The USGPRU joined the ASRA Pro Series at the 8th Annual Virginia Festival of Speed for another great weekend of racing. Track conditions were perfect for the GP bikes to set some really fast times.
The Moriwaki MD250H Powered by Honda race was another spectacular showing of some of the best young talent in the country. The roar of the four-stroke single-cylinder engines shook the starters tower as the little bikes thundered off the line. Jake Lewis and Miles Thornton diced it up the entire race. Miles looked to have the advantage with only 3 laps to go, as he built a small gap between him and Jake Lewis. But last-lap-Lewis (LLL) pulled out all the stops, charged hard, and closed the gap. Lewis passed Miles on the final lap and looked to have the race won. But Miles got a great drive onto the front straight, and drafted by Lewis at the line for the win.
The Rising Sun Cycles 125GP race was later renamed “The PJ Jacobsen Show” as he led the race from flag to flag. His new Veloce Racing tuned Aprilia RSW125 was clearly the class of the field and helped PJ to build an amazing 3-second gap on lap one. His closest competition was Nobi Iso on the only other Aprilia in the field. Nobi had bike problems in qualifying, resulting in a 15th position for the start. He sliced through the field, but even Nobi couldn’t catch PJ today. PJ set a new 125GP class record at 1.33.014. He may have gone even faster, but the race was ended early as Scott Smallwood crashed hard in the final section of track, bringing out the red flag.
The Moto Liberty 250GP race was an absolute barn-burner!! Adam Roberts from Nova Scotia led the first lap on his RAT racing Yamaha TZ250. PJ Jacobsen crashed his Celtic Racing Honda RS250 in morning practice, but this didn’t affected his or his bike’s performance as he passed Adam on lap 2. Adam sat on PJ’s rear wheel along with Corey Rech and Eddy Brunet pulling up front row seats for the show. As the battle raged on and the pace approached the lap record, Eddy fell back slightly, as did Corey later in the race. Adam watched and learned from PJ, never more than a few feet from him. When he noticed a chink in PJ’s armor, he pounced and passed for the lead with 2 laps to go. PJ didn’t have time to study Adam, so he just banzai’d past Adams on the brakes to reclaim the lead. PJ then started throwing lapped riders at Adam, and crossed the line with a .671 second lead.
The USGPRU would like to thank all the participants for attending this round of racing. Thanks to the CCS/ASRA staff for a professional and safely run event and to the USGPRU staff, parents, and supporters of all our racers. This weekend wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the 2008 USGPRU National Series sponsors: RoadracingWorld.com, Rising Sun Cycles, Moto Liberty, Motion Pro, Repsol Lubricants, REV’IT, Bridgestone Tires, Dunlop Tires, EBC Brakes, GP Tech, Rich Oliver’s Mystery School, Powerstands, Chicken Hawk Tire Warmers, Hjelm Motorsports, Michelin Tires, Regina Chains, and Starlane by Yoyodyne.
The next Eastern Region USGPRU round will be held at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin on July 4-6. The weekend will be a double-header for the Moriwaki MD250H class. Come on out and join us and watch the future super-stars of roadracing in action at one of the fastest racetracks in the country. We hope to see you all there!
Rising Sun Cycles 125GP race results: 1. Patrick Jacobsen (Apr RSW125) 2. Nobi Iso (Apr RSW125) 3. Hayden Gillim (Hon RS125) 4. Chase Vivion (Hon RS125) 5. Jake Lewis (Hon RS125) 6. Fernando Ferreyra (Yam TZ125) 7. Frankie Lee Gillim (Hon RS125) 8. Lloyd Ramsey-Worrell (Hon RS125) 9. John Hjelm (Hon RS125) 10. Corey Alexander (Hon RS125) 11. Garrett Gerloff (Hon RS125) 12. Jesse Stevens (Hon RS125) 13. Jake Mormon (Hon RS125) 14. Nick Hansen (Hon RS125) 15. Al Campbell (Hon RS125) 16. John R Klaras (Hon RS125) 17. Glen Pison (Hon RS125) 18. Bob Rothrock (Hon RS125) 19. Pat Bartlett (Hon RS125) 20. Wayne Bishop (Hon RS125) 21. Joey Schmidt (Hon RS125) 22. John Milliron (Hon RS125) 23. Charles Boyd (Hon RS125) 24. Nick Jakubowski (Hon RS125) 25. Brian Burton (Hon RS125) 26. Lee Hollimon (Hon RS125) 27. Mike Tso (Hon RS125) 28. Brian McLaughlin (Yam TZ125) 29. Shellie Matthews (Hon RS125) 30. Chris Birdsong (Hon RS125) 31. Michael Lainhart (Hon RS125) 32. Scott Smallwood (Hon RS125) 33. Jake Quick (Hon RS125) 34. Marcus Matthews (Hon RS125) 35. Ian Kuivinen (Hon RS125) 36. Miles Thornton (Hon RS125) 37. Adam Howard (Yam TZ125) 38. Marc Purslow (Hon RS125)
Moto Liberty 250GP race results: 1. Patrick Jacobsen (Hon RS250) 2. Adam Roberts (Yam TZ250) 3. Corey Rech (Yam TZ250) 4. Eddy Brunet (Hon RS250) 5. Steve Scott (Yam TZ250) 6. Sean Wray (Yam TZ250) 7. Melissa Paris (Hon RS250) 8. Al Campbell (Yam TZ250) 9. Mike Aboyoun (Hon RS250) 10. Daniele Lenarduzzi (Yam TZ250) 11. Miles Thornton (Yam TZ250) 12. Patrick Dowd (Yam TZ250) 13. Jake Lewis (Hon RS125) 14. Jeff Johnson (Yam TZ250) 15. Jim Bergey (Hon RS250) 16. Angus Borland (Yam TZ250) 17. Mike Wright (Yam TZ250) 18. Jesse Stevens (Yam TZ250) 19. Corey Alexander (Yam TZ250) 20. Bruce Lind (Yam TZ250) 21. Jeff Pratt (Yam TZ250) 22. David Matthews (Yam TZ250) 23. Michael Danielson (Yam TZ250) 24. Daniel Ofir (Yam TZ250) 25. Jon Cone (Hon RS250) 26. Rich DuBarton (RSM250)
Moriwaki MD250H Powered by HONDA race results: 1. Miles Thornton (MD250H) 2. Jake Lewis (MD250H) 3. Garrett Gerloff (MD250H) 4. Nick Hansen (MD250H) 5. Hayden Gillim (MD250H)
About USGPRU The USGPRU is the officially recognized Motorcycle 125 Grand Prix National Championship ® and 250 Grand Prix National ChampionshipÔ series. We are also the official race series for the new youth-only, spec class racing the Moriwaki MD250H Powered by HONDA. The USGPRU emulates true World MotoGP racing experience and serves to attract young riders to gain experience in a professional environment and provide a path to world-class motorcycle racing. The USGPRU structures events with extended length grand prix racing exclusive to the GP machines, timed qualifying and strong contingency and sponsor support. For additional details, visit www.USGPRU.net