Kit Palmer | June 12, 2019
It was a wet one in Georgia, but when the trail conditions got tough at the 2019 Cherokee National Enduro in Greensboro, June 9, Steward Baylor Jr. got tougher. In the last test, Baylor buckled down, took the lead and came away with the overall victory.
Cherokee National Enduro Video Highlights
Baylor Brothers Top Cherokee National Enduro 2019
The top Pro-class riders, (left to right) Evan Smith, overall winner Steward Baylor Jr. and Grant Baylor, celebrate after the Cherokee National Enduro in Georgia. Photo: Shan Moore
Baylor, however, got a little bit of help from his brother, Grant, who actually led the race going into the final test. But Grant went down on the wet and slick trail, and that was just enough to give Steward the overall victory and pad his lead in the championship. Grant, who was pinned under his bike for a short while, managed to get back going again and salvage second overall on the day.
“After the first test, things started clicking for me,” Steward said. “The track got a little more physically demanding and really technical as the rain kept coming down, and I think that the nastier the conditions got, the better I was riding throughout the day. I made a few changes as far goggles and line selection and things started to pay off.”
It was another close battle for the final spot on the podium. Liam Draper (KTM) held a slight advantage over Cody Barnes (Beta) going into the final test, but a mental error that saw him leaving late into the test cost him the number-three postion, which ended up going to Barnes. Draper closed out the day in fourth, just ahead of Even Smith (Husqvarna), who rounded out the top five overall.
Barnes, competing in the Pro2 division, took the class win over fellow Pro2 rider Draper.
Russell Bobbitt (KTM), the closest rider to Steward Baylor in the championship, had, for him, an off day. He was 10th overall and now trails Steward Baylor by a wider 23-point margin. Smith is third in the championship, another nine points back of Bobbitt.
Barnes leads Draper by just one point in the race for the Pro2-class championship.
In the Women’s Elite class, Tayla Jones (Rockstar Energy/Husqvarna/Moose Husqvarna) took the overall win despite winning just one test. Mackenzie Tricker (Mepmx/Fly/Grizzly Peak/Traveler’s Rest Speedway/KTM) won the remaining five tests and finished second overall, 13 seconds behind Jones after she lost 50 seconds in test one when a rider fell in front of her on a bridge.
“I kind of just was at the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Tricker. “Somebody crashed on a bridge in front of me, and they fell six feet down, and their bike was blocking the bridge.”
Rachel Archer of New Zealand finished third on an Am-Pro Yamaha.
Shan Moore
2019 Kenda AMA National Enduro Championship Series, Presented by Moose Racing
Cherokee National Enduro
Greensboro, Georgia
RESULTS: June 9, 2019
OVERALL
- Steward Baylor (KTM)
- Grant Baylor (KTM)
- Cody Barnes (Bet)
- Liam Draper (KTM)
- Evan Smith (Hus)
- Cory Buttrick (Hus)
- Thorn Devlin (GG)
- Mike Witkowski (Bet)
- Ron Commo III (GG)
- Russell Bobbitt (KTM)
Click here for complete results
