REM GLEN HELEN MOTOCROSS RACE REPORT: MAX ANSTIE, DAVE EROPKIN, DAN ALAMANGOS & ALAN OLSON HAVE A FIELD DAY



Max Anstie, who will be racing the 250 GP’s for the Pro Circuit-backed CLS team in 2011, is back in the USA preparing for the GP season.

It was a week of happenings at this week’s REM motocross races at Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, California.

First, starting next week, REM racers will not have to pay the $20 practice fee on Saturday (as long as they have an REM license card). Glen Helen will only charge REM racers $10 to get in the gate on Saturday’s race days. When you do the math, the $35 REM membership will quickly be recouped by the fact that the racers will save $10 at the gate and $5 off their REM entries (you don’t need an REM license to race, but you pay $5 more).


Max Anstie says that he will return to the USA to contest the Nationals and Supercross series in the future. He is still amazingly young.

Second, Max Anstie demolished the 250 Pro class (with duct tape numbers on his bike) and he also beat all of the 450 Pros. Chasing the Brit was a United Nations of riders that included Swedish riders Viktor Bjorklund and Rikard Hansson and Italian Luca Nastrini. The 250 Pro classes top three wwas Anstie, Bjorklund and Ricky Diaz, while the 450 Pro classes top three was Jordan Booker, Rikard Hansson and Chris See.


Husqvarna of Sweden racer Viktor Bjorklund got a chance to test his speed, not only against Americans, but one of the top contenders in the 250 GP class at REM. He went 2-2 in the 250 Pro class.

Third, two-strokes played a big part in Saturday’s action. Willy Musgrave continues to race his 2001 Honda CR250 MXA project bike…and won the Over-40 Pro class on it. The 47-year old was also in front of every 250 Intermediate (the two classes were mixed together)…except for his son Billy. Billy Musgrave used a KTM 150SX two-stroke to win the 250 Intermediate class (and beat his dad). Dan Alamangos won two classes, the Over-40 Intermediates and the 125 Adult “A” class on a 2011 Yamaha YZ125.


With most of the focus on the 250 Pro class, Jordan Booker took the 450 Pro win with a 1-1.

Fourth, as always the Over-50 Expert class was the biggest race of the day (followed by the Over-40 Intermediates). Dave Eropkin left no doubt that he plans to be a player in the roulette that the Over-50 Expert class has become. It is rare that a rider wins the Over-50 Experts two weeks in a row. Eropkin, a former 125 Pro from the 1970s at Saddleback, has won the class one time before and this week he went 1-1 in front of last week’s winner Fred Nichols. Dennis Boulware (3-3) was third with a top ten that included David Blunk (4-6), Scotty Walker (6-5), Baja hero Bob Rutten (5-8), Speedway racer Randy Skinner (7-7), former Pro Circuit Husqvarna Pro Mike Monaghan (8-9), KX125-mounted Ron Lawson (14-4) and Kevin McCarthy (10-10). Greg Groom went 12-12, but he had the glory of leading the first moto for two laps before succumbing to constant pressure.


The racin’ rev? The revvin’ pastor? Paul Crouch, Jr. went 4-3 for third in the Over-50 Intermediate class.

Fifth, REM has instituted a 125 Adult “A” two-stroke class. It is filled with lots of old-line 125 pilots from the old days including Brian Pappalardo, Pete Vetrano, Randy Skinner and Dirt Bike‘s Ron Lawson. Most of these guys ride older Suzuki, Kawasaki or Honda 125 two-strokes (and they love to claim that they only spent $1000 on them), but some of the engines seem to be tuned to the nth degree. The only stock bike in the race was MXA‘s 2011 YZ125, piloted by Aussie Dan Alamangos. This time, the crashed-prone Alamangos kept it on both wheels and used a 2-1 to defeat a top three of Ron Lawson (4-2) and Randy Skinner (3-4).


Randy Skinner (383), George Kohler and Bob Rutten (83) jockey for position at the bottom of Mt. Whitney. Rutten was an icon during the hey-day of the Baja 500 and Baja 1000. He was a part of the Harley-Davidson offroad team.

Over-50 Novice: Brian Underdahl went 1-1 in front of Craig Johnston, Ian Pederson, Brian Martin, Gary Scott, Chuck Freeman, Tim Norton, John Tookey and Dennis Smith.

250 Novice: Ange Carre took in the win in front of the Bednar brothers (Vinnie and Vito).

450 Novice: Vance Freeman swept both motos in front of David Klaassen Van Oorschot, Kevin Arello, Luis Braganch and Mark Taylor.


This is the pass. As Tom White (80) takes the middle line around a lapper, Alan Olson (orange helmet) goes around both of them.

Sixth, Alan Olson has had a remarkable career. He was the AMA Mechanic of the Year when he wrenched for Chad Reed, a nine-time World Vet Champion and heads up Vance & Hines all-new motocross team of Steven Tokarski and Preston Tilford. But, now Olson appears to have focused his racing career on torturing Tom White. White, one of the famous White Brothers and a big player in the AMA’s politics, is a former Grand National dirt tracker (and a former World Vet Champion himself). Since both of these riders are over the age of 60, they race together in REM’s competitive Over-60 Expert class. Since Al worked for Tom during the White Brothers reign, they have a friendly rivalry going. But to make it interesting, Olson always starts in last place, while White uses his flat track skills to power to the front of the pack at the start. Then, the chase begins. Tom White pushes his KTM 450SXF as far ahead as he can get, while Olson works his way through the field. Eventually, Olson catches Tom White and the real race begins. Sometimes, just sometimes, Tom White can hold him off?but not this week. Olson swept both motos with Tom White (2-2), Lars Larsson (3-3), Jody Weisel (4-4) and Ray Pisarski (5-5) filling the top five spots.


How many twists and camber changes can one corner have? Brian Martin (65) clings on the edge of a steep off-camber slope, while Ray Pisarski (82) tries to wheelie across the face. Jody Weisel (51) is looking to take a higher line where the camber isn’t as severe.


You have to admire old guys who are still going fast (relative to how fast they used to go). Here, AMA Hall of Famer Lars Larsson jumps MXA‘s KTM 250SX two-stroke down an REM drop-off. Lars was the man that Edison Dye brought over from Europe in 1967 to demonstrate those new-fangled two-stroke Husqvarnas to American teenagers. Oh yeah, Lars is 69 years old and still racing (and he’s not the oldest racer at REM).

REM races again next weekend (January 22). For more info go to www.remsatmx.com

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