VOLUME ISSUE JANUARY , P81
WORDS AND PHOTOGRAPHY
BY MARK KARIYA
L
iqui Moly Beta's Zane Roberts
began his title defense in the
most convincing manner pos
-
sible as he annihilated all comers at
the Desert Motorcycle Club's (DMC)
58th annual Winter Classic Hare &
Hound, round one of the AMA Hare
& Hound National Championship
Series, Presented by FMF.
Leading from shortly after the
bomb, he and his Bridgestone/
FMF/Klim-backed 480 RR bested
runner-up Dante Oliveria by an
astounding eight minutes and 10
seconds, with the FMF KTM Fac
-
tory Off-Road Racing Team star
two minutes and 20 seconds ahead
of third overall and Pro 250 winner
Sam Pretscherer.
"I knew I was capable of win
-
ning today; I knew the bike was in a
good spot," Roberts said. "I definite-
ly thought I'd land on the podium,
but I didn't expect to ride quite
that well! The bike was just good
today, and I got a good start, which
helped. I passed Dalton Shirey into
the lead quickly, and it got techni
-
cal right off the bat, which was
good for me because I just like the
technical stuff. That helped me get
a gap there at the beginning. I defi-
nitely think I was riding with more
intensity, but it just was comfort-
able at that pace."
ROMPS
