no way that I could hold on to
them. I just kind of stuck to my
plan, which was just try to keep
it in control the first hour, then if
I have anything, try to chip away
the second hour. They were so
far gone, I didn't think there was
any chance, but..."
Indeed, after his rabbit-quick
start in pursuit of Redondi,
Oliveira and his Red Bull/Mo-
torex/Alpinestars-sponsored
KTM 350 XC-F were only a few
seconds back early but just
couldn't stay with the Italian, who
stayed smooth and upright the
whole way.
"It wasn't a plan to settle
down, but I hit a wall pretty
bad," Oliveira said. "Luckily, I got
some fluids in me, and I came
back around the last two laps.
Definitely a bummer day; I feel
it could've been a lot better, but
we'll take a third, I guess."
After chasing local ace Cody
Simpson (who actually works at
Glen Helen and had lots of sup
-
port from trackside staff), Sam
Pretscherer passed for the Pro
250 lead and held it to the end,
claiming fourth overall aboard
his Ty Renshaw-prepped Preci-
sion Concepts/ Ame Grips/ EKS
Brand Goggles-backed Husqvar-
na FC 250. It was the WHS debut
for the man who's dominated
the Pro 250s in the AMA Hare &
Hound National Championship
Series.
Having spent the summer
break back home in Australia,
where it's winter, he had no
chance to acclimate to the heat
and quipped, "I had no expecta-
tions; just come out and try to
get through the heat, to be hon-
est. That was my main goal: not
die!"
Sherco FactoryOne's Layton
Smail and FMF/RPM Racing
KTM rider Jaden Dahners were
second and third, respectively,
with Smail adding to his class
points lead over Dahners, 110-
101.
Dustyn Davis, who spends a
lot of time racing at Glen Helen,
but in other disciplines, adapted
quickly to the diverse seven-mile
WIND
IN THE
P46
Aussie Sam
Pretscherer claimed
fourth overall, followed
by Pro 250 points
leader Layton Smail
and Jaden Dahners.
