| FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE Team
Suzuki/Yoshimura has mixed luck at Oak Hill GNC
Gust running down Natalie |
DECATUR, TX - February 12, 2006 - Team
Suzuki/Yoshimura had a mixed bag of luck
at the inaugural Oak Hill ATVA GNC race. Doug
Gust went 1 -10 for 5th overall while teammate
Jeremiah Jones had a disappointing day going 10
- DNF for 14th overall. Yoshimura sponsored
racer Joe Byrd posted 4 -1 for the overall win,
making this Joe's second win in a row.
Although the weather was unseasonably cold
and windy, competitors greeted the Oak Hill
facility quite favorably. The track was wide,
fast and had a lot of clay in the base. It never
"blue-grooved" too badly and produced good
racing all weekend.
The first moto saw John Natalie grab the lead
with Doug Gust in 2nd a few seconds back. Doug's
QuadRacer LT-R450 slowly closed the gap and by
the midway point the two were nose to tail. Doug
put the pass on Natalie by the tower and pulled
away to an easy win.
"This quad is so awesome," an excited Gust
said after the moto. "It is so comfortable to go
fast on. I can push really hard and the thing is
just so easy to ride. I'm going to win some
races on this quad."
Jeremiah had one of the last gate picks and
started at the far end of the gate.
Unfortunately he was pinched off going into the
first turn and had to start the race towards the
back of the pack. Coming through the pack,
Jeremiah tangled with another rider and lost yet
more time getting going again. The track was
muddy from being heavily watered down before the
first Pro moto. On his way towards the front,
Jeremiah's radiators plugged solid from the mud
and most of the water boiled out. He had to back
off a little past midway to preserve a finish.
The second moto was exciting as there were at
least seven riders dicing for the lead. Doug
tangled up with another rider and the two bikes
became stuck "big-time." By the time "The
Digger" got going again he was a minute down to
the lead pack of Byrd, Luburgh, Natalie and
Ellis.
Jeremiah had a decent start but once again
was rammed in a corner by another rider. Soon
after the incident, his quad started missing and
slowing down. Post race inspection revealed that
the impact broke the battery box, causing an
intermittent grounding condition. Jones was
forced to pull to the infield and watch the rest
of the race. "I had a decent start and was
looking at moving up and winning this thing."
Jones said after the race, "I've been fast all
weekend but these dumb things have just followed
me these first two races. That's just the way
that racing goes sometimes... I just have to
look forward to the next race."
 Gust meantime was blistering the Texas track.
His lap times were easily the fastest of the day
as he worked his way up from dead last and over
a minute down. At the checkers, Doug rolled
across the line in 10th. His hard riding
salvaged what could have been a bad overall
finish had he given up.
"This is a long season and every point
counts," Doug said from inside the Suzuki rig.
"Today I was really strong. I knew if nothing
bad happened that I'd win the second moto and
the overall; but then I got hung up on the start
and that plan went right out the window! When
stuff like this happens, you have to stay calm
and race to the front. Even though the win was
out of reach, I ended up with decent points and
I'll take 'em. More importantly, I felt really
good out there. Last week at Glen Helen I never
quite felt right. This weekend, the 'Old Digger'
was back. It was nice to run good for my fans
and the folks at Suzuki. This LT-R450 is easily
the best quad I've ever ridden."
The team now has a three-week break till the
Gatorback Florida race. The boys are hungry!
Watch for the Suzuki/Yoshimura team to come out
on top in the Florida sun.
Oak Hill ATVA GNC National Results:
1. Joe Byrd
2. John Natalie
3. Kory Ellis
4. Keith Little
5. Doug Gust
6. Jason Luburgh
7. Tavis Cain
8. John Havisto
9. Justin Wimmer
10. Dunk
14. Jeremiah Jones
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