Caselli Comes Through for Washougal WORCS Win

KTM's Kurt Caselli is considered one of the fastest riders contesting the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC World Off-Road Championship Series not to have won a round this season. That changed at round seven, presented by Maxxis and held at Washougal Motocross Park in Washougal, Washington, as the young man from the SoCal desert came from behind in the mud to claim his first WORCS victory of the year—only his second since the last round of the inaugural season in 2001.

"It's been a while," the Michelin/FMF/Moose 250 MXC-mounted competitor conceded. "I'm just glad that I could get KTM up front. I've been pretty consistent this year with a lot of seconds, then we had a few bad races—a 20th, a seventh and a ninth. I just want to stay consistent [in the last half of the season], stay up front and, hopefully, get the Championship at the end."

After Caselli's second-turn crash, however, most eyes were on the heated battle up front. For more than half the race, series points leader and defending champ Nathan Woods and rookie Ricky Dietrich provided spectators a thrilling duel for the lead, though it wasn't the study in contrasts one might imagine. Dietrich showed both speed and smarts, staying under control instead of riding wildly.

"I was really surprised to see Dietrich up there, but after I started thinking about it when we were riding, I mean, it's his home [track] and he has a lot of time out here in the slick stuff," Woods said. "I was just trying to pace myself; he wasn't. He's not in the championship run, and I wasn't going to kill myself to win."

Dietrich admitted, "In the beginning I felt pretty nervous, and I was making little mistakes, but I was still running the pace because everyone else was making little mistakes, too, in the mud. Almost everyone had a crash during the race. I never crashed; I kept it upright the whole time, and that was what I wanted to do."

Unfortunately for him, the packing in his silencer blew out and plugged up the outlet on his Carter Powersports/Maxxis/ARC KX250, forcing him into the pits to get it pulled off completely. That pit stop dropped him from the lead to fourth, equaling his best overall finish (last year as a Semi-Pro).

Woods, of course, is a seasoned veteran, but his race changed in the final laps when the chain derailed on his Montclair Yamaha/Zip-Ty Racing/Moose YZ250. While he scrambled to get it back on, both Caselli and TBT/Maxxis/Moose KX250-mounted Lance Smail rode past.

Caselli didn't immediately realize he'd grabbed the lead, though once it registered, he surged to keep Smail behind him for the last two laps. As he took the checkered flag, he had 18 seconds on Smail after two hours of racing, with Woods another 1:05 back in third.

Though the results didn't change the point standings as the series takes its summer break-with Woods still enjoying a points lead of more than one race—it buoyed Caselli's hopes of drawing closer and, perhaps, overtaking Woods at the end of the year.

Pro Results

1. Kurt Caselli, KTM
2. Lance Smail, Kawasaki
3. Nathan Woods, Yamaha
4. Ricky Dietrich, Kawasaki
5. Mike Kiedrowski, Suzuki
6. Ryan Voase, Kawasaki
7. Destry Abbott, Kawasaki
8. Mark Tilley, Honda
9. Bobby Bonds, KTM
10. John Beal, KTM
11. Ty Davis, Yamaha
12. David Pearson, Kawasaki
13. Matt Karlsen, Honda
14. Kelly Graffunder, Husqvarna
15. Rob Flagler, KTM
16. Jon Seehorn, Suzuki
17. Brandon Johnson, KTM
18. Craig Wesner, Kawasaki
19. Dylan Murdock, Honda
20. Eric Rhoten, Honda