Megacross hits a Grand Slam

 by Dave Henry

Photos by Brett.

  In baseball, if you started your season 2 for 5, you’d have a .400 average and be very happy.  However, in Stadium Motocross, starting off with 3 of your first 5 events canceled due to rain is not a good start.   That wasn’t about to stop Team Megacross, as the race on June 11^th was a major hit.  Well over 300 riders lined up to compete for some of the best cash and plaques in the area, and the racing was some of the best witnessed in years.

The Grand Slam of the night was the 250 B main.  For most of the race, you could throw a blanket over the top 4 or 5 racers at any time.  Jumping out in front with the holeshot was Erik Utech on his Yamaha, followed closely by Kyle Entwistle(223) on his RCR Kawasaki.  After the first lap it was Utech holding a slight lead over Entwistle in second and Jody Walker on his Honda in third.  Lap 2 through 5 is where the action really heated up.  Walker made a pass on Entwistle for second, and then into the lead.  Kyler Hyde on his Kawasaki jumped into the mix and at that point the top four were Walker, Utech, Entwistle and Hyde.  Utech and Hyde would collide into each other and Entwistle would take advantage of the situation moving into second place as the white flag came out.  Kyle Nelson on his Suzuki would join the close parade in 5th, but in the end it came down to Walker and Entwistle.  The two would come across the announcers tower table top side by side and into the next right hand bowl turn Walker went low and Entwistle went high.  The extra speed that Entwistle carried out of the corner set him up to dive to the inside of the final corner.  As they came out of the final corner, Entwistle and Walker were side by side again, but Entwistle got a better drive up the face of the Table top finish line jump and took the win.  Walker finished a close second, with Hyde sneaking in for third over Utech.  WOW, what a race!!

  Another hit for the night was the 125 main with 17 screaming 2 strokes doing battle.  The holeshot was too close to call, with Kyle White on his One hero racing, FHK, BWR backed Honda and Tony Spizzirri (992) on his Sunrise Powersports backed Honda, neck and neck.  As they completed lap one Kyle White was building a nice lead, but the battle for second was on.  Spizzirri, Connor Robinson on his KTM, Matt Mellott on his Yamaha and Robbie Hyson on his Yamaha came across the line in second, third, fourth and fifth.  Half way through lap 2, Spizzirri just about endowed over a jump and Robinson pulled up very close.  As the white flag came out White was long gone, but Spizzirri and Robinson were neck and neck for second.  Coming into the last few jumps of the track, it appeared that Spizzirri’s arms might be giving away, as he bobbled again and Robinson pounced on the opportunity.  At the finish, it was White, followed by Robinson and Spizzirri.  It was a great showing for Spizzirri, and you can count on him again to be in the hunt for a podium finish.

  The A classes are always stacked at Megacross because of their great payout and the 250A class tonight was fantastic.  Jumping out to the lead with a massive holeshot was Kevin Markwardt (171) on his White Knuckle, RG3, one shot products backed Honda, with Tommy Hofmaster (110)on his Rock River Powersports backed YZ 2 stroke, Iowa hot shoe Kurt McCabe (890) on his Honda and Brandon Pope on his Yamaha in tow.  The first lap saw a great battle between Markwardt and Hofmaster, with McCabe closing in.  Hoffmaster would lead lap two, with McCabe closing in even more.  On lap 3, McCabe would get around Markwardt for second and set his sights on Hofmaster.  As the white flag came out, 2 bike lengths separated McCabe and Hofmaster, with Hofmaster still holding on to the lead.  As they came into the infield whoops McCabe was able to pull even with Hofmaster and attempt a block pass in the next righthander.  Hofmaster would deny the pass and the two went over the next tabletop side by side.  This great battle continued back and forth through the next bowl turn and last tabletop at the announcers stand.  As the two came through the last switch back towards the finish line, it was Hofmaster on his 2 stroke YZ holding off McCabe for the win.  Markwardt would finish third, with Pope in fourth.

  The 250 A battle would set the stage for what would be a great Open A battle as well.  Only this time, the results would be slightly different.  Kevin Markwardt had his holeshots dialed in and was off again into the lead, followed by Hofmaster, this time on a YZ 450, McCabe and Jonathan Six.  On lap 2, Hofmaster was catching Markwardt and Markwardt threw it away in a turn and fell to seventh.  The next few laps the top four would stay the same with Hofmaster leading the way, followed by McCabe, Six and Justin Kelly on his Illinois Powersports Kawasaki.  As the laps started to wind down, McCabe was putting on a charge and catching Hofmaster.  As they came around the corner to take the white flag, McCabe got around Hofmaster to take the lead.  In the end, McCabe on his Honda would take a two second win over Hofmaster on his Rock River Powersports Yamaha, with Six in third, Kelly in fourth and Markwardt back up to fifth.

  The 250 C class had a full gate and Kody Smith on his Honda grabbed the holeshot and lead wire to wire for the win.  Jake Cinkus came across the line in second and Lucas Hayes rounding out the podium.  A full gate in 250 C is not uncommon at Megacross.  If you’re looking to see how you stack up against the toughest competition in the Midwest, Megacross is the place to be.

Another class that is always highly competitive at Megacross is 30+ B/C.  Several top riders from last year have moved on to other classes, but they have been replaced with several newly turned 30 year old riders ready to do battle.   Grabbing the holeshot was 40+ stock car driver turned Motocrosser Anthony Bartemio.  Following him closely on the start was 30+ B/C newcomers Jessie Keith, Brandon Boggio and Ryan George.  On the back straight-away consisting of what long time announcer Bill Holt calls the “double, double, step-up”, Keith rode past Bartemio for the lead.  After that pass, the top 5 stayed in check for the rest of the race.  At the checkers, it was Keith, followed by Bartemio, Boggio, George and Brian Goodin.    

Other great performances of the night would go to “Big” Ed Williams(311) on his Honda, taking a massive win in 40+ and a hard fought win in 35+ over Burton turbo Lavens (763) who is still battling back from an injury.  One of Loretta Lynns favorites, Chase Sexton(486) on his Rock River Powersports Yamaha, would also take double class wins in convincing fashion in the 85 Jr and 85 9-13 classes.  Kevin Huddleston (244) was a double class winner in 50 4-8 and 50 Jr.  Joe Quest was a double class winner in 50 Sr and 65 Beginner.