Tri); 4. Mike Metzler (Tri): 5. Scott Fluck (Tri). SPTMN 250: 1. Booker Poirier (C-A); 2. Ken Parker (Yam); 3. Drew Peterson (H-D); 4. Dave Scheffer (H·D); 5. David Wills (H-D). SPTMN 600: I. Dave Valiket; 2. Mike Connell (Han); 3. Gary White (Han); 4. N. Quinton Bigelow (Yam); 5. Larry Davis (Yam). SPTMN 750: I. John Skinner (Tri): 2. Darrell Bryant (Yam); 3. Frank Hardman (Yam); 4. James Tumlin (Tri); 5. Ray Gorney. '70s SNGlS: I. Mike Gilkey (BSA); 2. Ken Lilly: 3. Ken Parker (Yam); 4. Nick Daniels (Yam); 5. Dave Valiket. VET: l. Frank Hardman (Yam); 2. Gary White (Hon): 3. N. Quinton Bigalow (Yam); 4. Ray Gorney; 5. Drew Peterson (H-D). SR: 1. Martin lewis (Tri); 2. Will Berger (Han); 3. Duwayne Montgomery: 4. Bill Snyder (Yan); 5. Gig Hamilton (Mai). S/SR: 1. Ronnie Rail (BSA); 2. Duane Spencer (Han); 3. Jack Joyner (Tri): 4. Tom Hodges (Bul); 5. Curt Zeiter (Yam). BRIEFLY••• Racers clearly liked the banked quartermile oval at Bithlo. Dirt·track legend Ronnie Rail described it as the perfect mix of clay and sand. A groove never developed. giving riders the choice of many lines through the corners. And Rail's lines were like no one else's. The 61-year-old Michigan farmer rode the track as if it were diamond· shaped, running his BSA BSO up to the top in the corners, squaring them off and then getting a hard drive down the straights. The technique was clearly effective, at least for Rail, as he won the Over-60 Super Senior class over Californian Duane Spence. The small town of Bithlo (population less than 5000) is about 65 miles (or an hour and 15 minutes) south of Daytona Beach. and is also home to the Bithlo/East Orange BMX track. where a major NBL race was held last year. The event attracted some 160 entries. n e 'ftI' s MARCH 22, 2000 59