Moonlighting motocrossers had the speed and they also proved to have the stamina to win in some of the toughest off-road conditions and against some of its best competitors at round two of the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC World Off Road Championship Series, presented by GPR and Zip-Ty Racing.A break in the Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Lites West Series found Mike Alessi and Brett Metcalfe testing themselves and their equipment, and in the process, they went 1-2, handing former motocrosser Ryan Hughes, the current WORCS points leader, his first defeat of the season. It didn’t come easily, though.After Zip-Ty Racing/Montclair Yamaha/Moose YZ450F-mounted Russell Pearson timed the start perfectly and led for a few minutes with teammate Bobby Garrison right behind. It wasn’t long, though, before Garrison charged into the lead with Alessi, Metcalfe and Ricky Dietrich right behind. Those four set a pace that separated them from the pack, making the battle for the lead their own affair.Red Bull KTM’s Alessi took the lead after a few laps on his Motorex/FMF/Alpinestars-backed 250 SX-F, but Dietrich hung tough on his Carter Powersports/Pro Circuit/ARC KX450F. “Me, Alessi, Metcalfe and Garrison were all pushing; we were back and forth [for the lead],” Dietrich said. “We had a good pace going. I started looking around, and we were checking out! I was like, ‘Where’d everybody go?’”Garrison tipped over, Metcalfe tipped over, and it was just me and Alessi. Through the sand I felt faster; I was kind of pushing it a little bit.”However, Dietrich’s bid for the lead evaporated when he crashed. A flat tire later would relegate him to a sixth.The battle for the lead turned into Alessi maintaining just enough of a cushion to feel fairly comfortable, with Metcalfe holding second on his Yamaha of Troy/Boost Mobile/Fly YZ250F ahead of Garrison, but it wasn’t over.Moving up steadily after a couple crashes, Suzuki’s Hughes and his ECC/FMF/Moose RM-Z450 finally got Garrison in range despite a clutch that had gone south just past the midway point. “I ride a high gear, a really high gear, so it puts a lot of load on the engine,” Hughes related. “I just tried to conserve from there.”The thing is, I want to beat those [motocross] guys, but with about six laps to go or more I just said, ‘Okay, you know what? Suzuki pays me to win championships, not to beat Alessi and Metcalfe.’ If I was younger I think I would’ve pushed it and cartwheeled it, but I think I’m a little older and wiser!”Afterward, both Alessi and Metcalfe also felt older, wiser and more beat up. Alessi would only admit, “I’m a little bit tired; I know I’m going to sleep really good tonight!”I think I was two notches slower than a National [motocross] pace; I was trying to pace myself all the way through. I’ve never ridden a dirt bike for two hours ever in my life, never ever!”Metcalfe said, “I just wanted to have fun and I did, but, man, I’m beat! I went down twice. If I hadn’t done that, I would’ve had a little more energy. I felt fine when I finished the moto, but as soon as I finished the moto, I was, like, ‘Whoa!’ It kind of hit me. I felt strong when I was riding, but as soon as I stopped, I got a little light-headed.”Despite his disappointment at being beaten by the motocrossers, Hughes was upbeat when he considered the huge gain in points he garnered thanks in part to DNFs by teammate Mike Kiedrowski and Team Green’s Nathan Woods and Destry Abbott.Havasu WORCS Pro Results1. Mike Alessi, KTM 250 SX-F
2. Brett Metcalfe, Yamaha YZ250F
3. Ryan Hughes, Suzuki RM-Z450
4. Bobby Garrison, Yamaha YZ450F
5. Lance Smail, Kawasaki KX450F
6. Ricky Dietrich, Kawasaki KX450F
7. Russell Pearson, Yamaha YZ450F
8. Robby Bell, Honda CRF450R
9. Micky Griffin, Yamaha YZ450F
10. Dennis Stapleton, Kawasaki KX450F
11. Matt Karlsen, Kawasaki KX450F
12. Ty Davis, Yamaha YZ250
13. Rory Sullivan, Honda
14. Beau Baron, Kawasaki
15. Eric Rhoten, Honda CRF450R
16. Nick Saia, Yamaha
17. Kellon Walch, KTM 525 XC
18. Monte Montague, Yamaha
19. John Beal, KTM 250 SX
20. Jim Maxfield, Kawasaki
2. Brett Metcalfe, Yamaha YZ250F
3. Ryan Hughes, Suzuki RM-Z450
4. Bobby Garrison, Yamaha YZ450F
5. Lance Smail, Kawasaki KX450F
6. Ricky Dietrich, Kawasaki KX450F
7. Russell Pearson, Yamaha YZ450F
8. Robby Bell, Honda CRF450R
9. Micky Griffin, Yamaha YZ450F
10. Dennis Stapleton, Kawasaki KX450F
11. Matt Karlsen, Kawasaki KX450F
12. Ty Davis, Yamaha YZ250
13. Rory Sullivan, Honda
14. Beau Baron, Kawasaki
15. Eric Rhoten, Honda CRF450R
16. Nick Saia, Yamaha
17. Kellon Walch, KTM 525 XC
18. Monte Montague, Yamaha
19. John Beal, KTM 250 SX
20. Jim Maxfield, Kawasaki
