Jimmy Jarrett got on the podium...
Jimmy Jarrett got on the podium again with his second straight third-place finish, thus stretching his points lead.
Charles Mullins saw his win streak in the Parts Unlimited Off-road Motorcycle and ATV Nationals stopped at two when his Am Pro Yamaha teammate, Barry Hawk, took round eight in Boyers, Pennsylvania, the Maxxis Penn State Cross-country, which was co-sanctioned by the American Woods Racing Championship Series. It was by no means a Hawk runaway, though, as the two traded the lead numerous times throughout the race, which ran two hours, 39 minutes and 48 seconds when Hawk took the checkered flag aboard his Factory Connection/FMF/MSR YZ250, three seconds ahead of Mullins.
"It was definitely a lot more fun today battling with Barry back and forth," Mullins said. "I'd make a mistake, he'd get around me, then he'd make a mistake so it was pretty much back and forth."
But his face barely hid his disappointment.
Hawk, on the other hand, smiled widely. In only his second start in the OMAs this year, the Pennsylvania rider topped the field again, though he admitted he got lucky this time. "I don't think I was farther back than second all day," he mused.
"I had the lead starting the last lap, then the bad creek crossing down here, I just got hung up on it and [Mullins] got through it. I thought, `Well, that's the race. I'm not going to catch up unless he gets into a couple lappers.' "
Mullins indeed did have a problem with a lapper, who fell into him. Whether or not that caused his next mishap he didn't know; at any rate, he overshot a turn about three miles from the finish--just the opening that Hawk needed to secure his second win out of two starts in the series.
Mullins regrouped to finish second, and those two were well ahead--by nearly 10 minutes--of Jimmy Jarrett. The two-time and defending series champ, however, was satisfied with the second consecutive third place on his Andrews Cycles/Maxxis/Moose RM250, as it gave him a few more series points over young rival Justin Williamson. Jarrett stretched his points lead over Williamson, 187-171, unofficially, when Williamson finished fourth. The Williamsonracing.com YZ250 rider actually started out well and held second early on the first lap, but he hit neutral instead of go while attempting to climb a particularly slick bank after the first creek crossing. That put him back in the pack and doomed him to playing catch-up for the rest of the race.
Fifth-place Brett Zofchak...
Fifth-place Brett Zofchak earned the best finish by an AWRCS regular in the co-sanctioned event.
AWRCS points leader Brett Zofchak improved on his previous OMA showing--an eighth in Ohio's round four--and earned the top finishing AWRCS rider honors at fifth overall Pro on his Team Green-supported Andrews Cycles/Pro Circuit/M2R KX250.
Top 10 Pro results
1. Barry Hawk, Yamaha YZ250
2. Charles Mullins, Yamaha YZ250
3. Jimmy Jarrett, Suzuki RM250
4. Justin Williamson, Yamaha YZ250
5. Brett Zofchak, Kawasaki KX250
6. Brian Guenther, Yamaha YZ250
7. Jason Thomas, Yamaha YZ250
8. J.T. Bennett, Yamaha YZ125
9. Alan Westerfield, Yamaha YZ250F
10. Todd Morain, KTM 250 XC
 Celebrity sighting (biting?):...  Celebrity sighting (biting?): Bored with recovering at home from his latest injuries, freestyler "Mad Mike" Jones showed up to help pit his friend, TV commentator/helmet painter Jerry Bernardo. |  From left: runner-up Charlie...  From left: runner-up Charlie Mullins, winner Barry Hawk and third-place Jimmy Jarrett. |  Everyone required help up...  Everyone required help up this slick, muddy bank after the first creek crossing, even Barry Hawk en route to his win. |
 Instead of a first turn, the...  Instead of a first turn, the start funneled riders straight into the woods, with Barry Hawk (68) taking the holeshot over Charlie Mullins (112), Jimmy Jarrett (1), Justin Williamson (hidden behind Mullins) and the rest of the pack. |  Justin Williamson checks out...  Justin Williamson checks out the unique start. He'd get a good one but lost ground when he hit neutral on one climb and fought to come back for fourth. |  After going back and forth...  After going back and forth with Hawk for the lead all day, Charlie Mullins ended up second, giving him a 1-1-2 for his last three OMAs. |