AMA Pro ATV
Rd. 5 - May 11, 2008
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It's Nasty Out...
AMA Pro ATV - Round 5 - Walnut, Illinois - May 11, 2008
Can-Am's John Natalie
Out of the 29 Pros on hand at the running of the Sunset Ridge MX round of the '08 AMA Pro ATV Nationals, John Natalie was actually hoping for rain. An eye injury suffered during round 3 of the series in Kentucky had hampered him in round 4 and looked to be a menacing annoyance for round 5. But...
leave it to Natalie to make a positive out of a negative. With slop in your eyes, the playing field is level in his way of seeing things and this pretty much rings true.
Coming out 4th at the holeshot at Walnut, Illinois, Natalie slipped and slid his way up to his first podium appearance of the season with a 2nd place overall finish.
Yamaha's Pat Brown
Pat Brown has weathered a storm of misfortune during the first few rounds of the '08 AMA Pro ATV Nationals. With his overall finishes running as 12th, 18th, 7th and 16th placements, his spirits at times waned a bit but not to the point of despair. Always focused and keeping a confident smile in his eyes, Brown expressed his
expectations on Saturday when he professed that he'd do good on Sunday regardless of what Mother Nature or the other Pros threw at him. And, that he did.
In nasty conditions, more to the liking of water foul, Brown and his Yamaha made their first podium on the season with a third place finish behind Wimmer and Natalie.
Red Bull
MSR
ProTaper
Suzuki
Yoshimura's
Dustin Wimmer
Keeps
It
Clean
In
Illinois
The clerk in the convenience store at the interstate exit made an observation as she looked outside the Tiger Mart windows at the weather. "It's nasty out today...Is it not?' she said. It was. The temperature was around 48. The wind speed was around 48 MPH. And, it was raining. But, did this bother Dustin Wimmer? Of course not. He troopered on through the slop, the damp and the chill to further his points lead in the '08 AMA Pro ATV National MX Championships.
Leading into the 5th round of the '08 AMA Pro ATV Nationals the weather was perfect, not too hot, not too cool, clear blue skies and occasional warming sunshine. Wimmer utilized these conditions to set the fastest qualifying time on Saturday.
"It's great to set a fast lap, but I'm really interested in the top step of the podium," said Wimmer. "The bike is running great and I'm really pleased...but tomorrow is really going to tell the tale."
Like an always prepared Boy Scout, Wimmer revealed his preparations for the following days races. "The holeshot is always important, but the rain makes it really important," said Wimmer. "Visibility is key, and getting out front early gives you a clear line of sight. The team will also have to make adjustments to the suspension and rain equipment, like goggles and tear-offs take on more importance."
Wake up calls Sunday morning greeted racers, fans and crews with howling winds, rain and cooler temperatures. Not so nice racing circumstances to say the least. The amateur classes, except for a few youth classes who ran both motos on Saturday, were awarded finishing positions in accordance to how they finished on Saturday in their first moto. The Pro/Am Production class ran two shortened motos on Sunday and their results were posted from those races. The Pros elected to run a 15 minute moto plus two lap format on a shortened circuit to see who'd be crowned the king of the round at Sunset Ridge MX in Walnut, Illinois.
"It was a mess out there," Wimmer explained after the race. "I knew I had to get the holeshot in order to just see the course. My Suzuki jumped off the line so hard, I just pushed forward and never looked back."
Wimmer's win netted him his third victory in the Pro class during the first five rounds and extended his points lead as he continues to pursue his first ever Pro MX National Championship.
