Nick’s fellow teammates and XC2 competitors Ian Blythe and Shane Hufford were unable to attend Mountain Ridge. Ian Blythe is over in Australia competing in the Australasia Rally and preparing for the famed Dakar Rally coming up in January. Shane Hufford is still recovering from a head injury and was forced to miss this round.

Andy France delivered another strong performance in Pennsylvania with a 5^th place in the highly competitive 4 Stroke A Lites division. Andy started the day in 6^th with a good jump on the green flag, but a minor crash dropped him down to 8^th. Undeterred, Andy brushed himself off and pushed back towards the front, finishing in 5^th position as the checkers flew.

The 250B class has been one to keep an eye on all season-long, as each round never fails to deliver a great battle. Championship-contender Colin Keegan got off to a good start and rounded the first turn in 5^th place. Colin made a few passes and came around in 3^rd on the first lap. On Lap 2, Mother Nature decided to do something about the dust and rain started to fall, making the once hard-packed track into a slippery one. Colin lost one position in the slimy conditions and was now in 4^th place, but he held tough to finish there at the end of the 3-hour event. Despite finishing off the podium at this round, Colin was still positive on the outcome of the day,

"I had a good start and rode well all day. It sure got slippery out there when it rained, but I was able to best my main competition out there today and that was my goal for my championship hunt."

Coleman Brinson had a mid-pack start off of the 250B line and battled his way around the opening lap to secure 9^th place by the start of Lap 2. Coming around the corner by the KR4 pits, Coleman lost the front end on the slippery surface and lost a position. Coleman rode smart for the rest of the race and kept it upright to finish 10^th.

KR4 PM Bike Results: 

• Nick Davis: XC2 Pro Lites  - 3^rd
• Colin Keegan: 250B   - 4^th 
• Andy France: 4 Stroke A Lites   - 5^th
• Coleman Brinson: 250B   - 10^th

Morning Race:

KR4's Sarah Baldwin was hungry for her first WXC win. After having it within her grasp in Unadilla only to crash on the last lap and finish 2^nd, Sarah was ready to seal the deal at Mountain Ridge! Sarah got to work immediately with a great holeshot and never looked back. Her KR4 teammate Brooke Cosner also got off the line well in 4^th place, while Karlynn Beam had a mid-pack start and was stuck in the dust in 7^th place on Lap 1.

Sarah was up front and putting time on the rest of the field as Brooke engaged in a fight for the last spot on the podium. Karlynn lost one position, but was still pushing hard in 8^th place.

On the last lap, rain started to come down and the track was getting slippery. Brooke made the move into 2^nd only to slide out and settle for 3^rd. Karlynn kept charging and made two passes to end the day in 6^th. Sarah used her head and rode smart to take her first WXC win! We are sure this is just the first of many, but that first one is always the hardest to get. Congrats Sarah!

In the 200C Schoolboy division, Conner Keegan nailed the holeshot and was riding great with teammate Brittan Laird following close behind within the top 5. At the end of Lap 1, Conner was in 2^nd place with Brittan still in 5^th. When the rain started, Conner slipped back a couple spots to 4^th position, and Brittan was not letting go of 5^th. On the 4^th lap, Conner made a mistake and crashed hard, ending his podium chances for the day. Brittan capitalized on his teammate’s misfortune to end up in 4^th place with Conner rebounding to get 5^th. 

Butch Molnar put his KR4 350 out front off of the start and never looked back. Butch was right at home in the dusty conditions and easily took the win in the Super Senior B (45+) division.

Will Sharp was back in action and had great jump off the start of the Open C College line. Everything was going great until Will got caught on one of the rocky uphills and shot his bike off into a ravine, costing him lots of time. With the help of some fans, Will got his bike out and finished the race with a smile on his face, happy to finally be healed up from his lingering thumb injury.

We were also excited to assist three new Grass Roots riders at the Mountain Ridge GNCC. Mark Proper, Tim Brendlinger, and Jeremy Scentmiklosi all chose KR4 Performance to help make their races go more smoothly in Pennsylvania.

Mark Proper made it out of the hole in the top-5 and came around on the first lap in 6^th place in the Senkor (40+) B class. On Lap 2, Mark suffered a crash on the slippery ground right in front of the KR4 pits. He got up quickly and got going again on his Husqvarna but lost a few positions and finished in 8^th place for the day in his first GNCC of the year. 

Tim Brendlinger came out for his first GNCC and was in 2^nd position in the Vet (30+) C division at the end of the first lap. On Lap 2, Tim started to have brake issues that cost him a few spots. He finished in 5^th for the day, which was still a nice finish for his first GNCC.

Fellow Grass Roots rider Jeffrey Scentmiklosi also raced his first GNCC in the Senior (40+) C class. Jeremy was solid as a rock all day long, starting in 11^th and finishing in 11^th. 

KR4 AM Bike Results:

• Sarah Baldwin: WXC   - 1^st
• Butch Molnar: Super Senior (45+) B   - 1^st
• Brooke Cosner: WXC   - 3^rd
• Brittain Laird: 200C Schoolboy (12-15)   - 4^th
• Conner Keegan: 200C Schoolboy (12-15)   - 5^th
• Tim Bredlinger: Vet (30+) C   - 5^th
• Karlynn Beam: WXC   - 6^th
• Jeffrey Scentmiklosi: Senior (40+) C   - 11^th
• Will Sharp: Open C College (14-21)   - 13^th 

Youth Race:

The youth track was a dust bowl. The 4-mile course’s high speeds and abundant rocks were going to be a challenge for all of the young competitors.

Finally healed up from her mid-season injury, Korie Steede was back to her dominating form at Mountain Ridge. She kicked butt and took names, handily winning the Girls (12-15) division and ending up a spectacular 14^th Overall, her best finish to date.