Quick Fill #5: This Week in GNCC

Welcome to Quick Fill. Slowly but surely, the 2010 racing season is getting underway.

I'm actually out on the west coast covering supercross, and rushing around to go on a desert ride in Ocotillo tomorrow with some other magazine and press types. Big thanks to Kawasaki for putting it altogether, I should have the full slate of Kawi machines (KX250F for two-wheelers, KXF450 for four-wheelers and TeryX750 for side-by-siders) to check out. I've only ridden in the desert here once, next week I'll give the report on how it compares to the East coast trails we're used to.

But that's next week. This week I turn it over to our key GNCC reporters, starting with Jason Hooper, who attended the Sumter National Enduro and provides the photos and some text this week.

The 2010 off-road racing season is finally underway! It seems like it's been forever since I had been to a race, so I was pretty pumped to head to South Carolina last weekend for the Sumter National Enduro. The six inches of snow we got here in Hickory made the drive a bit tricky, but we made it to Sumter without incident. It was pretty awesome to see the large turnout of GNCC regulars trying to get a leg up on the competition by getting in some early season racing.

Those of you who have been to a National Enduro know that it's a totally different world from a GNCC. I had never been, and was pretty well lost as soon as we pulled in the gate! Thankfully Shan Moore (you'll get to know Shan very well this coming GNCC season) was there and literally let us follow him around (in our car!) from spot to spot.

The GNCC racers did an excellent job representing themselves and our series, with Charlie Mullins dominating for the win, and Cory Buttrick leap-frogging Russell Bobbitt and Mike Lafferty in the last two special tests to grab 2nd overall. Glenn Kearney seemed to get faster as the day went on, scoring the fastest test times in the last two tests and coming in 6th overall. Stewart Baylor ended up 8th, and Jesse Robinson on his KTM 250 2-stroke rounded out the top-10. So, if you're counting, that's 5 GNCC regulars in the top-10 overall. Ryan Belue and Joe Dirt both put in solid rides themselves both finishing in the top-20. GNCC trail boss Jeff Russell even got in the mix finishing 5th in the 40+A class! Not too shabby for a guy who does most of his riding these days on a Can-Am quad!

Check out a race photo gallery here: http://www.digitaloffroad.com/2010/02/01/sumter-enduro-photo-gallery/ and a race video here: http://www.digitaloffroad.com/2010/02/02/digioffroad-video-sumter-enduro/!

I mentioned Glenn Kearney above, and I was lucky enough to run into Glenn at a practice track in NC a few days before Sumter and make a little video. Kearney seems rejuvenated and ready to put a rough 2009 season behind him and get back on the podium more often in 2010. Glenn will be riding the new fuel-inject, electric start, Husqvarna TXC 250 four stroke, and has a new mechanic-his brother Ben- - with him. There isn't a nicer guy on the GNCC tour and I really hope Glenn has a much more successful season this year. http://www.digitaloffroad.com/2010/01/29/digioffroad-video-glenn-kearney/

You've probably heard by now that Charlie Mullins is back on a Yamaha, and if you checked out the site earlier in the week you probably read the official press release as well. But, in case you haven't heard, Mullins will be riding an Obermeyer Yamaha / Am-Pro Yamaha backed YZ-450F this season. Charlie has been down in Florida since before Christmas riding on the YZ, and based off his result at the Sumter National Enduro he's adapting to the bike pretty well. There's probably no better sign of the tough economic times than the #3 rider in the series having to put together a privateer ride, but I think all of this has Charlie more motivated than ever to put in a solid season.

Now to Rachel "All that just to get an 'it's okay'" Fluharty:

Carrie Jo just came in to my office at Racer Productions, laid two ring boxes in front of me and said, "check them out," and then walked away. At first I thought I was getting some new jewelry but instead, in front of me were two awesome championship rings for Paul Whibley and Chris Borich.

Those guys get one diamond for their one championship. I asked Carrie if Bill Ballance had major bling at 9 diamonds and he does! According to Carrie, we're the only series that rewards our champs that way. We'll have a special ceremony for these guys at Round One in Florida, which is just a few weeks away.

Bill Ballance is also going to be at the Indy Trade Show on February 13th to sign autographs at our booth. If you're going to be at the trade show, contact me at RachelF@gnccracing.com and we'll see if we can fit you in for an autograph session on Saturday or Sunday.

Almost all of the contingency programs are out, and we're working fast to get them up on our website and out to you guys in press releases.

KTM has released their contingency payout for both ATVs and bikes now and the programs look great. KTM has significantly increased their amateur payout this year- in fact, it's more than double what it was last year.

Maxxis is up too with over $300,000 in cold hard cash and ITP is out too. I can't wait to see what our total amount in contingency is this year, because I'm sure it's going to be a huge number. It's great to see that even though everyone says these are tough economic times, sponsors are still offering significant $$ for our riders.

MotorcycleUSA.com is another sponsor that has definitely stepped up for the 2010 season. They started out sponsoring the $250 XC1 holeshot award last year. This year they're not only sponsoring the XC1 holeshot but also the XC2 holeshot AND in addition to their Title Sponsorship of the Snowshoe GNCC and the $50,000 purse they've also stepped up to the plate to become Title Sponsor of the Yadkinville GNCC and the Titan GNCC. We're really excited that MotorCycleUSA.com is becoming a bigger part of the GNCC family. You can check out their Web site here. http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/

Coming up: Can-Am demos are back for the 2010 season! This year we'll have Can-Am demos for 7 rounds. Demo rides will be offered at the Big Buck,  John Penton, Snowshoe, Unadilla, The Titan, Power Line Park and the Ironman events.

