TEAM AM-PRO YAMAHA RACE REPORT:
JASON RAINES
24 HOUR CHALLENGE - MAPLESVILLE, AL
AMA HARE SCRAMBLES - ELKLAND, PA
June 7-8
The week after the Kentucky GNCC, we had a full schedule trying to prepare everything for the 7th annual 24 hour
challenge located in Maplesville, Al. At first, on paper it looked as though it would be an easy preparation but in reality it
was a lot of work! We took my practice bike I have been riding since January and did a major overhaul on it from the ground
up, and we had already tested our night lighting from Trail Tech so that was one less hurdle to get over. After spending all
week working on the bike and loading up all the extras that we thought we would be needing, we started our 7 hour trek
towards Alabama.
Our team was very strong and consisted of Randy Hawkins, Thad Duvall, Dustin Gibson, Joe Scherer and myself. We did
some pre-track inspection on Friday morning and later that night Thad, Joe and Dustin did some riding in the Alabama
moonlight to get used to the bike set-up and the lighting.
The race got under way at 10:00am and I was the one who started. I got off to a 3rd place start and I posted the fastest time
of the entire 24 hour on the second lap! The track started out about perfect because we got some much needed rain the
night before, but let me tell you, after 24 hours of racing (I rode the last lap of the race) it was rough and silty.
As the race wore on we took turns every two laps, trying to keep the riders fresh and able to charge. It was very hot and
humid so 2 laps each was about right to keep fresh and motivated.
Pretty much the entire race it was between our team and the KTM team of Nathan Kanney, Russell Bobbitt, Corey Butrick,
Jason Chancey, Michael Gravit and Michael Grizzle. We swapped back and forth so many times during the race, it was
exciting. We would pull a gap and then they would reel us in and get into the lead and then it was us making up the time
on them. It went on like this until about 6:00 am. We had four hours to go and we had a slight lead on them so we were
going to try and put our 3 fastest guys (Thad, Dustin and Myself) on the track and finish it out, and they ended up doing the
same thing and putting Kanney, Bobbitt, and Butrick out.
That is when we started having some troubles, they were riding really well and we were making mistakes and losing ground.
They made the pass with about 1 1/2 to go and we just couldn't mount a charge to catch them.
After 24 hours of racing and many gallons of gas being burned we finished a hard fought second place. This race is a true
test for the machine and it really showed how strong the WR's are. Even on a bike with many hours on it prior to the race the
only maintence we did was change one rear tire, 2 sets of rear brake pads, 1 oil and filter change and we changed the air
filter every 4 laps. That is it! The Trail Tech lighting system never missed a beat and kept the night looking like day the
entire night and even though the bike felt a little loose by the end it was still running strong.
Top 3 Overall
1-KTM/Cycle Specialties
2-Am-Pro, FMF, Yamaha
3-Action Kawasaki/Yamaha
A special thanks for the tiring efforts of our pit crew, mechanics, friends, family, and fans for their 24 hours of work! Thank
you to all of our Team Sponsors for their continued efforts to our team.
June 15
The Sunday after the 24 hour was the 3rd round of the AMA Hare Scrambles series in Elkland, PA, about 5 miLes from the
New York border. One week down in the bayou of Alabama, the next in the hills of PA! It rained hard about 20 miles North
of the race but not one drop fell at the track, and it was much needed. The woods were dark and moist with scattered rocky
sections. It was blinding dusty in the open field portions of the track so a good start was going to be a plus. The track was 10
miles in length and had a good variety of sections ranging from wide open grass fields to tight, technical marshy sections.
My WR 450F fired quick and I was off to a top 5 start. There were 35 pros on hand so it made my day a lot better as I
rounded the first few turns in the front of the pack.
I made a quick move into 3rd before we entered into the 'white out' of the grass track. I was in 3rd and I couldn't see
anything in front of me! It was bad dusty. Once we got to the woods the dust cleared and the leaders had pulled a little bit
on me so I put in a charge to make up ground, only to come to another field section and be in the dust again. You had to
make up the ground in the woods and pass them before you got to the fields, time was not of the essence.
I moved into second in the beginning of the 2nd lap and took over the lead about mid-way through the 3rd lap.
I was all alone in the lead for 2 laps and was riding a comfortable pace, but I must have not been pushing hard enough
because all of a sudden I heard a bike right on my tail! It was Nathan Kanney, he had caught me sleeping and before I
could re-group and pick up the pace he made the pass when I made a slight mistake with a lapped rider.
We had 2 laps to go and I wasn't going to let him go, I woke up and started pushing to match his pace. When we got the
white flag, we both stopped for fuel and left out of the pits together. I was in the same position again. I would lose ground in
the fields and gain in the woods. I was hoping for a mistake to make the pass, but it never happened. I crossed the finish line
in 2nd about 10 seconds down. I was a little disappointed that I let my guard down and got int a pace instead of continuing
to push. After looking at the lap times, once he caught me I picked it up but it was too little too late. Need to push the entire
race next time!
Results
1-Nathan Kanney
2-JASON RAINES
3-Glenn Kearney
4-Jerod Stoner
5-Andrew Delong
6-Justin Williamson
7-Ben Bouwens
8-Gordan Crockard
9-Heath Voss
10-Brian Lawson
Points after 3 of 8 Rounds
1-JASON RAINES
2-Nathan Kanney
3-Glenn Kearney
4-Justin Williamson
5-Paul Whibley
Thank you to all of my friends, family, fans and sponsors for all your support, see you at the races!
