JUNE 13, 2005
Story and photos by Allison Kennedy
With the utter domination of JSR in the MX1 class over the last four years, Nanaimo fans witnessed a showdown between Roy and Blackfoot Honda teammate Dusty Klatt that will go down in Canadian MX history. Klatt caught, passed and pulled a lead on Roy in the first MX1 moto, a feat that no rider has been able to accomplish in recent years. Klatt had the support of the Nanaimo crowd and has spent countless hours at the Wastelands track. He capitalized on his hometown advantage, taking the win with a solid lead over Roy. As always, Roy was gracious on the podium, praising Klatt and his talents, but his second moto win was proof that the champ has no intentions of giving up his crown anytime soon. Roy easily took the win in the second MX1 moto, getting a great start and quickly taking the lead. This time Roy went unchallenged with Morgan Racing Yamaha's Craig Decker finishing second and Blackfoot's Damon Huffman charging through the pack to finish third.
In the MX2 class, Klatt mirrored the kind of domination JSR has shown in recent years. The combination of countless fans and the familiar Wastelands track put Klatt out of reach in the MX2 class. Klatt now has four-straight moto wins en route to his title defence (with two MX2 West rounds remaining). Richmond Kawasaki's Teddy Maier finally got the weekend he'd been looking for. Maier went 2-2 for second overall and was the only MX2 rider to hang with Dusty all day. Yamaha's Kyle Beaton kept himself in the title chase with 3-4 motos and third overall. Beaton led the first MX2 moto and looked comfortable out front ... until Klatt made the pass around the halfway point. In the second moto, Beaton crashed on the face of a slick tabletop, busting the peak off his M2R helmet and forcing him to play some serious catch up. Beaton was hauling in the second moto, battling with Pacific Yamaha's Shane Bess for the fourth place finish.
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Dusty Klatt caught and passed JSR in the first MX1 moto. Klatt rode smart, waited for an opportunity to pass and went on to pull a solid lead over the champ by the checkers.
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Klatt had plenty to smile about in Nanaimo. He won three of four motos Sunday, easily sweeping the MX2 class.
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Richmond Racing Kawasaki's Evan Laughridge rode alone in third for much of the first MX1 moto. In the second moto, Laughridge looked like he had another podium in the bag until Damon Huffman worked his way past in the closing laps.
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While JSR and Klatt are in a league of their own in the MX1 class, there is a long list of riders who are capable of filling that final podium spot each week.
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Morgan Racing Yamaha's Craig Decker went 14-2 for 7th overall. Decker joins Huffman as one of two MX1 podium finishers who could be a father by this time next week.
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Huffman showed the speed that earned him National #2 last season. In the second MX1 moto, Huffman came through the pack, catching Laughridge to finish third. In the first moto, Huffman battled Simon Homans to the checkers and finished seventh.
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Richmond's Teddy Maier has his starts dialed. He made up for his first corner overshoot in Mission last weekend by grabbing two great starts on Sunday and finishing second overall with 2-2 motos. Maier was the only MX2 rider to keep Klatt in sight on Sunday.
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Despite a third place finish in the second MX2 moto, Jeff Northrop is still hoping things will click for him here in Canada. "I just feel like I should be winning," said Northrop. |
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Kyle Beaton's slightly more conservative riding has been translating into some great finishes for the Yamaha rider. Beaton crashed on a table top early in the second MX2 moto and gave the fans a chance to see the hard-charging style he's famous for. Beaton went 3-4 for third overall. |
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The Nanaimo fans were great Sunday, lining the fences to cheer on hometown hero Dusty Klatt. |
MX1 Results
1. Jean Sebastien Roy 2-1
2. Evan Laughridge 3-4
3. Dusty Klatt 1-8
4. Damon Huffman 7-3
5. Keith Johnson 4-5
6. Josh Demuth 5-7
7. Craig Decker 14-2
8. Gavin Gracyk 8-6
9. Simon Homans 6-10
10. Brad Hagseth 10-11
11. Chad Johnson 9-12
12. Doug DeHaan 13-9
13. Mike Treadwell 11-13
14. Blair Morgan 12-15
15. Ryan Lockhart 16-14
MX2 West Results
1. Dusty Klatt 1-1
2. Teddy Maier 2-2
3. Kyle Beaton 3-4
4. Jeff Northrop 5-3
5. Shane Bess 4-5
6. Colton Facciotti 7-7
7. Eric Vallejo 10-6
8. Nate Tiearney 9-9
9. Kevin Johnson 11-8
10. Tony Sherman 13-10
11. Bruce Prochnavy 14-11
12. Jimmy Nelson 6-DNF
13. Lee Coutts 8-24
14. Doug Leavitt 15-15
15. Bart Stephenson 18-13
