August 21, 2000

This RP Report is slightly different than usual, as the 125 Expert and Schoolboy classes will receive the recognition. The 250 Expert report will return at ACE.

The weather was excellent for the George Popp Memorial Race, and the racing was just as great at the Walden Playboy Motocross Club. Many of the top local riders were on hand, including District 34's #1 plate holder, Kurt McMillen. It was Kurt's 2nd race back this year, and he was determined to prove why he holds the #1 plate. The list of other expert hopefuls included #113 "Mighty" Mike Leavitt, #428 "Jumping" James McNeill, and #729 Mark Wundrack, all of whom were fresh off the Loretta Lynn scene. With that said, we were about to have a great day of racing action in store.

As the green light appeared, and the gate dropped on the 125 Expert class, it was Terry Finkle aboard the J.J. Cassone/Hunter Racing-backed Yamaha with the jump on the field. He was passed in the exit of the 1st turn by the #428 Yamaha of James McNeill, who wanted to get out front and never look back. "Mighty" Mike Leavitt aboard his #113 Kawasaki was right on Finkle's back tire as he tried a different jump combo in the alligator section. Finkle would sinlge-double, while Leavitt would double, single. Leavitt would case the 3rd jump and lose valuable ground. Dave Olsen was behind Leavitt watching all this, waiting for his chance to strike. Mark Wundrack, who has been trying to make almost all the Nationals this season, was in the 5th spot. Darrell Bjorkland, who is making a comeback this season, was running 6th. James McNeill had some problems in the woods section, as he let Finkle and Leavitt by. As they came wide-open over the downhill double, Leavitt inched in front of Finkle. Leavitt took the green flag, followed by Finkle, McNeill, Olsen, and Wundrack. As they came around to the famous alligator section again, it was Leavitt going for the double-single, and this time it proved to be costly, as Finkle was smoother and squeezed by with an inside line. Mark Wundrack was on a mission, as he disposed of Olsen as they came by the pond. Meanwhile, McNeill was putting some serious pressure on Leavitt for 2nd. They both collided and went down entering the turn before the uphill double. Wundrack gladly inherited the 2nd spot, and Dave Olsen moved into 3rd. Leavitt would remount in 7th, McNeill in 8th. It wouldn't take Leavitt long, as he got back into 5th a few corners later. Finkle was riding merrily along out front after the crash, with a comfortable 6 second lead. Leavitt showed everyone what a hard charger he was, as he blitzed passed Bjorkland and Olsen within the course of a lap, taking over 3rd. McNeill was moving up as well, as he got by the #67 Kawasaki of Dan Grimm and Bjorkland. He then used an inside line in the 1st turn to get around Olsen, moving him into 4th spot. With the white flag waving, Finkle still held a 4 second lead on Wundrack, which proved to be too much for Mark to overcome. Finkle would take moto 1 with the big whip over the tabletop, Wundrack would be the bridesmaid in 2nd. The 3rd spot went to Leavitt, who showed style as he did the heel-clicker over the finish line, with James McNeill behind him in 4th. Dave Olsen, the Rock Hill, NY native would take 5th spot, with Darrell Bjorkland on his Suzuki in 6th.

The gate fell on moto 2 of the 125 Expert class, and Mike Leavitt took his cue as he dashed out into the lead. Josh Gelber aboard his #657 Stamford Motorsports-backed Suzuki would hold 2nd, with Dave Olsen running 3rd. Moto 1 winner Terry Finkle would have 4th spot, with Bryan Vroman in 5th. Mark Wundrack would have a horrible start, as he ran towards the back of the pack. Olsen would quickly get around Gelber for 2nd. Then a few corners later, Finkle would blow by Gelber and then take Olsen in the next turn. Running order, Leavitt, Finkle, Olsen, Gelber, with Pat Mahan moving past Vroman into 5th. Leavitt had one thing on his mind and that was to annihilate the field. He gained a few seconds on Finkle as they took the green flag. Wundrack stepped up his game and blasted by Mahan as they cruised down the front straight, he would take the 5th spot. They then headed towards the woods section, as Wundrack would also blitz by Gelber moving himself into 4th. By the time they entered the whoops section, it was Wundrack all over the back tire of Olsen. Then, as he did all race, he bulldozed the whoops and made the pass on Olsen, moving into the 3rd spot. Wundrack was on a mission and it was evident in his riding style. He was letting it all hang out! The woods also proved helpful to Darrell Bjorkland as he got by Mahan for 6th position. Wundrack was still 10 seconds behind Finkle, but his luck was about to change. Finkle seemed to be a step off of the pace as Wundrack reeled him in with every corner. Olsen was still running 4th, with Gelber and Bjorkland behind him. As the white flag came out, Mike Leavitt had the race in his grasp, the same was not to be said for Terry Finkle. He had Wundrack all over him, and as they came down the front stretch, we saw why. Finkle was looking down at the bike, and when he hit the step-up whoops, it was evident that he had a flat sack on the back of his Yamaha. Wundrack scooted by into 2nd, and Finkle was still riding as fast as the bike would let him as he tried to salvage 3rd. Lucky for him it was the last lap. Leavitt was now on cruise control as he took the checkers with a sweet no-footed can-can. Mark Wundrack would finish up in 2nd, with Terry Finkle and his flat rear tire in 3rd. Dave Olsen was 4th, with Josh Gelber in 5th. Those 2 ran close all race, but there was really no passing action. The 6th spot went to Darrell Bjorkland on his Suzuki. Those of you wondering the whereabouts of James McNeill, he broke his thumb and didn't ride the 2nd set of motos.

