Jean Turner | November 7, 2016
The stars came out at the 32nd Annual Dubya World Vet Motocross Championship at Glen Helen Raceway, where over 1200 entries from 19 different countries filled two days of racing. First-time winners Mike Sleeter (30+ Pro) and Daryl Hurley (40+ Pro) celebrated alongside 50+ Pro class winner, Kurt Nicoll. But there was one star noticeably absent. Doug Dubach was reportedly ill and couldn’t make it to the race, marking the first time in 23 years “Dr.D” has missed the event. Many were eager to see the 25-time world vet champion face off against Nicoll once again for the 40+ and 50+ honors, especially after last year’s controversial finish where Dubach jumped over into Nicoll’s lane only seconds before the finish to take the 50+ win.
Saturday’s racing saw the first Pro race of the weekend with the 40+ class taking to the course. Nicoll was looking to defend his title, but had to settle for second to a hard-charging Daryl Hurley. The 40-year-old former pro made his first trip to the World Vet Championship all the way from New Zealand, and made the trip worth his while with a 1-1 victory.
“I told my friends I wouldn’t do it until I was 40 and now I hit 40,” Hurley said. “I didn’t really know what to expect coming to this. I knew there were some fast guys here; I heard a lot about how fast Kurt [Nicoll] is. There’s some really fast guys here still.”
Hurley had a bit of a battle with Nicoll in the early laps of the second moto, but ultimately the Brit had to settle for second.
“I’m happy,” Nicoll said. “I thought I rode really well. Daryl Hurley is 12 years younger than me; he comes from a different generation and he was just a little bit too fast for me. But I felt like I rode really well. I’m totally happy with that.”
Both riders went on to race the Pro races on Sunday, Hurley in the 30+ and Nicoll in the 50+ division, which was upgraded to a Pro event for the first time ever, with full 20-minute, two-lap motos. Nicoll won quite handily, taking the victory by over a minute in both motos. Hurley was impressive in the 30+ Pro class, just missing the podium with a fourth-place finish.
The stars of the 30+ Pro class were Sleeter—who finally captured the win after being a bridesmaid so many times—Josh Coppins of New Zealand and Yamaha’s Travis Preston. It looked as though Coppins was going to make it a Kiwi-themed weekend after taking the first moto win just ahead of Sleeter and Preston, but the true test came in the second moto as riders took to a much more beat-up course. Sleeter, a test rider for KTM and Glen Helen regular, was right at home on the choppy, rutted track while small mistakes ate away at Coppins’ bid for the win.
“I call this place church,” Sleeter said. “We’re here every Thursday. I’m on the bike at 10 o’clock and we’re here until about 4:00. And this bike is made for Glen Helen. It was great to put it up on the top.”
Coppins had to settle for second with his 1-2 finish. Although he was all over the rear wheel of Sleeter toward the halfway point of the race, he lost touch with the leader after pushing the front end and dumping it in a sandy turn. It was still an impressive showing for the 39-year-old, who could potentially return next year in the 40+ Pro class.
Yamaha employee Travis Preston—former World Vet Champion—rounded out the 30+ Pro class with a third-place finish. “This is my first race as a full-time employee,” Preston said. “Having a job definitely hurt my training. But my bike worked great and I didn’t crash, so I guess I’m happy. I can go to work on Monday so the boss is happy!”
In the Women’s Pro class, Steffi Laier once again made the trek from Germany to defend her title. The four-time women’s motocross world champion succeeded in doing so with a 1-1 victory ahead of Birgit Schelkle and Michelle Horton.
30+ Pro Results
- Mike Sleeter (2-1)
- Josh Coppins (1-2)
- Travis Preston (3-3)
- Daryl Hurley (7-4)
- Cole Siebler (5-6)
40+ Pro Results
- Daryl Hurley (1-1)
- Kurt Nicoll (2-2)
- Kenjiro Tsuji (4-3)
- Javier Vico (3-4)
- Ryan Hunt (6-5)
50+ Pro Results
- Kurt Nicoll (1-1)
- Pete Murray (2-2)
- Ed Foedish (3-3)
- Mitch Rowe (4-4)
- Jon Ortner (5-6)
FULL RESULTS: http://www.glenhelen.com/results/