Rieju & GasGas Legacy Riders Club Forum - F_G's son makes GoFasters.com "Race News"

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Newest GG "A" rider has a full day!

20. May. 2009 Mark Berg Read: 79 times

Derik Staley's torture made easy on Sunday

Page, Arizona -- May 17, 2009.

A torture test awaited new EC250 "Racing" owner and Phoenix native, Derik Staley on his 20th birthday. An ex-KTM owner, Derik is continuing his tour as the #1 - ranked 250 A racer in the Arizona Motorcycle Riders Association's off-road series.

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For over two-hours, the sands of Page would punish bike and body through 52 miles of a brutal course that consisted almost entirely of sugar sand pock-marked with pucker bushes, and interminable whoop sections. All this as the blazing Arizona sun sent temperatures climbing unseasonably into the mid-90s. That day many dehydrated racers and a few grenaded bikes would fail to make the checkered flag.

However, Derik and his new Gas Gas would not only finish the race and podium, he would do so with an impressive measure of sportsmanship that few competitors could muster.

A long-time KTM owner, Derik and his family took a calculated risk when purchasing his 2009 model from Tom Szenina of Gas Gas Southwest in Cherry, Arizona. But the smooth, lineaer power of the EC250, coupled with compliant, yet race-ready suspension, quick-turning geometry, and high-speed stability, all served to make the sale for him.

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The start of the Page, Arizona Hare Scramble featured a frantic 400- yard uphill dash through sand, rock formations and pucker bushes. Undeterred by this test, Derik took the hole shot and punctuated it with a "one-footer" loft over a pucker bush that got the spectators roaring with approval. He fought hard throughout the race and took second place to another very skilled rider. But that's only part of the story. During the race, Derik stopped to help other racers not just once, but twice. First, he pulled over to help an exhausted rider kick-start an overheated KTM450. And if that wasn't remarkable enough, he stopped yet again to drain his own tank of fuel to gas up the eventual 200 B winner who was stranded after gambling on pit stop strategy.

We at GoFasters wish Derik continued success in his racing, and salute his fine example of skill, endurance, and even more, his sportsmanship.