Cycle News

VOL. 52 ISSUE 12 MARCH 24, 2015 P77 champion—and Colton Haaker each won their respective heat races after great starts and fast, consistent rides. And when those two are feeling comfort- able, nothing is going to come easy for everyone else. Webb was coming into Utah full of confidence. After a full off- season of international competi- tion on the SuperEnduro circuit in Europe, the FMF/RPM/KTM Team Maxxis top gun was on pace all evening and his factory- supported KTM 300 two-stroke sounded mean in Utah. Carrying the number-one plate from 2014 and holding the early season points lead after a round-one victory in Daytona are even more reasons he was considered a favorite. Haaker was pinging high on the win radar, as well. The Rockstar/Lucas Oil/Husqvarna Factory pilot gutted out a second place at round one in Daytona with injuries. In Utah, Haaker was more healed and healthier than round one and plenty fast leading up to the main. While there were three fastest riders on the track before the gate dropped, EnduroCross didn't really care. It's convinced unpredictability is just part of the course. The track was fast, yes. Obstacles weren't stopping or slowing riders as much as other tracks, sure. The start was going to be very important and more than one top rider commented that riding was going to get physical as the pace was going to be high. Starts were going to be important. All of this was true. Mike Brown blasted out of his gate pick and launched over the first-turn fallen tree. Right on his heels were Haaker and Webb—focused and determined to put a wheel in and push to the front as fast as possible. A clear track was money in the bank and if you could sprint, now was the time. Get out front, fast, and let the others play bumper bikes. This worked well for Brown. Not so much for the other guys. In the second corner Webb had the inside. Haaker wanted the line and went for it. The number-one plate didn't back off. Haaker really wanted the line. Webb really didn't back off. They both went down and nearly the entire Pro main event pack behind them compressed into and, some, on top of them. Webb clearly had it worse—his bike buried and too many hungry riders pushing on to get away cleanly. He'd start his race last or close enough to last to call it that. Haaker didn't exactly blitz out of the pile-up, but was up and running in the top 10 when the dust cleared. Brown felt the lack of pres- sure and hit the afterburners. He knew now was the time to go and go hard. Behind him, Fac- tory Beta's Max Gerston took his Stillwell Performance-tuned two- stroke into second place for the ride of his young career. In third, recently crowned SuperEnduro Junior World Champion Ty Briefly... While the Pro Main event gener- ally steals the show at EnduroCross rounds, the Women's class certainly holds its own. In Utah, the Women's class battle was epic. Spaniard San- dra Gomez looked to be the fastest throughout all of the practices and day riding. Her incredibly high skill level aboard her Husqvarna 125 is impressive. However, the main event looked like a bad dream for Gomez quickly as she went down on the first-turn tree and was slow to restart the race. Meanwhile, Beta's Mor- gan Tanke took the early lead with 2014 champion Lexi Pechout on her heels. Three turns later, Pechout had the lead with Shelby Turner in tow and Tanke following closely. Soon after that, Tanke moved past a down Turner in the rocks and it looked like Pechout would take the win. The second half of the race got very dicey as Gomez moved through the pack back into the second po- sition as Pechout fell back. Tanke would lead most of the race but on the second-to-last corner, Gomez made an aggressive move—coming into contact with Tanke, resulting in her going down. Gomez would take the win followed by a recovering Pechout and Turner. Tanke would finish fourth, holding her wrist. Of all the support classes available to the public to enter, practice, qual- ify for and race, you'd think the 35+ class would be the most reasonable and civilized of the bunch. Not so much. The start scenario ensued shortly after the gate drop with this bunch of rabid racers that can only be described as mayhem. The first- turn obstacle collected a gaggle of Vet-class racers leaving steady-as- ever Utah local Rich Black as nearly continued on next page

• Cover