Cole Kirkpatrick Wins Ozark 100 Miler

Cole Kirkpatrick is two for two at the Ozark 100 Miler – Missouri’s answer to extreme off-road racing. For the second year in a row, the Texas KTM rider topped a formidable lineup of Pros, including Colorado’s Ian Blythe, 17-time Missouri Hare Scrambles Champ Steve Leivan, Supercross racer Dennis Jonon and up-and-comer Kole Henslee, to grab the top prize, which this year amounted to just over $1000.

The “100 Miler”, now in its second year, is a 100 mile race (duh) that is similar in format to the Red Bull Last Man Standing race, although not nearly as radical. The Ozark 100 Miler features a three-moto format and a percentage of the riders are eliminated after the first moto. In addition, the first two motos are set on a rocky 25-mile course that is easily negotiated by a C club rider, although at a reasonably slow pace. The final moto is run after dark, and it is in this moto that things get interesting. Several “elements” are set around the course which are lighted for the spectators, and it is here that the going gets tough! It was also in the night segment that Kirkpatrick took the advantage and eventually won the race.

In the first moto (two laps of a rocky 25-mile course), Kirkpatrick took a four-minute victory over Blythe, with the 16-year-old Henslee, Aaron Shaw and Leivan rounding out the top five. In the second moto, Blythe grabbed the holeshot and rode the entire race with Kirkpatrick on his rear fender. The two KTM riders outdistanced third through fifth-place finishers Leivan, Jonon and Shaw.

Heading into the final moto - the night segment - Kirkpatrick and Blythe were tied with one moto win each (the Ozark 100 Miler uses the old three-moto motocross scoring format with one point for a moto win, two points for a second, etc. And the lowest score wins). Blythe again grabbed the holeshot but Kirkpatrick was able to sneak by on a fresh part of the trail that split in two paths. Blythe went one way with Kirkpatrick going the other and when the two trails came back into one Kirkpatrick emerged with the lead. Blythe pulled even with Kirkpatrick on the super-tough “Something Special” element, but the two riders got stuck in the same spot and Kirkpatrick was able to get going first. Kirkpatrick eventually finished the race with a five-minute lead over Blythe, with Nick Plesa, Henslee and Leivan finishing third though fifth.

Overall, the order was Kirkpatrick, Blythe, Leivan, Henslee and Shaw. Look for an in-depth report in the January issue of Trials and Enduro News!

Photos: Top - Cole Kirkpatrick navigates the "VW" section during the second moto. Below- Kirkpartick (right) and Ian Blythe side be side in "Something Special".

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