Zip-Ty Husqvarna's Cory Graffunder put his hard-enduro skills to good use at Glen Helen, where he finished second in the Inaugural “Last Dog Standing” extreme race. Put on by the Prairie Dogs MC and inspired by “Last Man Standing,” it was the first District 37 event of its kind, and attracted plenty of big names in off-road racing.
The event started riders out on a GP-style race, which served as a qualifier for the afternoon extreme races. “I was riding the TE310 and my plan was to just take it easy and make sure I qualified. I thought it was going to be a lot slower than the 450s I was racing against, but I was impressed with how fast the 310 was – fast enough to get third and beat Kendall Norman!”
From there Graffunder lined up for the extreme event, which was a single lap around an eight-mile course through the treacherous hills of Glen Helen, as well as through a challenging EnduroCross section. Graffunder battled with Kyle Redmond for the lead early in the race, and fell back to fourth place when he had to stop to fix a loose ground wire. He was able to battle back up to second place where he finished. Later in the afternoon, riders headed out for another loop, which put riders through several additional extreme sections. Graffunder again enjoyed a strong ride and a second-place finish aboard his TE310.
Meanwhile, Zip-Ty Husqvarna race boss Ty Davis was tackling mountainous terrain at Mammoth Lakes, California. Davis took on the 40+ class during the Vet weekend at the Mammoth Mountain Motocross, and notched a second-place finish in the stacked class, which included the likes of Doug Dubach, Shawn Palmer and Jeff Ward.
In a rather last-minute race effort, Davis hadn't planned on racing the event until he was helping Zip-Ty Husqvarna racers Cory Graffunder and Bobby Bonds prepare their race bikes.
“I was like, 'Dangit, I really want to race!'” Davis said with a laugh. “I haven't raced in about a year – since I got hurt here at Mammoth last year. But I decided to enter the 40+ class. I had a great time and the bike ran awesome. I've actually never had suspension working this good up here. It was amazing how well the CTS (Coaxial Traction System) on my TC449 worked on the bumps. Other guys were bouncing all over the place and my bike sliced through the chop like butter.”
The Vet weekend was merely a warm-up for Davis and the Zip-Ty Husqvarna Racing team. They will remain in Mammoth for the duration of the event, and continue racing through the Pro events next weekend.
“This is what it's all about,” said Husqvarna's National Marketing Manager Corey Eastman. “Whether it's a national series or a one-off event, we're all about being at the races and having fun. It's great to see Husqvarnas on the podium, and we're looking forward to seeing even more next weekend!”
[Press Release and Photo Courtesy of Husqvarna]
