Record crowd; many riders take on new track at Wild Wild Rest

Record crowd; many riders take on new track at Wild Wild Rest

May 1, 2001

RONNIE CLARK (no. 1) OF FARMINGTON passes up Derek Candelaria (5) of Bloomfield, N.M., during action in the 250cc Class on Sunday at the Wild Wild Rest track. The redesigned motorcycle motocross track was totally rebuilt only a few days earlier but so far has been a hit with riders and spectators. More than 3,000 people attended the day of racing.

BY JIM THOMAS
Journal Sports Editor

Motorcycle riders and fans alike flocked to the first motocross of the season on Sunday, April 28, at the newly-redesigned track at Wild Wild Rest near Mancos.

Race coordinator and promoter Ray McCarty reported more than 3,000 spectators watched 167 riders from all over the Four Corners compete in the American Motorcycle Association-sanctioned event.

"It was our largest event in five years," McCarty said. "What helped was the weather was great."

Cortez riders dominated the quads race. Scott Schmidlin droves his Yamaha to first place. He started in third and worked his way back to the top spot in the final two trips around the track. Jimmy Wilson of Cortez came in third and Dustin Porter of Cortez and Jerry Baker of Cortez finished fifth and seventh, respectively.

No local riders placed very high in the 80B Class. Talon Rosencrance of Dolores came in seventh. Craig Welch of Lewis took sixth in the 80cc Beginner Class. Rosencrance also placed eighth in the SuperMini I division.

Three Mancos riders and two from Dolores placed in the large 125C Novice Division. John Perry of Dolores finished in sixth after moving all the way from 10th place. Travis Olson of Mancos came in seventh, Kyle Duggan of Mancos took eighth, Kevin Fane of Dolores finished ninth, and Justin Reed of Mancos grabbed 11th in the large field.

Eli Tomac of McElmo Canyon came in first, after going from wire to wire, on his KTM in the SuperMini 60 Class. Adam Nickerson of Dolores came in fifth in that race. A Dolores rider placed fourth and a Mancos rider followed him in the 50A Class. Tyler Underwood of Dolores and Cody Bowen of Mancos were the riders. Nickson came in third in the 60 A Class.

Three Dolores riders - Brandon Thomas, Dillon Rosencrance, and Adrianna Thomas - went one, two, three in the Mini Quads. Dayton Wilson of Mancos rode his Suzuki to a win in the Mini Quads II. Derek Porter of Cortez grabbed second while Tyrun Harris of Lewis took third. Sean Boone of Dolores came in fourth in the Schoolboy Class.

Tomac also started in first and finished in first in the 60B Class. Underwood finished a distant seventh in that event.

In the Vintage Class, Jim Broesma of Mancos went wire to wire on his BulTaco. Walt Buckholtz of Dolores came in third, Mike Petrose of Cortez fourth, and Ray McCarty of Mancos of Mud Creek took fifth.

John Tomac of McElmo Canyon came in fourth in the Open B Amateur Class. Jesse Montoya of Hesperus placed third in the Open C Novice Division. He also came in third in the 250 B Amateur Class.

In the 125A Pro Class, Ronnie Clark of Farmington rode his Kawaski to win. Rodney Clark of Farmington came in second and Billy Swapp of Durango placed third. Ronnie Clark also won the Open A Pro Division. He also grabbed first in the 250 A Pro.

The event was sponsored by the High Desert Club and sanctioned by the American Motorcycle Association-sanctioned races. The races were sponsored by Four Corners Materials, Inc. along with Sinclair Oil Co., Fraley and Company, Inc., and Mancos Fire Department.

More races are also scheduled May 20, June 10, Aug. 19, Sept. 2, and Sept. 30. For more information, phone 533-9747 or 1-800-720-MOTO.