Skellenger Not Slowed by Wet Track

The threat of rain and the approach of the Southern California District road-racing championships in Lancaster limited the turnout of bicycle racers at the Encino Velodrome on Saturday night.

The planned program was scrapped and a new one devised 15 minutes before race time to accommodate approximately 30 riders--about half the usual turnout.

None of that was of concern to Scott Skellenger.

A junior at Thousand Oaks High, Skellenger, who is training for the World Junior Trials in Colorado Springs next week and will also compete in the Olympic Festival on July 2, won the combined senior and junior men’s 40-lap points race with 24 points after scoring in seven of the eight sprints.

The race, normally 80 laps, was trimmed in half because of the scarcity of riders.

Points were awarded on a 5-3-2-1 basis to the first four riders after each five-lap interval, and doubled on the fourth and last sprints.

Pat Moore, 28, of Niles, Ill., led for the final 15 laps around the banked 250-meter oval and won the race by a length over Skellenger, but finished second with 20 points.

Benjamin Swan of Glendale was third with 17, followed by Aaron Frahm, 21, of North Hollywood (15) and Hengky Setiawan, 19, of the Indonesian National team (7).

“I was surprised to win,” said Skellenger who netted his first victory of the season after placing second and third in points races earlier this year.

In other races, Frahm withstood an 18-rider field and outsprinted John Walsh of Torrance and Swan on the final straightaway to win the senior men miss-and-out, a race in which the last rider to cross the finish line is called out of the race until three riders remain.

Chris Johnson of Santa Barbara held off a hard-charging Frahm to win the senior men four-lap scratch final by half a wheel while Alfi Dwiningrum, 17, of the Indonesian National Team won the three-lap women’s scratch final.

Three-lap scratch heat winners included DaDang Haris of the Indonesian National team, Johnson and Skellenger.

The district road-racing championships will be held this morning.