Wienen, Bithell finish WPSA season with wins

Chad Wienen and Chris Bithell finished off their seasons in style, winning the pro events at the Grand Championship National WPSA PowerSports ATV Tour in Boswell, Pa. in mid-September.

Wienen took the checkered flag in the SuperQuad Pro 450, but John Natalie, Jr. finished second and secured the season championship.

Natalie grabbed the lead at the beginning of the 14-lap race and appeared to be on his way to a victory. Wienen, however, got within striking distance later in the race and took over the lead on the final lap. The win was Wienen’s fifth of the season, which is the most of any rider on the WPSA Tour.

“I started pretty deep,” says Wienen. “This is why I put in all of those hours of training and it really paid off. I couldn’t thank everyone enough. We’re getting ready for next season. We’re going to win the championship in 2008.”

The season championship was the first for Natalie, who won four races and had seven podium finishes in 2007.

“We never gave up this season,” says Natalie. “We worked hard as a team. We kept plugging away at it, took the points lead a couple races ago and never looked back.”

Suzuki won its second straight manufacturers’ championship, thanks to six wins in the 10-event season. Suzuki riders finished second, third and fourth in the points standings.

In the QuadTerrain Challenge, Bithell led all 10 laps for his first win of the season. Daryl Rath and Chris Borich joined him on the podium. Fifth-place finisher Jesse West, however, did enough to clinch the season championship.

“I’m about ready to pass out,” says Bithell, who also competed the day before in a cross-country race 400 miles away. “I raced all day yesterday, and then had to go home. I was running on almost no sleep, so it feels really good to win.”

West won just a single race this season, but five podium finishes kept him on the top of the standings.“This season has been unbelievable,” says West. “I have never worked so hard for something in my life and it feels great. This is just an amazing thing to accomplish.”With eight wins in 10 races, Can-Am earned its second-straight manufacturers’ championship.