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Friday, Mar 29th

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Around and Around They Go!

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Over 200 racers competed Aug. 16-17 in the Webe (pronounced We-be) Racing Circuit’s first event in Gallup, and the overall reaction was a positive one for the OHV MX course in the Heaton Valley and for the city as well.

“It was a success for the first year on a new course,” said Webe Racing’s Hare Scramble organizer Brett Craig. “We had riders from a five-state area and we’ve put Gallup on our list for next year. Right now we are pretty sure we want to come back. Greg Kirk of Red Rock Motor Sports made this enjoyable for everyone.”

Webe holds nine races a year at seven locations in three states, and judging by the reactions of most of the riders, this course was to their liking, whether they won or not. And some ventured into town on Saturday night to see what it had to offer; many were amazed at the variety of night life and the arts displayed in the local stores, especially for the size of the town.

From the four-year-old entrants in the 50cc race to the Pro riders, all were having a lot of fun as they completed as many laps as possible in the time allowed. But most had time to visit with friends and strangers alike as some families set up RVs and trailers for the overnight stay while others camped out in nearby motels.

Ben Finch won the 4-6 year old Division by only .06 seconds over Cole Blecha for the five laps each completed, and there was just .24 seconds between the top three 50cc finishers in the 7-10 year old Division, Hayden Bodo, Zebadiah Brimhall, and Gabriel Mendoza.

Jackson Lawley won the 65cc Mini-Class by .06 seconds over Dilon Blecha for six laps and also won the 85cc 7-12 Class. Hunter Moore was the winner in the 85cc 13-16 Class and James Mitchell was unopposed in the A30 Class. Aaron Evans won the Pro A B race in the A40 Class, and Tell Gore was first in the A250 Class. Austin Evans won the A Open Class and Mike Mendoza easily won the B30 Class.

Clay Calkins won the B40 Class, Lee Lott the B50 Class, Austin McCurry the B250 and Tristen Warner the B Open.

Casey Melton captured the C30 Class, Anthony Fry the C40, Brad Carey the C50, Jerry Ryan the C60, Brock Cruzan the C250, Ashley Schneider the C Ladies, and Donnie Hagenbart the C Open.

Ben Ellis took the Iron Mini Class.

Cody Schafer kept his season Webe lead in the Pro Class with his win, while Nathan Work won the C Class Sportsman title.

The Team A win went to the Barker Boys (Austin Evans and Ryus Finch), the Team B winner was Will Stambaugh and Doug Hickey as The Dodge Boys, and the Team C winners were Killin Me Smalls, represented by Isaiah Lamb and Joshua Evans. The team of Mick Holloway and Justin Haight won the Team Pro race.

If that’s not enough racing action for you, read on!

On September 12, the Gallup OHV MX Park will host the Red Rock Rage Motocross, an event being brought to Gallup by Arizona Offroad Promotions (AZOP). Registration will begin on Friday from 7-9 pm at El Rancho Hotel and continue from 6 am-2 pm at the track on Saturday. Practice session of one lap will be from 7-8 am on Saturday with PeeWee Bikes and Quad scheduled to race first for 30 minutes, followed by Big Bikes for three, 30-mile laps around the large Heaton Valley track from 8 – 11:30 am, then three laps by the Big ATV’s from 11:45 am – 2:15 pm.

The action continues at 2:30 pm with the Bike/Quad Minis and finishes from 3:30 – 5:30 pm with all UTV’s racing for two laps.

If off-road racing sounds interesting, this is a chance to enjoy big time action in your backyard. The High Desert terrain, cross-country style (tight and technical) with some two-track roads, piñon trees, and sagebrush at an elevation of between 6,800-7,200 feet promises plenty of thrills and speed for spectators and participants alike.

Kyle Krause, owner of AZOP, is not a newcomer to this exciting sport, having been involved for the last five years with this type of competition.

“We normally do about 15 races a year. Greg Kirk reached out to us to bring our series to Gallup and the facilities are what we need. We’ll have all age groups, from mini’s to professionals, with the smaller ones competing on the regular course.”

For more information on participating, go online to arizonaoffroadpromotions.com or call Kyle at 623-363-9665.

On Sunday, September 13, Red Rock Motor Sports will be hosting the Scott Costley Memorial Race at the same location.