Offroad
Motorcycle and ATV Nationals
2007 OMA Racing Series
Round #4 - Morrison, Illinois
Moose Racing "The Moose Run"
June 2, 2007 |
By: John Gasso |
Kevin Tinsley
sets the pace for Moose Run Victory
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Kevin
Tinsley was greeted with a kiss after claiming
the Win |
Morrison, IL- Kevin Tinsley (Honda /
Moose Racing / ITP) rode a smooth and steady pace to win
the “infamous” Moose Run in conditions that
bordered on extreme. Mid-week rains had saturated the
area around the Bike Barn in Fenton, IL. Many spots along
the course contained mud that turned to the consistency
of thick black gravy. A “decent hole shot”
for Tinsley put him in the middle of the pack. “I
lost a couple spots going in to the whoops, but no race
is won in the first minute. So I stayed pretty calm and
relaxed and just rode a smart race,” said Tinsley.
“I was dealing with Rob (Zimmerman) a couple times
back and forth, just being careful. It paid in the end.”
After a congratulatory kiss from his wife at the finish
line, Tinsley said it was “a day for the old guys
for sure, for sure.”
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#7
Kevin Tinsley |
#26
Donald Ockerman |
Second place went to Donald Ockerman (Honda / Moose
Racing / Maxxis), who finished the event three minutes
behind Tinsley at one hour and forty six minutes. After
a bad start, Ockerman got up to the front at the first
creek crossing where “everybody got stuck.”
He said, “I stayed in second the whole race. I
was just cruising. I knew I had to survive.” The
first four laps show Ockerman clearing the checkpoint
on the same minute as Tinsley. “The last lap my
battery cable came off,” said Ockerman. “The
four wheeler died. I held it (the battery cable) on
there, pushed the button, shocked myself, fired it up,
and stayed in second place.”
The Moose Racing podium sweep was rounded out by Ohio
native Rob Zimmerman (Honda / Moose Racing / Maxxis).
This year has been full of problems for the returning
OMA Nationals champion. The Moose Run did not change
his luck. He knocked a tire off the bead after only
about one quarter lap. “I just hit a tree and
I just popped it. I had to go three quarters of a lap
on that. I came in like fourth or fifth.” After
repairs to the tire, Zimmerman headed out on a mission.
“Then I got stuck in a water crossing. (Ryan)
Holoweiko helped me get back out because his quad is
toasted there.” Zimmerman again began a push to
the front, but hit a tree and bent a tie rod. Then he
had more trouble in the next creek. He said “I
just nosed into it and completely bent the tie rod.
I mean, I could not steer. The handelbars were completely
on one side and I could not steer anymore.” The
pit crew, with help from others including Zimmerman’s
father, got the tie rod repaired using “some ingenuity,
like a steel post and a huge pair of pliers to bend
the tie rod.” After a relatively uneventful fourth
lap, Zimmerman stopped for fresh gloves and seemed to
have a fire lit under him. He said, “I knew it
was the last lap so I just held it wide open as fast
as I could go. They said I knocked three minutes off.”
His efforts put Zimmerman under the scoring canopy three
minutes ahead of fourth place rider Matt Voss (Kawasaki
/ Moose Racing / ITP), who clocked in at one hour and
fifty five minutes.
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