Gobbler race no treat for most
Published 8:02 pm Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Halloween weekend in Reynolds Pasture was a tricky one indeed for some local Southern Enduro Riders Association competitors.
However, a few found success and had good finishes in the last enduro of the 2009 season.
The kids got things started on Saturday afternoon following a morning of rainfall and cool weather.
The Beginner Pee Wees had nine young boys lined up side-by-side to start the event. Cade Holder grabbed the holeshot and led until a mishap on the seventh lap allowed Grayson Davis to take over and go on to win the race. Holder finished second.
The Pee Wees started across the field from the BPW’s and had a little longer course than the younger class. Austin Anz came through the scoring tent first, and that’s where he stayed throughout the course of the race.
Ethan Gregg and Connor Barrett claimed third and fourth, respectively.
The Vet Kids and Intermediate Kids had 17 riders combined that rode on a 3-mile course for four laps. Neal Ousley was quick out of the gate and rode at a fast pace to claim the win in the Vet class with Landon Barrett coming in fifth.
Jackson Davis and Evan Chisolm battled for most of the day in Intermediate Kids with Chisolm finishing first followed by Davis in second, Harrison Caver in fourth and Kyler Godwin in seventh.
At the riders’ meeting on Sunday morning, Noodie Carroll of Noodie’s BBQ was awarded with a plaque honoring him with the “BEST BBQ” for the SERA and Southeastern Enduro and Trail Riders Association circuits.
Carroll’s barbecue has been available at events for these two organizations for several years, and according to a poll taken by attendees, is the best in the South.
On Sunday morning, the enduro began at 8 a.m. with 380 contenders vying for that overall position.
The trail conditions were slick and hilly, and that made for a good challenge to end the year.
Cliff Ousley, 2008 SERA Enduro Champion, needed a little help to retain his championship title for 2009. He needed anybody to win other than Steven Reed or Carsten Cagle. If either one of them won, they would win the crown.
The odds got better when Cagle was unable to finish due to mechanical problems. The others who could realistically take the overall all had some sort of problem to take them out of contention, leaving the overall to Reed with little challenge.
Thus, Ousley will finish the season second overall in enduros but still first overall in the Harescramble Series.
Only three local competitors finished the race, with Neal Ousley and Jared White finishing third and sixth, respectively, in the highly talented Junior class, and Chris Aultman finishing sixth in Open C.
Others that took the Gobbler Getter challenge but did not finish were Beau Burnett, Jacob Davis, Frank Reynolds, Dustin Stevens, Bryan Petty, Blake Terry and Burton Huff.
The last SERA event of the season is a harescramble in West Point, Tenn. on Nov. 22.