A New Face at the Races (Chelsea Taylor)

Chances are that if you’ve been at the last three rounds of the GNCC series you may have seen an unfamiliar face hanging around the starts and podiums.  That’s me, Chelsea Taylor, and I’d like to informally introduce myself as the new Media Relations Coordinator!

To let everyone know a little about myself, I’m originally from Johnson City, Tennessee right near Muddy Creek Raceway. I started racing when I was 15 and just recently received my WMX license. I grew up around street and dirt bikes, and always wanted to work in the motocross industry. To be completely honest, I still can’t believe that I have this opportunity to chase my dream.

If you see me hanging around, come say hi because I would love to meet you.  I’ve really enjoyed meeting everyone at the last three rounds, and I’m excited to continue building friendships! 

Summer Break Begins (Rodney Tomblin)

We’re now well over halfway through the 2015 season and have officially reached our summer break. We now have two months of relaxing and basking in the warm summer sun without a care in the world… NOT! This summer break will ultimately be anything but relaxing. Across the board, the championships are all reaching a fever pitch. On the bike side of things, Kailub Russell may have the chance to do a little relaxing but everyone else has a lot of pushing and hard work if they intend to rise to the occasion.

The 3rd championship is all but wrapped up for Russell. He posted his 8th win of the season and 30th career overall victory. This has inched him one step closer to acquiring top 3 status in the all-time GNCC win category. He sits only 3 wins behind Rodney Smith who achieved his status over the course of 5 championships while Russell could beat his record in as little as 3 if the rest of the season goes well.  Also impressive is the fact that if Russell is able to surpass Rodney Smith, he will also be ranked 2nd in all time bike wins behind Scott Summers, who has 46. In theory Kailub could become the all time wins record holder in bikes by the time he would win his 4th championship. That’s a lot to think about.

Thad Duvall and Ryan Sipes have each had their impressive moments this season. Each have chased and pushed to match Russell’s unbelievable speed he has acquired. They, along with others, have led races on different occasions and have even looked like possible winners, only to have it taken away by Russell in the end. The great thing about this is that they each have relentlessly chased and pushed themselves to reach the higher level that Russell appears to be on at the moment. The end result is the fact that Russell is creating his own monsters which may be a thorn in his side down the road, but a feather in his cap for him at the moment as the hard work may just help elevate them along with other teammates to the possibility of the first ever ISDE win for the US Team.

As heated as the racing gets and is at the moment in the GNCC, it is as equally unifying for these team riders as they now take time out of being competitors and from beating one another to helping push each other to new limits. This very well could be the best team ever assembled to date. That is saying a lot as we have for many years sent the best we could find. However, the big difference now is the experience of most of the team.  The riders that know what to expect can help prepare and hone those that don’t which will in return mold a team that is ready to play together and ready to take on the world. 

First Championship of the Season Is Wrapped-Up (Jared Bolton)

With her 8^th win of the season coming at Snowshoe, Kacy Martinez was able to wrap up her 2^nd consecutive WXC class title. There’s no doubt that Kacy has established herself as the “lady to beat” in the WXC ranks, and while some have snuck in to snag wins of their own, it definitely doesn’t come easy for the WXC racers.

Jessica Patterson was able to come away with the win at Big Buck earlier this season, but other than that, Kacy has came away with the win at every other round. However, she doesn’t always seem to go unchallenged. Rachel Gutish only finished about 34 seconds behind Kacy on the rugged Snowshoe course, and Brooke Cosner wasn’t much further back in third. It kind of makes you wonder if the rest of the WXC competitors have began to step up even more in their bid to challenge for wins of their own.

With the championship wrapped up, it makes one wonder what Kacy has planned for the final four rounds when we return from summer break in September. Last year we saw her try her hand in the A class ranks at the final round at the Ironman. It’s likely that we could see her give it a whirl again, and it will definitely be pretty interesting to see how things pan out.

Maria Forsberg proved before that a WXC rider can cut it in the A ranks as she was able to finish inside the top 5 of the 4-Stroke A Lites class. Kacy seemed to struggle in the A class at last year’s Ironman, but with the way she’s been riding this year, it could very well be a different story if she gives it a go once again. 

