2022 Lassen MC National Hare & Hound Results

| September 27, 2022

3Bros Hatch Racing’s Dalton Shirey claimed his second Hare & Hound Championship a round early, at the Lassen MC National Hare & Hound, September 25, near Reno, Nevada. The Dry Valley OHV Area lived up to its name, serving the racers with a highly anticipated dry and dusty round seven of the NHHA Championship, presented by FMF.

Dalton Shirey at 2022 Lassen MC National Hare & Hound — **Dalton Shirey clinched the 2022 National Hare & Hound Championship a round early after winning in Nevada.**

Story and Photos by Mary Rinell

Factory Beta Racing and defending NHHA Champion Joe Wasson went into the race slightly behind in points and knew he needed to defeat Shirey in order to hold onto his hard-earned 2021 title. If he secured a win, the two would have gone into the final round neck-and-neck leaving the championship up for grabs.

The hosting club (the Lassen MC Diamond Backs) laid-out three total loops during this single- day race, which would progressively get more challenging as the day went on. Wasson got the jump on Shirey and the pack from the bomb run start, kicking off loop one with what would seem like a smooth race. Unfortunately for him, he ran into a mechanical issue around the midway point and had to pull off to fix his bike, dropping him back to eighth place which he held onto until the bitter end.

“This is a tough one for me,” Wasson said. “I had it, I was feeling good and running smooth, when all of a sudden the bike shut down and just wouldn’t get going again.”

It turned out to be a loose battery cable that ultimately cost him his last possibility of claiming back-to-back championships.

Corbin McPherson at 2022 Lassen MC National Hare & Hound — **Corbin McPherson topped the Pro 250 field, claiming fourth overall in the process.**

“Honestly, the first five or so miles was a bit of chaos; everyone was sort of all over the place, and the dust was so thick you really couldn’t tell where you were, or where you were supposed to go,” said Shirey. “After that things started to settle a bit and racers started filing in line. The dust was so bad, I decided to just be patient and back off a little to just wait for a good moment where I could find my points where I could charge and attack. I came up on Joe [Wasson] who was sitting there [off his bike] and that was it, I got the lead just like that, and I just kept going from there! I focused on keeping it on two wheels, because I knew the bigger picture was the championship.”

Wasson’s teammate, factory Beta racer Zane Roberts returned to the podium again this round securing a second-place finish and moving him up to third overall in series points. With Wasson’s eighth-place finish and Roberts’ second, there is now only 19 points separating the Beta boys going into the final race.

Rounding out the Pro podium in third was Jacob Argubright who would see his first podium finish of the season, which bumped him up in series points to a solid fourth place.

In the Pro 250cc class, Corbin McPherson claimed another win, with close competitor Carter Klein tight on his heels finishing less than 30 seconds behind. Along with third-place finisher Clayton Roberts, these three racers have maintained some super-close battles, all fighting hard for points all season long. Each of them has made it to the top podium step, and it will come down to the last round before we know who will be crowned this season’s champion.

The same can be said about the Pro Women’s class, a mere five points separating first and third place! It is literally winner-take-all between Britney Gallegos, Rachel Stout and Ava Silvestri going into round eight, and any one of the three women (who all finished within a minute of each other in Nevada) could take home the title of 2022 NHHA Champion. This is due mostly to this weekend’s win by 3Bros Kilmartin GasGas Racing’s Silvestri, who saw her second victory of the season after making a late third-loop-pass to claim the top podium step.

Ava Silvestri at 2022 Lassen MC National Hare & Hound — **Ava Silvestri topped the Pro Women’s field, setting the stage for a three-rider showdown for the class championship at the final round.**

Another notable title claimed a round early is the Big Wheel championship. Class winner Jason Harris, who is a 3Bros teammate to 2022 Pro-class winner Shirey, took the crown in Nevada. The two wound up on the podium together during award ceremonies. Harris secured back-to-back championships this year. He will be moving up to big bikes next year.

“2021 was my first year racing NHHA, so I was a lot more nervous going in,” Harris said, “but I won the first round and each round after I gained more and more confidence in myself and my ability to race this style of racing.”