JASON RAINES
24 HOUR CHALLENGE - MAPLESVILLE, AL
AMA HARE SCRAMBLES - ELKLAND, PA
June 7-8
The week after the Kentucky GNCC, we had a full schedule trying to prepare everything for the 7th annual 24 hour
challenge located in Maplesville, Al. At first, on paper it looked as though it would be an easy preparation but in reality it
was a lot of work! We took my practice bike I have been riding since January and did a major overhaul on it from the ground
up, and we had already tested our night lighting from Trail Tech so that was one less hurdle to get over. After spending all
week working on the bike and loading up all the extras that we thought we would be needing, we started our 7 hour trek
towards Alabama.
Our team was very strong and consisted of Randy Hawkins, Thad Duvall, Dustin Gibson, Joe Scherer and myself. We did
some pre-track inspection on Friday morning and later that night Thad, Joe and Dustin did some riding in the Alabama
moonlight to get used to the bike set-up and the lighting.
The race got under way at 10:00am and I was the one who started. I got off to a 3rd place start and I posted the fastest time
of the entire 24 hour on the second lap! The track started out about perfect because we got some much needed rain the
night before, but let me tell you, after 24 hours of racing (I rode the last lap of the race) it was rough and silty.
As the race wore on we took turns every two laps, trying to keep the riders fresh and able to charge. It was very hot and
humid so 2 laps each was about right to keep fresh and motivated.
Pretty much the entire race it was between our team and the KTM team of Nathan Kanney, Russell Bobbitt, Corey Butrick,
Jason Chancey, Michael Gravit and Michael Grizzle. We swapped back and forth so many times during the race, it was
exciting. We would pull a gap and then they would reel us in and get into the lead and then it was us making up the time
on them. It went on like this until about 6:00 am. We had four hours to go and we had a slight lead on them so we were
going to try and put our 3 fastest guys (Thad, Dustin and Myself) on the track and finish it out, and they ended up doing the
same thing and putting Kanney, Bobbitt, and Butrick out.
That is when we started having some troubles, they were riding really well and we were making mistakes and losing ground.
They made the pass with about 1 1/2 to go and we just couldn't mount a charge to catch them.
After 24 hours of racing and many gallons of gas being burned we finished a hard fought second place. This race is a true
test for the machine and it really showed how strong the WR's are. Even on a bike with many hours on it prior to the race the
only maintence we did was change one rear tire, 2 sets of rear brake pads, 1 oil and filter change and we changed the air
filter every 4 laps. That is it! The Trail Tech lighting system never missed a beat and kept the night looking like day the
entire night and even though the bike felt a little loose by the end it was still running strong.
Top 3 Overall
1-KTM/Cycle Specialties
2-Am-Pro, FMF, Yamaha
3-Action Kawasaki/Yamaha
A special thanks for the tiring efforts of our pit crew, mechanics, friends, family, and fans for their 24 hours of work! Thank
you to all of our Team Sponsors for their continued efforts to our team.
June 15
The Sunday after the 24 hour was the 3rd round of the AMA Hare Scrambles series in Elkland, PA, about 5 miLes from the
New York border. One week down in the bayou of Alabama, the next in the hills of PA! It rained hard about 20 miles North
of the race but not one drop fell at the track, and it was much needed. The woods were dark and moist with scattered rocky
sections. It was blinding dusty in the open field portions of the track so a good start was going to be a plus. The track was 10
miles in length and had a good variety of sections ranging from wide open grass fields to tight, technical marshy sections.
My WR 450F fired quick and I was off to a top 5 start. There were 35 pros on hand so it made my day a lot better as I
rounded the first few turns in the front of the pack.
I made a quick move into 3rd before we entered into the 'white out' of the grass track. I was in 3rd and I couldn't see
anything in front of me! It was bad dusty. Once we got to the woods the dust cleared and the leaders had pulled a little bit
on me so I put in a charge to make up ground, only to come to another field section and be in the dust again. You had to
make up the ground in the woods and pass them before you got to the fields, time was not of the essence.
I moved into second in the beginning of the 2nd lap and took over the lead about mid-way through the 3rd lap.
I was all alone in the lead for 2 laps and was riding a comfortable pace, but I must have not been pushing hard enough
because all of a sudden I heard a bike right on my tail! It was Nathan Kanney, he had caught me sleeping and before I
could re-group and pick up the pace he made the pass when I made a slight mistake with a lapped rider.
We had 2 laps to go and I wasn't going to let him go, I woke up and started pushing to match his pace. When we got the
white flag, we both stopped for fuel and left out of the pits together. I was in the same position again. I would lose ground in
the fields and gain in the woods. I was hoping for a mistake to make the pass, but it never happened. I crossed the finish line
in 2nd about 10 seconds down. I was a little disappointed that I let my guard down and got int a pace instead of continuing
to push. After looking at the lap times, once he caught me I picked it up but it was too little too late. Need to push the entire
race next time!
Results
1-Nathan Kanney
2-JASON RAINES
3-Glenn Kearney
4-Jerod Stoner
5-Andrew Delong
6-Justin Williamson
7-Ben Bouwens
8-Gordan Crockard
9-Heath Voss
10-Brian Lawson
Points after 3 of 8 Rounds
1-JASON RAINES
2-Nathan Kanney
3-Glenn Kearney
4-Justin Williamson
5-Paul Whibley
Thank you to all of my friends, family, fans and sponsors for all your support, see you at the races!
| 06/19/08 |
