By Mike Solis: AFM Round 9 at Buttonwillow At the start of the Mach 1 Motorsports Formula Pacific race, it was Pacific Tracktime’s Michael Earnest who led the field into Turn 1 on his GSX-R1000, with Arclight Racing’s David Stanton close behind in second. Earnest’s lead was short lived, with Stanton slipping past on the exit of Turn 1 to take over the lead on his GSX-R1000. Once in front, Stanton immediately began to gap on the rest of the field, as a group of seven battled over second. Towards the end of that pack was American Honda’s Jeff Tigert, who found himself in seventh position after a slow start on his Marin Cycleworks CBR1000. In the space of two laps, Tigert managed to slip past Rob Mesa, Jon Bawden, Ken Hill, and finally Michael Earnest before setting his sights on Stanton, whose gap had grown to over four seconds with a little over four laps remaining. Knowing Tigert’s history of come-from-behind victories, Stanton kept his head down to turn a string of 1:47s, on par with the lap record of 1:47.5 set by Jordan Racing’s Steve Rapp earlier in the season. Still, Tigert managed to go almost a second faster, shattering the record with a 1:46.5 in pursuit of the leader. In the end, Stanton’s lead proved to be too much as he crossed the line to take the win, breaking Tigert’s two-race Formula Pacific win streak. Second went to Tigert, with third to Earnest, rounding out another all-Dunlop Formula Pacific podium. “Even though Jeff wasn’t right on me, he was pushing the hell out of me, my hat has to go off to him,” stated Stanton from the winner’s circle. “He just rides phenomenally well, just like Mike – they’ve both pushed me to ride that much harder. Everyone just keeps getting faster and faster, you never know what’s going to happen.” Stanton’s Formula Pacific win was one of three on the day for the Lafayette resident, with first place finishes in both the Hare Racing Open Superbike race as well as the Dial It In Tracktime 750 Superbike race. In Open Superbike, Stanton found himself challenged early by the GSX-R1000 ridden by former number one plate holder James Randolph, before going on to win by over nine seconds. In 750 Superbike, Jon Bawden dueled with Stanton for the length of the race, with Stanton nearly highsiding on the entrance to Riverside on the last lap. Stanton recovered to cross the line just 0.1 seconds ahead of Bawden to take the win. While Tigert came up one spot short of his goal in Formula Pacific, he did still manage to take home pair of wins at the event, scoring a pair of first place finishes in both the Keigwins@theTrack 600 Production race and the Pacific Tracktime 600 Superbike race. In both races, Tigert had his hands full dealing with Bay Area Riders Forum Racing’s Andy Carman and the 16-year-old mini-motard standout Bobby Fong, who finished second and third respectively in both events. Tigert’s task on the weekend was compounded by a lack of rest and a lack of practice, as he arrived at the track at 4 PM on Saturday afternoon, following an 11 AM arrival from Tokyo that morning. “I got a pretty good start in Production, running in second and looking for a way past Andy,” stated Tigert, “when someone pulls up next to me it was Bobby Fong! He’s looking like the next 600 class champion, for sure. It turned out to be a pretty interesting race for all of us, as both Andy and Bobby were riding really well. I’m just glad I ended the season with a pair of wins.” Eric Gulbransen’s weekend originally looked similar to Tigert’s, with plans to race the Munroe Motorsports Ducati 999R at the CCS Race of Champions in Florida on Saturday, with the hopes of flying in for the AFM Open Twins event on Sunday. While the trip never happened, Gulbransen still had his hands full, fighting both some strong challenges from his competitors while dealing with an overheating problem on his 749. In the Desmoto Sport Open Twins race, Pacific Tracktime’s Bud Anderson challenged Gulbransen early before lowsiding in Turn 2, moving the Ducati 998 of fast novice Patrick Blackburn and the Scuderia West Aprilia RSV-R of Scott Schwanbeck into second and third respectively. With Schwanbeck lowsiding out of third just one lap later, Blackburn found himself as the lone challenger to Gulbransen, pulling just ahead of the former LRRS champion at the start of the last lap. Blackburn’s time at the front was short lived, as Gulbransen went deep into Turn 1 to retake the lead before going on to win by a scant 