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Contact:
Matt King (414) 343-7634
matt.king@harley-davidson.com FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE COOLBETH
WINS SECOND CONSECUTIVE AMA FLAT TRACK EVENT BY EARNING WIN IN Wrecking
Crew Rider Jared Mees Takes Second and Holds Points Lead The
rider of the factory-sponsored Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson won the
sixth round of the AMA Ford Quality Checked Flat Track series, taking the
top spot on the podium at Darke County Fairgrounds in That
makes three wins for Coolbeth this season, but his second on consecutive
weekends. Coolbeth won the season opener at One
of Coolbeth's Screamin' Eagle Wrecking Crew teammate, Jared Mees and the
Blue Springs Harley-Davidson team, has won the other three AMA Flat Track
races. Coolbeth
said he never thought he would be able to win three races – especially
so early in the season. "I
go to every race wanting to win and doing whatever I can to win," the
2006 AMA Flat Track champion said. "But the competing riders have the
same goal so it's usually a tough battle just getting on the podium. There
are a handful of racers that are capable of winning any event and I would
have never thought just two riders would have earned the first six
trophies this season. "My
team has done such a great job preparing the bike this season and that has
given me even more confidence going into each race." Mees
finished second and still has the overall points lead. He has 123 points
following three wins in six events while Coolbeth is second in points with
118. "Six
different riders had earned the wins at the first six races of last
season," Harley-Davidson Racing Manager Anne Paluso said. "So
it's amazing to see Kenny and Jared earning the trophies so far because
there are so many great riders out here. They are certainly making it fun
to watch and it's going to be a race to the finish this season." Wrecking
Crew rider Joe Kopp finished in fourth place, coming up short of
successfully defending his victories at Darke County Fairgrounds in the
previous two seasons. "I
just love this cushion half-mile track and it was great winning here two
years in a row and it would have been great to make it three," Kopp
said. "I just love the facility. It's run by a local motorcycle club
– the Treaty Motorcycle club – and they are all very nice people and
they are great to work with. You can tell they put a lot of pride into
putting on a good show. "I
would have much rather been able to win the race and take home another
Annie Oakley Shootout trophy, but on this rough and tough cushion track, I
still feel pretty good with the fourth place. It's getting harder and
harder to compete with all these young guys on the cushion tracks." Wrecking
Crew rider Bryan Smith and the Pat Moroney's Harley-Davidson team finished
in seventh place. The
next AMA Flat Track event will be held Saturday at Hagerstown (MD) Main
Event Finish Heat Finish Combined best time Kenny
Coolbeth 1st 2nd 6th (0:26.235) Jared
Mees 2nd 1st 2nd (0:25.639) Joe
Kopp 4th 2nd 8th (0:26.344) Bryan
Smith 7th 10th (1st in semi) 4th (0:25.856) AMA
Twins Top 10 Point Standings (Following
6 of 13 events. Number of wins in parenthesis) 1.
Jared Mees, 2.
Kenny Coolbeth, Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson (3) 118 3.
Jake Johnson, Suzuki 87 4.
Bryan Smith, Pat Moroney's/Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson 82 5.
Shaun Russell, Bartels' Harley-Davidson 64 6.
Glen Schnabel, American Suzuki 63 7.
Chris Carr, Quality Pre-Owned Ford Harley-Davidson 62 8.
Joe Kopp, Team Latus/Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson 62 9.
Johnny Murphree, Coziahr Harley-Davidson 50 10.
Jethro Halbert, Harley-Davidson of All
the action of this weekend's race and all AMA GNC Twins events can be seen
via web cast provided by Live I Sports (www.liveisports.com).
In
addition to the direct team sponsorship, Harley-Davidson will also provide
support through professional flat track contingency and the Rider Support
Verification Program (RSVP). Under the Screamin’ Eagle banner the
support will total more than $140,000 throughout the 2007 season. This
includes a contingency program for qualified Harley-Davidson XR750 riders
on the AMA Flat Track series. Screamin’
Eagle Performance Parts are inspired by and built in the spirit of the raw
adrenaline and power of motorcycle racing. Screamin’ Eagle Pro parts are
specifically designed for race-use applications, while Screamin’ Eagle
parts offer street-use performance options for the Harley-Davidson
motorcycle owner. Visit www.harley-davidson.com for more information. The
Screamin' Eagle Flat Track team is sponsored by Matco Tools.
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