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/1545207
Whipple Wins The Moose Run B eta support rider Tanner Whipple may not compete in the MXC Racing series full- time, but he (and several others) couldn't resist making the trip to the Illinois woods and cornfields of rural Fenton for the Moose Run, presented by Moose Rac - ing. While not an annual event on the MXC calendar like The Race in the fall (which has occasion- ally been known as the Moose Run), the springtime version often proved to be the most challenging round of the series because the cornfields were freshly planted and thus off- limits. While the lanes along the edges and the waterways in the lower sections were available for riders to take brief breaks and give top gear some use, promot - er Bill Gusse would throw them into a section of tight woods at the earliest opportunity. This year, however, the trails he laid out there proved more flowy and somewhat less technical—many actually deem- ing them fun, especially with the nearly perfect dirt in those woods. It suited AMA District 17 Hare Scrambles champ and multi- time ISDE medalist Whipple just fine as he led nearly the entire two-hour race, co-sanctioned with the Iowa Enduro Riders Association (IERA). In the end, Champion Brick KTM-mounted Tobin Miller proved to be the only one able to hang with Whipple, though a minor crash in the later stages and a last-lap pit stop for a splash to guarantee the finish opened the gap to just over a minute. They were the only ones to complete nine laps of the roughly six-mile course, with Kade Heilman earning third on his KTM. Whipple took control early, grabbing the holeshot on his D&W Cycles/G2 Ergonomics/ FXR-backed 300 RR, with Heil - man, Colt Converse, Miller and the rest of the AA line following closely. But it wasn't long before Whipple, Miller and Heilman broke away from the rest of the pack, the only change being when Miller passed Whipple in the pits—a change that lasted only a couple of miles. "It was just kind of a yo-yo all day between me and [Miller]," Whipple said. "I was leading for most of it, but I would get a gap, then he would be right on me, just kind of back and forth. WIND IN THE P38 Tanner Whipple (29) nabbed the holeshot and stayed out front for most of the two-hour Moose Run to take home the bulk of the $3000 purse. PHOTOS: MARK KARIYA