As STQRA Points Battle Heats Up, Friendships Keep the Series Strong

#13 Camden Nichols won the last two rounds of the Pee Wee class.

With only two rounds left in the South Texas Quad Racing Association’s 2006 Southern Challenge Series, a battle for points is brewing. From Pee Wee to Pro-Am, the classes are closely matched, and the final races of this 10-round series will determine who gets the year’s top positions.

But even though a class championship can bring sponsorship opportunities and “bragging rights,” friendships made at the track are not overshadowed by the tight points race, and families enjoying themselves remain a top priority for most.

After battling on the track, riders often shake hands coming off.

Naturally, once the gates drop and adrenaline kicks in, racers push their limits to get out in front, each wanting that prized checkered flag. But as the moto ends, riders who battled on the track meet each other coming off to shake hands and say ‘great race,’ then hang out together in the pits.

This camaraderie among competitors is common in the STQRA and the reason many return to the annual series year after year. Riders and their families help work on competitor’s quads, loan parts, and even share their only race quad with another rider unable to get his or her own ready for the race.

Women's points leader Kara Corn wins her class in Round 8 on a borrowed quad.

At the last round, held August 6 at Splendora Motocross Park, Kara Corn, who leads points in the Women’s class, had beamed as she looked forward to her first actual race on her new Suzuki LT-R450. After running the last few years on a quad plagued with mechanical problems, she could finally race with confidence. Yet, when a fellow teammate’s new quad did not arrive in time for the race, Kara offered to share hers. Unfortunately, that teammate crashed in practice. Kara said she knew the risk, but felt she had to offer it, regardless, and she knew he would replace any damaged parts.

“He’s my teammate,” said Kara. “There may be a time when I’ll be in that position.”

Kara soon learned she was. Her new quad had suffered damage not immediately noticed, and she would not be racing it that weekend. Another STQRA rider quickly stepped up to offer his for her to race, and on it Kara took the win.

Riders also often share their skills on the track, even helping those closest in points to them master new jumps, and many will stop in the middle of a race to check on someone who crashed.

“Even though they have such a close points battle,” says STQRA president Dee Manshack, “their friend’s well-being is more important.”

Dee and Michele Manshack.

Manshack and his wife, Michele, say through the not-for-profit STQRA they offer a “clean competition in a family-style environment,” an opportunity for people to “come out with their families and have fun riding their four-wheelers.” They also want to help the sport of ATV motocross grow.

STQRA welcomes new riders, as well as their families and friends, and treats them as old friends, wanting to ensure an enjoyable experience for all.

Although membership is not required to race and trophies or cash is presented to top riders in an awards ceremony at the end of each round, only members receive points that accumulate toward series awards and contingencies, presented at the annual end-of-season banquet.

Racing on a borrowed quad, points leader John Buller takes the first moto win in Round 8.

With only two rounds to go, STQRA’s 2005 champion, John Buller, currently leads this year’s Pro-Am class, and Robert Salinas is in second. Buller, who started racing quads in 2001, credits the support of Rage ATV and of his parents for getting him this far.

Racing a borrowed quad, Buller took the win in the first moto of Round 8, but Austin Wilson, known widely for his freestyle with Akraix Entertainment, got the overall with 3-1.

Wilson, sponsored by Cernics, Laker Custom, Media Allstars, MSR, Rage ATV, MXpictures.com, Scott USA, and Akraix Entertainment, said there were “some fast riders” in the Pro am class, and he had a great time racing with them. He offered a “big thanks” to Manshack (who owns Rage ATV) for building the engine that put him out front.

#808 Austin Wilson raced the first Pro-Am moto at Round 8 in a cow suit.

“This was my first race with the STQRA series,” said Wilson. “It reminds me a lot of the TQRA atmosphere when I first came to race it a few years ago. I like the STQRA series and the people involved with it. I will be attending as many races in the future as I can!”

Showing he came to have fun, Wilson lined up at the gate in Moto 1 wearing a cow suit, given to him by a friend. A crowd of spectators laughed and pointed as he hit the jumps, udders flapping and tail flying. He took third the first moto, with Buller in first and Chris Brian in second. Brian took the holeshots and finished second both motos, and Wilson, abandoning the hot cow suit for Moto 2, got the checkered flag and overall win. Having mechanical difficulties, Buller came in third overall in Round 8, but maintained his first place points position, with Robert Salinas finishing fourth.