The overall went to the #113 rider, Mike Leavitt, with his 3-1 moto scores. Had he not gone down in moto one, he could have been perfect on the day. The hard-charging Mark Wundrack would take home 2nd overall via his 2-2 moto finishes. Terry "Flat Tire" Finkle would take home 3rd overall with the 1-3. The consistent Dave Olsen received a 4th overall for his 5-4 performance. Darrell Bjorkland would take home the 5th spot on the day, with his 6-6 rides.

The Schoolboy class contains many top riders that will be the future of motocross. It is time the RP Report gave the 12-15 year olds the credit they deserve. The gate dropped on the 1st moto, with #653 Felix Delmoral out front on his Yamaha. His good friend, James McNeill was in 2nd spot right behind him. The Kawasaki of Tom Lheureux was occupying the 3rd position, with #785 Pat Simpson in 4th spot. Chris Spear on his Yamaha held 5th, with Robert "The Giant" Johnson in 6th spot. Simpson would quickly get around Lheureux, as he is the amateur versus the novice Lheureux. Delmoral had big problems up in the woods section, and as they came out into view, it was James McNeill out in the lead, followed by Pat Simpson in 2nd. Delmoral still held 3rd, with Spear in 4th. Lheureux would begin to fade by the end of lap one, letting Johnson by. Dan McMahon, would move around Lheureux and into the 6th spot. McNeill being the only Expert in the class, would continue to pull away with each lap, while his friend Felix would put some heat on Simpson for the 2nd spot. As the front 3 riders set sail, Dan McMahon had moved up past Johnson, and Chris Spear into 4th position. He was utilizing every bit of power that his 125 machine could put out, as he wound the powerband to the max. He still could not make up any ground on the leaders. Robert Johnson was about 7 seconds off of McMahon's pace in 5th. McNeill came tripling through the whoops section as the white flag was waving. James was still looking smooth as silk as he circulated the track for the final time, he would take the checkers. Delmoral continued to hound Simpson, but to no avail. Simpson would take 2nd, followed very closely by Delmoral. Dan McMahon was all alone in the 4th spot, as he crossed the finish line. Robert Johnson crossed the line in 5th, with early front-runner Tom Lheureux in 6th.

Felix Delmoral took the field into the first turn, with yet another holeshot in the 2nd moto of the Schoolboy class. Chris Spear was running 2nd, with Dan McMahon in 3rd. McMahon was rocking the freshly painted helmet done by JB Grafx, it was looking phat! In 4th spot was Pat Simpson on his Yamaha, with Tom Lheureux behind him. McMahon quickly got by Spear up in the woods section, and Simpson followed suit as well. Running order, Delmoral, McMahon, Simpson, Spear, and Tom Lheureux in 5th spot, starting to fall off the pace. Delmoral was pulling away very slowly from McMahon in the 1st 2 1/2 laps. He was looking to make it his race, then, disaster struck. He had problems once again up in the back section, and as they came out of the woods, Dan McMahon was out in front with Pat Simpson right on his tail. Delmoral was still circulating in the 3rd spot, with Chris Spear running a distant 4th on his Yamaha. Tom Lheureux was passed by #411 Evan Vochis, moving him back into 6th spot. The white flag waived for McMahon, but he had Simpson and Delmoral still all over him. McMahon would show that he is not intimidated at all by pressure. He would take the checkered flag and the win moto 2. Delmoral tried a nice clean block pass entering the whoop section, but Simpson had the outside line and the momentum and motored away. Simpson would take 2nd, with Felix Delmoral a very close 3rd. Quite a ways back in 4th position, was the #67 Yamaha of Chris Spear.

