Extreme
Dirt Track
DURO ATVA Nationals
Round #4 - Ashtabula, Ohio
Pine Lake - Fischer Cycle
July 21-22, 2007
|
Photos
By: Darin Wentz |
Pro & Pro-Am
ATV Race Report
| ATVA
Extreme Dirt Track
Round #4 - Links |
|
|
|
|
|
Ashtabula, OH - The 2007 ATVA Duro Extreme
Dirt Track Nationals has reached the half-way point of
the season with Round 4 held in Ashtabula, OH at the beautiful
Pine Lake Raceway, which has been hosting racing events
since 1969 when they started racing 6 wheelers. Pine Lake
Raceway is owned and operated by the Fischer family of
Fischer Cycle Racing, and the raceway is only used one
time a year for the EDT National, which attracts the largest
attendance of the series with nearly 400 race entries.
The Extreme Dirt Track Series, formerly called TT, has
been racing for 22 years according to ATVA director Doug
Morris, “and Pine Lake has been part of the series
each year”.
The Pine Lake event attracts a large crowd of spectators
locally and from the surrounding communities. Also,
the local volunteer fire fighters do all the flagging
and also operate the concessions as a fund raising event,
while some of the tracks neighbors provide the riders
with breakfast on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
Pine Lake is the only stop of the series without lights
making it into a three day event with Friday practice,
Saturday heat racing, and the main events on Sunday.
After rain has shortened the event at Pine Lake each
of the last two years, Promoter Bud Fischer was glad
to see the sunny skies all weekend as the weather was
perfect with temperatures in the low to mid seventies.
|
|
|
KTM covered hay
bails lined the track through a series of turns
to provide some additional passing opportunities
|
Local volunteer
Fire fighters providing the flagging at Pine
Lake and also operate a concession stand for
fund raising
|
The exciting track offered the riders a long straightaway
leading into a big sweeping turn off the start, and
for the first time, a split lane was added to for additional
passing opportunities. After coming out of the sweeper
and into a right hand turn the riders were split going
over the table top until the hard left hand turn leading
into the polish hill. The polish hill is followed by
hard right and left hand turns leading into Pine Lake’s
signature bowl that sends the riders back into the straight.
The Pro class was once again stacked with 26 entries,
which would need to be narrowed down to the fastest
20 for the Pro Main Event. The riders were split into
two heats of 9 each and one heat of 8 riders all with
a front row position. The first two heats saw the winners
jump out early and never give up the lead. Pro Points
leader, Harold Goodman, won the first heat followed
by Frank Batista and Danny McGraw. In the second heat,
it was Shane Hitt followed by Darin Ogden and Brad Riley.
|
|
|
#708 Harold Goodman
|
#5 Shane Hitt
|
In the final heat Michael Coburn grabbed the Holeshot
followed by Mitch Reynolds and Chuckie Creech. The back
of the pack got tangled up at the end of the sweeper
with Chad Winfrey and Zach Stanley going for a tumble,
which forced a red flag and the race was restarted.
The second time around it was to Reynolds advantage
as he took the Holeshot in front of Creech, while Coburn
settled in the third spot. Reynolds stayed out front
and posted the fastest qualifying time of the three
heat races giving him the first choice on the line for
the Pro Main. Creech and Coburn followed in second and
third at the checkered flag.
|
|
|
#137 Mitch Reynolds
& #25 Chuckie Creech battling for the lead
in the third heat with Reynolds recording the
fastest Heat Race time
|
#038 Michael Coburn
grabbed the intial Holeshot, but the restart
didn't go as well and Coburn settled into the
third spot behind Reynolds & Creech
|
|
