Paul Whibley finally and convincingly won the Moose Run, giving him a perfect season in the OMA Nationals as he easily defended his series championship.

The third time, as they say, is the charm, and it certainly seemed to be true at the Moose Run, presented by Moose Racing, in Fenton, Illinois. Paul Whibley hadn’t won the race in two previous attempts.

This time, of course, he came into the 10th and final round of the 2009 Parts Unlimited Off-road Motorcycle and ATV Nationals riding a tidal wave of momentum, as he’d won all nine rounds leading up to it, making him the prohibitive favorite.

But the Moose Run has a way of throwing curves—as Whibley discovered all too well last year when he led until the final mile or two and his engine went south enough to allow teammate Jimmy Jarrett past, though Whibley still earned the championship for the first time, stopping Jarrett’s run at four in a row.

The JG Off-road/GEICO Powersports/Monster Energy Kawasaki team swept the top three in points in its first season of OMA racing led by Paul Whibley over runner-up Scott Watkins (who was fourth on the day) and third-place Jimmy Jarrett.

This time, however, fate proved kinder to the New Zealand native, the most dominating racer in American woods racing this year. He got a great start, lost the trail for a moment (with the rest of his fellow Pros following him astray, then stopping and following him as he found the correct path like they were on some Sunday trail ride), but once on the right trail, Whibley would not be denied.

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Two weeks after getting a gold medal at the ISDE in Portugal, Nick Fahringer was back and raring to go racing at the Moose Run and finished on the podium for the second time this season, giving him fourth in final points, unofficially.

“I didn’t think [I’d be so dominant this year],” he claimed. “There’s plenty of fast guys racing the series—Jimmy, Jason Thomas, Scotty Watkins [to name a few]—and there’s so many things that can go wrong at these races. There’s sticks and logs and all sorts of stuff out there. To win all 10 this season is pretty cool. So much can go wrong, but everything’s gone right.”

Behind him, Jarrett recovered from a sluggish start and quickly latched onto Whibley’s fender, but he couldn’t stay with his JG Off-road/GEICO Powersports/Monster Energy Kawasaki teammate when he decided to make a break in the last half of the first 35-mile lap. For the second straight round, Jarrett would have to settle for runner-up, giving him third in final series points, unofficially.

Husaberg’s Nick Fahringer put in two solid laps to claim third for the day—his second podium finish this season—which vaulted him past privateer Adam Bonneur for fourth in points, unofficially. (Local favorite Bonneur ran as high as second in the early going, but he settled for seventh after his bike lost the motor.)

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Jimmy Jarrett won the Moose Run last year and after finishing second this year, he'll have to wait for 2010 to see if he can return to the top of the podium.

Scott Watkins borrowed a KX450F from teammate Jarrett instead of relying on his usual 250F and finished a strong fourth. He’d wrapped up second in points earlier in the season and, with Jarrett’s finish, gave the JG Off-road/GEICO Powersports/Monster Energy Kawasaki trio a 1-2-3 sweep in points, unofficially.

So how will Whibley celebrate his perfect season, which comes a week after clinching the GNCC title and is his second straight OMA championship? By heading home to New Zealand with his wife for a couple months to unwind—and plan for an encore performance.

Results
1. Paul Whibley (Kawasaki KX450F)

2. Jimmy Jarrett (Kawasaki KX450F)

3. Nick Fahringer (Husaberg FX450)

4. Scott Watkins (Kawasaki KX450F)

5. Jason Thomas (Yamaha YZ250F)

6. Jeff Melik (Yamaha YZ450F)

7. Adam Bonneur (Yamaha YZ450F)

8. Shane Klimek (Suzuki RM250)

9. Jeremy Smith (Yamaha YZ450F)