Sewell, Kloptowsky, Lazzaretto Double at Megacross
Mendota, IL
– June 7
By Nikki
Dixon
Round four of
the Megacross Shootout Series started with dark and gloomy skies, but the rain
stayed away, with the sun even making a few appearances during the heat races. The Megacross crew ran through the race
program like clockwork, finishing the night well before 11 pm. It was another great turnout, with lots
of full classes and action-packed racing through the entire race order.
Indiana’s Travis Sewell (927) 
is fresh off the AMA Supercross Lites East
circuit, where he finished an impressive 15th overall in points,
chalking up five race finishes inside the top 15.
In his second trip to Megacross this season, Sewell had the seven lap
main events dialed, coming through the pack to win both 250A and Open A. Other double class winners were Jason
Kloptowsky, Chris Lazzaretto, and Maxx Malatia.
In 250A, two-stroke mounted
Justin Kelly led the twelve four-strokes around the first turn. Kevin Markwardt had the second spot
early, but Jonathan Six took it away on the first lap. As they completed the second lap, Kelly was still out front,
as Six and Markwardt tangled over a step-up and both went down. Sewell closed in on Kelly, followed by
Scott Zont(23), James Garrett, and heat-race winner Roy Horton. On lap three, Sewell went inside over a step-up, and stuffed
Kelly in the turn to take the lead. Sewell
sprinted to the seven lap win, while Kelly, Zont, and Garrett had a close race
for second, with Kelly getting the nod. Zont, Garrett, and Kyle White wrapped up the top five.
Heat-race winner Zont
picked up the holeshot in the Open A main event, trailed by White and Horton. Zont led the first few laps, while
White, Horton, and Sewell, and Six mixed it up for second. On lap three, Sewell passed Horton over the step-up for
third, and closed in on White. On
lap four, Sewell weaved inside over a small double into a rutted turn to pass
White for second and catch up to Zont. Sewell
then went inside in the turn before the rhythm section, and hammered down the
left side of the straightaway to pass Zont 
and secure the lead through the sweeper. Sewell pushed ahead for the win,
followed by Zont, White, and Horton who had a close race for second. Six held off Markwardt and Andrew
Tyrrell for the fifth spot.
Quad A had a big turnout with 11 riders. Heat-race winner Zachary Harris grabbed
the holeshot in the main event, followed by Charlie Snow and Jason Wehrli. Harris rode smooth on the way to
victory. Wehrli closed in on Snow
several times and was clearing the new triple as they diced for second, but
couldn’t stick a pass. Harris
carded the win, followed by Snow, Harris, Jeremy Beetz and Richard Olson.
Jason Kloptowsky (410) was
the top rider in 25+ A and 30+ A. In
the 25+ A main, Kloptowsky and Burton Lavens were side-by-side in the start,
with Lavens pulling ahead. Kloptowsky
was all over Lavens, showing a wheel in several spots on the track, as the two
raced wide-open for several laps. Lavens
still led at the white flag, but made a mistake in the small whoops section,
allowing Kloptowsky to dip inside and take the lead. A few turns later, Lavens made one last charge in a rutted
left hander, but Kloptowsky hung on for the win over Lavens in an exciting race. Keith Degrand finished third, followed
by Paul Gerke and Brian Kopp.
Kloptowsky
and Lavens had a rematch in the
30+ A class, but Kloptowsky grabbed the holeshot, and went wire-to-wire for the
win. Lavens secured a solid second,
with David Hayes, John Conley, and Steve Perkins wrapping up the top five.
In the 10-rider 35+ class,
Lavens led around the first turn, followed by Perkins and Hayes. Lavens stayed out front to the checkers,
while Hayes carded second. Perkins
held off Todd Schmollinger for third, and Keith Hicks completed the top five.
Hayes picked up the
holeshot in 40+, trailed by Larry Bank, Hicks, Ernie Stiles, and Scott Seibert. Hayes pulled ahead, while second place
Bank ran into problems on lap two, dropping outside of the top five. Hicks and Peter Witkowski moved into the
top three, and held their positions to the finish. Frank Licastro reeled in Michael Goodin
for the fourth spot, and Bank moved up to fifth by the checkered flag.
Chris Lazzaretto
dominated in the 250B and Open B classes, winning both heat races and main
events. Lazzaretto
started with a holeshot in the 15-rider 250B class, followed by Steve Stocklen
and Denny Morsch. The lone
two-stroke mounted rider Austin Brack quickly weaved through the pack and into
the second spot as they reached the rhythm section. Lazzaretto and Brack kept the first and
second spots to the finish, followed by a tight race for third. Matt Hammond was all over Gordon Kaskin
the last few laps, but Kaskin held on for the third spot. Hammond, Kyle Entwistle, Stocklen, and
Morsch wrapped up the top seven in a close race.
