J
ohnny Campbell Racing
(JCR) Honda's Ricky Brabec
was one of several unfortunate
riders to hit the deck at the So
Cal National Hare & Hound,
round four of the Kenda/SRT
AMA Hare & Hound National
Championship Series, April 30.
Unlike many of them, however,
Brabec's crash near the end
of the three-loop, 101-mile race
off Bessemer Mine Road at the
Johnson Valley Off-Highway Ve-
hicle (OHV) Area didn't prevent
the reigning series champ from
picking himself up and winning
his third race of the series to
extend his points lead.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna's
Jacob Argubright finished
second—his best series finish
so far this season—to solidify
third in points at 80, unofficially,
while Purvines DA8 Racing
Yamaha-mounted Gary Sutherlin
achieved his goal of a podium
finish after a big crash at last
week's WORCS race, his third
place keeping him second in
points behind Brabec, 115-97.
The So Cal Motorcycle Club
laid out loops of 40, 40 and 21
miles, each more technical and
demanding, as Nationals tend
to be.
Off the start, SRT Yamaha's
Ryan Smith and FMF KTM
Factory Off-road Racing Team's
Taylor Robert battled for the lead
with Smith owning the better line
after the bomb on his Kenda/
TBT Racing/O'Neal-sponsored
YZ450FX. It was short-lived,
though, with Brabec powering
past after about five fast miles
aboard his Lucas Oil/Pro Cir-
cuit/Fly Racing CRF450X. (He
tested both the X and his 2017
CRF450RX on Saturday, but he
didn't feel the new bike's tank
would guarantee going 40 miles.
He looks forward to getting
a bigger aftermarket fuel cell
before long.)
"Loop two was actually
more technical than the third, I
thought," Brabec said. "I wasn't
IN
THE
WIND
P32
BRABEC
TOPS SO CAL
NATIONAL
HARE & HOUND
