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New England ATV Motocross -- Round 8
Joe Haavisto
Josh Creamer |
Lempster, NH – Kawasaki/Monster Energy’s Josh
Creamer swept both the Pro and Pro-am classes of
round nine of the NEATV series at Jolly Roger,
which would be his final races of the season
before undergoing surgery to repair a knee
injury sustained earlier this year.
Jolly Roger is a favorite track of many NEATV
racers and for round nine, racers were treated
to a backwards run of the track, which included
some whoops and jumps that are not included in
the usual format. The racers were quite pleased
with the change of pace and readily took on the
challenge of running the track in the opposite
direction.
In the pro class, Kawasaki’s
Josh Creamer and Joe Haavisto both made an all
night trek to Jolly Roger after racing at the
AMA Motocross Invitational at Steel City the day
before. Both Creamer and Haavisto were riding
injured due to crashes they were involved in at
Steel City where, Haavisto hyper-extended his
knee during practice and did not race in the
main event. Although he was still in a great
deal of pain, Joe raced at Jolly Roger in order
to salvage points and keep some distance between
him and second place, Michael Pilotte. “I’m
leading in points and I really want to keep it
that way, especially in the pro class; that’s
the one that really matters to me,” Joe stated.
Despite being a bit banged up himself, Josh
Creamer came on strong in the Pro motos, taking
the holehsot in both moto one and two and led
the entire time. Meanwhile, Canadian racer,
Richard Pelchat also made an appearance at round
nine, and ran a close second to Creamer in both
motos, but since Pelchat is not a full member of
the NEATV series, he was not eligible for
points, which kept things in order for series
regulars.
Even though Creamer and
Pelchat checked out, the Pro motos had plenty of
excitement as Michael Pilotte, Myle Santaniello
and Justin Hoffler were battling it out as the
end of their season draws near and the points
ace is heating up. Pilotte is currently second
in points with 313 points, which is only 56
points behind pro points leader, Haavisto.
Santaniello has had a strong showing this season
and is currently sitting in third with 278
points, while Thomas Mofford, who has been very
consistent this season is close behind with 273.
In the Pro-am classes, it was Richard
Pelchat, who grabbed both holeshots, but Josh
Creamer made quick work of him, taking over the
lead both times to claim the win in the Pro-am
class as well. “It feels really good to come out
here and end my season on a high note,” said
Josh. “After I’m healed from my surgery, I’ll be
getting back to training full time and hopefully
come back even stronger next season.”
As
Pelchat and Creamer battled it out up front,
Jason Connell came on strong claiming a 2-2
finish and second overall. Michael Pilotte ran
into problems in the first Pro-am moto and
finished dead last, but the #748 Honda made a
good comeback and took 4th in moto two, claiming
9th overall, which allowed him to hang on to
second in the points race. Meanwhile a rather
weary points leader, Joe Haavisto, was riding
mid pack, taking a 9-7 finish, which was
identical to his Pro moto finishes, claiming 7th
overall and increasing his points lead to 352.
Myles Santaniello rode strong to take a 3-3
finish, while Justin Hoffler’s 5-5 finish was
enough to earn him 4th overall with Matthew
Pomeroy rounding out the top five for the Pro-am
class.
In the Women’s
class, Paige Whipple continues to hold on to her
points lead after taking a 3-1 finish, which
earner her the overall win for the day. Amy
Thompson, who is in second in the points race
took third overall, increasing her points to
354, only 21 points behind Whipple, but Tiffany
LeClair is quickly approaching Thompson in
points after taking second place overall this
weekend and increasing her points to 341.
In 4-stroke Expert A, Ralle Rooky took the
overall win, putting him at 355 points. Jason
Connell, who came on strong in the Pro-am class
also made his presence known in 4-stroke Expert
A with a 1-2 finish, which earned him 2nd
overall, while Jon Hansen claimed the final spot
on the podium with Michael Taylor and Jono
Normandin rounding out the top five. Ralle Rooky
also took a 1-1 finish in Open Expert A, with
Michael Taylor in second with a strong 2-2
finish and Shawn Korza claimed a solid third
overall.
In the Youth 200/300 class,
Justin Cyr and Dylan Murcott are in a close
points race for the championship with Justin in
first at 336, but Dylan is only three points
away at 330. With only three rounds to go in the
season, the battle will surely be heating up
between these two. Ryan Dupont continues to
dominate the 90 Auto Junior class with 450
points while Cody Paolella sits comfortably in
second with 352 and Chris Kearney is a distant
third with 299.
Michael Pahlas has kept
it consistent all season and is sitting
comfortably in the points lead of the 70 Limited
class with 396 points while second place Wade
Pollard increased his points standings to 352 by
taking the overall win, while Andy Cummings has
made an impressive effort all year and currently
holds third in the points race with 344 points.
As the end of the 2008 NEATV season
fast approaches, many racers are beginning to
feel the pressure as the points battles begin to
heat up and the weather cools down. Round ten of
the NEATV series will head back to Middleboro,
MA on September 14th, where Capeway Rovers
Motocross will play host to the series for the
third and final time this season.
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