Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

D.rrke counry F.ri"grounds (;roonville, OH DIRT TRACK thinking. I don't know if lwas thinkinS that I was ,ust gqing to blast on the outside of him or what. I made some mistakes and about threw it away in turn one - my hel- met was almost rubbing the front tire." By the halfway mark the race looked to have settled down, as the riders fought the track as much as their fellow competi- tors with lines throuSh the deep turns varying wildly: Mees, riding from the mid- dle to the top; Schnabel musclinS throuSh the cushion; and Kopp trling to make the somewhat smooth€r bottom work. Pearson was a solid fourth, challenging the hay bales on both ends o{ the track. Quality Checked Certifi ed Pre-Owned Ford's Chris Carr started to challenge Evans and he dropped him yet another spot down the order on the l3th lap, It took Roeder three laps to catch up rhe rear of rhe lleld and he began to slice and dice his way to the front. By lap 18 Roeder had moved from lTth to seventh, but that was to be his last lap as he got off hard in turn three, bringing out the red flag and setting up a sjx-lap dash. "Ever/ since I got hurt I haven't been able to train or anythinS for a couple weeks." Kopp said- ''l've just been trying to relax and rest myself up, The cushion beat me up more than I thought it was going to. Halfway into the National my arms were pumped up, I was iust trying to survive. then the red flag came out." Roeder was unable to make the restart and joined Smith, Logan Myers and Steve l"lurray on the sidelines as attrition was taking a heavy toll. Kopp nailed the restart and moved from third to the lead by turn one. Mees, Pearson and Schnabel were right behind when Pearson also got off in turn three, brinSinS out the second red flag. "l was kind of bummed on the second restart and was hoping that I could do it a8ain," said Kopp. "l wasn't sure I was going to be able to because we were so close off the restart. Jared [Mees] and I were so close that I barely got him that time. I iust told mfself to get to turn one first and I could win this race. I iust put in some real smooth laps for four or five laps. I got a decent little lead on him and that's what carried me in I guess." The race would once again be restart- ed with six laps remaining. Kopp made it two for two in the restart depanment and left Mees to fend off Schnabel. "The restarts hun us a little bit lthink," said l'4ees. 'Joe had a really good line coming off the start finish line - he had a really good direct line. That's where he was eating me up at. He got out in front of me and that's the way it was. I couldn't do nothin8 about it. His bike was working really well with the dr/ stuff. Mine wasn't working that well with the dry stuff," Mees was unable to mount any great challenge of Kopp, but suddenly Carr was all over Schnabel, though Schnabel was able to hold on to the last podium spot. "l didn't get the best restart." Schnabel said. "Then we had another restaft and that one worked out okay. I actually got by Jared using a low line and he got me right back. I'm so frustrated because ljust kept taking it in harder and harder into the corners thinking I was going to be okay. lf I could have got it in there and iust turned, but it was iust too deep of a cush- ion to turn. I couldn't get the thing to turn any more, and Chris [Carr] almost got me. On the last lap I got around and just rolled in it and gassed it out, and it was my didn't set too many wheels wrong. ln the main event when I was in third, I was tryinS to do the Joe Kopp thing. I was searchinS riSht on the boftom. I really screwed up the far end. I was doing okay in one and two, but I was losing a lot in three and four. \y'y'hen a couple guys got me, I started moving out and stayed there and kind of held my own." Harley-Davidson Motor Company/ Screamin' Eagle's Kenny Coolbeth strug- gled along in seventh over American Suzuki/Parts Unlimited's Jake .lohnson, Coziahr Harley-Davidson/ National Cycle's Johnny Murphree, Harley- Davidson of Wausau/Advanced Wall Systems' Willie l*4cCoy and the remount- ed Pearson. Re8gie Amos Custom Homes' Tim Eades was the last rider on the lead lap as Kiesow Racing/Gutterridge Harley- Davidson's Chris Hart was the last bike still running. Eaken Racing/Dick Ford/Mike Meyer's Ricky Harshall, Roeder, Halls Cycles/ Husqvarna USAs Steve Murray and Motorcyclists PosVBruce Transportation's Logan Hyers all failed to linish. Cl{ DARXE CouNrY FarRGRouNDs GrEENuru, OHro REsuLrs: JULY 22, 2006 (RouND 7 or 12) I,R. Schnabel was also somewhat drsap- pointed with his podium finish. "The niSht should have been befter. I made mis- takes," said Schnabel. "l didn't get the best