PORT ANGELES • Don Matthews on the twinpipe CZ250

Port Angeles 2005 • Hammer & Tongs round 2 July 24th • Set in the foothills beneath the pristine Glaciers of the Olympic National Park, the Port Angeles track is the second oldest motocross track (circa 1938) in the state of Washington. The weather was hot & sunny, & the track layout was challenging. It is the same track that the old VDR Summer Series (circa 1999) raced on. Credit for this year's return to Port Angeles is due largely to local man Ray Stipe, who worked himself to death to try to get this event together. His crew did a great job putting the whole thing together, keeping the dust down, keeping the day rolling. The moment the last rider in a moto crossed the start chute on his way to the checkered flag, the next gate was off. Meanwhile many significant others patronized the Espresso Truck, itself a humorous a symbol of the Pacific Northwest.

RESULTS • Vintage • Evolution •

• Turnout far exceeded the expectations of the club- 90 Vintage entries, 121 Evolution & Post Vintage entries. National Motocrosser (plate #27, 1975) Doug Raines laid the smack on everybody in his class on the super clean & trick MX360. John Hribar from Auburn Washington turned up with an even more astonishing MX360 Special, now half Kawasaki, bristling with handmade parts to contest the Open Evolution Class, his first race in 25 years.

• The Relay Race was dominated this time by Team Maico- Doug Hafsos, Dan Phillips, Tazio Andreassen & Marvin Newton. They led the whole way, chased by two different Yamaha Teams and Team Honda.

• At the end of the day some riders suggested was a bit much for older bikes. The A-Team has asked for rider feedback so we can give the riders of the Northwest what they want. We'd all like to put the old days of "you can't complain unless you're involved" to rest.

The Buck stops here: I walked the track with others back in November and OK'd it. However after this last race I totally agree it was too sharp, too modern, and while we all had a good time, it was too much. What looked good at the time wasn't perfect. We're on a learning curve. - SIEGE