Thinking Time (Rodney Tomblin)

The battle for the ATV championship is currently leaving pressure for a few and some excitement for others. Adam McGill, Walker Fowler and Chris Borich are all in a “backs against the wall” situation. Adam has controlled the points lead for the majority of the season thus far. He has kept a decent gap between himself and all competitors, including Walker Fowler. However, this past weekend’s Snowshoe GNCC did just exactly what everyone knows it can do, as it tightened the championship point race and presented us with a possible new player with Jarrod McClure taking his first ever overall win. A 22-point lead for McGill over Fowler is now only 9 points after McGill found himself letting the lead and the win slip away this past Saturday.

McGill’s misfortune came only minutes away from the checker flag. He fell victim to the infamous “Howard’s Hole”. According to reports, McGill got stuck at the worst time possible, as the rains that had began to fall in the final moments drove the crowd from the woods and sent them headed for higher ground. Had there not been that one mud flea left, Adam may not have even finished 9th. It was about as bad of a scenario that could develop but it also has its positive side as he did finish and he did maintain the point lead.

Walker Fowler is left to wonder whether or not he will be able to finally put a win streak together and best McGill for the title. As only 9 points separate the two, this championship is obviously a long way from over. Fowler feels denied his title from last year as McGill surprised a number of people with the results he has posted and both sit poised to make history as the one who stopped Chris Borich’s reign. 

Unfortunately for Chris Borich, it looks as if title number 7 could possibly be out of reach for this season. The late off-season changes seem to be proving more of a challenge than expected. Chris has been showing steady improvement with machine reliability but luck appears to be as much of an opponent as the competition. Regardless, Chris is now 74 points out of first, all the way back in fifth. Wait a minute! Chris’s next win will be number 74, so who is to say that bad luck may not turn around on this number and let Chris somehow find his way back into the hunt for this one. If you think about it, Unadilla is another race that can throw some curve balls and if a McGill and Fowler just happen to strike out there, then all of a sudden momentum changes and the final three rounds could be very interesting. Don’t count out the greatest comeback in GNCC history out just yet.

There is one more thing to think about in the ATV championship. That is simply Jarrod McClure. McClure has shown speed and consistency and lived up to his nickname ”Sneaky Snake” yet again this past weekend claiming his first ever overall win. As much of a surprise as it may have been to see Jarrod emerge the leader heading to the checker flag, it also wasn’t a suprise. If you have paid any attention to the racing in the past few years then you know he is due. Recent results see him consistently on the podium staying in touch and within distance of sneaking a win in nearly all season. Jarrod is a little more than 50 points out of the point lead but again with a little luck in his favor, he too could see himself as a possible player for the title. Think about that! 

US ISDE Teams Are Training! (Jared Bolton) 

If you’ve checked out social media in the past few days, then you’ve more than likely seen some posts from a few different riders showing that the US Trophy and Junior team riders selected for this year’s ISDE have been out doing some riding. After putting together one of the USA’s best ISDE performances in 2014, the team has collectively decided to step it up even more for 2015 and have banded together to train, and ride in preparation for this year’s Six Days. Not only have they been riding, but also doing the typical bike maintenance that riders are expected to do on their own machines at the ISDE.

With this kind of effort being put forth, and one of the strongest American teams to date, the US team arguably has it’s best shot at claiming the ISDE overall win which is something that has never been done. Of course, many have questioned why the US teams have never been able to claim the win. The simple fact is that the format of the ISDE is a lot different than what we’re used to here in the USA. The special tests are typically very short, and the European riders are incredibly fast and adjust to the terrain incredibly quick.

However, the American teams have gotten better and better in the past few years and have really learned to ride the terrain the same way the Europeans do. This banding together they’ve done this week will ultimately help in their hopes to claim ISDE gold. It’s not fair fetched, but at the same time it won’t come easy because the ISDE is no easy event. Six days of racing is tough on both man and machine, and anything can happen in that period of time.

It’s also mentally tough, as not only do you have to be on top of your game as a rider, but also as a mechanic. At the end of each day, you’re allotted an amount of time to do whatever bike maintenance is needed. This is why everyone needs to be on top of their game changing their own tires because no outside help is allowed. It’s no easy task to get a tire changed in the amount of time that you’re allowed, which is why riders contesting the ISDE put in a lot of time making sure they can effectively change a tire as quick as possible.

I’m sure most everyone who reads this have changed a tire at some point so you know it’s not an easy task to do by hand (they don’t allow you to use a tire machine either). If I was fast enough to ride the Six Days, I’d probably go in with the goal of being the only guy to ever complete all six days on the same set of tires because I’d likely never get a tire changed in time.

#ThrowbackThursday (Jared Bolton)