Henry Wiles, "Mr Peoria" just got the better of Sammy and got on the podium in third place, with Sammy right on his ass in fourth place.
It is so good to see Sammy Halbert out there, in the mix with the leaders. He is such a super accomplished Flat Tracker, 2009 Grand National Champion ( which includes three times member of The Grand Slam Club ) World FIM Flat Track Champion 2024 and X-Games Flat Track Gold Medalist. After recovering from some devastating racing injuries ( not his fault, just wrong place, wrong time, racing fate ) he will be racing only the smaller tracks, so look for him to be a Short Track winner in '26. Here is Sammy on the Dodge Bros. Harley XR, where he proved that the bike was indeed equal to or better than the current crop of race bikes. When Sammy rode this bike, it was the most exciting thing for Flat Track fans in years. Most of Sammy's GNC wins came aboard XR-750s. This particular bike was the one Brad Baker won his Championship on and Sammy showed it could win another one. Unfortunately, the organizers banned the Harley XR-750 from future competition. One of the most enjoyable things about having the Harley back was the sound. Nothing sounds as good and it really stood out in a field of feeble sounding production based machines. I am glad I was there for many years when it was all XRs. What an aural experience it was and thanks Sammy and the Dodge Bros. for showing the world, just what was possible with the iconic H.D. XR-750.
