News and Results

 Best in the desert Parker 250 Race Report by Robby Bell

2012 Best in the Desert Parker 250

     The first race of the year is always a special one as everyone's excited to get back underway after the winter holidays.  This weekend I traveled out to the Best in the Desert Parker 250 to kick off the season, have some fun, and hopefully get a first win of 2012.
     The course was fun and fast with a high speed sand wash taking the riders from the start and main pit out to the "midway" pit at mile 27.  From there it was 30 miles of high speed sweeping roads where you could feel like a hero, throwing the back end out and flat tracking in fourth and fifth gear.   The final miles were made up of fast and technical washes littered with rocks and small whoops leading you to the "Parker Python", a two mile bladed track that winds around the main pit to give the spectators some descent viewing.
     There was a bit of last minute confusion surrounding who my partner would be, but in the end I would team with David Pearson.  I would ride the first and third of three 79 mile loops with David riding the second lap. Best in the Desert usually starts at first light and this race was no exception. I'd never started a BITD race before, and I would run into some troubles on the first lap.  The JCR Honda team of Colton Udall and David Kamo came out and they were first off the line, then a two- minute start gap back to the Purvine’s Kawasaki of Justin Morrow and Nick Burson, before I would take off (three minutes behind the Honda).
     The green lights lit and the race had begun.  I felt confident on the line that I could get by Justin, but as I took off from the line the sun still hadn't quite raised and I started getting a bit nervous in the low light.  I caught just up into Justin's dust, but I didn't want to take any risks of clipping a rock I didn't see and just sat there to the midway pit.  Nick got on the Purvine’s bike, the sun started to peek over the mountains and I remember saying to myself, "game on; let's go get him".
     I still struggled to catch right up to Nick as the dust was pretty thick and it seemed like every time I got close to him the course would turn into the sun and I'd run into a wall of white-out.  Finally around mile 55 we got into some rocks and I could just see him ahead of me.  I pushed hard to catch him, but my front end clipped a rock and I lost it. Luckily I was able to keep the clutch in and quickly picked the bike back up, losing just a handful of seconds.  I caught back up to Nick and just a few miles later I was able to squeeze by him and into some clean air.  I realized I had probably lost a bit of time to the Honda in the dust and went hard to try to make it up.  I felt pretty good until around mile 68 when I was rounding a tight left hand corner.  I was in the fluffy berm on the outer edge, starting to accelerate; suddenly, before I knew it, I was off the bike doing a head stand/ windmill break dance move in the dirt and didn't know what had just happened.  My first thought was, “Oh man, I just wrecked my Monster helmet!” and then my second thought quickly followed, “Oh no, I hope I didn’t just ruin the bike”. In any race a crash is bad, but especially in a lengthy team race where a bent bike can wreak havoc on your pace and minimizing downtime in the pits is crucial. I got up and looked back to see the buried, bowling ball sized, rock that sent me on my head, remounted and felt lucky that the bike came through pretty unscathed.  Through the last few miles, I made it to the pit and sent David on his way.  It was a tough first lap and I had lost about a minute and forty five seconds to the Honda.  I hoped David was up for the challenge...
     David's ride went really well. He rode fantastic and pulled almost a minute in on the Honda boys, plus the pit crew had an amazing rear wheel change and gained another ten seconds on Honda's wheel change.  I got on the bike with just forty five seconds to gain and 70 miles to do it.
From main pit to midway I felt on top of the world; I was hitting the corners flawlessly, getting by the lapped traffic pretty clean and knew I had to be making up time.  It was one of those times on the bike where you feel completely connected to it.  I could put the bike wherever I wanted and ride as fast as I pleased, it's the feeling every racer loves.  From midway I stayed strong and felt like I was still making time.  I was getting through the last of the lapped riders pretty quickly and with just 15 miles to the finish I finally had clean air again. I  came down the finishing straight wide open and my team was all standing there screaming and fist pumping; I crossed the line just over two minutes behind the Honda physically, but fifty three seconds up on adjusted time.  David and I had just started the year off on a winning note...
     The race was really enjoyable, the course was well marked (typical of Best in the Desert) and the terrain was great fun. I was stoked to see the JCR Honda team come out and make a race of it. I know Colton was still recovering from an injured hand, so Kamo had to pick up a few more miles, but they rode a great race and kept it very interesting.  I'd like to thank my team: THR Motorsports, Monster Energy, Precision Concepts Kawasaki; the bike ran flawlessly, the motor was incredibly strong and I still don't think I found a limit of how fast I could hit everything with the suspension.  My teammate David Pearson rode so well; I gave the Honda team quite a head start, but he definitely started the comeback for us.  I'd like to thank FOX Racing for their continued support; it was a first race test for me with the Fox Main goggle and the new Fox Instinct boot and both passed with flying colors.  The goggle didn't let any dust inside the lens which is so critical since I was in billowing dust for around 100 of my 160 total miles. The boots are so light, comfortable and confidence inspiring and offer an incredible grip and feel for the frame and foot controls.  Thank you to Asterisk for joining my program and supporting me this year, I’m looking forward to a great relationship with them.  It was a great start to the year and I'm looking to keep the momentum rolling into Glen Helen next week for round one of WORCS.  See everyone there!

RB

Mammoth Mountain Motocross Race Report

Hangtown National Motocross Round 1, May 21, 2011

Rider

Robby Bell  Kawasaki KX450F

Moto 1    17th
Moto 2    22nd

20th Overall

Robby decided to hit the first round of the National MX series at Hangtown just outside Sacramento, CA.  He rode his WORCS bike with miminal changes. In qualifing he was seeded in group A with the fastest riders in the nation.  He was 24th fastest, and qualified 27th overall.

