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SCORE San Felipe 250 F at e Sea of Red The American Honda team of Johnny Campbell (shown) and Tim Staab raced stylishly to the overall on a revised San Felipe 250 course. By BRIAN FERRIS PHOTOS By MARK KARIYA SAN FELIPE, B.C., MEXICO, MARCH 18 n all new Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 race cQurse..-did-not stop American Honda's winning ways, as Johnny Campbell and Team Staab brought in their XR650R with a time of 3:40.29 to finish first-overall motorcycle. Their average speed was an impressive 56.82 mph on a very difficult course. Honda's second factory team, also on a XR650R, finished just one minute and 34 seconds later. Veteran, Jonah Street led the race for the first half and his partner, long time Team Green rider Steve Hengeveld, made a smooth transition from 250s to the new Honda by riding solid the second half of the 250-mile race. This was the fourth class win for Johnny Campbell in San Felipe and the third for partner, Tim Staab. The wind didn't come easy however. Staab started the event and gave the bike to Campbell at the halfway ridge change, roughly two minutes down behind the Steet/Hengeveld team. The fact that the margin wasn't much greater says a great deal about A 30 APRIL 5, 2000' eye • e Staab's determination and professionalism. While pre-running in the Chanate Wash, Staab hit a rock and unloaded hard at 60 mph. His injuries required flvJu;Ji.tches. in two places and many other bruises and gravel rash added to his discomfort. It was clear he wasn't at 100-percent on race day. Nevertheless, Campbell finally caught Hengeveld in the Matomi Wash and the two riders went back and forth for a while. After a good battle, Campbell finally passed Hengeveld for good on the pavement after the Matomi Wash. "I had a really good ride and the bike ran flawless," said Campbell. "The Dunlop tires did a great job. This is a completely different motorcycle than last year's bike. The water cooled motor is the biggest change and it makes a significant difference." Third in the Open class and third overall was Phillip Zeiger and Ron Wilson on another XR650. Attesting to the toughness of the new course, Zeiger, suffering from a bout with the flu said, "I'm physically drained," while partner, Wilson, declared the race, "The gnarliest section I ever rode." n e _ s Solo rider, Keith Mayes, another XR650-mounted racer, finished fourth overall. "This was the first time I ever rode this race and it wa~ ~ugl1,: said Mayes. The iron man finished with a completely squared front rim, which he smashed in the first section of the course. In class 21, the 250cc class, brothers, Jose and Leonel Ruvalcaba, of Ensenada, rode their YZ250 to the class win. Steve Montana on another YZ250 finished second. Both Ruvalcabas liked the new course and credited their success to their strong running Yamaha. Calling their ride, "Smooth - very good," Ricardo Malo and Arturo Salas took Class 30 honors in the time of 4:28.05 mounted on a Yamaha YZ426F. Second in the Over 30 division went to Federales Highway Patrolmen Roy and Tato Buelna, who piloted an XR600 and finished 16 minutes behind the Malo/Salas team. A north-of-the-border Highway Patrolman, Klaus Groeger, soloed Class 40 for the win. Groeger, who suffered a complicated broken back 13 months ago and was told he could never ride again said, "I proved to myself I was completely recovered." With 76 miles between pits, Groeger ran out of gas once but carried a quart on his belt, which got him the last mile to his pit support. Groeger was caught by the leader in the Trophy Truck class towards the end of the race which shook Groeger up a bit, but he forged on to take the Senior honors. Richard Jackson and Dave Olen teamed up to take first in Class 50. The win was Jackson's fifth San Felipe class win. They finished with a time of 4:49.45 just ahead of class rivals Jim O'Neal and Gene and Sam Dempsey. "That was the toughest SCORE race I ever rode," claimed Jackson, a seasoned SCORE particjpa-nt. His-team-pulled -out the stops in the last Finishing second was another Honda factory XA650A piloted by Steve Hengeveld (shown) and Jonah Street. The StreetIHengeveld team led for over han the event, but once an Injured Staab handed his mount over to Campbell, It was only a matter of time before the Baja veteran was In the lead.