Mark Kariya | January 13, 2025
If round one is any indication, the AMA West Hare Scrambles (WHS) Regional Championship Series, Presented by MojoMotoSport, will be a barn burner. The Ram-Page Hare Scramble, hosted by the Rockstars Motorcycle Club, featured the area’s towering sandstone cliffs best known for hard enduros. But for hare scrambles, the club utilized more of the many sandy trails crisscrossing the desert floor, trails that quickly became bike-swallowing whoops that tested fitness and riding prowess. But none of that foreshadowed how close the racing would be.
Dante Oliveira (pictured) began his quest for a third-straight AMA WHS Championship by winning the Ram-Page Hare Scramble, though Mateo Oliveira was a strong second and Zane Roberts sprinted the final lap for third.
After two hours and 48 minutes at maximum intensity, two-time and reigning series champ Dante Oliveira, his brother and teammate on the FMF KTM Factory Racing Off-road Team, Mateo, and LiquiMoly Beta’s Zane Roberts finished one second apart!
Less than a minute behind them came the first three Pro 250 riders, with Hatch Racing Kawasaki rider Colton Aeck besting defending class champ Layton Smail by two seconds. Ryder Thomaselli was third in class and sixth overall on his 395 Motorsports Husqvarna.
Neither Oliveira is known as a desert racer, though you wouldn’t know it by how they attacked the 13-mile loop.
“Definitely, I was a little concerned [after watching a course preview video posted by former series champ Max Gerston and Taylor Robert],” Dante said. “I was like, ‘Oh geez, I’m in for one tomorrow!’ It’s hard to go and push yourself out in the desert—anything can bite you so quick, and you’re going pretty fast speeds, and just with the rocks and the sand whoops, you’ve got to be on your toes.”
Despite coming off a wrist injury a few months ago, Dante set the pace from the start aboard his Red Bull/Dunlop/Alpinestars-sponsored 450 XC-F. But it wasn’t long before Mateo joined him on his own Motorex/Renthal/100% 450 XC-F, spending practically all of the race only a few seconds behind.
Colton Aeck (X526) passed early leader and defending Pro 250 champ Layton Smail (1X) en route to the class win and fourth overall.
“I was just kind of waiting to see what [Dante was going to do],” Mateo said. “He was reading the terrain super-well, I thought, ‘Better than I’d be doing if I was leading,’ and it was easier to follow, and we were pulling away a little bit after lap three.
“I knew at the end I’d be a little fitter than him [as far as] bike fitness, but I made a little mistake with the pits on the last lap.”
That settled it, though Roberts—always stronger the longer the race goes—sprinted the final lap aboard his FMF/Bridgestone/Klim 480 RR. From nine seconds behind Mateo at the white flag, Roberts erased all but one second of their gap.
“I just tried to manage my pace—I knew it was going to come down to the end there,” he said. “I had a little crash midway, and it kind of got me flustered a little bit, but I felt good after that. I was just trying to slowly close down on these guys, but I didn’t want to do it too soon and wear myself out. I think we ran the fastest lap on the last lap, even with pitting! That last lap hurt pretty good, but it was fun.”
After a poor start, Aeck had a lot of ground to make up but could adapt well to the Arizona desert on his Complete Electric/Hoosier Tire/O’Neal KX250. A little over an hour into the race, he’d moved into second in Pro 250 but was still 31 seconds behind Pro 250 leader Smail.
Two laps later, Aeck had completely erased that gap, moving into the class lead and fourth overall. Smail, however, refused to give up. Eight seconds down at the white flag, he gambled and skipped his pit. That enabled him to close the gap but not eliminate it and he ran out of gas in the scoring chute after taking the checkered flag. Disappointed to lose a close one, it was still a good debut on his new (and very stock) Canyon Excavation/Team Green/FXR KX250.
Thomaselli was 4:45 behind Smail and 14 seconds ahead of Norman Racing Husqvarna-mounted Daemon Woolslayer, the Utah desert racer mixing it up with the Oliveiras in the early going. Gainslinger Human Performance Husqvarna’s Cole Zeller made his series debut with a fourth in Pro 250 and eighth overall, followed by FMF/RPM Racing KTM’s Jaden Dahners (last year’s Pro 250 vice-champion) and Liqui Moly Beta’s Joe Wasson.
Former series champ David Kamo enjoyed a commanding lead for the Pro Vet 35+ victory aboard his Kamo Realty/PCI Race Radios/Khlobe KTM, finishing 15th overall. He was some 17 minutes ahead of class runner-up John Kean’s TBT Racing KTM, with Darrin Tuckett third on his Precision Concepts Yamaha.
Ava Silvestri (pictured) picked up where she left off last season and won the Pro Women’s class, followed by desert regulars Ty Woolslayer and Rachel Stout.
Ava Silvestri resumed her reign at the top of the Pro Women division in the morning race, grabbing the holeshot on her 395 Motorsports/Racer Decal/Troy Lee Designs GasGas.
“You definitely can’t complain when you get the holeshot!” she exclaimed, adding, “Once we got out there, I was kind of like, ‘Maybe it would’ve been better to follow a little bit,’ because I definitely felt on the first lap I was kind of showing the course to all the girls, because I was the one leading the way, basically.”
Desert specialist Ty Woolslayer rode strong for second place aboard her Reflex Racing Yamaha, and AMA Hare & Hound National Pro Women Champ Rachel Stout was third in her debut as an FMF/RPM Racing KTM rider.
Though he didn’t get the best start, David Kamo (shown) reeled off fast laps en route to a commanding win in Pro Vet 35+ over John Kean and Darrin Tuckett.
OVERALL
- Dante Oliveira (KTM)
- Mateo Oliveira (KTM)
- Zane Roberts (Bet)
- Colton Aeck (Kaw)
- Layton Smail (Kaw)
- Ryder Thomaselli (Hus)
- Daemon Woolslayer (Hus)
- Cole Zeller (Hus)
- Jaden Dahner (KTM)
- Joseph Wasson (Bet)