Tuesday, August 22, 2017 | 10:25 AM
Round six of the Kenda AMA National Enduro Series took place this past weekend, August 19 and 20, in Matthews, Indiana. Hot and humid conditions graced the farmer’s fields throughout the course of the weekend, making for perfect day of racing where Grant Baylor secured another podium finish with third overall.
The first of six tests proved to be the most difficult for Baylor, where he finished just outside the top-five in sixth. From there, Baylor’s day greatly improved where he excelled in the tight woods and creek crossings, to place just outside of the podium once with a pair of second and third finishes in the remaining tests for third overall – just one second behind second place. Baylor holds third place in the overall points standings heading into the seventh round.
Rocky Mountain ATV*MC/KR4 Arrive-N-Ride Amateur team member, Maximo Gutierrez also had a successful weekend in Indiana where he finished in the runner-up position in 200 C. Chase Sweda landed a top-ten finish with seventh in 250 B.
Colin Keegan scored 25th in the ultra-competitive 250 A division, with Ambrocio Gutiereez snagging 18th in 40+ B and Magno Gutierrez racing his way to 19th in Open B aboard his Husqvarna TC 85cc machine.
Utah native Eric Severns and his wife flew to Indiana to participate in the Arrive-N-Ride program for the first time, renting a Husqvarna FX350 to compete in the 55+ A class. Severns has been racing the full NEPG series, but a scheduling issue was going to make him miss the Muddobbers round. The Arrive-N-Ride program was the perfect fix and Severns finished fourteenth in class.
“I had a great experience with the KR4 Crew and I really could get used to the fly in and race experience,” said Eric Severns. “I’ve been racing the whole season this year and our family vacation created a conflict and I wasn’t going to be able to get to the race until I spotted the KR4 at the Rattlesnake Enduro and they set me up with everything I needed to race this weekend.”
Tayla Jones elected not to race the NEPG and instead compete in the opening EnduroCross series round at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jones crashed out of the lead on the final lap, but quickly recovered for an impressive third in her first-ever EnduroCross.
KR4 Performance Team Results:
Grant Baylor – Pro – 3rdChase Sweda – 250 B – 7thColin Keegan – 250 A – 25thAmbrocio Gutierrez – 40+ B – 18thJean-Carlo Gutierrez – Open B – 19thMaximo Gutierrez – 200 C – 2ndEric Severns – 55+ A – 14th
Next NEPG Event: Round 7 – Park Hills, Missouri – September 17, 2017
The Rocky Mountain ATV*MC/KR4 Arrive-N-Ride Team resumes GNCC racing on Sunday, September 10, with the Parts Unlimited Unadilla GNCC.