Battle for the Horizon Award begins early

July 23 – The two-day AMA Amateur Road Race Grand Championships got under way Wednesday with some of the best club-level racers in the nation competing on neutral ground at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.

Not only are they racing for bragging rights concerning what part of the country produces the best road-racers, but they're also vying for the prestigious AMA Horizon Award, given to a club-level road-racer who shows the most promise for a successful professional career.

Brian Stokes of Kingston, Georgia (left), John Dugan of Washougal, Washington, and Mike Sanchez of Austin, Texas, proved early on that they are blinding fast on Mid-Ohio's technical 2.4 mile, 15-turn track, and are in the thick of the hunt for the Horizon Award.

In the premier Superstock Expert race, Dugan (right) rode his Suzuki 750 to victory ahead of Sanchez and Stokes, who were also aboard Suzuki 750s.

In the final premier race of the day, Medium-weight Superbike Expert, Sanchez (below) and Stokes battled nose-to-tail throughout the race, with Sanchez taking the win.

Also hoping to win the AMA Road Race Horizon Award is 16-year-old Nicky Cummings, who won the AMA Dirt Track Horizon Award last year. Cummings got off to a bad start, however, blowing the motor in his Honda 600 in the Superstock expert race on the third lap.

"The motor just locked up on me," a frustrated Cummings said as he sat in the pits (below).

The racers recognize how important the prestigious Horizon Award is for boosting their road-racing careers, but they also want to win the award not only because of what it say about them as racers, but as people as well.

"The past winners have been super nice people," said Stokes, 29. "And I want to help promote the sport. I want to see it explode and grow.

Stokes said he's racing in the Grand Championships not only to try to win the Horizon Award, but to "have a good time. I'm excited. Coming to a new track and meeting new people."

Stokes sport the number 34 on his racebikes. Is that in tribute to former world road-racing champ Keven Schwantz?

No, Stokes says. It's in tribute to former University of Georgia running back Herschel Walker, who wore number 34.

"He was my inspiration," Stokes says. "He worked out in his back yard pulling logs, showing a lot of determination."

So what does Stokes think of the competition?

"The people who I saw on the track were fast," he said. "It's going to be really tough (to win the Horizon)."

Before his motor blew, Cummings said he felt he had a good shot at winning the Horizon.

"The competition will be pretty stiff," said Cummings, whose racing number is 69, like Nicky -- World MotoGP Competitor Nicky Hayden.

This is the first time that John Dugan has raced at the Mid-Ohio track, and he loves it because it's a technical track with elevation changes.

To do well on Thursday, Dugan says he needs to get good starts, hang with the lead pack, and then make his move up to the front.

© 2003, American Motorcyclist Association