Back In The Mix

Valcourt, Quebec ~ Bad luck and questionable rulings have lead to an up-and-down year for Team AMSOIL/Scheuring Speed Sports this season. That give-and-take continued in the French quarter of Canada last weekend.

When Saturday's racing began, D.J. Eckstrom had an outside shot at becoming the points leader in both Pro Stock and Pro Open classes. For him to inch closer to a season title, he would need wins in both classes and someone to slow down point's leader Blair Morgan. The rest of the field would get a little help when it was Morgan who took himself out in the first qualifier on Saturday. The seven-time champion misjudged a jump and crashed his sled. The Ski Doo fell on top of Morgan, breaking his leg. "Superman", as he is known, is out for the season. That leaves an even wider opening for Eckstrom.

The AMSOIL snocross pilot would take advantage of the mishap. Eckstrom would finish the first two heats in fourth and fifth place, respectively. But in the third qualifier, the Duluth native would find his groove, taking a first and setting the tone for the final. In the main event, he returned to the winner's circle, this time with the checkered flag. The win moves Eckstrom into fifth in the overall Pro Stock points race. (See results)

The best chance Eckstrom has for a season title may lie in the Pro Open class. With Morgan picking up zero points, a strong weekend would vault Eckstrom to the top of the standings. He would be the top qualifier for the final after winning his first two heat races and finishing third in round three. Eckstrom has had a lot of bad luck in the open finals this season, including the previous week in Green Bay when a fuel line broke and the sled started on fire. The results would be much of the same in Valcourt after a stator failed in mid-air, stalling the sled and slamming Eckstrom to the ground.

"It could have been a lot worse," said Eckstrom. "I could have broken my neck on the landing. I'm more disappointed with the finish. I was closing in on third and could have made a big jump in the standings. We'll have to see how (Buffalo) goes."

The silver lining is that Eckstrom's 14th place finish gives him enough points to sit in second in the overall Prop Open points standings (see results) behind Steve Martin.

Meanwhile, Eckstrom's teammate, Carl Schubitzke, won't be getting the chance to compete for the point's championship this year. After finishing third in his first qualifying heat for Pro Stock on Saturday, "Showtime" was involved in a crash during the first Pro Open heat. The accident bounced him off his sled. He landed wrong and broke the upper bone in his arm, leaving him sidelined for the remainder of the season.

"It's tough to deal with," said Schubitzke. "I've worked hard all year long and it's too bad this had to happen. I'll see my doctor this week and we'll know more then, but it doesn't look good."

There has been no official word out of Scheuring Speed Sports on who will replace Schubitzke for the remainder of the season. The team is headed to Buffalo, New York this weekend for a WSA National double header at Wilson Stadium (home of the NFL's Buffalo Bills). Team owner Steve Scheuring said he will make a decision on a replacement after this weekend's event and wants to focus on getting on top of the points standings.

"The points championship is very achievable," said Scheuring. "We have a double header at Buffalo this weekend and our plan is to leave there leading the points chase."

Hometown and Holeshots

San Diego, Calif. ~ Team AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda rider Billy Laninovich was so happy to be riding in front of his hometown crowd this past weekend that he paid tribute to the area by sporting the San Diego Chargers "bolts" on his helmet. He was also so excited to be racing in his backyard that he started the 125cc main event by grabbing the holeshot.

"I got a good start and I thought it was going to be my race," said Laninovich. "But I made a bunch of stupid mistakes and I just rode really tight."

Laninovich, who received $1,000 from Butterfinger for his fast start, didn't hold the lead for long. On lap two he was passed by point's leader Ivan Tedesco and Nathan Ramsey. Laninovich was then bumped from the podium on lap four when race winner Andrew Short made him pay for one of his 'stupid mistakes'. The remainder of the race would be spent fending off AMSOIL teammate Tommy Hahn, who finished in fifth.

"Hopefully I can go all out the next few races," said Laninovich, who will be racing a select number of 250cc races over the next month. "I have a lot of family and friends here tonight, a bunch of local people, so I thank them for coming out."

The 250cc main event was a race that the industry will be talking about for years to come. Team AMSOIL riders Kevin Windham and Mike LaRocco were looking to close the gap on points leaders Ricky Carmichael and Chad Reed. It was Carmichael and Reed, however, who increased the gap on the entire field.

In the qualifying rounds, Windham would grab the holeshot, but was quickly bumped to second by Jeremy McGrath during lap two. K-Dub would get back at the former supercross champion, but it would be for second place. Defending Supercross champion Reed pushed past both riders to win the first qualifier. Windham settled for second.

In the second heat, LaRocco would square off against Carmichael. "R.C." got the jump on the competition and LaRocco would have to fight from fifth to get into the top four finalists. He would make his way into fourth before the unexpected happen. Carmichael, who had won five straight races, crashed in turn number two when he couldn't land a double. The accident totaled his handlebars and after trying to finish the lap his mechanic pulled him into the pits. Carmichael would have to qualify in the semi-finals. His absence would mean a better starting gate for LaRocco who finished his heat in third.

The rain slicked track proved a battle ground going into the 250cc main. Especially tough were the whoops sections and corners. Going solo, most riders could use the established lines, but things got hairy when multiple riders entered the rhythm sections.

