Hagerstown

AUGUST 21ST, 1999                  
              HAYDEN WINS CAREER FIRST GRAND NATIONAL AT HAGERSTOWN
   
HAGERSTOWN, MD - Rookie Nicky Hayden of Owensboro, KY held off a mid-race
challenge of Joe Kopp, then pulled away to a convincing win in the 25-lap
Rodney Farris Memorial/Hub-City Classic AMA Grand National Motorcycle Race at
the Hagerstown Speedway Saturday night. Hayden piloted his BF/LFA/Michigan
Harley-Davidson Dealers Association/Duraliner/SuperTrapp /Sponseller/Sunoco/
Rod Lake/Dunlop/Tsubaki/MSR/Vanson/AFAM/Mikuni/Motion Pro/Works
Perf./Screamin' Eagle/ Cutting Edge Inc./Bumpus H-D/Shoei/JB Graphix/Hot
Shoes by George/Taylor White/Helix/ Dayco/Gateway Images Harley-Davidson
cycle to his first career Grand National win and pocketed $4,470 before a
capacity crowd.

    Hayden quickly jumped out in front of the field with Kopp in pursuit with
the first of three red flags waving on lap three when Daniel Butler, Chris
Carr and Mike Hacker made contact and went rolling across the track in the
first turn. Butler was taken to the Washington County Hospital with a
fractured leg and Carr and Hacker returned to the rear of the field for the
restart. Hayden took the green for the restart, but a red flag was waved
again before a lap was completed for Rich King who lost the handle in the
third turn sliding across the track.

    On the restart, Hayden set the pace with Kopp and George Roeder right
behind as Steve Morehead used the outside to move up four spots to fifth. On
the fifth lap, a couple of bikes handlebars made contact going into the third
turn with the five bikes of Morehead, Bryan Bigelow, Will Davis, Jay
Springsteen and Kevin Varnes sliding across the track up against the hay
bales along the guardrail. All riders escaped injury and returned to the rear
of the field for the restart. When the race resumed, Hayden continued to lead
the field with Kopp right behind. As the two pulled away from the field, Kopp
pulled in front down the backstretch on lap eight. The two riders raced even
for the next two laps before Hayden moved back in front by a bike length.
Kopp came right back to pull even on lap 12, but Hayden brushed off the
challenge and pulled back in front. Hayden then began to gradually pull away
from Kopp as the leader got stronger and stronger with each lap. Hayden lost
a little time on the final lap as the cycle tried to slip out from under him
in the third turn, but the leader regained control to pick up the win by 15
lengths over Kopp. Rich King came from the rear of the field to take third
from Roeder on the 23rd lap with Springsteen recovering from his lap five
fall to round out the top five. Morehead and Carr also recovered from their
lap five fall to take the next two spots with Dan Stanley, Bigelow and Terry
Poovey completing the top ten.

    Kevin Varnes, King, Kopp, and Hayden won the heats and Poovey, Hacker and
Jason Sentell won the semi's. Carr remains on top in the Grand National
points standing after 15 of 21 events. King is second and Scott Parker third.
Parker missed Saturday's race because of injury he sustained from last week's
race in the mid-west.

    Due to the time delays for the accidents in the Grand National feature,
the AMA HD Sporster Performance Series was canceled due to curfew.

    Next Friday and Saturday, August 27th & 28th, the Grand National Tractor
and Truck Pull takes over the speedway for a two-day "Power Pull" with the
top names in tractor and truck pulling squaring off on the front-stretch.
Show time each night is 8 P.M. Advanced tickets are now on sale.

RESULTS:

     Rider          Hometown        Bike
1.  Nickey Hayden       Owensboro, KY   HD
2.  Joe Kopp            Mica, MI        HD
3.  Rich King           Dysart, IA      HD
4. George Roeder II     Monroeville, OH HD
5.  Jay Springsteen     Lapeer, MI      HD
6.  Steve Morehead      Findley, OH     HD
7.  Chris Carr          Fleetwood, PA   HD
8.  Dan Stanley     Bellingham, WA  HD
9.  Bryan Bigelow       Au Gres, MI     HD
10. Terry Poovey        Euless, TX      HON
11. Glen Schnabel       West Bend, WI   WR
12. Mike Hacker     Prince George, VA   HD
13. Stephen Beattle     Ontario, Canada HD
14. Jason Sentell       Millington, MI  HD
15. Brent Armbruster        Flint, MI       HD
16. William Davis       Goldsboro, NC   HD
17. Kevin Varnes        New Holland, PA HD
18. Daniel Butler       Waterford, MI   HD

Time of Race: 01:15:23:516      Margin of Victory: 00:00:01:507