The much anticipated WERA National and 4-Hour Endurance came to Summit Point, and it earned the fanfare. On Saturday, the Endurance race began and ended right on time, and in between there were no stoppages, no red flags, just four solid hours of racing. SBR/Semoff Brothers Racing and Arclight Suzuki were the early favorites, and within in a few laps had begun passing backmarkers while riding consistent times in the 1:19s. Unfortunately for Arclight, the team later crashed and lost several critical laps. At the end, it was a cinderella ending with local teams SBR first and Army of Darkness third overall, with Tapeworks Racing rounding out the top three in second place.
One incident almost caused the race to be stopped, and it happened away from the track. A spectator fell off of his bicycle and suffered a severe head wound. With only one ambulance left at the track, the event was in jeopardy of being stopped for lack of ambulances! Fortunately, another ambulance was called to transport him while the on-site crew tended the injured spectator so the event could continue.
On Sunday, the action only intensified, starting out with the 1100 Superstock Race. Mark McDaniel jumped out into the lead of the 12-lap race with the rest of the pack close on his heels. Greg Leffler and Josh Hayes fought for second place while McDaniel proceeded to pull away and set a track record of 1:17.05, besting the old mark by a tenth of a second. But it wouldn't last long. After Leffler pulled off with a mechanical problem, Tim Bemisderfer fought his way up to second place, and in doing so, set a new track record of 1:16.87. However, McDaniel's early lead held up to take the win. Later during the Michelin 750 Superstock event, Tim moved the record even lower, with an incredible 1:16.84 to take the win. Bemisderfer becomes the first and racer at Summit Point to ever go below a 1:17.
The 600 Superstock event on Sunday was another close race, with local David Rose battling for first place with Josh Hayes. After retaking the lead, Rose posted an amazing 1:17.5 for a new middleweight track record on his Suzuki GSXR600. Rose put some distance between himself and Hayes when they came upon backmarkers with only 2 laps to go. It was more than enough for Rose to clinch the victory.
More local favorites stepped atop the podium during the 125GP event, as Mike Himmelsbach, from Quakerstown, PA, and Chris Pyles of Bethesda, MD, bested the field for a 1-2 finish. Himmelsbach turned times in the low 1:22s and even some 1:21s to take the win. Not surprisingly, the teammates are also 1-2 in the national standings.
Action photography courtesy of Thanks for the great shots!
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Semoff Brothers Racing (22), with rider Glenn Szarek aboard, leads the pack into Turn One at Summit Point to start the WERA 4-Hour Endurance. Close behind is Tapeworks Racing (4), and Arclight Suzuki (2). |
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Moments after the above photo was taken, Bryan Bemisderfer ran into Turn 1 too hot and lost the front end. After the cornerworker helped him restart his bike, Bemisderfer re-entered the race but later pulled out of the event. |
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Part of the fascination with endurance racing is the pit stop. Teams are required to make at least 1 rider change during the event, and no team could go through 4 hours of continuous racing without refueling. In this 3-photo sequence, Team Chicago is shown entering the pit lane, then adding fuel to their Yamaha 600. In the final photo, Team Clinton Cycles power wheelies out of pit lane after making a rider change and adding fuel. The locals on Team Clinton Cycles did an outstanding job, finishing 6th overall and 3rd in Middleweight Superbike. |
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Tapeworks Racing (2) sets up an outside pass on Team Chicago (45) in Turn 5 during the 4-Hour Endurance. Note the helmet cam on the Team Chicago rider's helmet. Tapeworks went on to take 2nd place overall and 1st in Heavyweight Superbike. |
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Tim Bemisderfer celebrates his podium finish in the Michelin 750 Superstock race and his record setting lap time. Tim later took a victory lap to cap off his new track record, and thrilled the crowds with victory burn-outs. |
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David Rose (180) draws a shocked expression from Christian LeClair (66) as he blows by him while setting a the new middleweight lap record. Obviously nothing was going to stop Rose as he set an awesome 1:17.53, even while riding a supersport GSX-R600!! Josh Hayes, behind LeClair, watches the drama unfold as he prepared to pass LeClair himself and try to keep up with Rose. Rose gained ground after this daring pass to secure the win. |
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Tim Bemisderfer (511), leads the pack through the Carousel during the Michelin 750 Superstock race on Sunday afternoon. Mark C. Junge (57) and Mark McDaniel (36) follow Bemisderfer as he sets the new Summit Point Raceway lap record on this lap with a blistering 1:16.84 aboard his Suzuki GSX-R750. |