"It was tough because the whoops were sketchy," said LaRocco. "And to have anyone in front of you made things difficult. You had to go on uncharted lines and curvy lines or rutted lines and it definitely spit your bike all over the place. I know I made a lot of mistakes for that reason."

LaRocco wouldn't make too many mistakes in the final. He started out in seventh, two spots behind the number 14 Honda of Windham. But both riders were in the battle for third, which was occupied by McGrath. The 33-year-old McGrath, who returned to racing after a two-year retirement, has been struggling with his conditioning this year. Some say it's causing him to slow as the race goes on. This was the case on Saturday as he dropped from an early lead to third, eventually ending up in tenth. But he caused the most havoc on the race while running third. With a slew of riders behind him jockeying for position, Reed and Carmichael were able to open up their lead on the field. By the time the dust had settled for third, Windham was sitting in seventh and LaRocco in fifth. Meanwhile, Reed and Carmichael had entered lap traffic and were closing in on the top five riders.

LaRocco pushed on, picking up fourth and twice catching David Vuillemin, the third place rider. Each time LaRocco got close, Vuillemin would pull away in the whoops section. That is except for the last time. LaRocco, who is well-known for getting faster as the race wears on, caught and passed Vuillemin in the rhythm section before the finish line turn. Their battle for third place was a great storyline and on any other weekend would have been the crème de la crème. But the big story was one of legend that was happening only a few bike lengths behind the third and fourth place riders. Reed and Carmichael had passed 18 of the 20 other riders in the final. Both even got by Vuillemin before the checkered flag dropped, with Reed in front and Carmichael picking his bike up in the final whoops section. LaRocco, aboard his AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda, was the only rider in the main who didn't get lapped.

"I didn't know those guys were there," said LaRocco after the race, who also talked about what it's like to ride against the top riders in the world. "I go and study the tapes and I watch and I'm like, damn, what do I do? The more I keep working on them, the closer I'll get. It's natural for them and not for me, so it's going to take a bit."

LaRocco turned 34 last week and has three podium finishes in the 2005 Supercross season. He currently sits third in the overall point's standings. His teammate, Windham, finished the race in fifth place and is now three points behind LaRocco.

The AMA Supercross Series moves back east this weekend to Atlanta. Team AMSOIL/Chaparral riders Josh Grant and Juaquim Rodrigues, along with Windham and LaRocco, will get back on their Hondas Saturday night.

Climbing To The Top

Afton, Wyo. ~ The Zollinger Brothers are up to their old tricks in the sport of hillclimb. "ZBROZ" braved temperatures near -35 degrees in Afton, Wyo. over the weekend. The mountain lived up to its reputation as one of the best for a steep slope and a fast ride.

Sunday's finals stared out well with all three ZBROZ racers (Ryan, Nate and Anthony) stacking the podium in the MOD 700 class. Ryan finished first; Nate took home second and Anthony cleaned up the sweep with third. Nate was running well in the MOD 800 final before he hit a monster stump that took him out of the race. He would finish the day with a sixth in the Open MOD class.

ZBROZ is back home in Utah for a few weeks. The next Rocky Mountain Snowmobile Hillclimb race will be held March 11-12 in BrianHead, Utah.

Timing Errors

Weyauwega, Wis. ~ The oval ice track in Weyauwega, Wis. is more like a large speedway that you'd would find at Daytona or Talladega. The United States Snowmobile Association had the large circuit in top shape this past weekend. All of the sleds were running fast during both days of racing. But the fast times can lead to problems, and most teams found some over the weekend.

AMSOIL/Wanderscheid Racing was included in that group. During Saturday's Pro Open final, P.J. Wanderscheid would grab the holeshot. He would battle Dale Loritz throughout the race, with five lead changes during the first five laps. Going into the back straightaway, however, Wanderscheid experienced some mechanical trouble that forced his Arctic Cat into the infield, ending his hopes at a podium.

On Sunday, the sleds were once again running hard. But a season-long problem popped up again in the final. In corner four of the first lap, a belt blew right in the middle of the pack. A racer can never get out of the way quick enough when they loose control in a crowd. One sled hit the rear of Wanderscheid's 28 ride, skidding both riders into the bales. Neither rider was injured.

"It was a great track this weekend with lots of ice," said Wanderscheid. "Temperatures were great. That was some of the best racing yet this year. There are no races this weekend so we will be testing some new ideas."

Teammate Shaun Beilke grabbed another podium over the weekend. He finished third in the Semi-Pro 440 final. His sled also blew a belt in the Pro Champ final on Sunday.

The USSA's grand finale will be held March 5-6 in Watersmeet, Mich. Wanderscheid is in the hunt for the point's championships in both classes.

Picture Of The Week

Green Bay, Wis. ~ Last week we told you how snocross fans get a unique view at this year's races through the AMSOIL "Fan of the Day" promotion. Well, some new pictures are cropping up from the Green Bay event. We guess that these guys have officially thrown down the gauntlet as to what it takes to get into the center of the track. We here at the Checkered Flag enjoy the enthusiasm; just don't blame us for the frostbite.