| CALVMX STAGES D-DAY IN PERRIS By Steve Caro Photography by Kathryn Caro Perris, CA. June 6 On the day when surviving members of the “Greatest Generation” gathered on the beaches of France to commemorate the D-Day invasion of Europe and the beginning of the end for Hitler’s reign of terror, a much more peaceful invasion took place half a world away in the sleepy city of Perris, California. CONTINUE HERE .....The peaceful invasion was the return of CALVMX/AHRMA for round 5 of the 2009 vintage racing season. A superbly prepared course greeted the record setting 136 riders who combined for 230+ total entries. The added attraction of this round being the first night race of the season ensured the course would be in constant use. Perris Raceway has rightfully earned the reputation among the vintage racing community for providing excellent courses specifically designed with the older racing machine in mind. Instead of the endless sections of rockers, steep faced jumps (aka frame/wheel breakers), the track crew designed a course with sweeping turns and sensible jumps that provide distance instead of height for the racer. A wide variety of machines populated the Open Age G.P. classes. In the novice division, Ed Despries (Suz) dominated the night’s action with a two moto sweep. In the first moto, Despries launched out of the starting gate followed by Dave Harvey (Yam) and Eddy Pierre Jerome, also Yamaha mounted. Despries maintained a steady lead throughout the moto. Behind him, Jerome and Harvey vied for second. Throughout the moto Jerome and Harvey challenged each other for the runner-up position. As the checkers flew for Despries, Jerome passed Harvey a final time in the moto to clinch second. Despries must have realized a mere five laps separated him from the overall victory as the gate dropped for the start of moto two. He quickly established a lead over the rest of the pack as lap one was completed. Behind Despries, Honda mounted Kevin Rogers held off the Suzuki of John Quasebarth for second. As the moto wound down, Despries maintained a comfortable lead and would take the moto win and overall victory unchallenged. Rogers held onto second and Quasebarth made third place his own. Overall, the results showed Despries in first with 1-1 scores, Jerome had second with 2-4 scores, with Rogers rounding out the podium with 5-2 scores. In the pre-1975 classes, 50 Plus Intermediate presented a duel between European and Japanese classic machines. Reminiscent of a 1974 race, it was Honda versus Maico and Husqvarna and CZ. In the first moto, Honda mounted Domenico Brock grabbed the lead as the pack jostled for position exiting the starting straight. In second place was the Maico of Norm Himaka, with CZ mounted Joe Knottengen in third. Brock settled into a torrid pace that saw him running close to the pace of the Expert ranked riders. Involved with their own duel for positions, Himaka, Knottegen and John Woolsey (Yam) circulated the course in close formation for the duration of the moto. At the checkers, Brock took an unchallenged first, followed by Himaka, with Woolsey in third. Under the glare of the track lights, moto two launched into action as the sun vanished into the western horizon. Husqvarna rider Brian Miller led the class for the first two circuits of the course, followed by Woolsey and Brock. Midway through lap two, Brock picked off Woolsey and then Miller to take over the lead. Once he had a clear track in front of him, Brock powered away from the pack for the remainder of the race. When the checkers flew at the end of the race, Brock had taken an undisputed first overall. Woolsey used consistent 3-3 finishes to clinch second, followed by Himaka with 2-4 moto scores. For the second consecutive race meeting, CALVMX set records for the number of individual riders and total entries. This continued success bodes well for the future of the club despite the difficult economic times facing the country. July 11 will be a club practice at the private practice in Jamul, followed by a Sunday daytime race at Perris. As always, members are encouraged to spread the word about VMX and to encourage hesitant friends to give the sport a try, especially those owning the original “vintage bikes”, the pre-1975 machines. |
