The calm before the storm:
There was a calm feeling before the first Pro moto on Sunday. It was an unusual feeling to see all the pro riders walking around and chatting, it was more like the start of a practice than an actual moto. A few minutes later mechanics began sweeping the starting pad and the riders pulled into their gate positions. Things were back to normal, everyone had their game face on and the smell extremely expensive fuel began filling the air. Riders began making their pre-moto practice run and the crowds began lining the fences. Within only a few minutes all the riders had made their way back to the gate and the rev boxes began doing their job.

The gate dropped and the field made the 100 yard dash into the first corner at nearly top speed. To everyone’s surprise Doug Gust (Yoshimura/Suzuki) was back in the pack and Keith Little (Lonestar) was setting the pace. Shortly in to the race the track's soft sandy track began to give way and passing opportunities were few and far between. All eyes were on Gust and Tim Farr (Baldwin/Honda) as Gust was nudging Tim for his fourth place position. Shortly into their race Gust went off a jump sideways and made a new passing lane through the hay bales and banners. Doug lost a few seconds to Farr but kept the momentum going and quickly caught back up. After moving past Farr Gust able to quickly move through two more positions before the end of the moto and placed a close second next to Keith. Third place was captured by this year’s biggest surprise, John Natalie. Unfortunately, another contender for the championship - Jeremiah Jones (Yamaha), retired during the moto with engine problems.

Highlights from the second moto are on the next page. Don’t miss out on this month’s photo gallery.

Racer 450 is also featuring an interview and photo gallery with current points champion Doug Gust this month, don’t miss out.