Woodcliff Lake, NJ ”“ Husqvarna Team Manager and five-time GNCC Champion Scott Summers posted his fourth straight win in a row on a Husqvarna TXC 510 in the Vet A (30+) Class in the sixth  round of the 2008 Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Racing Series held in Millfield, Ohio, May 10-11.  Veteran racegoers report that Sunday Creek Raceway is either bone-dry and dusty or covered in sticky Ohio mud.  The event proved to be a “mudfest,” with rain beginning in the early morning and continuing throughout the day.  Visibility was poor, and bikes caked with mud handled like cement mixers. 

Despite the challenges presented by the weather and track conditions, Team Husqvarna had a respectable finish in its first muddy contest to date. Glen Kearney finished 12^th overall and Gordon Crockard finishing fourteenth overall in the XC1 Pro Class on Husqvarna TXC 450 machines.  Of the 186 riders entered in the premier event, only six completed six laps and only 20 completed five laps.  Summers was the only rider in the Vet A Class to complete 5 laps.  

“We were pleased with our results considering the extreme conditions,” commented Dirk Biehler, President of Husqvarna Motorcycles NA, LLC.  “We learned some things that will benefit us the next time we compete knee-deep in mud.  Fortunately, we have three weeks to get the bikes clean again before the next round,” he quipped. 

Team Husqvarna will travel to Sparta, Kentucky, May 31-June 1, for the seventh round of the GNCC Racing Series ”“ Weekend Warrior Spartan ”“ at the Lawrence Family Ranch. 

Husqvarna Motorcycles NA, LLC -- part of BMW (US) Holding Corp. ”“ announced a return to off-road racing competition earlier this year, after reaching an agreement with Scott Summers, Inc. to provide a two-man professional race team to compete in the GNCC Racing Series.  The riders pilot 2008 Husqvarna TXC 450 off-road models in the GNCC’s XC1 class. 

Crockard, of Petersburg, KY, is enjoys doing battle against the best GNCC riders in the world.  The 29-year-old former World Motocross Champion contender participated with Jean-Francois Goblet and Anders Erickson in an Öhlins suspension test in southern Spain, prior to arriving in America for the start of his debut season in the GNCC series, which attracts riders from the United States, Europe, Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

Kearney, of Antioch, CA, rose to prominence as an off-road racer in Australia, riding for the factory Yamaha team and earning top spots on the WR250F in several series.  In the U.S., the 26-year-old Australian Enduro Champion, has proven to be one of the hardest working riders in the GNCC series, adhering to a grueling training program and possessing considerable heart and determination on the track.  

Scott Summers, one of the most celebrated off-road racers of our time, is partnering with Husqvarna after racing very successfully for American Honda for nearly two decades. 

During his time with Honda, he earned nearly 100 overall national off-road event wins as well as 9 AMA Championships (five in the brutally competitive GNCC series and four in the far-reaching National Hare Scrambles Series.  During his career, Summers did much more than win races and titles.  He successfully transitioned from his role as a professional athlete to that of a businessman and the owner of his own race team.  Since then, Summers has mentored other young up-and-coming racers, helping them understand what it takes to win at the highest level of the sport.  During the 2007 GNCC Series, the most competitive Off-Road Championship in the world, Summers Racing earned podium finishes in 25% of the championship rounds.

 Team Husqvarna sponsors include Axo, Spectro, Pirelli, Wiseco, Tireballs, Arai, Scott, EK Chain, Twin Air, UFO, Tag, Mechanix Wear, Holeshot Motorsports, Powersports Grafx, CTI, LeoVince, DP Brakes, and Cycra.

 The AMA/ATVA-sanctioned Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Series is America's premier off-road racing series and one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The riders must navigate rugged terrain such as woods, mud, dirt, rocks and jumps for nearly three hours, while racing against the best talent in the world. The 13-round race series stretches through the eastern US, starting with the season-opener in Melbourne, FL in March and concluding with the season-finale in Crawfordsville, IN in October. Upwards of 1,500 racers compete at each GNCC round and the race action draws several thousand fans each weekend as well as a loyal following on television.  

For more information about the Grand National Cross Country Series, visit http://www.gnccracing.com/.

Husqvarna Motorcycles NA, LLC