Flying high

Whether he is behind the wheel of a hobby stock car or gripping the handle bars of his motorcycle, one thing is for sure: Tanner Young can race.

The sophomore at Green Ridge High School is used to turning heads in his sporty “OK” hobby stock car at LA Raceway.

On Aug. 2 and 3, Young starred in the Open class of the 2008 ATV Amateur MX Championship at Huntsville near Moberly.

With more than 200 entries from nine states, the two-day race featured plenty of excitement and an entire team effort.

Young qualified for the Open C class on March 9 at Moberly and the Production C class on April 6 at Mexico, Mo.

Young didn’t get off to a good start Aug. 2.

As 15 quads roared into the first narrow turn, Young was bumped from behind, setting off a chain-reaction accident, according to his father, Danny  Young.

Tanner Young was thrown from his ATV and when the dust cleared, he walked away with a major road rash and several cuts and scrapes, his father said.

His ATV wasn’t so lucky. The shell had to be towed to the pits.

Once in the pits, Young’s crew  went to work.

Bryan Arnold, Stewart Dennis, Ron Bailey, Barry Smith and Danny Young repaired the machine just in time for Young to race in the Open class.

With a repaired machine, Young finished second in the race, putting him in the hunt for the championship on the second day.

On Aug. 3, Young darted out to the lead and blew away the competition in both of his races, making him the overall champion in the open division.

Because of the accident from the first day and the point accumulation system, Young finished 10th overall in the Production C class.