Weigand Clinches AMA Western Hare Scrambles National Championship

By Joe Colombero

• 

JCR Honda’s Timmy Weigand put together a season of consistent podiums along with a big victory to take the 2009 AMA Western Hare Scrambles National Championship. Weigand really put the Championship out of reach at round six with a third place finish at Glen Helen. After Glen Helen Weigand went to the ISDE with the USA Trophy Team and was busy earning a Gold Medal just before returning to the USA. However, on day 5 of the ISDE Timmy was injured and finished the Six Days with a severely lacerated finger (the bone is still exposed) on his right hand. Weigand’s doctors recommended that he not ride the AMA WHS final round in Mesquite, but Timmy still tried to ride practice on Saturday.

“Dr. Achey (Justin Soule’s father-in-law) looked it over and told me I was risking losing the finger if I just fell over and landed on it,” said Weigand. Johnny (Campbell) and I talked and he left the decision to me. With the Hare Scrambles Championship almost clinched I decided to sit out the final, and get ready for the Baja 1,000.”

After taking 3rd at the sixth round in Glen Helen, Weigand had a 25 point lead over KTM’s Brenden Ritzman. With Weigand un-able to race the final round, Ritzman would need to finish 2nd for a tie or 1st for the title. But the final AMA WHS was a combined event with the WORCS final and included riders such as Mike Brown, Ricky Dietrich, Taylor Robert, Bobby Bonds, Justin Soule, Bobby Garrison, Nick Brozovich, etc. Ritzman put on a good show and fought hard to move up front in the all-start field, and finished a respectable 8th.

Timmy’s efforts and victories throughout the season were more than enough to earn him his first major AMA National Off Road title. Weigand began the season with a 3rd place finish in the opener (which Ritzman won), and then Timmy followed that with a victory in round two and then more podiums in the following rounds. He finished the season with 121/1 win over Ritzman with 109/1 win and Kyle Summers with 92/1 win.

Weigand was awarded his National #1 WHS plate Sunday evening at the combined WORCS/WHS awards banquet and will get his official AMA #1 plate at the AMA banquet in December.

“We didn’t start out to go after this Championship at the beginning of the season, but the JCR Team stepped up and got behind me when I kept moving up in the points” said Weigand. “I’m happy to win the Hare Scrambles Championship for JCR and we’ll be back next year going after the WHS title and the WORCS Championship.”

In addition to his AMA Western Hare Scrambles National Championship, Weigand also won an ISDE Gold Medal, competed in the AMA MX Nationals and is the lead rider for the JCR Honda effort in the Baja 1,000.