Offroad Motorcycle
and ATV Nationals
2007 OMA Racing Series
Round #10 - Millerstown, KY
Indian
Bluff XC
November 17, 2007 |
|
Andy Lagzdins' Pro
ATV Race Report
|
|
 |
| 2007
OMA Pro Champion
Andy Lagzdins |
Millerstown, KY
- The 2007 Parts Unlimited OMA Nationals
Series held its season finale this past weekend
with the Indian Bluff XC in Millerstown, Kentucky.
This OMA event was the first National race held
at the location, which is an ATV riding park with
miles of trails and motocross tracks. The season
has been a battle for the title between defending
champ Rob Zimmerman and me, with my early win
streak dissolving after a bad crash at the third
round in Ohio. Rob capitalized on my absence from
the next round, and took the points lead and held
it through round eight, where he broke a chain
and allowed me to move back into the series lead.
At “The Race” in Illinois I took the
win ahead of Rob, and that win gave me a commanding
21-point lead going into the final round. Matt
Lindle had been running consistently throughout
the year, and sat in a solid third place in points.
The Kentucky track was a mixture of tight woods
and open trails that had a hard packed base to
it. Some rain through the week had soaked the
course, but not enough to make it a mud bog. With
temperatures nearing 60 degrees on race day, we
couldn’t have asked for better conditions
considering it was near the end of November. Of
course, promoter and trail boss Bill Gusse had
to throw in a ¼ mile long creek run that
would have the riders splashing around like swamp
buggies in the Florida Everglades.
|
|
| Rob
Zimmerman |
Matt
Lindle |
The start was a fast run through a large field
section, and I was able to use the power of my
Duncan 450R motor to pull the holeshot and lead
the way into the woods. Rob Zimmerman was back
in the pack, but working his way up quickly. Todd
Demaree took a spill before we made it into the
woods, and started from way back. The tight trails
weaved through the trees, with the hard packed
ground not allowing any berms or ruts to form.
The water dripping off our quads, in addition
to the already damp conditions, turned these sections
into an ATV pinball machine. I was putting my
nerf bars to good use, busting more bark the local
dog catcher. The stream run was a nice bath of
mud water every lap, and on one side of the stream
was an overhanging rock face that had water dripping
off of it as we raced under it. I was looking
for a “Caution: Falling Rock” sign
as we passed under the stalactites.
|
|
| Andy
Lagzdins |
Todd
Demaree |
Rob had worked up to second and was pressuring
me hard, and he made the pass at the end of a
long straightaway. I tucked in behind him, but
a bottleneck on one of the many hillclimbs let
him build up a sizeable lead. Rather than chance
a crash or some other catastrophic event that
would jeopardize the championship, I decided to
put in consistent laps and finish off the season.
Rob was riding well, and finished almost a minute
ahead, with Josh Beavers rounding out the podium.
Todd Demaree worked his way up to fourth place
ahead of Chris Moore.
|
ATV
Podium (left to right)
Andy Lagzdins, Rob Zimmerman, Josh Beavers |
The OMA Nationals helped keep things interesting
for me this year, after years of racing on basically
the same tracks it was a great experience to go
to new places and meet new people. I’ve
always wanted to participate in the Moose Run,
The Race, and ride on the historic Millville Pro
National track, places which have so much history
and character to them. I am planning to race as
many OMA’s as possible next year to defend
my new title as 2007 OMA Nationals Champion, and
hope to see you there!
photos
by John
Gasso
Discuss
this in ATVriders.com Forum
|