Patrick Simpson proved that he could be consistent in the Schoolboy class, and that is why he took home the overall win with his 2-2 moto scores. Dan McMahon took home 2nd overall via the 4-1 moto finishes that he earned. Dan had one of the nicest helmets in the place, the JB Grafx-painted lid. Felix Delmoral had his problems in the woods section in both motos, but he still took home 3rd overall after finishing 3rd in both motos.

NOTES:

In the Pee-Wee 4-8 Suzuki&Yamaha class, #56 Dominick Guastella would take home the win, with Connor Price on his #75 Yamaha in 2nd. Those 2 riders are battling down to the wire in every moto they enter, in search of that 1st place trophy in the final series points standings.

Jay Weller, the phenom out of Montgomery, NY would take the overall wins in both the Senior Mini, and Super Mini classes. He would sweep all 4 motos to take home the big gold. Does that sound familiar......sweeping of all the classes he entered? OK, so he may not be James Stewart, but he is blazing fast.

Matt Ranum would take home 2nd overall in both the Senior Mini, and Super Mini classes after taking a 2nd in all 4 motos.

Felix Delmoral had trouble in the Schoolboy class, but he went 1-1 for the overall win in the 125 Amateur class. He was followed in both motos by the #785 of Pat Simpson, who took 2nd overall.

Josh Seguine would take home the overall win in the Collegeboy class, with his 1-1 finishes. Pat Mahan would go 4 -3, which was good enough for 2nd overall. Darrell Bjorkland looked almost back into his regular form as he went 7-2 for the 3rd position overall on the day.

The 250 Expert class was won by Mark Wundrack who took moto 1 and followed it up with a 2nd in moto 2. Kurt McMillen went 4-1 for the 2nd spot overall. His lead in moto 2 was HUGE! Mike Leavitt blew up his bike while running in the thick of the action in moto 1, ending his hopes of the overall.

In the +25 Amateur class, the #355 Kawasaki of Mario Gagliardi put a whipping on the field taking the overall with his 1-1 moto finishes. He should be expert very soon.

The +25 Expert class saw "The Veteran" Mike Spear take the overall with a pair of 1st place finishes. Kurt McMillen with the #1 plate on his Yamaha, would take home 2nd overall via 2-2 finishes.

The Quad Expert class was won by Pete Carlotto with his 2-1 moto finishes.

The +30 Expert class was won by Kurt McMillen, taking the 1-1 finishes. Mike Spear was less fortunate in this class as he took home 2nd overall with the 2-2.

In the +40 Amateur class, Rocky Cassone would take home 1st place honors with the 1-1 performance that he turned in.

In the +40 Expert class.......guess who won? You guessed it, the #1 machine of "Papa" Joe Fritz aboard his YZF 426 machine. Joe would win both motos with ease. Tommy "Gunz" Hall would go 2-2, en route to his 2nd overall performance.

What will the next District 34 race at ACE Motocross bring, probably some more great racing action. Walden will be holding a Supercross race on the Junior Pro track on Saturday, September 2nd. Be there by 12 p.m., as practice starts at 1 p.m. and the heats begin at 2 p.m. Admission will only be $5 per person, so if you have friends that want to see a race, now is the time to get them there cheap!

Just want everyone to know that there is going to be a raffle going on in the district. The raffle winner will receive a custom painted helmet by Justin Barnes' of JB Grafx. The raffle will benefit Kirk Layfield, a fellow motocross writer of mine who had a terrible crash and mangled his jaw and knocked out several of his teeth. He had to have reconstructive jaw surgery, and has many years of dental work ahead. Kirk's hospital and dental bills will run him well into the 10's of thousands. We all need to pull together to help him, he is a great guy! Details and tickets will be available at all District 34 events. They will go on sale on the 2nd of September at Walden's SX race.

Next week I am off to Broome-Tioga for the National. I will be doing a series of interviews with the Team Yamaha of Troy riders. (Stephane Roncada, Ernesto Fonseca, Casey Johnson, and Justin Buckelew) The interviews will be posted on the Yamaha of Troy web-site. It should be very exciting, and I will be sure to take plenty of pictures of the guys, to post on the various web-sites that I write for. I will also keep track of how some of the local boys do up there. Good Luck to all the locals who are going to Broome to do battle, in Amateur day, as well as Pro day!