In Open B, Lazzaretto
led around the first turn again, followed by Kyle Lindahl and Jesse Keith. Hammond moved past Keith for third on
the opening lap. Lazzaretto pulled
away for the win, over Lindahl and Hammond.
Molteni, Morsch, Keith, and Nick Manning mixed it up for the fourth spot,
with Morsch and Manning getting the edge, after fourth-place Molteni went down
with two turns to go.
Lindahl grabbed the holeshot in the14-24 class, with Kaskin
and Stocklen in tow. Heat-race runner-up Dallas Devinney moved into the top three
behind Lindahl and Kaskin, but had bike issues, and had to push his bike off of
the track for a DNF. Lindahl
captured the win, over Kaskin, Hammond, Stocklen, and Entwistle.
Maxx
Malatia was unstoppable in Super Mini and 85 Senior, acing both the heat races
and main events. In Super Mini,
Malatia grabbed the holeshot, and ran away with the win. Rick Nichol and Cory Catalani (304) 
diced for second, with Nichol
getting the edge. Tyler Simpkins
reeled in Joey Fortune to complete the top five.
As the gate dropped
for the 14-rider 85 Senior class, Nichol had a great jump, but Malatia rocketed
to the lead around the first turn. Malatia
captured another win, and it was like a Super Mini repeat, with the same top
five results in 85 Senior.
In the 25+ B class, Jesse Keith started out front, followed by
heat-race winner Zeno Molteni and Jim Cherry.
Molteni reeled in Keith for the lead at the end of the first lap. Molteni charged ahead to the finish,
over Keith, Alan Freedrich, Cherry, and Scott Holmes.
Troy Quest led the 14-rider 30+ B class around the first turn,
followed by Keith Hicks (222) and
District 17 Enduro Director Ryan Moss. Hicks
took over the lead on the first lap, with Moss in second and Quest in third. Hicks pushed ahead to the checkers for
the win, while Moss and Scott Holmes rounded out the top three. Quest held off Adam Fusinetti, Jeffery
Evensen, and Brian Goodin in a tight race for the fourth spot.
Matt Mellott led
Tyler Knowleton, Collin Licastro, and the rest of the 125cc two-stroke class
around the first turn. Knowleton
bobbled on the first lap, dropping outside of the top five, while Mellott,
Licastro, and Spencer Neurohr ran top three.
Licastro stayed close to leader Mellott until lap four, when a mechanical
problem sent Licastro pushing his bike back to the pits. Mellott cruised to the win, and
Knowleton charged through the pack for a second place finish. Kyle Hiester, Neurohr, and Tony
Spizzirri rounded out the top five.
In 50 Senior, Jarred
Berggren had the holeshot, but Bryce Austin took over the lead on the first lap. Berggren regained the lead, and then
stayed out front to the finish, followed by Austin. Chase Wood and Shane Reilly had a close
race for third, with Wood getting the edge.
Nick Harris reeled in Austin Link to finish fifth.
Riley Gaul started out
front in the 50 Junior class, trailed by Shawn Thompson and Corey Eilers. Thompson quickly took over the lead, and
Eilers, Riley Gaul, CJ Kuhter, and Jacob Gaul diced for second. Thompson pulled away for the win, and
the second place battle was still close at the checkers, with Eilers, Kuhter,
Riley Gaul, and Jacob Gaul completing the top five.
Kaile Williams picked up
the 50cc 4-8 class holeshot, followed by Eilers and Nolan Dickinson. Eilers moved into the lead on the first
lap, and cruised to the win. Dickinson
finished second, over Williams, Alex Moss, Garrett Ward, and Travis Wilkinson.
In the Girls class, Sami
Ahr (109) led around the first
turn, chased by Haley Ahr and Kayla Miller.
Sami Ahr pulled away, while Haley Ahr and Miller battled several laps for
the second spot, until Haley Ahr landed sideways over a step-up jump and
crashed. Sami Ahr captured a big
win, with Miller, Kendall Grigoletti, Haley Ahr, and Ashley Wilkinson rounding
out the top five.
Heat-race winner
Kyler Hyde grabbed the holeshot in the 21-rider 250C main, trailed by Jody
Walker and Dalton Abbott. Walker
took over the lead on the first lap, and slowly pulled away for the win. Hyde and Abbott held onto the second and
third spots to the finish, followed by Seth Kuss and David Reiborg.
Hyde also led the
15-rider Open C class in the start, with Nathan Tornow and Kevin Westart in tow. Hyde opened up a small lead on the way
to the win, while Tornow and Westart diced for second, with Westart making a
pass stick on the final lap. Peter
Witkowski and Sam Kraus rounded out the top five.