2011 Millville ATVMX National

By Jennifer Kenyon
Photos by Raceday Pix

Warm temperatures and sunny blue skies surrounded round 7 of the AMA ATV Motocross National Championship Series presented by DWT, as the series headed to Spring Creek MX in Millville, Minn. this weekend.  Challenging track conditions made for an exciting day of racing as the top ATV racers in the country battled for the overall win.

Chad Wienen grabbed the ATVRiders.com Fastest Qualifier Award after taking advantage of the smooth track conditions in the first qualifying session.  As the day went on, the notoriously rough Millville track chalked longer and more demanding lap times.

Joel Hetrick shot off the start to grab the SSiDecals.com Holeshot Award in moto one, barely edging out Jannsen Motorsports rider Nick DeNoble.  Wienen, the fastest qualifier of the day, got a mid-pack start, forcing him to work his way through the pack early on.  Hetrick held Natalie off for about five laps until the rookie appeared to get a little winded.  Natalie took over the lead and for the remainder of the race focused on holding his teammate Wienen off.   Wienen had Millville’s famous “whoop monster” whoop section down, gaining time each lap.

“The whoops started to get tough as the race went on but I was able to find a faster pace through them and I think I definitely gained some time through there,” said Wienen.  “I had to work my way up to John [Natalie] and a little past the halfway point I tried a couple different lines, I tried to mirror him a couple times and then tried to swing around him one lap but he was protecting his lines pretty well,” Wienen added.

Walsh Race Craft Suzuki’s Jeremy Lawson appeared to be one of the stronger riders on the rough track as he continuously charged throughout the entire moto.  Lawson got off to a rough start but quickly picked off riders, eventually making his way to the fourth place of Josh Upperman.  Lawson passed Upperman on the last lap to claim a fourth place finish in moto two.

Joel Hetrick was on fire aboard his Makson Construction Hetrick Motorsports Honda machine, grabbing the SSiDecals.com Holeshot Award once again in moto two.  Wienen immediately took over the lead on the first lap and never looked back.  Hetrick began the race strong once again, but faded back by mid-moto.  Natalie made his way around Hetrick for third just before the rookie fell victim to the “whoop monster”.  Hetrick swapped sideways through the whoop section and after taking a lap to restart his machine after crashing, Hetrick was no longer in contention for an overall.

On the last lap before the downhill drop-off, Natalie charged up the hill to the inside of Ballance Racing’s Thomas Brown, making the move for second as Brown was put to a standstill.  Lawson finished in fourth behind Brown in moto two, going 4-4 for the day to capture third overall. Brown nabbed the fourth overall and Josh Upperman rounded out the top five.   Chad Wienen took home the overall win with a 2-1, extending his point lead to ten over teammate John Natalie, who went 1-2 for second overall.

The AMA ATV Motocross Championship Series heads to Sunday Creek Raceway in Millfield, Ohio, July 2 and 3, with Pro class racing starting at 1 p.m. Saturday, supported by 37 amateur classes throughout Saturday and Sunday.  For more information, please visit www.atvmotocross.com.

AMA Pro ATV Results

1. Chad Wienen (CAN)

2. John Natalie (CAN)

3. Jeremy Lawson (SUZ)

4. Thomas Brown (YAM)

5. Josh Upperman (HON)

AMA ATV Motocross Championship Pro Point Standings

1. Chad Wienen (297) 2. John Natalie (287) 3. Josh Upperman (253) 4. Jeremy Lawson (241) 5. Chase Snapp (201) 6. Thomas Brown (192) 7. Nick DeNoble (183) 8. Joe Byrd (180) 9. Joel Hetrick (170) 10. Travis Moore (166)

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