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Contact:
Matt King (414) 343-7634
matt.king@harley-davidson.com
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COOLBETH
CLAIMS FIFTH VICTORY OF AMA FLAT TRACK SEASON AND THIRD STRAIGHT AT I-96
Screamin'
Eagle Rider Mees Finishes Second
to Keep Points Close
LAKE
ODESSA, Mich. (Aug. 27, 2007) –Screamin' Eagle
Harley-Davidson AMA Flat Track rider Kenny Coolbeth earned his third
consecutive victory at I-96 Speedway Saturday. It was the fifth win this
season for the defending AMA Flat Track champion.
"I
just started the day off well," Coolbeth said. "I qualified well
and I just knew I had a good chance of winning. The track was difficult to
pass on, but it just seems to be one of the tracks that I do well at and
can adjust to quickly."
Coolbeth
still doesn't have an answer to why he has been able to claim three
consecutive wins at I-96 Speedway.
"I
really don't have a clue as to what it is about this track or why I have
done so well here," Coolbeth said. "I try to always go to every
track with a positive attitude and say that I love the track. I don't ever
want to say I hate a track. I don't think you can win on a track you
hate."
Wrecking
Crew riders Jared Mees finished in second place on his Blue Springs
Harley-Davidson while Bryan Smith (Pat Moroney's/Doc's Harley-Davidson)
and Joe Kopp (Team Latus Harley-Davidson) finished in fourth and fifth
place, respectively.
Coolbeth
has just a six-point lead over Mees even with five wins this season. Mees
not only has three wins this season, but has finished on the podium in
each of the first eight events.
"I
knew it was going to take quite a few wins to keep up with the rest of the
pack this season," Coolbeth said. "Jared and I are battling back
and forth and when he steps up, it makes me want to step up even more. We
push each other. I still never thought I would have five wins this season
and such a small lead to go with those wins."
Mees
has three second place finishes to go along with his three wins. He has
claimed third place twice. He said he was pleased with the podium finish
considering how his day at his home track started.
"I
felt like I was behind from the start of the day," said Mees, a Clio,
Mich., resident. "We started to come around on that last practice
session, but we were still a ton off of Kenny's best time. He was just
flying all day long.
"Once
the race started Kenny was pretty much gone and I just had to start
reeling him in. I was charging up to the front and you could tell Kenny
was in cruise control. Then there was a red flag and we had a restart and
a five-lap shootout for the finish. It was such a technical, one-line
track and I knew it would be difficult to pass Kenny unless he made a
mistake. He didn't but at least I finished right behind him and kept the
points close."
Smith,
a Flint, Mich., resident, moved up in the point standings from fifth to
fourth place with help from his fourth place finish.
"The
track was smooth, which I really like, but it was a tough track to
pass," Smith said. "We were pretty fast all day and I felt like
I could make a move up to the front. I was running third all day and I got
a decent restart after the red flag and thought I could pass Jared for
second. But I slipped wide on the turn and that's when Chris Carr got past
me and took third."
Carr's
third place finish on his Ford Quality Checked Harley-Davidson moved him
past Kopp in the standings by just one point. Carr is now in fifth place
while Kopp is in sixth.
"We
have four races to get our points position back," Kopp said.
"The good thing is that we're coming up on a few tracks that I really
like. This team has worked hard all year long to finish in the top five
and we're going to keep at it."
The
next AMA Flat Track event is the second of two appearances at the
Springfield (Ill.) Mile. Racing will be held on Sunday.
Lake
Odessa,
MI Screamin' Eagle Wrecking Crew Race Summary
Main
Event Finish Heat Finish Combined best time
Kenny
Coolbeth 1st 1st 1st (0:22.187)
Jared
Mees 2nd 2nd 2nd (0:22.462)
Bryan
Smith 4th 1st 4th (0:22.519)
Joe
Kopp 5th 2nd 5th (0:22.681)
AMA
Twins Top 10 Point Standings
(Following
8 of 13 events. Number of wins in parenthesis)
1.
Kenny Coolbeth, Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson (5) 164
2.
Jared Mees, Blue Springs H-D/ Screamin' Eagle H-D (3) 158
3.
Bryan Smith, Pat Moroney's/Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson 116
4.
Jake Johnson, Suzuki 110
5.
Chris Carr, Quality Pre-Owned Ford Harley-Davidson 90
6.
Joe Kopp, Team Latus/Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson 89
7.
Shaun Russell, Bartels' Harley-Davidson 86
8.
Glen Schnabel, American Suzuki 82
9.
Johnny Murphree, Coziahr Harley-Davidson 50
10.
Jethro Halbert, Harley-Davidson of Fresno 43
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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