Hendry and Yee secure victories at Round 5 High Plains Raceway
Byers, CO – The fifth round of the 2024 MRA Championship Series took place at High Plains Raceway over the weekend of July 20-21st on their 2.00-mile West Course configuration.
The Race of the Rockies qualifying on Sunday was conducted under excellent conditions as temperatures were around 75 degrees for most of the morning. Brad Hendry claimed pole position with a best time of (1:24.418) followed by Kreece Elliot (1:25.000) and Jeremy Ross (1:25.450).
The start of Race of the Rockies (RoR) GTO saw Hendry get the holeshot going into turn one, followed closely by Elliot and Ross. Hendry was able to lay down an excellent first lap giving him a half-second lead by the end of lap one. On lap two, Gage Mollman put an excellent move on Ross and took over third position. Elliot, still in second place, was doing his best to stay with Hendry. By the end of lap three, Hendry had edged his lead out to 2.5 seconds on Elliot. On lap seven, Ross was making a comeback on Mollman and was within striking distance of retaking second place. Unfortunately for Ross, a slight mistake in turn two caused him to go down, retiring him from the remainder of the race. By lap nine, Hendry had extended his lead to over five seconds, making it nearly impossible for Elliot to form any type of a comeback. Hendry led the remainder of the race, and secured his fourth RoR victory of the season. Rounding out the podium was Elliot in second, and Mollman in third.
In Race of the Rockies GTU, Justen Behmer, Ken Yee, and Dennis Stowers all got off the line with decent starts. For the first few laps, Behmer led the trio and did an excellent job of fending off Yee. On lap four, Yee got an excellent drive out of turn three and passed Behmer going into turn four. Behmer, riding excellent all weekend, stayed right on Yee’s tail. Stowers could not match their pace being that he was still coming to grips riding a borrowed bike for the weekend. Yee and Behmer were able to pull out a five-second lead on Stowers by the end of lap five. On lap six, Yee got his head down and put a one-second gap on Behmer. For the remainder of the race, Yee continued to build his lead, ultimately taking victory by eight seconds on Behmer, who finished in second. Stowers rounded out the podium in third.
Next up, the MRA heads back to High Plains Raceway in Byers, CO for Round 6 on August 10-11 for a full weekend of racing including the SuperStreet event on Saturday afternoon. SuperStreet gives street riders the opportunity to experience motorcycle road racing with minimal cost and preparation. See https://www.mra-racing.org/superstreet/superstreet-information for details.
The MRA welcomes racers from other clubs across the nation. If you’re a currently licensed racer, we have several reciprocity agreements in place along with very competitive pricing on license & entries to our 28 classes. Click here for MRA membership & entry information.
The Motorcycle Roadracing Association is dedicated to promoting safe and competitive motorcycle road racing events for enthusiasts in Colorado and the surrounding area. For more information go to http://www.mra-racing.org/.