In the first moto, he started around 32nd. by the time the first lap was complete, he was up to 22nd. From there he battled with Nic Wey, Ricky Deitrich, Jake Wiemer and others. In the end, he made it up to 17th, only 25 seconds from 10th.

Moto two was a better start, but a rider stalled in front of him, He hit them, then got run into by another rider. It became a hugh pile up and when it was all done, he was in 37th, 20 seconds behind 36th. He charged hard up to 22nd, but a very sore shoulder from the pile up slowed him at the end.

Overall it was a pretty good day. When he races another National, we will have a faster bike for him to help with the starts. He had several lap times that would have put him in the top 10.

Bob
Team Manager

WORCS round 4, Cahuilla Creek, Anza, CA.  April 16-17, 2011

Riders

Robby Bell           PRO             Kawasaki KX450F   7th
Gary Sutherlin      PRO             Kawasaki KX450F   9th
Justin Seeds        PRO-2          Kawasaki KX450F   2nd
                           450A                                          2nd
Jack Achey          PRO-2 Lites  Kawasaki KX250F   3rd


WORCS round 5, Clay Peaks Raceway, Payette, ID. May 28-29 2011

Riders

Robby Bell           PRO             Kawasaki KX450F   5th
Gary Sutherlin      PRO             Kawasaki KX450F  14th
Justin Seeds        PRO-2          Kawasaki KX450F    1st
                           450A                                           1st
Mark Harstine       PRO-2          Kawasaki KX450F   13th

WORCS Series Points

PRO             Robby Bell       6th
                   Gary Sutherlin   7th
Pro-2           Justin Seeds      1st
 Pro-s Lites  Jack Achey        4th
450A           Justin Seeds       2nd

 


Road To Mammoth Qualifier, Pala Raceway, Pala, CA. May 1, 2011

Robby Bell            Open Pro    Kawasaki KX450F   1st
                             250  Pro    Kawasaki KX250F    1stchey is quickly outr growing his
                             450 Pro     Kawasaki KX450F    2nd
Mark Harstine        450 Jr        Kawasaki KX450F    Qualified

We have definitely had some up and down finishes this year, but overall continue to improve. Robby has consistently  been improving in the Pro class. With each race he has been pushing closer to the front. At Payette he took his first top five of the year. With his new training commitment and confident attitude, I feel he will continue to charge to the front.  Gary has had some great starts and speed, but some terrible luck. At Havasu he was running top three  when he was hit by another rider and crashed hard, trapped under his bike. Then his chain derailed in another race. At Payette, he was once again running strong when he twisted his knee and had to retire. With what we hope is a short healing time, he will be back to turn his luck around.

Justin Seeds has been starting to take control of the Pro-2 class. The last three races he has gone from third to second then first both in the Pro-2 and 450A classes. At Payette, he had some lap times that put him in 11th overall against the Pros. Jack Achey is quickly out growing his 250F so will probably be rejoining the WORCS series on a KX450F. In practice, his speed is awesome, and he will be a threat to the front runners in Pro-2. Mark Harstine jumped to the A class this year, and qualified for the Pro-2 class at Payette. He continues to gain experience and we look forward to more speed at each round

Robby also ventured to Pala Raceway and put his moto skills to good use. He dominated the day in the Pro classes taking two 1st's and a 2nd. He will be at Mammoth and looks to be a strong front runner. Mark Harstine will join Robby at Mammoth and run in the 450 Jr. class.

Honey Lake is the next stop on the WORCS schedule in less than two weeks. Robby has always shown great speed there placing as high as 2nd. We hope Gary will be healed in time as with his great starts and enduro cross skills, he could run up front as well.

Enduro Cross will be starting up in July. Gary got the taste of a podium last year, and I'm sure wants more of that. Robby will be trying his hand at it as well.

Once again thanks for all the support. I'll get on it to keep the updates coming more often. We lost our photographer the last two rounds, but we will be getting more pictures coming soon.

Bob Bell
Team Manager

WORCS point standings after round 4

SCORE San Felipe 250 March 13,2010

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Race Report Havasu WORCS Round 3

 #1A 2011 Baja 1000 race report

On November 18th, over 275 entries would start the 2011 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 in Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico with the expectations to finish the race and be the first to cross the finish line. The #1A Matlock Racing Team of Wayne Matlock, Wes Miller and Josh Caster were the first ATV to cross the finish line after an extremely rough 705 miles through the Baja landscape. ‐evaluate where they were position wise before stepping up the pace if needed. On race morning, Matlock would start 4th and work his way out of Ensenada towards the famous Ojos Negros highway crossing before handing the quad off to Caster at race mile 70. The start was comprised of mud filled washes and streams from the earlier weeks rainy weather. Early in the race Matlock was able to work his way up to second place but after reaching the tight and twisty new section added by SCORE up in the hills before Ojos Negros, Matlock found he was not comfortable pushing the big 700xx through the tight trails and he lost a few positions before reaching Ojos Negros at race mile 45.

Wayne, Josh and Wes would like to personally thank all of the chase crew, which is made up of wives , girlfriends, mothers and fathers along with friends and family. We would also like to thank all of our sponsors for their continual support enabling us to win races and championships like this. We realize without all of these people behind us, none of this would be possible and the team is truly appreciative of all the support!