IN
THE
WIND
P30
RUSSELL WINS WILD BOAR GNCC
I
t was another tough battle for
Kailub Russell at the Moose
Racing Wild Boar GNCC, but
this time, he got the result
he was looking for, unlike the
second-place finish he had to
settle for at the season opener
just one week earlier. In the wet
sand of Palatka, Florida, March
12, on the grounds of the Rod-
man Plantation, Russell fought
tooth and nail with long-time rival
Thad Duvall right down to the
bitter end, with Russell, on the
FMF KTM, squeaking out the
victory with just two seconds to
spare over Duvall on the Rock-
star Energy Factory Husqvarna.
Last week in South Carolina,
Russell came out on the short
end of the stick after battling
with Steward Baylor, who, this
week, got off to a bad start and
was able to climb no higher than
third, which was a satisfying
result for him when you consider
that he was ninth after the first
lap of what would be a six-lap
race.
Round two saw the same
rider emerge victorious in the
XC2 250 Pro class. Josh Toth
was once again flying on the N-
Fab AmPro Yamaha and crossed
the finish line in sixth overall for
the class win; just eight seconds
behind him was second-in-class
Craig DeLong on the Coastal
Racing Husqvarna and a few
minutes behind DeLong came
his teammate Layne Michael in
third.
Rain played a factor in this,
though it started off looking
dry, which caught some of the
riders, including Russell, off
guard. Russell got off to a fast
start and led the way, but the
skies opened up not long after
the green flagged waved. Hav-
ing chosen to go with tear-offs
rather than roll-offs, Russell
eventually had a hard time see-
ing and blew a turn, costing him
a number of positions. Ricky
Russell held the lead after the
first lap, with Kailub Russell
dropping back to third. Ryan
Sipes, on the Coastal Racing
Husqvarna, was second, 16
seconds behind the new leader.
Duvall was fourth, right behind
Kailub Russell.
Kailub Russell
worked hard
for the win
on a wet day
in Palatka,
Florida.
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
KEN
HILL
