by: Shane
Hartman
28TH ANNUAL
MOTORAMA RACES & SHOWS
Harrisburg, PA - The 28th annual Motorama
event was held at Harrisburg Farm Show Complex in Pennsylvania
on its traditional third weekend of February. The complex
is one of the largest in the nation and covers over 25
acres, which was once again filled to capacity with race
and show enthusiast looking for a chance to escape from
the winter chill.
Motorama offers something for the entire family as
host everything from Arenacross, Jump Styling contest,
Speedshow, Tunerwar, Robot Conflict, Motorcycle trials,
Go-Kart racing, Spina-Bifida Charity Auction and the
Ms. Motorama Pageant all under one roof for just one
weekend a year.
Day One - Saturday
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Rausch
Creek offered discounts on season passes |
The event activities were kicked off with the Scion
sponsored Tunerwar followed by a freestyle demo for
thousands of spectators. The Speedshow and Dealer Expo
kept many occupied checking out some cool rides and
the latest products. Among the vendors were Rausch Creek
MX Park and East Coast ATV. The ECA booth drew plenty
of attention with a new Suzuki LT-R450 on display, but
the real action was in the arena portion of the complex
with its 7,000 seats filled to watch the motorcycle
and ATV racing action.
The Arenacross racing event opened up with Hot Rod
Bobby Cox entertaining the crowd followed by Diz Dean
of the Spina Bifida organization thanking Motorama for
raising over $200,000 for the organization over the
years. Finally, just before race time, a group of four
young women known as “The Chickz” sang the
National Anthem.
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A
glimpse of the Motorama Arenacross Track |
The arenacross track remains virtually unchanged from
year to year, which gives those that have competed in
the past a slight advantage in preparation for the event
because the track may be short and small, but it is
not for the faint of heart as there aren’t any
easy jumps on this track. The track consist of a double-
double combination with the second leap launching the
riders over 40 feet followed by an immediate left hand
turn or the alternative of crashing into the arena wall,
which deters many from even attempting second double.
Next up is a wicked series of five whoops followed by
a small double, and then it is time to get on the gas
for a high speed dash across the arena floor followed
by a right hand turn, which leads to the largest jump
on the track. The triple jump is just about a 55 feet
in length, but with only a short run to the face and
only a few feet to stop after the landing before hitting
the arena wall, only the top pros even attempt the triple
during competition. Even though the arena track is tight
and technical is still doesn’t deter hundreds
of riders from coming back year after year to display
their motocross skills in front of a packed arena of
cheering fans.
With ATV racers traveling from six different states,
the classes quickly filled up and with 62 entries in
the Amateur Production class alone, the promoter was
forced to split the class into two groups with only
the top two riders in each heading to the finals. Levi
Hicks took the overall win in the first half of the
Amateur Production class, and he was followed by Shaun
Lawton and Richard Sweeny. Lost Creek Cycles’Robert
Burbridge made his trip from Port Jarvis, NY worth while
as he took the overall win in the second half of the
Amateur Production class. The Amateur Open class win
was taken by Dann Bressler. Rounding out the top three
was Matt Price and Robert Burbridge
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GNCC
Racer, John Cunningham, took advantage of Motorama
to gain some seat time in preparation for the
GNCC Season Opener the first week of March. He
finished second in both qualifiers and advanced
to the Main Events Saturday Night where he finished
in the top 10. |
Steve
Dibble may not be a household name for ATV MX
Racing because he doesn't travel to all the Nationals,
but when he shows up, he makes his presence known.
Steve and Dunk were the only two ATV racers to
attempt the 40 foot double at Motorama and he
finished in 2nd place. |
As the ATVA MX Nationals series takes a three week
break before resuming in Florida, pro rider, Jason “Dunk”
Dunkelberger returned to Motorama to defend his title
from last year. Defend his title he did as he held a
commanding lead over Bruce Wyland Jr. and Cory Atherton
to the checkered flag for win in the Expert Production
class. Dunk wasn’t finished as he returned to
compete in the Expert Open class, where he once again
put his Lost Creek Cycles machine in the winners circle
followed by Steve Dibble and Andy Ehrenzeller, which
wrapped up the first night of racing.
Day Two - Sunday
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#19
Jason Dunkelberger dominated Motorama on his Lost
Creek Cycles' Yamaha YFZ450. |
The normally flawless program at Motorama would be
interrupted several times on Sunday as the announcer’s
booth was cut from power by the fire alarm, which sparked
off some spectator anger as they were forced to evacuate
the arena. After determining it was a false alarm, the
spectators repacked the arena for the final day of racing.
The start of the Amateur Production class had the
riders charging hard into the first turn with several
of them getting tangled up, which resulted in the race
being red flagged, which forced a restart of the race.
Among those upside down in the first turn was Daryl
Mallow, but in the restart, he would put his Honda out
front and take the win. Jason Dunkelberger would have
a repeat performance on Sunday by winning both the Open
and Production Expert classes followed by Andy Ehrenzeller
and Steve Dibble in both classes as these three riders
dominated the competition.
The Hostetter family produced yet another great weekend
of racing. This year’s Motorama introduced many
new events as well as the expansion of previous events.
If you missed it this year, be sure to catch the event
next year on February 17th or 18th. For more information
on events, visit www.motoramaevents.com
100 Speedway Lane
Hanover, Pa 17331
717-359-7056
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