Steward
Baylor Jr.
Gets the "W"
at Flying
W National
Enduro
F
lying W Ranch hosted 350-
plus enduro competitors for
the Wiseco Flying W National,
a new event on the Red Line Oil
AMA National Enduro Series, pre
-
sented by MSR and Beta Motor-
cycles, and the first-ever enduro
to be held at the location in Cher-
ryville, Missouri, on September 8.
Round eight presented riders
with a 55-mile course. Although
dusty, the temperatures were ideal
for race day. The first three tests
were six miles in length. After that,
racers were gifted a shorter sec
-
tion at 4.5 miles, followed by two
more six-mile sections.
Enduro Engineering's Josh
Toth has dominated the season
with six overall wins, but Steward
Baylor Jr. was not going to let
Toth add to the tally in Missouri.
Baylor started the day by taking
third in the first two tests. The
NE Pro1 rider went on to capture
three test wins and end the day
with a second-place finish in the
final test aboard his Red Bear
Racing Kawasaki. It marked his
first win of the season.
"I knew after that first test that
it was going to take a little bit of
luck catching people at the right
places," Baylor Jr. said. "After
every test—most of us are good
buddies off the track—we were
talking about each section and
where we were getting buried in
the dust. Everybody had the same
stories. It was just one of those
days when it was kind of an equal
playing field, with how dusty it
was. It was definitely tough to
see and tough to predict with the
loose rolling rocks. Missouri and
Oklahoma tracks have treated
me well. It suits my riding style.
You have to stay on your toes
and transfer your weight at the
right times or you'll get in trouble
quick. Overall, it was a good day.
A couple mistakes. Especially,
more than any in the last test.
I thought I threw it away at the
beginning of the last section with
a pretty good crash. After that, I
rode good and nailed my marks.
I've been waiting a long time for
the National enduros. It's been
almost a year [since I won]. It's
been a little frustrating watching
Josh ride away with all of these.
He's been on a mission. To be the
one to stop him, I'm glad I was."
WIND
IN THE
P62
Steward Baylor
Jr. captured his
first enduro win
of the year at the
Flying W National
in Cherryville,
Missouri.
PHOTOS:
MACK FAINT
