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/128621
by. "I don 't know if he was just p laying with m e , or wha t ," S himp sa id . "He wo u ld wav e me by the n pass m e ba c k ." The word from th e pits , howe ve r, was tha t Vuillemin was ex perie nci ng brak e p robl ems a n d wanted to t ry a nd pump up th e b rakes du ring the o pe n in g lap s. That m e ant Shimp e njoyed the le ad (thoug h br iefly ) o n three different occasions ea rly in th e ra c e . Dur in g t he n e xt fe w la p s , Vu illemi n 's b ra k e pro bl e m s sorted themse lves ou t , a nd he p rompt ly disa p pea red like he had do ne a ll week , going on to the victo ry in fro nt of a h a rd -ch a rg in g Wa lte rs , Gosse laa r, Sh imp a nd Andrew S hort. Vuillem in a lso to ok top hon o rs in t h e Op e n P ro cla ss wi th a co me from -behind ride to s core the victory in fron t of Walters . Keith Johnson, Ty Da vis and Mike Young . Scott Myers was ba c k in action in the Vet Pro class , tradi ng moto wins wit h T y Da vis fo r t h e title of Mam moth Mountain Motocr oss Vet Cham pion. Thirty -six-year -old female motocross le g end Mercedes Gonzalez -Natvig re t urn e d after a long retirement to aga in find her s e lf champion at Mam m o t h . S h e t o o k t he Wo me n 's Pro class via a 1-3 showing for the overa ll win . He avy favo rite Jessica Patt e rso n ha d pr o b le m s in the first moto a nd James Stewart a nd M ike Alessi both sc ored dual w ins in the mini cla sse s on the p icturesque Mammoth circuit. finished 13th , bu t returned to win th e fin a l, u sing a 13-1 t o fin ish sixt h overa ll beh ind Gonza lez -Na tv ig, St efy Ba u , An g ie Keu ntjes , .Ja cki Hudson and up- a nd-comer Can da ce En glish. A MATEUR RAC ING Suz uk i rid e r Br ian Gray was a n u nexpected winner o f the 1 2 5 c c In termed iate c lass, shooting dow n big-name a mateurs like Billy Lanino vic h and S ha ne Bess . Gray found h is way to th e front e arly in th e ra ce while both Laninovich an d Bes s sta rte d outside th e top 20. All ey es were o n the two forme r m ini stars as the y c a rved thro ugh the field almost in ta ndem on their way to the front. In th e e nd , Lan inovich pulled c lea r of Be s s a nd was a ble t o g et with in fiv e s e c ond s of Gr a y, b ut it wa s a class ic case of too little , too late. "O n the first la p, s ome guy we nt do wn in front of me ," La nino vic h said . "I hit him and flew off th e tra c k. I cha rge d my hardest th e whole ra ce , and I was ab le to get ba ck t o sec ond , a n d I thi nk Shane Bes s was third ." Lan inov ich didn 't le a ve th e e ve nt empty -ha nded , as he return ed S unc ue I e n e vv S • JUL Y 1 2 , 2000 19