Jenks and Jarrett Top SIDI Coal Miner XC
Article and photos by John Gasso

Over 300 racers visited the Fallon farm property in rural Rio Grande, Ohio for the third round of the OMA Nationals 2007 series. The event was co-sanctioned with AWRCS. The Ohio countryside provided an exciting and challenging combination of tight, technical trails along with wide-open sections and some challenging hills and off camber segments.

Saturday’s ATV event was a battle with the track as much as it was with the other competitors. Andy Lagzdins(Honda / Moose Racing / ITP)

Dustin Wright

has won the first two rounds, but he did not have such a good showing this week. On lap eight of the nine total laps run he was tossed over the bars while crossing a fast, open field section. After he picked himself up off the ground he had to get a ride from someone to retrieve his Duncan Dirt First Honda. The four-wheeler had run away and down a hill after the crash. Lagzdins said before the crash he “could see Brandon Sommers every once in a while, and was trying to catch up to him.” He finished the race in fifth place with a very painful injury to his thumb.

Three time series champion Rob Zimmerman (Honda / Moose Racing / Maxxis)

had a much better start than normal. Up until he had an “issue” with some fence, Zimmerman and Lagzdins “were back and forth for the first couple laps.” Unfortunately he found a “big roll of fence right in the trail” on the third lap. He “drilled it. Got wrapped up on the front and the back tires.” This would not be his day either, and Zimmerman would have to be content with a sixth place finish.

Chris Jenks (Honda / Moose Racing / Maxxis) dropped in to give the series a try, and he had good results on this visit. The day went “pretty well” for Jenks. He said, “I was able to look in the fields to see where Taylor Kiser was. I was able to gauge where he was at every lap to know about what pace I needed to ride.” The final lap ended with Jenks ahead of Kiser by thirty-eight seconds.

Taylor Kiser (Yamaha / Fly / Maxxis) had a good start on his YFZ450, and he ran a “good, strong, clean day” to grab the second position on the SIDI podium.

Chris Jenks --Honda / Moose Racing / Maxxis

He worked his way up past Brandon Sommers and ran in second all day. Sommers (Yamaha / Fly / Maxxis ) was “feeling really good, riding good” until a crash on one of the hills. The GT Thunder rider recovered and navigated back toward the front of the pack. He maintained a “decent pace”, and moved his way back in to the third place spot by the end of the event.

Sunday began with kids’ classes and youth class races in the morning. Those events were followed by the Pro autograph session. Every Pro motorcycle racer

Anthony Burbuck 65cc

is interviewed for the crowd. Everyone from riders who are just making a name for themselves in the sport to legends and superstars like Paul Whibley, Barry Hawk, Jimmy Jarrett, and Brian Garrahan. They autograph everything from posters and handout materials to racer award plaques and shirts. The autograph session is a unique opportunity for everyone to get up close and personal with the international mix of talented Pro racers.

A huge cloud of dust wafted across the track as twenty-two Pros dashed toward the first turn and a $100 hole shot bonus offered by Bill Gusse just minutes before the green flag. Jason Thomas (Yamaha / Moose Racing / Maxxis) grabbed the inside line while

Brian Garrahan

Jimmy Jarrett went wide around the American flag. Thomas kept his Fun Mart sponsored machine hooked up and rocketed past the hole shot line to collect the bonus. The young man from Wales ran a solid race, but “just had some bad luck.” He finished fifth with eight laps at just over two hours and twenty-two minutes.

Jimmy Jarrett (FMF Suzuki / Moose Racing / Maxxis) started the race knowing he would “have his hands full” with Am Pro riders Barry Hawk (Yamaha / MSR / Bridgestone) and Charles Mullins (Yamaha / MSR / Bridgestone). His strategy was to run away early and gap them as quickly as possible. The plan worked, as Jarrett moved past Thomas and Chris Bach (Cycle shed KTM / Moose Racing / Maxxis)

Jason Thomas

and poured on the speed. The three time OMA Nationals Champion put together a group of sub seventeen-minute laps while his two closest adversaries were running mostly in the seventeen minutes plus range. His victory over Barry Hawk was a margin of fourteen seconds with eight laps completed in two hours and nineteen minutes and forty-one seconds. Thomas would finish fifth followed by Bach in sixth.

Racing legend Barry Hawk was second in a group of four riders crossing the finish line within a forty one second span. There was not a lot of passing during the race, but the gaps moved, and it was an exciting event from start to finish.

Keith Zaagman

Hawk was aboard a four stroke for this event, and said by the end of the race he was “getting used to it.” The gap behind Jarrett was closing, but Hawk could not get the job done before the end of this race. He would have to settle for second place. Hawk complimented Jarrett, saying “he rode good and beat me today.”

Charles Mullins picked up a third place finish on a day where he worked very hard to get the job done. A poor start set him behind in the dust and it was “really, really hard to pass.” A series of crashes left him struggling to get to the front. He did run in some back and forth battles with New Zealander Paul Whibley, and ultimately beat the Parts Unlimited / Moose Racing rider to the finish by just ten seconds. Mullins left the event with sore, tender hands due to a fall in the creek that left him with muddy gloves and grips. He was disappointed, but said “I guess I’ll just get them at the next race.”

Honda CRF450 mounted Whibley finally finished an OMA event

Paul Whibley

after a couple bad experiences early in the season. A motor issue at Kentucky and a big crash in Arkansas left this champion racer with little more than a couple miles run between two events. He was “pretty happy to finish”, and took fourth place honors for his efforts.

A “two-kicker” on the start for Open A rider Keith Zaagman “kind of ruined” his day. The Zaagman Farms / Moose Racing RM250 finally started, but he was far behind the pack and “just kind of fought through the whole day.” Then 30-39 A rider Chuck Garretson caught him. Zaagman said, “Once he caught me he kind of got me some gumption to go.” “I wanted to go fast so I pushed him,” said Garretson. “Keith goes good, and I thought, man, if I can hang with him we’ll all be doing good.” Garretson was aboard an RM250 from Country Sports in Wisconsin Rapids.

Chuck Garetson

Jordan Ashburn 'KTM Open B' re-visited OMA and brought in another top 15th Overall finish. This Tennessee kid only 16, first year on the "big bike" is turning in some unbelievable finishes... but believe it boys! He's one to watch for! With an 8 lap finish time of 2:33:47.. Lap times averaging just over 19 minutes. Keep at it Jordan!

Jordan Ashburn