Flores finds checkered flag again in Marpi

Manny Flores rode like the wind atop his mean machine on Sunday to sweep his heats in the Marianas Racing Association’s yearend points race at the Cowtown Raceway on a dusty day of high flying action in Marpi.

Flores pushed his Yamaha to the limit in taking the checkered flag in each of the 80-85cc heats that earned him another first place notch in his belt while Aaron Pangelinan dueled with Hanky and D.J. Camacho in successive races to take second place on the day.

Pangelinan finished third in the opening heat behind Flores and Hanky, but he was second best in the final circuit to take second overall.

Hanky was in the running for second place until he took a spill in the second heat that sent organizers and safety officials running to his aid. Camacho received assistance on the track while his competitors completed two laps, but after getting checked out, the trooper shook off the pain and strapped on his helmet to finish the race.

As a result of the spill, D.J. bagged third place to ad to his growing point total on the year.

The heart-pounding action continued into the Veteran’s class, as Steve Sablan left little doubt that he was the man amongst men by speeding to a pair of first place finishes on the day.

Sablan came out of turns on one wheel and had a bird’s eye view of the track when he soared over the table top, but he wasn’t able to see second place finisher Melvin Cepeda because he was hot on Sablan’s tail all day.

Cepeda was the runner-up in each of the heats and was never more than a minute or so behind the top dog. Kiki Ada was also in the hunt, but ended up in third place when the dust settled.

There was little time for the spectators to relax as Roman Tudela overcame a disappointing third place finish in the opening heat of the 125cc class to take first overall with a checkered flag in the second heat.

After finishing first in the opener, Weng Yap was unable to complete his push for first as he was unable to finish the second heat; leaving the door open for Tudela. Ellery Cruz was the picture of consistency with a pair of second place finishes to bag first runner-up, while Floyd Dela Cruz took third among the experts.

Glenn Pangelinan and Megan “Black Knight” Cruz finished one-two as they rounded the course on their Yamahas to represent the Novice division, and many were impressed that Cruz was able to hold her own against the big boys.

Chris Alepuyo’s ability to ride with the big boys was never in question as he swept the Big Boys ATV Class with a pair of first place finishes, while Henry Camacho Sr. finished second overall.

Camacho was frustrated by mechanical problems, but his ATV was not the only four-wheeler causing his family grief as young Britney Camacho was unable to finish her ride around the track in the second heat.

The youngster looked like a little pro as she hopped off of her mini-ATV and repeatedly tried to restart the engine. Despite receiving her dad’s on track assistance, she was eventually forced to call it quits and head to the pits.

Patty and Edwina Cepeda were Gremlin-free as they added first place points in the Pee Wee 50cc and Pee Wee 80 Modified, respectively, while Franklin Santos did the same in the 60-65cc Class.