start - I think I was sixth or something. I rolled up and ended up tettin8 a third. Jared l'leesl and IJoel Kopp had quite a lead. I was able ro reel lhem in\ - I caughr them pretty quick. I was real happy with how I caught them. That was my best five laps of the race. Once I 8ot into third and just (atching those guys, I made some real- ly Sood l+s, They were kind of battlinS so it helped me 8et up on them. I settled down a lit(le bit and Jared had a litrle gap. We were going and we had six laps left. I think he had enough of a tap that I \ /asn't going to be able to do anythint with him. I had a good gap on Joe. I figured this [sec- ond] is what we 8ot. I made some mis- takes and then the red lithts came on and I thought, 'Well maybe we've got a shot here.'Joe Kopp and Jared Mees, whet a hell of a ride they had. This is a tough and physical tra.k and those guys really put ir on tonight. lt felt 8ood. This is our fifth podium of the year - we've been havint a stronS season. I think part of our success on rhe cwins is Babe [DeMay]. Ihis is our fourth year together. He knows what I like, and he's doinS a great job setting up the bikes. l'm starting to learn how to ride the twins; it's a different rading style. lt has taken me a long time, but I think l'm slow- ly figuring it out a little bit." loe Kopp wa: happy, verT happy. "The first win [of 2006] feels realt good. This is more ex.iting than quite a few oI them [wins] actually," said Kopp. 'l thoutht with six laps to Eo. 'l can do it for six laps.' I like starting on these cushion tracks - I had a nice rut to line up in. I think the bottom three-quarters of the tmck wa5 abou! the same down-low skidd€q/ as last year. The top quarter wes a little deeper this ),ear. I stayed out of the deep stuff I saw so many guys like Schn' abel iust bouncint everywhere. I know on a cushion track, that a consistent lap is what gets you there in the end. You can do a couple hard laps up top and it's going to wear you out more than ary,thing. l'm just skiddinS around the bottom. That s how l've won a lot ofthese cushion track. lt's scary because the bonzai guys are up there bouncing around on the cushion. l've got an odd style out here. I know I have a weird style for curhion ridint, but it seems to work. The stans are the big key and I get good s[ans usually on a cushion, that's what won me the race toni8ht. We're inching up in the pointi now. We were 3o-somethinS points out a couple ofweeks ago. We don't wanr ro look at the poanrs, but hey - I look at the points - yoo've 8ot to with on\/ five races left. We're going after it- We're rolling good. We've got a second and a first goinS into Hagers(own where we won last year." AMA Ford Qualitg Checked Flat Track Championship best lap. lshould have just done that the whole last part of the race. I wish I would have known that about live laps earlier, it might have been a liftle diflerent." "l restarted the last start in fourth and got fourth," said Carr. ''l had a shot at thirdiJ.R. kept makinS mistakes. I came up alongside of him going for the white flag and he ran a really Eood last lap- He bon- zaied into one ard two and got a liftle bit away from me. He didn't make the mistakes he was making in three and four earlier, that had allowed me to catch him. He had a better last lap than I did. I wasn't going to go berserk to beat him." Honda Pro Oils/Arai/TCR/Leo Vince's Nick Cummings made the most of the restarts, movinS from l0th to fifth and leaving Evans to come home in sixth. "l took the sale route, l'm telling you," said Evans, "l was seein8 guys iumping off left, right and center. I ConJinucd frcm poge 5l Briefly... 52 AUGU5T 2,2006 . CYCLE NEWS HEAT I (l0 Lp3; ll ridcE, r.D ahre. ransfer): l. Ired rlees (H-O): 2. Chns Evan! (H O)i 3. wllie rlccoy (H-D);4. Kenn, C@lbeth (H'D): s.Johnny Murphre (H- D)i6.loe Hanrich (H-o)r 7. shen claft (H-D): 8. Jethro Halben (H-D)i 9. Gary Ros.B (H-D)r I 0. losh Tounse$ (H- D)i I l. Dous Lawen.e (H-D). Tih.:4 min.. :l1.576 sec. XEAT 2 (lO hFi ll rid.B, top thrcc tnnfcr): l. loe Kopp (H-D)i 2. Nick Cumminss (H-o)j l.lakeJohnson (suz): 4. Ge Roeder (8-D); s. sto!€ Hu.ay (H'o); 6. Nichole ch% (H oJi 7. Ken Yoder (H,O)i8. Scon Srump (H O)i 9. Henry \Mles (&r); 10. Dominic B€aul& (H-o): I I Ba(n w@d (H-D). Timor4 min..18.603 *.. HEAT I (lO l.ps; I I rideE, top three trffifer): I l.R. schnaber (H-D)i 1. Tin Edes (H D)i L L%an Mye6 (H-D)i4. Rick/ l'laBhall(H-O)r 5. Chris Hart (H-D)i6. tuch Kins (H-D)r 7 Sam Halben (H-D): 8.16r Roeder (l-l D)r r. {o I ,^) i#l I , t Nick Cummiogs (22) olro gove Corr o rc.e but ,iniihed right behind the ie.iei poinls leoder in {ifth. Round 7 t.rly 22, 2OOG

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