0.49 second margin. Blackburn finished second, with Mike Aron third on his Mojotown.com Ducati 749R. “We had a little overheating problem,” recalled Gulbransen. “First lap, 215 degrees. Second lap, 232. Fourth, 240! I started short shifting, missing my markers while looking for the corner workers, waiting to see if I’m going to get black flagged when I saw Pat’s front wheel. I decided I had to roll the dice and push the thing, and luckily it worked out. That was nerve racking!” After lowsiding out of the Open Twins race, Bud Anderson dusted himself off and took the win in the Teresa McKinney Realtor Formula 40 race, despite strong challenges from the CBR1000RR of Jeff Gruetter and the GSX-R750 of Don Rudolfs. “I actually dropped down to fourth for a little while, when I just started to think about what I do when I’m riding with Jeff (Tigert) and Michael (Earnest) those guys are the best coaches a guy could have,” Anderson stated. “It’s not my skill; it’s just osmosis from all those fast guys. I couldn’t have done it without them Keith Ketchum, Pat Blackburn, and of course Roni, she’s the best!” On his Twin Works Factory Suzuki SV650, Kurt Spencer took the win in the Zoom Zoom Trackdays Formula 4 race, his first Formula 4 victory in almost two seasons of racing the class. Brian Long, winner of the 650 Twins race earlier in the day, challenged Spencer throughout the race, taking the lead on his Spears Racing SV650 on the last lap with a strong move on the brakes into Lost Hills. Spencer retook the lead just two turns later on the entrance to the tricky decreasing radius sweeper, holding the position to take the win by a margin of 0.29 seconds over Long. John Daker finished third, adding to his second place finish in 650 Twins that morning. “We got a good start,” stated Spencer, “I was determined not to let Brian get his usual 10 bike lead early on. I caught up, we went back and forth a couple of times, I was surprised to see him poke underneath me going into Lost Hills. I knew where he was strong and where I was strong, so I just made it happen.” Martin Szwarc rebounded from a disappointing DNF in the Toyota 200 just a week earlier to take the win in the Powerstands Open Production event, wrapped up his best season to date on his Suzuki GSX-R1000. James J. King finished second, with Billy Scott crossing the line in third. “Billy and Mike were up there on the start, but I was able to throw down some 52s and open up a gap without a problem,” stated Szwarc. “It felt good to wrap up the Production championship on a high note. These Pirelli DOTs are just phenomenal I even got to lead an FP race on them earlier this season! “ Despite a slow start, Shawn Herrera was able to take the win in the Kilowatt Bar 250 Superbike race, taking the lead from Jove Shapiro at the end of the first lap before going on to take the win. Andrew Duafala finished second, with Shapiro crossing the line in third. All of the top three finishers were on Yamaha TZR250s. “I had the worst start, but it wasn’t as bad as Andrew,” recalled Herrera. “I made my way past Joe Rust and closed on Jove, getting past him on the last turn after he got on the brakes a little early. After that, I just tried to set a couple of fast laps so I could build a gap and relax a little.” The Formula 3 race saw an unusually healthy grid, with a number of fast WSMC regulars in attendance on their fast 125s. Tyler Reiswig managed to take the win after early leader Carlos Neves crashed out on the last lap, with second going to Michael Jarrard and third to WSMC front runner Jay Pilster. All of the top three finishers were on Honda RS125s. Unofficial Results AFM Round 9 October 23, 2005 Buttonwillow Raceway Mach 1 Motorsports Formula Pacific 1. David Stanton (Suz 1000) 2. Jeff Tigert (Hon 1000) 3. Michael Earnest (Suz 1000) 4. Jon Bawden (Suz 750) 5. Ken Hill (Hon 1000) 6. Rob Mesa (Suz 1000) Hare Racing Open Superbike 1. David Stanton (Suz 1000) 2. James Randolph (Suz 1000) 3. Ken Hill (Suz 1000) 4. Rob Mesa (Suz 1000) 5. Kim Nakashima (Yam 1000) 6. Eddie Barajas (Suz 1000) Dial It In Tracktime 750 Superbike 1. David Stanton (Suz 750) 2. Jon Bawden (Suz 750) 3. Robert Campbell (Suz 750) 4. David Tonini (Suz 750) 5. Christopher Weiss (Suz 750) 6. Liko Miles (Suz 750) Pacific Track Time 600 Superbike 1. Jeff Tigert (Hon 600) 2. Andy Carman (Yam 600) 3. Bobby Fong (Yam 600) 4. Ken Hill (Hon 600) 5. Ryan Texeira (Kaw 600) 6. Zenzo Tazawa (Suz 600) 450 Superbike 