IN
THE
WIND
P36
BARNES BATTERS OMA
BUSHWACKER XC
R
ound three of the OMA Pro-
Am Nationals in Newark, Mis-
souri, June 16-17, was a scorcher
for the Bushwacker XC. Histori-
cally, the Robert Miller land on
which the race takes place has
been wet and sloppy when the
OMA visits, but this year it was
hot, humid and very dry. Tem-
peratures near 95°F and high
humidity made for a heat index
of over 100°F, and many racers
were feeling it. Nearly one-third
of the field completed less than
four laps of the grueling six-and-
a-half-mile course, while the top
18 riders managed a tally of six
laps in just over an hour and 45
minutes, a race time shortened
due to the heat.
Cody Barnes (Yamaha/
Moose) took the checkers at
one hour, 41minutes, to collect
his third consecutive victory this
season. Cole Zuidema (KTM/
Moose) held on for second
place, finishing at one hour, 46
minutes while Zach Sulzberger
(Yamaha) completed the podium
with third place at one-hour, 47
minutes.
Barnes said, "I got off to a
good start. Me and Cole [Zuide-
ma] kind of swapped positions,
back and forth, in one of the
newer sections. I knew the track
was dusty and dry. Once me and
him started going at it, I was able
to get around him and kind of
used the dust to my advantage.
He kind of backed down, and I
was able to have a good race."
According to Barnes, "the
track was good. It was really
hard, so you had to careful. I
think the track had a good flow.
It was fast. It was fun, a lot of
logs and stuff, so it was a good
day.
"Today was one of the hotter
ones I've raced this year. Later
on in the race it was a little bit
more challenging because of the
heat. A lot more people started
making more mistakes. Every-
one was getting tired."
Top A-class rider was Owen
Liechti in seventh overall. He
finished just ahead of class
runner-up Tyler Fleck who was
eighth overall.
John Gasso
OVERALL
1. Cody Barnes (Yam)
2. Colten Zuidema (KTM)
3. Zach Sukzberger (Yam)
4. Dylan Voss (Yam)
5. Dalton Brough (Hon)
6. Bryan Johnson (Kaw)
7. Owen Liechti (KTM)
8. Tyler Fleck (KTM)
9. Rylan Frankford (KTM)
10. David Stickel (KTM)
Cody Barnes
survived the heat
and humidity in
Missouri to win the
OMA Bushwacker
Cross Country.
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
JOHN
GASSO
