Photography by Larry Lawrence
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Aug. 29, 2015) – Things got very interesting Saturday night at the Don Tilley Memorial Charlotte Half-Mile, Round 10 of the 14-race 2015 AMA Pro Flat Track season, as Bryan Smith put together an extraordinary performance to earn his fourth Harley-Davidson GNC1 presented by Vance & Hines main event victory of the season.
Smith’s victory is compelling on many levels, as Harley-Davidson GNC1 presented by Vance & Hines points leader, Jared Mees, suffered a costly bike malfunction to his Las Vegas Harley-Davidson machine on the final lap as he was challenging Smith for the lead. The incident forced Mees from the race and left him watching in disgust as he witnessed his rival cross the finish line and swipe the elusive checkered flag.
“That was some intense racing,” said Smith. “That’s about as fast as a motorcycle can go on a Half-Mile and I’m glad we could put on a great race for all of these Charlotte fans. That was everything my bike had, every ounce I had, that was everything. I didn’t realize until after the checkered flag that I had gotten away from Kenny (Coolbeth) a little bit, I almost threw it away but I just kept charging and fortunately it was a good end result.”
Smith’s win and Mees’ 17th-place finish created an earthquake in the Harley-Davidson GNC1 presented by Vance & Hines point standings, as Mees now sits only six points ahead of the No. 42 Crosley Radio Kawasaki pilot in the standings, 158-152.
Smith’s victory was his first since winning the Du Quoin Mile on July 4, and his first time back on the podium since his second-place Indy Mile finish on July 11.
Kenny Coolbeth was next in line after Mees went down at the beginning of lap 25, and the No. 2 Zanotti Racing Harley-Davidson pilot claimed his second runner-up finish in the last three rounds. Coolbeth’s second-place finish was a nice rebound after his struggles last round at the Peoria TT, and the three-time Grand National Champion now sits fourth in the point standings.
Rounding out the podium with a third-place effort on Saturday night was Sammy Halbert, who now sits third in the points. Sporting the No. 69 Briggs Auto Harley-Davidson in honor of his late brother, Jethro, Halbert maneuvered his way through traffic as he started from 13th on the grid.
Brandon Robinson, aboard the No. 44 Latus Motors Racing Triumph, finished fourth to earn his first top-five finish since the Sacramento Mile on May 30. Robinson sits fifth in the point standings as he heads into the homestretch of the 2015 AMA Pro Flat Track season.
Saddlemen Rookie of the Year frontrunner, Jarod Vanderkooi, put together his finest performance of 2015 aboard the No. 17F Don’s Kawasaki machine. Vanderkooi finished fifth at Charlotte and is turning heads during his rookie campaign in the elite Harley-Davidson GNC1 presented by Vance & Hines class. The rookie now sits 12th in the points.
Jake Johnson finished eighth aboard the No. 5 Factory Harley-Davidson on Saturday night. The Brad Baker replacement put together an impressive Heat performance and even finished third in the Dash for Cash, but he never could get it going in the night’s main event.
GNC2
In the GNC2 main event, Bronson Bauman took advantage of a staggered restart with 10 laps to go to earn his first AMA Pro Flat Track win of his career. Bauman completed the stellar victory aboard his No. 30Z Lombardi’s Harley-Davidson machine after starting from second on the grid and passing Andrew Luker on the eight lap. Bauman won over Davis Fisher by a margin of 0.225 seconds. Ryan Varnes was third.
“It feels awesome to get this win,” said Bauman. “There was a lot of tough competition and Davis (Fisher) is always running up front. There’s so many more, I got a bad start but I started working my way up. We got the red flag and fortunately I got a good start off of that. When I saw the white flag, I was just ear to ear saying ‘don’t mess up, don’t mess up,’ and then I came around and got the checkered flag for the first time ever.”
The stars of AMA Pro Flat Track head to Springfield, Ill., for the Springfield Mile on Sept. 6 at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. For tickets and information regarding Round 11, fans are encouraged to visit http://www.illinoismda.com/.
Charlotte Half-Mile AMA Pro Grand National Results, Aug. 29, 2015
1. Bryan Smith, Kawasaki EX650, 25 Laps
2. Kenny Coolbeth, Jr., Harley-Davidson, – 3.273
3. Sammy Halbert, Harley-Davidson, -5.256
4. Brandon Robinson, Triumph Bonneville, -5.56
5. Jarod Vanderkooi, Kawasaki EX650, -5.791
6. Stevie Bonsey, Harley-Davidson 750, -6.494
7. Henry Wiles, Harley-Davidson, -8.24
8. Jake Johnson, Kawasaki EX650, -8.47
9. Doug Lawrence, Harley-Davidson 750, -10.691
10. Briar Bauman, Kawasaki EX650, -12.278
11. Jake Mataya, Kawasaki EX650, -12.466
12. Robert Pearson, Harley-Davidson 750, -13.328
13. Cory Texter, Kawasaki EX650, -14.856
14. Cody Johncox, Harley-Davidson 750, -16.088
15. Adam Carpinello, Harley-Davidson 750, -18.371
16. Mikey Martin, Kawasaki EX650, -18.507
17. Jared Mees, Harley-Davidson, 24 Laps
18. Danny Eslick, Harley-Davidson 750, 19 Laps
19. Jeffrey Carver Jr., Kawasaki EX650, 10 Laps
Points (after 10 or 14 rounds)
1. Jared Mees, 158
2. Bryan Smith, 152
3. Sammy Halbert, 140
4. Kenny Coolbeth, Jr., 129
5. Brandon Robinson, 110
GNC2 Results
1. Bronson Bauman, Harley-Davidson 750, 16 Laps
2. Davis Fisher, Kawasaki EX650, -0.225 secs.
3. Ryan Varnes, Kawasaki EX650, -1.085
4. Andrew Luker, Harley-Davidson 750, -1.272
5. Jamison Minor, Kawasaki EX650, -2.474
6. Brandon Wilhelm, Kawasaki EX650, -3.181
7. Tristan Avery, Kawasaki EX650, -3.9
8. Shawn McNary, Kawasaki EX650, -5.018
9. J.R. Addison, Kawasaki EX650, -5.169
10. Kolby Carlile, Kawasaki EX650, -5.255
11. Jordan Harris, Kawasaki EX650, -5.735
12. Jeffery Lowery, Kawasaki EX650, -5.975
13. Kyle McGrane, Kawasaki EX650, -6.317
14. Robert Lewis, Kawasaki EX650, -6.83
15. Rob McLendon III, Triumph Bonneville, -7.388
16. Dan Bromley, Kawasaki EX650, -7.454
17. Mitch Harvat, Kawasaki EX650, -7.621
18. Lloyd Widener, Kawasaki EX650, 4 Laps
Points (after 10 or 14 rounds)
1. Davis Fisher, 157
2. Bronson Bauman, 125
3. Dan Bromley, 119
4. Jamison Minor, 118
5. J.R. Addison, 96
