Steward Baylor Wins Alligator National Enduro
Ormond Beach, FL (March 24 2019) – Steward Baylor came into round two of the Kenda AMA National Enduro Series Presented by Moose Racing in Ormond Beach, Florida looking for his first win of the season and the Tely Energy Racing KTM rider delivered, winning all six tests en route to a commanding victory over round one winner Team Gnarly Routes KTM’s Russell Bobbitt.
“I only made a couple mistakes all day,” said Baylor. “I felt like I got better as the day went on. We made some changes there going into the last few tests. I knew the last section would have a lot of palmettos, so I softened everything up. The first time through the palmettos I felt like I was struggling. The second time, I never made a mistake. It was really good. It was just one of those perfect days.”
Though no one showed the consistency that Baylor showed, Bobbitt was more consistent than the rest, claiming second place by a narrow 10-second margin over Husqvarna/ Max Motorsports/FXR’s Evan Smith.
“I always seem to struggle at this race,” said Bobbitt. “I’ve never won it, so that was one of the reasons I wanted to come down here. I didn’t crash any all day. Didn’t stall it. Just kind of rode real smooth and was able to read the trail.”
Smith started strong by finishing second in the first two tests, but ninth-fastest in test three put the Georgia rider in a hole and he could never quite catch back up.
“I was five or six seconds down on Russ going into the last test, but I ended up burying my bike in a mud hole,” said Smith. “There’s no telling how long it took, but it took me a while to get it out. Then I still only lost to him by ten seconds for the day.”
JDP Suspension/RideOnMoto KTM’s Tegan Temple was top-finishing NE Pro2 rider, finishing fourth overall while taking the win in the NE Pro2 class.
“I thought I could win the class, but I didn’t expect to get fourth overall,” said Temple. “It’s pretty exciting.”
Meanwhile, fifth overall and second in NE Pro2 went to Tely Energy KTM’s Liam Draper. Beta USA’s Cody Barnes was sixth overall and third in the NE Pro2 division.
Tely Energy Racing KTM’s Grant Baylor, who win the Alligator Enduro two years ago, was seventh overall in his return from a shoulder injury. Grant spent one hour on the bike before starting the race, and admitted afterward that he didn’t have the upper body strength to compete properly.
Beta USA’s Mike Witkowski finished up in eight overall, a little over a minute off of Grant’s time.
Brothers Chase and Zack Hayes were ninth and tenth overall (fourth and fifth NE Pro2) on a pair of KTM’s.
Mackenzie Tricker showed her sand-riding prowess with a big win in the Women’s Elite division, putting her Mepmx/Fly/Grizzly Peak/Traveler’s Rest Speedway/KTM on top of the box ahead of Rockstar Energy/Husqvarna/Moose Husqvarna’s Tayla Jones by 19 seconds.
“It was a pretty good day,” said Tricker. “I started slow in test one, then I kind of started chipping off a little bit of time. I lost 19 seconds in that first test, so I had to just kind of make up some time. Tayla and I went into the last test with two seconds separating us, so it was just like I knew it was going to be the both of us just either sending it or crashing and I was able to get the win.”
Brooke Cosner on a KTM too home 3rd in Women’s Elite.
Scott Gawler Jr. on a Husqvarna, won the AA class ahead of Yamaha riders James King and Brandon Forrester.
In the Schoolboy 14-16 division, Lake Plowman (KTM) took the win over Trevor Hulin (KTM) and Thomas Allan (Bet).
The Kenda AMA National Enduro Series Presented By Moose Racing returns to action on April 28th at the Cajun National Enduro in Forest Hill, Louisiana. For more information check out www.nationalenduro.com.
OVERALL RESULTS
- Steward Baylor (KTM)
- Russell Bobbitt (KTM)
- Evan Smith (Hsq)
- Tegan Temple (KTM)
- Liam Draper (Hsq)
- Cody Barnes (Bet)
- Grant Baylor (KTM)
- Mike Witkowski (Bet)
- Chase Hayes (KTM)
- Zach Hayes (KTM)