Rochester Hills, Michigan -- Extreme and aggressive racing by Andre Champoux and Jon Hughes of Team Green was almost daunted by the calculated moves of Mark and Ron St. John of Team Red and the speed and endurance of Team Blue‘s Rob Good and Ray Dybowski. But almost wasn’t good enough and Team Green won the race as the Nas-Track Madison Racing League Friday Night series continued July 18th at the Velodrome at Bloomer Park in Rochester Hills, Michigan.
Team Green’s spectacular performance in the evening’s two Madisons that put them in the winner’s circle even though they never led in points until the final tally. Before that, they battled past the evening’s early leader Madison Pursuit winners Team Blue and were most of the time behind Team Red. But points don’t tell the whole story and the victory was as much a result of Team Green’s perseverance as it was its place at the finish line.
Champoux began wearing down the field with a spectacular attack off the front in the 1 mile sprint that earned Team Green first place points, putting them in third overall. Then, in the first Madison, Hughes went to work and won. In the second Madison the Green teammates were relentless. Team Red tried to counter and in fact, had perfect timing in their exchange for the intermediate sprint. “I was set up to win,“ said Mark St. John, who dropped in with 11/2 to go as Champoux was completing his rotation. But instead of wearing down, Champoux was apparently inspired by St. John’s move onto his wheel and he turned on the afterburners and held off everyone..
As the end of the race neared, Teams Green and Red were tied, the race was far from over and Hughes and Champoux poured it on, making one attack after another. Team Red defended itself, chasing down every move and making a few attacks of its own. Team Blue, with enough points to win if it placed right in the finish, jumped into the mix. The clock wound down and the racers wound up with an attack first by Blue, then Red, then Green. With three to go, Champoux threw in Hughes and Hughes let it go, riding the race of the night and bringing 100s of spectators to their feet as the intensity on the track spilled into the crowd. By a wheel, Hughes beat Mark St. John at the line and in the points for the evening’s overall victory.
NAS-TRACK racing continues Friday, July 28th . League Championships are set for Friday August 1 and NAS-TRACK brings back a six day from August 19-24. For more information and up to the minute reports, visit www.nas-track.com or call 248-961-3705.
Nas-Track Race 4
Final Results
1st TEAM GREEN 55
Andre Champoux, Ypsilanti, MI
Jon Hughes, Rochester Hills, MI
2nd TEAM RED 53
Ron St. John, Hawaii
Mark St. John, St. Clair Shores, MI
3rd TEAM BLUE 46
Rob Good, Toronto, Canada
Ray Dybowski, Waterford, MI
4th TEAM NEON 39
Randy Aardema, Detroit, MI
Cullen Watkins, Royal Oak, MI
5th TEAM PINK 29
Pio Apostoli, Toledo, OH
Mark Freed, Mt. Pleasant, MI
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