Can-Am DS 450 ATV racer Joel Hetrick finished third at the 2014 Mtn. Dew ATV Motocross National Championship opener in Washington, Ga. Three other Can-Am racers also placed inside the top nine, earning fourth, sixth and ninth against a full gate of Pros at Aonia Pass Motocross Park. Brother Hunter and Cody Miller each won one Pro class event at the second round of the Texas Off-Road Nationals.
“Joel Hetrick put in a great race aboard his JB Racing / Can-Am DS 450, leading much of the first moto and earning a solid 2-3 finish for third overall,” said Jeff Leclerc, Racing Project Leader, Can-Am. “It’s a nice start to the season to have both Joel and Josh Creamer battle for the podium and we see this as a momentum builder for round two.”
ATV MX 1
The opening round of the 2014 ATV MX national series, which offers classes for Pro and Pro-Am racers as well as numerous youth and amateur classes, featured good weather and a full gate Pro racers. Four Can-Am ATV racers competed against 16 other Pros at Aonia Pass MX. JB Racing / DWT / Mtn. Dew Live Wire / Can-Am Pro Joel Hetrick put his DS 450 ATV in good position with a great start in moto one.
He took the lead on lap one and held it, in part due to recording the fastest lap of moto two, for the first nine laps. After dropping to second on the 10th lap, Hetrick maintained his pace to earn second overall. He paired the moto-one finish with a solid, third-place ride in the second moto to notch a podium finish at the opener.
“My Can-Am was working awesome and I am glad to be back on it this year. The motor is what got me awesome starts this weekend,” said Hetrick.
Fellow Can-Am DS 450 Racer Josh Creamer (BCS Performance), who earned third in the class a year ago, just missed a podium finish of his own posting a 3-4 scorecard. Finishing two spots behind Creamer was the No. 728 Can-Am of Jeffrey Rastrelli, who matched a career-best overall finish in the Pro class with 7-6 finishes. BCS Performance / Can-Am racer Ronnie Higgerson, was the final Can-Am DS 450 Pro to compete and he also made it into the top 10, taking ninth.
“The second moto was crazy. It’s been a long time since we have raced that tight. At one point I was in second, and working on the lead, but then Joel caught me and I just ran out of time. It was just so intense, but it was a great race,” said Creamer.
In Pro-Am action, Can-Am racers notched three of the top 10 finishing spots out of more than 30 total racers who entered. Quebec-based Mathieu Deroy was sixth on his DS 450, while Higgerson and JB Racing / Can-Am racer William “Duck” Lloyd finished eighth and 10th, respectively. Round two of the Mtn. Dew ATV MX series is slated for the weekend of April 4-6 at Muddy Creek Raceway, in Blountville, Tenn.
TORN 2
Louis Powersports / Can-Am racers Hunter and Cody Miller followed up their successful season opener with stellar 1-2 finishes in both the UTV Expert class and ATV Pro class at round two of TORN at Endeavor Bridgeport, a large off-highway vehicle park in Bridgeport, Texas. The oldest Miller, Hunter, won the ATV Pro class on his DS 450, finishing in front of his brother and three others.
Cody also posted a victory on Sunday, taking the overall in the UTV Expert class with his Can-Am Maverick 1000R side-by-side. Hunter drove his Maverick to second, roughly four seconds back. The two racers are now tied for the points lead in both classes with eight rounds remaining on the 2014 schedule.
“Hunter and I had some exciting races taking a clean sweep of both the ATV Pro and UTV Expert classes on the rough, rocky TORN course in Bridgeport, Texas,” said Cody. “Thank you to all our sponsors.”
For more information on Can-Am racing, the entire 2014 schedule, the contingency program and all amateur racer support programs, please visit www.can-amxteam.com.
