MRA Round 2 – Pianykh & Moham dominate MRA sprints, Team Cheapskates owns 4-hour enduro
May 30-31 High Plains Raceway, Deer Trail, CO
Outstanding weather greeted the MRA round 2 at High Plains Raceway where Oleg Pianykh took the win in Race of the Rockies GTO and Shannon Moham the win in Race of the Rockies GTU as well as 7 other classes!
The hard luck story of the weekend was provided by Rob Christman, the reigning RoR GTO champion and 2015 MRA #1. Christman high sided in 4th gear during practice on Saturday injuring both hands and landing very hard on his back bruising an area “larger than his back protector”. Rob also provided the tough guy story by getting back on his RoadRace Factory, Coyote Motorsports, Pirelli shod Yamaha R1 in Open Superbike and Race of the Rockies to salvage early season points. Rob will be back for the upcoming Pueblo round.
Pianykh (#571) led from the start with Dan Turner (#3) and Ricky Orlando (#12) in tow. Pianykh used the grip of his Pirelli’s to cut a series of 1:49 & change lap times to keep Turner & Orlando at bay winning by 3.5 seconds.
In Race of the Rockies GTU (run concurrently with RoR GTO), Shannon Moham(#945) got off the line in 6th place and began battling with the open bikes of Aaron Hersh (#395), Carl Sorensen (#217), and Todd Larson (#799). Moham’s consistent 1:51 lap times kept him in front of hard charging John Borst (#290) and Brian Dobrowolski (#141). Moham’s bounty for the weekend consisted of wins in Middleweight Supersport & Superbike, Heavyweight Supersport & Superbike, Lightweight Grand Prix, SuperTwins GTU, and Modern Vintage GTU.
The annual MRA 4-hour endurance featured cash prizes sponsored by Imperial Sportbikes and RG3 Suspension. Team Cheapskates consisting of Bill Comegys (#50), Michael Keating, Josh Galster, and Austin DeHaven took home the True Endurance & overall win, with Eric Becker (#769) winning the solo Titanium Butt class, and Hershy’s Dutch White Chocolate (Adam Ayers #771, Aaron Hersh #395) winning the Pony Express class. The top 2 team completed 95 laps of HPR during the event which was stopped a couple of times by red flags.
Also notable over the weekend, several class track records were established. In 400 Production, Jason Madama (#213) set a new record at 2:09.297. Adam Ayers (#771) eclipsed the bar in Formula 40 GTU with a 1:54.696, Wyeth Jackson (#145) beat her own Ladies of the Rockies record from last year with a 1:56.854, and finally Team Cheapskates set the 4-hour endurance lap record with a 1:49.890.
Full round 2 results are available at http://www.mra-racing.org/wp-content/uploads/R2-Results.pdf
The MRA will continue the season with round 3 at Pueblo Motorsports Park on June 20-21. The SuperStreet program for new or aspiring racers will again be offered. For more information, see http://www.mra-racing.org/superstreet/superstreet-information/
The Motorcycle Roadracing Association is 501(c)(7) non-profit organization 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/