Press Release | July 2, 2019
Ricky Russell Takes The OA Win At Round 6
This is a race report from National Hare and Hound Association…
Photos by Mark Kariya
The Kenda/SRT AMA West Hare Scramble Championship Series presented by MOJO Motosport headed to Hannagen Speedway in Bellingham, Washington for Round 6 of the 2019 race season. The rainfall a few days prior to the event made for awesome course conditions. A weekend filled with sunshine served as the perfect environment for both racers and fans.
Youth
The Pee Wee class lined up Saturday morning for the first race of the weekend. It was not long before our leader, Lincoln Brocker was coming through the scoring chute off of his first lap with Henry Leighton racing close behind in 2nd and Katin Lessing in 3rd OA. After a long 5 lap race, the checkered flag was thrown and the Pee Wee podium took their place; seeing an overall win from Lincoln Brocker next to Henry Leighton in 2nd and Katin Lessing in 3rd.
The next race of the day saw all remaining Youth classes; Big Wheel, Mini, Jr. Mini, and Micro Mini. The Big Wheel racers were off of the starting line first when the green flag was thrown, and it was not long before Ryder Thomaselli was out front, stealing the holeshot. Seth Sadorra moved in close behind him to begin a battle that would last throughout the entire race. Coming off of the first lap, Thomaselli was in the lead with Sadorra only seconds behind him. and Lane Forbes in 3rd. As the race continued, Thomaselli remained in the lead. The white flag was thrown, and the battle between Sadorra and Thomaselli had spectators on the edge of their seats as Sadorra attempted to make a pass on Thomaselli to seal the deal. Forbes remained in a 3rd place position throughout this battle. Ultimately, the checkered flag was thrown and Ryder Thomaselli secured himself a 1st place spot on the Big Wheel podium next to Seth Sadorra in 2nd and Lane Forbes in 3rd.
The Mini and Jr. Mini classes in this race had a few good battles as well. Although, Harley Jefferies was able to retain his lead throughout the entire race; securing his 2019 AMA Championship title for the Mini class. Behind Jefferies, Ruffin Dodson raced in a 2nd in class position for the entire race, ahead of Jett Lessing and Zachary Francies swapping between 3rd and 4th in class. Lessing was able to secure himself a 3rd place spot on the podium with Ruffin Dodson in 2nd and Harley Jefferies in 1st to round out the Mini podium. All the while, Elizabeth Edwards was on her way to her third consecutive 1st place podium for the Jr. Mini class next to Troy Pensotti in 2nd.
Lastly, the Micro Mini class saw a 4th consecutive win from Lowe Lord in a class stacked with talent. Jackson Adams would land 2nd on the podium next to Shane Shardlow in 3rd to round out the Micro Mini podium.
Big Bikes
To wrap up racing on Saturday, all C classes as well as Masters 60+ and Sportsmen lined up on the starting line. The green flag was thrown for each row, and it was not long before the leader came through the scoring chute off of lap 1. Keith Thorp in the NMA 50+ B class would be the leader off of the first lap but it would not be long before Scott O’Brien would take over the lead for the next 3 laps. Behind Scott in 2nd OA was Richard Welch, who also retained this position for the next three laps. The checkered flag was thrown and Ryan Bair, who had raced up from a 12th OA position was now in the lead, ahead of Shaums March in 2nd and Ashton Oudman in 3rd to round out the overall podium for this race.
With a freshly watered track, sunshine, and plenty of bike prep throughout the pits, Hannegan Speedway was ready for the last two races of the weekend early Sunday morning. Preceding the Pro race, Women Pro A/B and all remaining B classes were ready to tackle the first race of the day. RPM Racing backed Maria Hahn returned to her home track to race Round 6, and take the win for the Women Pro class. Stealing the lead in the first turn, Hahn was able to get an early jump on the rest of her class, but John Kaveney was not going to let her get by without putting pressure on. Kaveney soon took over the lead of the race with Hahn in 2nd OA and Seth Sadorra not too far behind. Racing in the top 10, Chidester Transport Racing backed Sharon Mowell held 2nd in the Women Pro class throughout the entire race, finishing 6th OA. The overall podium for this race was topped by John Kaveney next to Maria Hahn in 2nd and Seth Sadorra in 3rd while the Women Pro podium saw Maria Hahn in 1st next to Sharon Mowell in 2nd.
At the conclusion of the penultimate race of the day, he highly anticipated Pro race began staging. Lining up on the first row were 11 Pro racers, ready for the green flag to wave on the dead engine start. GNCC star, and Washington-native, Ricky Russell utilized his off weekend by jumping into the mix at Hannegan Speedway. Stealing the holeshot and getting a major lead on his class almost immediately, Russell began to set the pace. Not far behind Russell in 2nd OA was Factory Beta’s Max Gerston and his teammate Joe Wasson in 3rd. Right in their element, Gerston and Russell found their strength in the tight and technical course. These top three racers remained in this position for the entire race, with Gerston gaining time on Russell and Wasson putting the pressure on his teammate. The Pro podium was topped by Ricky Russell next to Max Gerston in 2nd and Joe Wasson in 3rd. With a short summer break ahead, Gerston maintains the series points lead by 42 points, with just two rounds left.
In the Pro 250 class, Factory Beta’s Zane Roberts held the leading position and top 5 OA. In 2nd OA, Dillon Sheppard was having an awesome time out on course, racing his own race with very few battles, with Roberts holding his untouchable lead. Larson and Sheppard raced close together in certain sections out on course but Larson was not familiar with the tight course conditions and fell back in 3rd to remain there for the entirety of the race. Factory Beta’s Zane Roberts finished 1st in class next to Dillon Sheppard in 2nd and Chase Larson in 3rd to round out the Pro 250 podium.
The Open A class saw a class win from Billy Baldwin next to Brett Sage in 2nd and Dylan Koidahl in 3rd.
The Vet A class saw a 1st place finish from Norman Upson next to Chase Jeffers in 2nd and Ryan Philbrick in 3rd.
The Masters 60+ class saw a win from Scott O’Brien next to Richard Welch in 2nd and Wyatt Foss in 3rd.
The Open C class saw a win from Aiden Clark next to Ryan Waterman in 2nd and Nathan Brendemuhl in 3rd.
The NHHA and all of our racers enjoyed the hard work that Mt. Baker MC & Hannegan Speedway put into Round 6 and we look forward to seeing our racers at Round 7 in Stillwater, OK. August 31st for the East/West Shootout.
RACE RESULTS
ROUND 7 PRE-ENTRY
SERIES POINTS
For more information, including past releases visit www.nationalhareandhound.com