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/1546134
C Y C L E N E W S • AUGUST 16, 2006 9 KTM rider Russell Bobbitt moved another step closer to winning his first AMA National Enduro title by winning the Buzzard's MC Mosquito Classic National Enduro in Harrison, Michigan, August 6. Bobbitt, the 20-year-old from Fayetteville, Georgia, cruised to an easy win by carding a 38, while second- and third-place finishers, Yamaha's Barry Hawk and KTM rider Stephen Edmondson, tallied scores of 40 and 41, respectively. This makes Bobbitts' third-consecutive win in the 11-round AMA National Enduro Series, ever since defending National Champion Mike Lafferty (KTM) hurt his knee last month in Ohio. "I just tried to ride consistent and stay out of trouble," Bobbitt said. "I went down a couple of times in one section and that hurt my score a little, but I didn't have any problems the rest of the day." Bobbitt either tied or won seven out of the enduro's eight special tests, only giving up one tie-breaker to Edmondson, who bested Bobbitt by just three seconds in that test. GNCC regular Hawk also had a good day, finishing just off of Bobbitt's pace. "Bobbitt just plain beat me, straight up," Hawk said. "I have no excuses. I had a little trouble in the first test, where I got held up by a slower rider. Even if I could have made up two min- utes [on Bobbitt], he still would of beat me on tie-breakers." KTM rider Robbie Jenks and Yamaha-mounted Blair Bersano round- ed out the top five overall. Bobbbit now holds a 31-point lead over Edmondson, with three enduros to go. Russell Bobbitt stretched out his points lead with a win at the Mosquito Classic National Enduro in Harrison, Ohio. Pridmore To U.S. Amateur Michael Jordan Motorsports' Jason Pridmore qualified to play in the U.S. Open Amateur Golf Championship after shooting a 75/67 at the Hacienda Country Club in California, July 29-30. Golfers from around the world qualify for the prestigious tourna- ment in anywhere from five to 10 qualifying tournaments per state with 85-100 golfers taking part in those individual tournaments. "In the morning I shot 75 and I was a little bummed by that because I knew we were playing a difficult golf course," Pridmore said. "In the afternoon I shot a 67 without making any bogeys - six birdies and the rest pars, and I qualified for the U.S. Amateur." The tournament will be held the week after the Virginia International Raceway round of the AMA Superbike Championship, with Pridmore flying to Minnesota directly after the race to start playing on Monday, August 21. The tournament will take pace at the Hazeltine Country Club. "It's, without question, the biggest athletic accomplishment of my life," Pridmore said of qualifying. "I never thought I'd qualify for the U.S. Amateur. The first two days are stroke play and then they take the top 64 guys and they match play from there on out. From Wednesday on, it's match play. It's going to be neat. On Tuesday here in Ohio, I'm supposed to try and qualify for the United States Mid Amateur, which is for guys 25 and over. I came close to that last year, but the U.S. Amateur is a lot, lot tougher. For me to be a part of that, it's pretty cool, I think. We'll see what happens." Pridmore teamed up with Mat Mladin to win the annual pre-Mid-Ohio golf tournament at the Turtle Golf Club in Westerville, Ohio, the Thursday before the race as part of a media event held in conjunction with the AMA Superbike race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. Mladin also won the longest-drive part of the tourney, while Pridmore won the closest-to-the-pin contest. Paul Carruthers Bobbitt Wins Harrison National Enduro M otocross legend Jim Pomeroy died in an auto- mobile accident on Sunday, August 6, while driving near Tampico, Washington, just west of his home in Yakima. He was 53. The AMA reports that, according to the Washington State Patrol, Pomeroy was driving his 1979 Jeep CJ5 with his 9-year-old daughter, Jamie, Sunday morning. He crashed about 15 miles west of Yakima when his Jeep struck a telephone-pole wire and flipped onto its side. Pomeroy died at the scene. His daughter sustained minor injures and was treated and released from Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital. Pomeroy was one of the early stars of American motocross. His victory in the Spanish 250cc Motocross Grand Prix in Barcelona in the spring of 1973 made him the first American ever to win a Grand Prix Motocross. Equally impressive was the fact that Pomeroy was the first rider to win a Grand Prix in his debut. After the victory, Bultaco quickly signed him to race in the Grand Prix series. He went on to finish a seventh in the 250cc World Championship that season. To look at his early American record, one would not have guessed that Pomeroy would become one of America's elite motocross competitors. He'd won only a single AMA Motocross National, the 250cc outdoor National at Saddleback Park in Irvine, California, in May of 1972, before earning his stunning international victory. Pomeroy's victory in Spain was one of the major milestones in American motocross history and it helped American riders gain newfound respect in the sport, which up to then, had been dominated by Europeans. In 1974 Pomeroy was the top-ranked American (fourth) in the Trans-AMA Series. Other notable wins included being the first rider to win an indoor Supercross race when he scored victory in the Houston Astrodome in March of 1974. Pomeroy also won a Trans-AMA race in Gainesville, Georgia, in September of 1975. Pomeroy represented the United States as part of the American Motocross des Nations team in 1972, 1974 and 1975. He was the top-scoring American on the team, which finished second in 1974, along with teammates Brad Lackey, Tony DiStefano and Jim Weinert. Always a fan favorite, Pomeroy was honored with selection as the AMA Most Popular Motocross rider award in 1973. Pomeroy came from a motorcycle-rac- ing family. His father, Don, was a successful racer in the 1950s and '60s. His younger brother, Ron, was also a nationally ranked motocross rider. Pomeroy retired from professional racing in 1980. He was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999. Larry Lawrence Jim Pomeroy 1952-2006 PHOTO BY BILL GRUBIN Jim Pomeroy was the first American to win a World Championship motocross race. Jason Pridmore PHOTO BY BRIAN J. NELSON