Even though his clutches locked up in the race, Buller said he still had fun.

“I think we had a wonderful race at Splendora,” says Buller. “I practice here a lot, but I look forward to racing here and watching the races, especially the Novice (Open B) class.”

#124 Ryan Callahan and #7 Josh Bateman battle for first round after round in Open B.

STQRA’s 2005 Open C Champion Ryan Callahan is the current Open B points leader, but he and Josh Bateman, in second, repeatedly fight for first. So far, Callahan won five rounds and Bateman took the other three. Marco Castillo is in third, followed by Shawn Lane in fourth. Bobby Belyeu is in fifth, only four points behind Lane.

In Open A, Robert Hanson is the current points leader with three overall wins. Megan Manshack, who won the opening round, is not far behind him in second. Joe Messina took the overall win in Round 8, and is now in third. In fourth is Chris Newland, three points behind Messina, and Justin Lawson rounds out the top five.

Leading STQRA’s beginner class, the Open C, is Jason Bryant, who won Round 8. James Lozano is in second and Paul Gray currently holds third. Only four points separate fourth place Chris Thomas from Jason Murff in fifth.

#738 Robert Salinas won the Over 30A in Round 8 and is the points leader.

Robert Salinas took the win in Round 8 of the Over 30A class, and is the new class points leader. Romero Medina now holds second, followed by Doug Cucco, who won the first two rounds in this class.

With two overall wins so far, including Round 8, Gary White is leading the Over 30 B class. Robert Smith is in second and Ronnie Jones, who took second in the last round, is in third.

Kara Corn’s recent win, her fifth this season, gave her a commanding lead in the Women’s class. Kayla Melder moved into second place, followed by Angela Bryant in a close third. Brittney Keene, who was tied for second before crashing in the last round, is now in fourth.

Another exciting class to watch is the Sport Quad. These youth riders are all closely matched and push their mid-sized quads to the limit. Josh Juneau holds first in points, with Kyle Bushen eight points down in second. Class champion Ryan Anderson fell back to third after missing two rounds, although he came back to take the win in Round 8. Jesse Velasquez just moved into fourth and Alex Kohl is not far behind him in fifth.
Leading the Youth class with six overall wins is Tyler Webster. Hart Walker, who won the last round, is in second and Garrett Baker holds third.

#00 Grady Antich is the Super Mini points leader.

Grady Antich continues to lead the Super Mini class, although Blayne Neely won the last four rounds. Neely is in second, followed by Hart Walker in third and Nathan Clague in fourth.

After winning the last four rounds, Sara Trevino is building a strong lead in the Mini class. Running in second is Zaine Melder, with Briana Helms, who is hot on the holeshots, just seven points back in third. Just one point behind her is Nathan Clague, and seven points behind him is Lat Nichols, who rounds out the top five.

Hunter Gengo currently leads both the Super Pee Wee and Pee Wee classes, but a couple of Nichols siblings are right behind him in points. Kentleigh Nichols won the last two rounds of the Super Pee Wee class and is just four points down from first. Her brother, Camden Nichols, won the last two rounds of the Pee Wee class, and is also four points from first. Tre Keene is third in the Super Pee Wee class, followed by Ty Cruse, who won two rounds this season. Tre additionally holds fourth in the Pee Wee class below third place Nicholas Webster, who won four rounds and is six points out of second. Keigan Nichols rounds out the top five in the Pee Wee class, just four points ahead of Brendon Roberts.

After practice, young riders beat the Texas heat in Round 8 by cooling off on a water slide provided by Splendora Motocross Park.

With points being so close and each rider wanting a top position, the last two rounds of the series will undoubtedly bring some exciting races!

But it will still be the friendship and fun that many will be going for.

“It’s more relaxed,” says Buller,” because everybody’s friendly on the track and off, unlike any other series I’ve ever run before.”

Buller says he is looking forward to returning to Austin Del Valle Motocross Park for Round 9, to be held September 10.

“I loved the jumps,” he said. “It’s nice and technical.”

Splendora Motocross Park, STQRA’s home track, will host the final, double-points round, October 15th. To see more results, view thousands of race action photos, and learn all about the STQRA and its annual series, visit www.stqra.com.