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| June 11, 2005 News |
| EKN Trackside: USSC - Road America - Saturday Report |
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 | The flying start of the USSC Prefinal up the front stretch of Road America
(Photo: Super Kart Illustrated) |
As the drivers of the U.S. Superkart Eastern Championship stood on the grid at Road America today for the second round of the series, there was an overwhelming atmosphere of excitement. With over 30 cars in the paddock, there is little doubt that this segment of kart racing is on the rise, and the momentum is definitely pushing the category to new heights of participation. The smiles on the faces of class stalwarts like JR Osborne and Johnny West say it all. Superkarting is enjoying a surge in popularity and this Road America event is proof positive.
After setting the grid based on the lap times from the final track session on Friday, Osborne put his Yamaha TZ-powered P-1 on the inside of the front row alongside West, who was aboard his Honda RS-powered Stockman. With Osborne leading West following the Barber opener back in April, the fight was on.
The Prefinal was run as part of the seventh race group, along with the Unlimited and Formula 125 classes. With high temperatures and equally high humidity, the field took the rolling start green and thundered into turn one with Osborne leading the charge. Over the opening lap, Osborne pulled out to a small lead with West pacing sophomore Reggie Brown Jr. (P-1) for second. Brown looked to have his ride sorted and he worked his way by West to assume the challenge position, although it would be short-lived. Sadly, Brown would retire on lap five after losing a rod in his BRC powerplant. Up front, Osborne was in a league of his own, posting a fast lap of 2:18.426 to sit three seconds clear of his closest competitor to take the win.
West would take back the runner-up position as the result of Brown’s retirement, but he too would with a mechanical issue. This advanced Riley Will (Zip Kart/BRC) up to second, where he would run for the remainder of the 30-minute sprint. Will has been cautiously coming up to speed at Road America, steadily pushing braking zones and corners speeds. RA is tough track that demands respect and Will understands this concept. His efforts today will put him on the outside of the front row for tomorrow’s main alongside the point leading Osborne.
The battle for third was waged between Pat Yoshikane (P-1) and Chris Taylor (Turfrey) and while each spun on a single occasion, they ended up dicing for position until the last lap with Taylor taking third on the final lap. They will start together on row two tomorrow in the main event. Jimmy Long (PVP/Yamaha) and Randy Johnson (Anderson/BRC) took fifth and sixth.
 | Andy Kiker and James Ingram battled all race long during the ICE Prefinal
(Photo: Super Kart Illustrated) |
Barber ICE winner Derek Eastty (Nemesis) has jumped to the Formula E class with a new FPE powerplant and the Texan has been struggling with carb issues. A change for the main did not provide the desired results but the team tested a mid-race pit lane adjustment and it produced a positive reaction. Eastty is looking forward to Sunday’s final and is aiming at a podium finish.
In ICE, the fight lasted all race between Jim Ingram (PVP/GasGas) and reigning champion Andy Kiker (Andersen/Honda). The duo swapped the lead on several occasions and Ingram would eventually assume the point at the checkered flag. Kiker finished up second while Michael McAllister (Andersen) would take third. Michael Kranz (Nemesis) and Griff Goad (PVP) rounded out the top five.
If anything struggled today, it was the scoring system, which gave the organizing group a great deal of trouble. With an occasionally malfunctioning loop, the team was aided by EKN staffer David Cole in finalizing the results of this race. The unofficial results will follow this report.
Lastly, and not on USSC topic, our man David Cole scored his first Cheese Cow today, taking third in WKA Sprint Heavy. On behalf of the EKN team, we salute our fellow journalist for his solid outing.
FE
| Pos | No. | Name| 1. | US | J.R. Osborne | | 2. | 9 | Riley Will | | 3. | 28 | Chris Taylor | | 4. | 8 | Patrick Yoshikane | | 5. | 67 | Jimmy Long | | 6. | 16 | Randall Johnson | | 7. | 46 | John Braeden Posey | | 8. | 77 | Frank Dawley | | 9. | 15 | Jerry Echols | | 10. | 52 | Ronald Kuhn | | 11. | 3 | Jim Brannon | | 12. | 2 | Johnny West | | 13. | 68 | Loren Felder | | 14. | 7 | Reggie Brown, Jr. | | 15. | 53 | Mark Croslyn | | 16. | 99 | Firouz Haghighi | | 17. | 79 | Derek Eastty | | 18. | 5 | Brad Jackson, Jr. | | 19. | 23 | Steven Tillman | | 20. | 111 | Don Brown | | 21. | 48 | Gary Peterson | |
ICE
| Pos | No. | Name| 1. | 11 | James Ingram | | 2. | 24 | Andrew Kiker | | 3. | 25 | Michael McAlister | | 4. | 98 | Michael Kranz | | 5. | 0 | Griff Goad | | 6. | 35 | Robert McMillian | | 7. | 61 | Mike Hurdzan | |
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