And now for a Public Service Announcement: If you are a Pro rider, please contact me as soon as you can to complete your rider profile for the Web site.

And finally, GNCC Online Registration will be up on Monday!

Alright, back to contingency charts, press releases and getting ready for the GNCC Summit on Tuesday.

Thanks, Rachel, The GNCC Summit is an annual meeting at the GNCC offices in which our crews get together and create a blueprint for the season. Everyone gets to work together to make sure everything works for round one. This stuff doesn't happen by accident!

Now what would an addition of Quick Fill be without the philosophical musings of our main announcer, Rodney Tomblin? Let's get deep:

I am so taken back right now. I feel at a loss for words. It is like we are in the "GET SET" part of ready, set, go! And the amazing thing is that we are only a few weeks away from kicking off what could prove to be the most epic season of battles we have ever witnessed and I personally have heard very little about what is going on. The only thing I seem to be getting in a nutshell is that everyone is testing and training. And that a lot of folks went to Sumter this past weekend, which Hoop has the scoop on. (Read above) Sounds like it may have been cold outside, but the racing is heating up as we head toward the Parts Unlimited River Ranch GNCC.

I know the economy thing is bad, but it may be good in some ways. I am sure you may be wondering what I mean by that, so let me tell you what I am getting at.

We as a racing community have enjoyed immense growth over the entire history of GNCC. It has become a place where dreams are made, broken and lived out to their fullest. I would almost have to say we have been spoiled. The youth classes have produced some of the world's top off road talent and best-known riders in off road racing. These riders have grown into a sport with plenty of opportunities thrown at them. In some cases, major sponsorships and lucrative contract deals have taken the front seat to why they all started this in the beginning: to have fun and ride their motorcycles or ATVs. They find their place on a team and instead of focusing on winning a championship, they ride. It seems they are almost complacent with their situation and all of a sudden, the focus wanes from winning races to making podiums and then maybe a top five ride. What is wrong here? Is it that we are truly spoiled and have come to expect more?  Or maybe we expect too much? At the upper levels, as this series grows, the competition is so great they begin to doubt their full abilities.

The GNCC series has grown in size, but also in popularity around the world. This popularity spun tales of lore that will live forever. Riders like Ed Lojak, Scott Summers, Scott Plessinger, Fred Andrews, Rodney Smith, Steve Hatch, Jason Raines and Barry Hawk became legends world-wide. They would hear of places like Blackwater, Hard Rock, Big Buck, Ironman and so many more. The attention began to plant seeds in the minds of youngsters all over the world.

One of the first that I know of that made a commitment to chasing the American GNCC Title was "Fast Eddy" Eddy Edmondson from England. As far as his success in achieving the title, it never came to fruition. Fast Eddy took what he learned here and actually developed a series of his own that has been kind of grooming riders in Europe to make the step to GNCC.

It wasn't until Shane Watts made his way in from Australia in the late 1990's before we began to realize there was a world threat on the horizon. Wattsy took the championship in 2000 and then more and more threats started arriving. Juha Salminen from Finland followed by David Knight from The Isle of Man and now Paul Whibley from New Zealand all followed their dream of being an American Champion.

I realize the greatness of both Juha and Knighter, but in my opinion, Paul Whibley is probably the most impressive. Whibs made it all on his own. Kind of like Fast Eddy set out to do. True grit and determination won that championship for Paul.

Now look at riders like UK-7 Jason Thomas. A rider that literally came to the U. S. through the back door just to get to come race. That's hunger. And what about GK Glen Kearney? What a commitment he has made! GK has been so close to the sweet taste of victory to have it slip away so many times. I remember when Glenn pushed himself so hard to win at Steel Creek GNCC a few years ago he was taken away in an ambulance from pure exhaustion. That's heart! And let's not forget about the new awesome Aussie Josh Strang, he proved himself early to be a hungry, dedicated and focused rider. I am sure he will be a threat for years and will probably win the championship someday.

One bright spot for the GNCC youth is that they see now what it takes to win. They are setting their goals high and feel that there is nothing that can stop them.

Now back to my point of it all. The money is not available, but the talent and opportunity is still there. On the bad side, we will lose some great riders because of finances. Lean times will also produce the best of the best. Those that really want something bad enough and are willing to make the sacrifices will come out better in the end. Those that truly want to succeed, will. Those that want too much for what they are willing to give will simply fade away.

Ultimately the bad economic times have given some folks more incentive than the big dollar contracts they used to have. They want it back!! It also inspires our youth to work even harder because opportunity is limited. With that I say good luck to all and I can't wait to see who is ready to dig deep and make something happen. Live your dream and let nothing stop you! Till next time God Bless Your Hearts and All Your Vital Organs.

That's it for Quick Fill this week. They say the riding is great in California after it rains, I guess we'll see. Sorry for making everyone jealous here, but you know, I have to do what I can for "work."

See you here next week!