Hughes, Kiedrowski 1-2 at Taft WORCS

The Suzuki tandem of Ryan Hughes and Mike Kiedrowski set the pace and made the harsh, rough Honolulu Hills Raceway course their own in finishing 1-2 at round two of the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC World Off Road Championship Series, which was presented by Acerbis. A last-lap flame-out dropped KX450F-mounted Ricky Dietrich from the final podium spot to fourth, with YZ450F rider Bobby Garrison taking advantage to inherit third.

For Hughes, the victory in Taft, California, marked his second WORCS win in a row, though it was a much tougher day than round one. "It got a good start, and I tried to pull out a lead in the beginning like normal," he reported. "I looked back and Mike's right there; he's right there."

A mistake at the end of the first lap in the telephone pole section dropped Hughes a few positions with a stalled FMF/ECC/Moose RM-Z450 while Kiedrowski took off out front on his similar machine. But Hughes got restarted and within a few laps ran down those who'd gotten by him.

Kiedrowski proved to be the only one able to run with the leader and clung tenaciously, staying within about 10 seconds of Hughes.

"We just stayed the same [distance apart] for an hour and 45 minutes, I think," Hughes said. "Right at the end I pulled out just a little bit [more of a lead]. It was a tough race, man. We went 95 percent for two hours, and that's tough. This track, I think it's one of the roughest tracks I've ever ridden in my life. It was rough—rough, rough, rough!"

Kiedrowski was far happier with his runner-up finish than the fourth he'd placed in Phoenix, where he struggled with his suspension setup. "At Phoenix my bike setup was terrible," he admitted. "It was real soft and everything so I've been out testing with RG3. We went out a few times, and I got some stiffer suspension. I think we're just pushing a lot harder."

Asked if he could match or catch Hughes, Kiedrowski answered, "I think he was faster than me on the moto track and then maybe some of the sections out in the off-road part I was a little bit quicker, had better lines, so I'd catch him a little bit. It kind of went back and forth."

Dietrich rode a strong and held third for most of the race on his Carter Powersports/Pro Circuit/ARC machine, just a week after his first National win (the AMA National Hare Scrambles Series opener in Arizona). With the finish line within sight, though, his bike stalled in the telephone pole section. "I don't know how or why or bad luck or what," he said. "I stalled it in the logs and kicked it, and [Garrison] and [Mike] Corder went by. It sucks, but it happens."

Montclair Yamaha/Zip-Ty Racing/Moose rider Garrison admitted, "I was hoping he was going to stall it or something, and he did. I got a gift at the end. I'm happy to take third."

Corder and his Race Tech/Dunlop/Troy Lee Designs KTM 450 XC claimed fifth while Dietrich got this bike going in time to save a fifth-place finish.

Pro Results for Taft - WORCS Round 2

1. Ryan Hughes, Suzuki RM-Z450
2. Mike Kiedrowski, Suzuki RM-Z450
3. Bobby Garrison, Yamaha YZ450F
4. Mike Corder, KTM 450 XC
5. Ricky Dietrich, Kawasaki KX450F
6. Lance Smail, Kawasaki KX450F
7. Ty Davis, Yamaha YZ450F
8. Destry Abbott, Kawasaki KX450F
9. Glenn Kearney, Suzuki RM250
10. Russell Pearson, Yamaha YZ450F
11. Bobby Bonds, KTM 300 XC
12. David Pearson, KTM 525 XC
13. Robby Bell, Honda CRF450R
14. Matt Karlsen, Kawasaki KX450F
15. Dennis Stapleton, Kawasaki KX450F
16. Eric Rhoten, Honda CRF450R
17. Beau Baron, Kawasaki KX450F
18. Matt Oppen, Yamaha YZ450F
19. Kellon Walch, KTM 450 SX
20. John Beal, KTM 250 SX