Motocross riders of all ages (or all ages over 25 anyway) and from around the globe converged on Southern California’s Glen Helen Raceway over the weekend for the 32nd Annual Dubya World Vet Motocross Championship.
While there were plenty of the usual suspects in attendance, there were some first-time winners crowned, including Mike Sleeter (30+ Pro) and Daryl Hurley of New Zealand (40+ Pro). The biggest surprise, however, might have been who wasn’t there… Many people were waiting to see the rematch of Doug Dubach and Kurt Nicoll, after the duo’s controversial battle in the 50+ division last year, but Dubach did not attend due to illness. It marked the first time in 23 years that “Dr.D” has missed a World Vet Championship.
Saturday saw the first Pro race of the weekend with the 40+ class taking to the hilly chopped up course. While defending champion Kurt Nicoll didn’t have Dubach to face off against, he did have some stiff competition from Daryl Hurley. The 40-year-old was competing in his first-ever Vet Motocross event, and went 1-1 for the victory.
“I had a bet with a guy and now I have to pay him $1000 bucks because I told him I’d never do vet nationals,” Hurley said with a laugh. “I just didn’t want to give into the age thing but sooner or later you have to, I guess.”
Hurley’s win didn’t come easy, as Nicoll gave him a hard battle, particularly in the second moto where the Brit led the early laps. But Hurley remained patient, and eventually took a solid win for the overall.
Hurley, who spent most of his pro career racing for Suzuki in Australia, hadn’t raced at Glen Helen since 2004, but commented that it hasn’t changed much.
“I didn’t really know what to expect coming to this, but it hasn’t really changed,” he said. “Still the same dirt!”
Nicoll took 2-2 for second overall—a feat he didn’t feel at all bad about, especially given that Hurley is 12 years his junior.
“I thought I rode really well,” Nicoll said. “Daryl Hurley’s younger than me. He comes from a different generation than me ,and he was just a little bit too fast for me. But personally, I felt like I rode really well. I’m totally happy with that.”
Nicoll reported he had plenty left in the tank for the 50+ race the following day, which had been upgraded to Pro status following last year’s battle royal. But in the absence of Dubach, Nicoll ran away with the lead in the 20 min, 2-lap race for a commanding win in the class, more than a minute ahead of the field in both motos. Pete Murray took second overall with a 2-2, followed by Ed Foedish (3-3) who rounded out the 50+ Pro podium.
A stacked class took to the starting grid for the 30+ Pro class, which included former MXGP star Josh Coppins for the first time ever. The New Zealander topped the first moto after a close battle with KTM’s Mike Sleeter, and was poised to take the overall, but the things didn’t quite go his way in the second moto. Sleeter got out to a good start with Coppins not far off. By the green flag, the duo had moved to the front ahead of Sean Collier, Travis Preston and Hurley. Sleeter maintained the lead while Coppins put the pressure on. Coppins was all over Sleeter’s rear wheel, but eventually started to lose ground with small mistakes on the rough and rutted track. After an error in the sand where the front end nearly got away from Coppins, he seemed to back off his pace, leaving Sleeter out front to take the second moto win, and the victory with a 2-1 score.
“I’ve been the bridesmaid at this race like three times!” said Sleeter, who reveled in his first-ever World Vet MX Championship. “It’s so great to finally get it done. It was cool to see all the locals cheering for me. This is my family—this whole Glen Helen crowd. And this bike is made for Glen Helen. It was great to put it up on the top.”
Sleeter, who works full-time for KTM R&D, is a regular at Glen Helen and has been instrumental in developing the current KTM 450 SX-F.
“This is a brand new 2017 and it’s pretty much set up for ’18,” Sleeter said of his KTM. “We’re doing race development this weekend. This is pretty much an ‘18-spec suspension setup, and as you can tell, it’s working really well. My riding keeps getting better because the brand’s so proactive in developing bikes.”
Travis Preston rounded out the podium with his 3-3 score. The two-time former World Vet Champion lamented not being able to train more for the event, but now faces the challenge of a 9-5 job at Yamaha.
“It was rough for me,” Preston said. “This is my first race as a full-time employee. Every time I’ve raced in my past it was my job to race, so I was able to train like I want to train. These long laps at the high speeds were definitely tough. I felt it; got tired. I guess third’s okay, but I want to win.”
Sunday also saw the Women’s Pro class take to the course. Steffi Laier of Germany returned to defend her championship, and did so with ease, despite still recovering from a broken arm less than two months ago. Laier took a 1-1 victory ahead of Birgit Schelkle (3-2) and Michelle Horton (2-3).
Another highlight of the weekend was the honoring of motocross legend and AMA Motorcycle Hall of Famer Lars Larsson. The Swede was awarded the Edison Dye Motocross Lifetime Achievement Award. The ceremony took place promptly after Lars’ second moto of the day—the 75-year-old finished eighth in the 16-rider field of the 70+ class. As one of the first European motocrossers to compete in the United States, Larsson was a pioneer of the sport, and also helped introduce Husqvarna motorcycles to Americans. Larsson’s storied career was highlighted in a video that can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBlXX531FsA.
The video was shown during the ceremony before Larsson was presented with the Edison Dye Motocross Lifetime Achievement Award, and a plaque that will become a part of the Glen Helen Raceway “Walk Of Fame.”
2016 Dubya World Vet Motocross Championship
Glen Helen Raceway
San Bernardino, California
Results: November 5-6, 2016
30+ Pro
1. Mike Sleeter (2-1)
2. Josh Coppins (1-2)
3. Travis Preston (3-3)
4. Daryl Hurley (7-4)
5. Cole Siebler (5-6)
6. Tonni Andersen (8-7)
7. Javier Vico (6-9)
8. Dennis Stapleton (9-8)
9. Arik Swan (4-15)
10. Gordon Ward (10-10)
40+ Pro
1. Daryl Hurley (1-1)
2. Kurt Nicoll (2-2)
3. Kenjiro Tsuji (4-3)
4. Javier Vico (3-4)
5. Ryan Hunt (6-5)
6. Gordon Ward (5-6)
7. Brian Wheeler (8-7)
8. Julian Cerny (7-8)
9. Jeff Willoh (11-9)
10. Branden Milstead (10-10)
50+ Pro
1. Kurt Nicoll (1-1)
2. Pete Murray (2-2)
3. Ed Foedish (3-3)
4. Mitch Rowe (4-4)
5. Jon Ortner (5-6)
6. Bob Weber (6-9)
7. Rob Engel (9-7)
8. Luther French (13-5)
9. Ed Heacox (8-10)
10. Loren Pochirowski (11-8)
Full results for Dubya World Vet MX Championship can be found at http://www.glenhelen.com/results/
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