Nick Baugh looked utterly unconcerned with the past as he blasted to the 250cc Pro win at round eight of the MX West Spring Series at Fernley--the same course where he broke his back just over a year earlier.

Baugh hammered out two impressive motos on his way to the win. This included a blazing come-from-behind charge in the second moto that saw him go from last to first within two laps in a field that also included a number of Vet Pros. It seemed that last year’s crash was not much of a weight on his mind.

“It went pretty good,” Baugh said of his return to Fernley. “I would’ve liked to have seen a bigger turnout (in the Pro class.) But overall, it went pretty well. You can’t ask for anything better than a 1-1.”

Baugh was the lone two-stroke pilot aboard his KX250, though it never looked as though he was at a loss for power against the 450s. Baugh said that he will now prepare for a run at the AMA nationals aboard a Works Racing and Development-backed KXF250.

Steve Hawkins (35), who took second behind Baugh in the 250cc race, claimed the 30+ Pro victory. After a relatively comfortable first-moto win, Hawkins had to fight back a second-moto challenge from Randy Maga, who closed the gap to the lead late in the race. After a tenacious fight to preserve his lead, Hawkins succeeded in taking the moto and overall win by a narrow margin over Maga.

“The second moto was really hard,” Hawkins said. “I had two motos before that one, and I’m so out of shape. It’s my second race of the season, and I really just need to get out every weekend.”

The biggest upset of the weekend occurred when 125cc Junior pilot Tyler York topped the Schoolboy class. York, who dominated both 125cc Junior motos on the day, went to the line as something of an underdog against the Intermediate-laden Schoolboy group. But after taking a very strong second in the first moto (in which he nearly ran down leader Dean Wilcox on the last lap,) his chances for the second moto looked good.

After grabbing the second-moto holeshot, York put in a mistake-free ride to inch away from his Intermediate adversaries. Wilcox (1-3) scored second on the day and Andrew Valdez (3-2) claimed third.

“The track was rough,” York said of the brutal Fernley sand circuit. “We’re still working on endurance, but it’s getting there. I got into a rhythm early on, stuck with it and found some good lines.”

York, a minicycle standout before his recent jump to big-bikes, seemed well aware that he would soon be leaving the Junior class behind.

“I’ll be bumping up soon,” York said, sounding entirely ready for the next step.

Look for coverage of this event in Cycle News in a few weeks.

Results
50 (4-6) PRVTR D-1: 1. Gage Gunzourg; 2. Christian Anderson; 3. Gaige Demars. 50 (4-6) PRVTR D-2: 1. Austin Sclegelmilch; 2. Dylan Galliett; 3. Ezra Calvillo. 50 (4-6) FCTRY: 1. Gavin Clouser; 2. Brad Maga. 50 (7+) PRVTR D-1: 1. Drake Evans; 2. Bud Heishman; 3. Gaige Bobbitt. 50 (7+) PRVTR D-2: 1. Michael Schroeder; 2. Chase David; 3. Grant Berner. 50 (7+) FCTRY: 1. Austin Rodgers; 2. Garrett Kinsler; 3. Jordan Schultz. 60 BEG D-1: 1. Clay Amezquita; 2. Hunter Ferguson; 3. Tracy Walker. 60 BEG D-2: 1. Codey Beattie; 2. Connor Kelly; 3. Eathan Reddick. 60 JR: 1. Garrett Kinsler; 2. Jordan Schultz; 3. Jonathan Mayo. 60 INT: 1. Brian Sjogren. S/60: 1. Brian Sjogren; 2. Chase Eichele; 3. Corwin McIntosh. 80 BEG: 1. Kasey Fye; 2. Jeremy Elwell; 3. Jesse Gore. 80 JR: 1. Dylan Bauer; 2. Jimmie O’Brien; 3. Jake Maga. 80 INT: 1. Wayne Appleton; 2. Zak Riley; 3. Mitch Bellamy. S/MINI: 1. Wayne Appleton; 2. Mitch Bellamy; 3. Ty Kowalski. 125 BEG: 1. Kenny Fye; 2. Daniel Pearce; 3. Austin Bartosz. 125 JR: 1. Tyler York; 2. David Keil; 3. Bryan Rodgers. 125 INT: 1. Ryan Eager; 2. Kyle Congdon; 3. Dean Wilcox. 125 PRO: 1. Justin Enos. 250 BEG: 1. Jeremy Cox; 2. Brandon Kim; 3. Kenny Fye. 250 JR: 1. Bryan Rodgers; 2. Paul Adamson; 3. Peter Stewart. 250 INT: 1. Ryan Eager; 2. Cameron Bellamy; 3. Nate Vandermade. 250 PRO: 1. Nick Baugh; 2. Steve Hawkins. SCHBY: 1. Tyler York; 2. Dean Wilcox; 3. Andrew Valdez. 25+ BEG: 1. Richard Hayes; 2. Kenneth Schmidt; 3. Daren Trapanese. 25+ JR: 1. Paris Arche; 2. Ben Smith. 30+ BEG: 1. Todd Nelson; 2. Lon Harter; 3. Richard Hayes. 30+ JR: 1. Matt Zito; 2. Sean Miller; 3. Michael Halvorsen. 30+ INT: 1. Aaron Bissell; 2. Jay O’Neal. 30+ EX: 1. Anthony Pulera; 2. Mike McMurry; 3. Jake Jacobs. 30+ PRO: 1. Steve Hawkins; 2. Kevin Truax; 3. Randy Maga. 38+ PRO: 1. Randy Maga; 2. Kevin Truax; 3. Tim Dyer. 40+ JR: 1. Lon Harter; 2. Ken Gourley; 3. Rick Rein. 40+ INT: 1. Jake Lamberth; 2. David Thomas; 3. Scott Spracklin. 40+ EX: 1. Eric Schacht; 2. Mike McMurry; 3. Jake Jacobs. WMN: 1. Normajean Jean.