U.S.D.R. Desert Championship Series 2010 U.S.D.R. Round 4
“Kudla takes Control”
By Dave Earll
Photos by Tony Lamping/off-roadphotos.com
Red Mountain.
RIDGECREST, CA. 05-30-2010
Ryan Kudla scored his first win in six months and became the season’s fourth different rider to claim the Pro class victory at a very unusual Round Four of the 2010 U.S.D.R. Desert Championship Series.
Rain, snow, mud, and freezing temperatures. Not exactly the type of conditions desert racers expect in southern California at the end of May, but that’s exactly what they got
when they lined up for Race Two in what would be their last round before the long summer break. While it would be a struggle to keep warm, the dust free conditions were a welcome surprise and would make for some great handle bar to handle bar racing.
 |
Ryan Kudla |
As they headed off into the clouds and rain of the super fast 18 mile course, the top three were literally seconds apart. At the front, defending champion Nick Burson had his hands full with first time Pro racer Jason Parsons as the two continually pushed each other to the limit at speeds approaching 100 mph. A few seconds back, Kudla was in full view of the battle just in front of him, but frozen hands would force him to slow his pace for a few miles. While Kudla was willing to ride cautiously for the rest of the first lap, Parsons was certainly not going to play it safe.
As the racers headed out for the second lap, it was evident that Parsons was ready to make the pass on Burson and attempt to put his Northland Powersports KXF-450 in the lead. The move turned out to be a little too ambitious however, as the Kawasaki rider swapped multiple times in the whoops and crashed hard, ending his day after just 18 miles and opening the door for Kudla to bring the fight to arch rival.
“I caught up to Burson just after check two but was getting pelted by his roost,” said Kudla. “I could have forced the issue, but I knew I would be pitting this lap, so I decided to wait before I made my move.” With Kudla heading to the pits from second place at the end of lap two, it should have been the perfect opportunity for Burson to extend his lead, but a broken front brake line on his Zip-Ty sponsored Husqvarna would make the going a little rough. “I completely lost my front brakes on the first lap,” said the series champ. “Luckily, it was not a very technical course or I would have been in a lot of trouble.”
Back out on the course, Kudla was quickly catching up to the ailing husky. “My plan was just to put in a good lap and then make the pass when Burson went into the pits,” said Kudla, “but surprisingly, I caught him just before check three and was able to take the lead. I didn’t know until later that he was having bike problems.” Problems or not, Burson was still able to put up a good fight and keep the pressure on for the remainder of the third lap.
 |
Nick Burson |
With Burson making his pit stop before heading out onto the last lap, Kudla was now free and clear out in the lead. “I just wanted to stay safe and bring it home for a win,” said the Kawasaki rider, and that’s exactly what he did. With one of his biggest leads ever, Kudla was able to pull of a very welcome overall win. “This feels so sweet!” said the T.O. Powersports/Amsoil sponsored rider. “I want to thank everyone involved with my race program and especially ESR suspension, I think we finally got my bike dialed in.” With his second place finish, Burson would extend his points lead over Colton Sanders who will be out for the rest of the season. Finishing an impressive third was AS Racing sponsored Anthony Vasques followed by Lites Expert class winner Cameron Lewis, Senior Expert class winner Robert Laughlin and Vet class ace Colby Begin.
While Sunday’s Race Two saw its share of unusual weather, nothing could match the early morning start of Race One. Freezing rain and “white out” snow conditions made for a very interesting race to say the least and one that everyone is sure to remember. Taking the overall win, Senior-2 racer John Sides opened up a huge lead at the start and never looked back. Second would go to Jeremy Gray, followed by Thomas Gibson, Sarah Kritch and Ken Strebel.
Next Race: 09-26-10, Red Mountain, Ca.
|