1. Michael Lohmeyer (Hon 450) 2. Richard Moore (Yam 442) 3. Kenyon Kluge (Hon 400) 4. Erick Crabtree (Hon 400) 5. Greg Becker (Hon 400) 6. Dave Norgard (Yam 400) Kilowatt Bar 250 Superbike 1. Shawn Herrera (Yam 250) 2. Andrew Duafala (Yam 250) 3. Jove Shapiro (Yam 250) 4. Joe Rust (Apr 250) 5. David Crone (Hon 250) 6. Thomas Hicks (Hon 250) Take It 2 The Track Open Production 1. Martin Szwarc (Suz 1000) 2. Mike Mullin (Suz 1000) 3. William Scott (Kaw 1000) 4. James J. King (Suz 1000) 5. Christopher Weiss (Suz 1000) 6. Greg Davis (Yam 1000) Strictly Sport 750 Production 1. Robert Campbell (Suz 750) 2. Danny Yamasaki (Suz 750) 3. Liko Miles (Suz 750) 4. Craig Wierman (Suz 750) 5. Don Rudolfs (Suz 750) 6. Dan Cheli (Suz 750) Keigwins@theTrack 600 Production 1. Jeff Tigert (Hon 600) 2. Andy Carman (Yam 600) 3. Bobby Fong (Yam 600) 4. Andrew Brown (Yam 600) 5. Matt Eccleston (Yam 600) 6. David Glenn (Yam 600) 450 Production 1. Ross Wells (Yam 400) 2. Douglas Goldman (Yam 400) 3. Dave Norgard (Yam 400) Aftershocks 250 Production 1. David Crone (Hon 250) 2. Kelly Winkelbauer (Kaw 250) 3. Michael Corbino (Kaw 250) 4. Thomas Hicks (Hon 250) 5. Chris McGrail (Hon 250) 6. Michael Jones (Kaw 250) Powerstands Open Grand Prix 1. Rob Mesa 2. Kim Nakashima 3. Martin Szwarc 4. Eddie Barajas 5. Michael Lohmeyer 6. Christopher Weiss Scuderia West Formula 1 1. Jon Bawden (Suz 750) 2. William Morton (Hon 250) 3. Robert Campbell (Suz 750) 4. Liko Miles (Suz 750) 5. Ryan Teixeira (Kaw 600) 6. Dan Sewell (Suz 750) Mazda Tech / Shawn Herrera Formula 2 1. William Morton (Hon 250) 2. Dan Cook (Yam 250) 3. Carlos Neves (Hon 125) 4. Shawn Herrera (Yam 250) 5. Richard Denman (Hon 250) 6. Tyler Reiswig (Hon 125) Formula 3 1. Tyler Reiswig (Hon 125) 2. Michael Jarrard (Hon 125) 3. Jay Pilster (Hon 125) 4. Blair Sullenger (Hon 125) 5. Jeffrey Lim (Hon 125) 6. Steve Magri (Hon 125) Zoom Zoom Track Days Formula 4 1. Kurt Spencer (Suz 650) 2. Brian Long (Suz 650) 3. John Daker (Suz 650) 4. Thomas Dorsey (Suz 650) 5. Michael Metcalf (Suz 650) 6. Aaron Tulchinsky (Suz 650) Desmoto Sport Open Twins 1. Eric Gulbransen (Duc 749) 2. Patrick Blackburn (Duc 998) 3. Michael Aron (Duc 749) 4. Thomas Dorsey (Duc 999) 5. Mike Lawrence (Duc 748) 6. Patrick Corcoran (Duc 996) 650 Twins 1. Brian Long 2. John Dakar 3. Jason Butler 4. Michael Metcalf 5. Thomas Dorsey 6. Vik Anderson 500 Twins 1. Jonathan Forman (Suz 500) 2. Kurt Spencer (Suz 500) 3. Robert Clifford (Kaw 500) 4. Bobby Lee Broussard (Suz 500) 5. David Crone (Hon 250) 6. Michael Corbino (Kaw 250) Formula Singles 1. Greg Creech (KTM 598) 2. Chris Keane (Hon 450) 3. Gerry Piazza (Yam 727) Super Dinosaur 1. David Worthington (Suz 750) 2. Toss Wells (Yam 400) 3. Dave Norgard (Yam 400) 4. Paul Kieffer (Hon 600) 5. David Crussel (Kaw 748) 6. Andrew Boehm (Suz 750) Teresa McKinney Realtor Formula 40 1. Bud Anderson (Hon 1000) 2. Jeff Greutter (Hon 1000) 3. Don Rudolfs (Suz 750) 4. Thomas Bolles (Suz 1000) 5. Pete Demas (Suz 600) 6. Gary Stewart (Yam 1000) More, from a press release issued by Mojotown Racing: The return of Mojo… Two bike changes and a learning curve later, AFM #80 Michael Aron of Mojotown Racing found his way back to the podium last weekend to take 3rd place during the 2005 AFM season finale in the Open Twins class. With the help of sponsors Doug and Jane Parkhurst of Parkhurst Racing, the Mojotown team recently took delivery of an ’05 Ducati 749r to accompany the team’s Semi Stock 999 Ducati. Although Michael has had a few great starts and top ten finishes this year, he has been unable to stay up front with the lead pack for more than a few laps. This weekend, something changed, as Michael clicked with the more agile 749r. Starting on the inside of the second row behind pole position and 2005 Open Twins Champion AFM # 394 Eric Gulbransen, Michael shot off the line to run right behind the lead pack of the larger 1000cc machines. Running in a comfortable 4th position, and keeping the leaders still in sight, he stayed on target. On lap 3 Scott Schwanback (AFM #196) made an error going into turn one, opening the door for Michael to move into 3rd place and his first podium finish. This top 3 finish secured Michael’s 9th place overall position in his first full season competing in the open twins class. Also noteworthy from the Mojotown Team was the excellent performance of rookie AFM #282 Jon Daly, whose impressive first season found him second in the running for the AFM Top Novice plate.