Canadians Among Top 3 In All Classes at 2018 Round 2 AMA West Harescramble Series

February 19th, 2018

The cactus covered start line, deep canyons, and nearly 400 entries for the entire weekend all contributed to making the best of round 2 for the 2018 AMA KENDA SRT West Hare Scramble Championship Series presented by MOJO Motosports. Located in Prescott Valley, the race took place in prime desert terrain on private property.

Taylor Robert Takes Home a West Hare Scramble Victory

Round 2 makes its mark on Arizona with AMRA

RESULTS –  POINT STANDINGS

YOUTH: The race weekend began bright and early Saturday morning and saw the Pee Wee race first. Racing on a 1.5 mile course, the 50cc racers faced nothing but fun racing. Leading the entire race, John Nordling sat at the top of the Pee Wee podium next to Nathan Sanders in 2nd and Lucas Carter in 3rd.

Up next on the race schedule was the 65cc race, which also saw the 85cc Jr. and Jr. Girls class. Holding what looked like an untouchable lead, Ryder Thomaselli led the entire race after battling for the holeshot with Jace Vogt. Ruffin Dodson followed behind in 2nd, soaking in the challenge that the technical sections posed for him and earning his spot on the podium. The overall podium saw a win from Ryder Thomaselli next to Ruffin Dodson in 2nd and Jace Vogt in 3rd.

The last youth race of the day saw an overall win from Seven Diaz in the Big Wheel race. Stealing the holeshot off of the cactus filled start line, which only added to the level of competition for the holeshot, Diaz made his way in front of the line of racers to remain there the rest of the race. Behind Diaz in 2nd, Zach Kerling maintained his position throughout the race, also keeping a consistent gap on 3rd place, Lane Forbes. The Big Wheel podium saw Seven Diaz in 1st, next to Zach Kerling in 2nd and Lane Forbes in 3rd.

WOMEN: A lead was seen from Brandy Richards in the last race of the day Saturday, taking an overall win for the Women’s class. Richards favored the variety of fast sections and tighter sections on the course, which played to her advantage when taking home the overall win for the Women’s class. Coming in 2nd overall for the Women’s class and dominating the technical sections, Shelby Turner was not first off of the start line. After pushing her way to the top, she raced to close the gap between her and Richards. Not too far behind in 3rd place, Nicole Bradford was working for her spot on the podium. Stealing the holeshot and ripping through the rest of the course, Bradford and her competition made sure her spot on the podium was well earned. The Women’s podium saw an overall win from Brandy Richards, next to Shelby Turner in 2nd and Nicole Bradford in 3rd. 

PRO 250: After the 85cc Invitational presented by Fly Racing, it was finally time to see the stacked Pro and Pro 250 class that spectators had all heard so much about. With Pro’s and Pro 250’s starting on the same line, the competition for the holeshot only increased as more racers lined up to pick the perfect lines. Taking the holeshot, Justin Bonita led the pack as Trystan Hart, Max Gerston, and many more put on the pressure to steal the lead. The Pro 250 podium saw a win from Chaparral Motorsports/Precision Concepts Kawasaki Race Team’s Clay Hengeveld, next to RPM Racing backed Spencer Wilton in 2nd and Jeremy Wilton in 3rd. Hengeveld had one motive as he charged through the race, and that was to come out on top. With J. Wilton leading the way for the first lap, Hengeveld had to buckle down and make his mark, stealing the lead on the 2nd lap. Coming in 2nd for the Pro 250 class, S. Wilton felt the pressure the most off of the start. Not knowing what place he was in after funneling through the pack, S. Wilton had nothing but focus as he was finishing the race. After a few close calls in his battle with Kyle Hutcheson, J. Wilton stole 3rd place position, making his spot on the podium that much sweeter.

PRO: The Pro class saw an overall win from FMF KTM Factory Racing’s Taylor Robert, with Team SRT-Husqvarna backed Trystan Hart in 2nd and RPM Racing backed Dante Oliveira in 3rd. A race that is now one of his personal favorites, Robert led the pack with an average 1 minute lead on his competition. Beta’s Max Gerston raced behind in 2nd overall with Oliveira in 3rd and GasGas’s Travis Coy only seconds behind. Lap 2 changed the standings as Hart stole 2nd place position from Gerston, who was now in 3rd overall.

Robert set the bar pretty high with his speed and the gap between him and 2nd place seemed untouchable. With Hart in 2nd and Oliveira in 3rd for the third lap, these were the standings that spectators could get used to as they remained in these spots the rest of the race. Gerston was falling back in standings as Kendall Norman and Chidester Transport Racing backed Jacob Argubright put the pressure on, battling each other for 4th place. After Norman stole 4th place, Gerston stole 5th, putting Argubright in 6th overall. Norman then put the pressure on 3rd place, Oliveira, but his lead could not be caught, as Oliveira held 3rd to the finish.

PRO PODIUM

The Pro podium saw an overall win from Taylor Robert, with Trystan Hart in 2nd and Dante Oliveira in 3rd.

The NHHA Team, AMRA, and XMC worked their hardest to ensure Round 2 of the 2018 AMA KENDA SRT West Hare Scramble Championship Series presented by MOJO Motosports was one that racers would remember for the remainder of the 2018 race season. We look forward to seeing our racers at Round 3 in Gorman, CA. (see flyer below for more info)