Oliveira Wins Desert Devotional
Hare & Hound
R
ound five of the National
Hare & Hound Championship,
presented by FMF, took place on
Saturday, May 16, at the Little
Sahara OHV Area near Jericho,
Utah, where FMF/KTM's Dante
Oliveira claimed the overall win
by just over a minute ahead of
Beta's Zane Roberts. Oliveira
has won all five rounds to date,
extending his championship lead
to 25 over Roberts.
The race consisted of two 40-
mile loops, starting racers in deep
sand dunes that quickly gave way
to silty trails leading up and down
desert sagebrush-covered hills.
The single-day event drew an
excellent turnout, with nearly 300
racers lining up at the iconic bomb
run. Dust was certainly a factor,
and racers who finished were cov
-
ered head to toe by the time they
crossed the finish line.
Oliveira finished out his race in
just over three hours. Rounding
out the Pro podium was Norman
Racing Husqvarna rider Daemon
Woolslayer.
"I got off the jump great and
into the dunes, had a pretty good
straight line," Oliveira said. "I
went bar-to-bar with Daemon for
the next three or so miles. He
passed me, and I got him back
pretty quickly, then put my head
down and charged forward. I
didn't want to be eating dust, so I
pushed to keep my gap."
Oliveira was unable to attend
the after-race celebration. His bike
was already loaded so he could
drive straight to Glen Helen Race
-
way for an NGPC the next day.
"I feel good right now heading
out to the GP, but we'll see how I
feel in a couple hours," he said.
"Either way, I am ready to go
hammer down tomorrow!"
Roberts started the race in
fourth but would work his way
WIND
IN THE
P44
Dante Oliveira
kept his perfect
record going in
the AMA Hare &
Hound National
Championship after
taking the overall
win at Jericho.
PHOTOS: MARY RINELL/
MJSMOTOPHOTOS
