Welcome to Quick Fill.

This week comes to you from”†yet again”†middle Tennessee as we bid farewell to the two-wheeled dirtbikes and say hello to the ATV Motocross racers for the final round of the AMA ATV Motocross National Championship Series at Loretta Lynn’s. Today marks my second full week here at the ranch, which is actually nothing compared to how long some of the others have been down here. Luckily, my absolute favorite café is still kicking it here in Waverly and I have become what you could call a regular around here. You can’t beat great coffee, great food, wifi and a pretty rad atmosphere.

We’re a little over a month away from Unadilla and it seems like everyone is getting re-focused in the racing department. Although I’m not really sure there was ever a break involved. There was a whole lot of talk on twitter this week about last weekend’s CRA “triathlon” , which consisted of MX, flat track and hare scramble competition. It sounds like Jimmy Jarrett came out on top in the MX division, followed by Jason Thomas, Steward Baylor and Grant Baylor. Jarrett then took the flat track win, with S. Baylor, Thomas and G. Baylor in tow. But it was the hare scramble division that shook the world of social media when Grant ended up pulling off the win over the rest of the GNCC vets. Apparently the youngster had about a minute and a half over Thomas and Jarrett, after Stu lost his lead of about five laps when his chain broke. The part that caught my eye, naturally, was Stu’s tweet about taking away the XC2 Pro Lites age restriction so Grant could race it next year as a 15-year-old (I think). I totally get where he’s coming from, the kid is definitely fast and he proves it week after week by claiming Top Amateur but, there’s reasoning behind those rules. It’s kind of like the whole reason there’s classifications in the first place, to give riders that next level to strive for. Grant Baylor would do very well in the XC2 class but right now he’s dominating the 250A class, which seems fitting for a 14-year-old. And it’s pretty clear the Baylor family does something wild to breed racing machines down there in South Carolina because both Baylor boys are an exception to the age: body mass ratio. Anyway, the CRA also boasted a full-lineup of GNCC-ers on the ATV side as well. I guess it was all about the youngsters as Walker Fowler topped the ATV field overall, with Johnny Gallagher and Mark Notman rounding out the top three. In the hare scramble it was an all-out battle between Fowler, Notman, Super Dave Simmons, Patrick McGuire and Gallagher, although the conditions weren’t too favorable from what we hear. Fowler and Gallagher made their way out front on the final lap and finished within three seconds of each other for the lead spots. Super Dave proved that age ain’t nothing but a number, as he beat out LP and Notman for third.

We haven’t heard too much from the Borich camp this summer. It’s possible “superman” may be taking some time to do things other than ride and train all the time. I’m not for sure on that, but seeing as we haven’t heard or seen anything from him on the racetrack pretty much all summer, there are only a couple things we can deduce”†he’s enjoying some relaxation with his family and fiancé or he’s in a top secret underground training facility located somewhere in southern Florida where there’s an abundance of lemon cookies and possibly a full-blown supercross track for his RC car. Okay, probably not the latter one.

Anyway, if you’re in the area, you should head over to Loretta Lynn’s and catch the final round of the ATV Motocross. Saturday’s Pro class is sure to be an exciting match-up as the title has come down to the final two races between Chad Wienen and defending champ John Natalie. Plus there’s a full weekend of amateur racing Saturday and Sunday. So bring the kids out it’s $20 for the weekend! I’ll pass it along to Mr. Bolt-On.

Here’s @JaredBolton:

It’s no secret that things are a little on the slow side in the GNCC world, and well, off-road in general right now. With summer break in full-force, leaving most to stick with local races and whatever else may be going on during a particular weekend. Hopefully by this point many riders have exchanged vacation for returning to training, or maybe even exchange training for a brief vacation. Regardless, we’re getting closer and closer to Unadilla, so be ready.

While the big buzz in the moto world as a whole has been everything that happened at the Loretta Lynn’s Amateur National Championship last week, there was also a round of National Enduro racing that went into the history books before racing at Loretta’s ever began. Thad Duvall had a good showing early and actually even won the first section. Not only that, but he did it on a 2005 CR250 2-stroke. Thad won a section on a 7-year-old bike that Honda no longer makes! That is impressive.

In the end of it all though, it would be Steward Baylor taking the race win and putting him even further ahead in the National Enduro point standings. As I’ve mentioned before, nobody has ever won a GNCC and National Enduro pro class title in the same season, and Steward has the chance to do that if he can claim the XC2 title as well. However, he’s had some challengers in the past few rounds with Andrew Delong and Jason Thomas putting in some very strong showings.
You can’t count Steward out yet though because with the time off, he’s obviously let that wrist injury heal a bit and that’s evident by his most recent National Enduro win. Can Steward carry that momentum in to Unadilla in September? He very well could. As we all should know, confidence can be another big factor in racing, and if he can keep the confidence going, we very well could see Steward return to his winning ways on the XC2 front.

Other than that, there really isn’t a ton of racing related info to touch on. That’s a sad fact about the summer break is that things mellow out and there just isn’t much to discuss until we get a little closer to Unadilla when people will start making their final pushes towards the championship, and that’s when things can get interesting.

Well, I’m going to cut it short this week. I’m back at Loretta’s for the final round of ATV Motocross racing on Saturday. Things may be winding down for those guys but you GNCC’ers better not forget that Unadilla will be here before you know it, so keep fit, stay on top of your training regimen and be ready to get back to racing. Until next time, Bolt-On out!

Here's @HotRodney22:

As the Steve Miller Band says, “Time keeps on slipping into the future” .  Here we are nearing the halfway point of the 2012 GNCC Summer Break and it seems like the checkers just flew at the John Penton GNCC in Ohio.  Let alone it seems like only a few days before that we were standing in the sand of Florida watching the green flag wave to kick off the new season.
 
A look at the calendar on the wall and the odometer on the transporter reminds us all too well where we are. A look at the point standings does the same thing.  Some classes are starting to see a clear cut leader and in some instances championships sealed.

Defending Women Class Champion #411 Maria Forsberg wrapped up the 2012 title at the John Penton GNCC.  And a look at points reveals a few other amateur and youth classes have been wrapped up as far as titles go.  There is still a lot on the line for many of these riders as now it becomes a case of trying to score the best overall number for the season.

Another rider that appears to have wrapped up his championship is 65cc 7-9 rider Brody Johnson.  Brody posted this on his Facebook and looks at the points seem to agree once you factor in the allotted drops for the class championship.  Brody also has new fan page and you can check that out and like it here.
A quick scan of the results shows that 85cc 7-11 rider Parker Jones has won the first nine rounds and that could be a clear cut indication that the championship in that class belongs to him.  The 65cc 10-11 Class point leader Jesse Ansely has won 7 out of the first nine rounds and finished 2nd in the two he didn’t win.  So I would have to think that the
Championship there is also pretty much a done deal.
 
There are more classes that appear to be near sealed, but many are way too close to call.  It seems 2012 has once again brought out the best in everyone.  There several battles going on for not only the championship but also for about any spot in the top 10 in most classes seem to be tight at this point.

A few weeks ago I mentioned I was headed to a local county fair for an endurocross style race.  I must say it was a great time.  The local Appalachian Dirt Riders Motorcycle Club put on a class show to say the least.  There were youth, amateur and of course pro.  The purse was $2,000.00 which brought out some unexpected names for a shot at the bucks.
 
Along with several top local riders including Carey Paul Eberts and more, National Enduro Champion Russell Bobbitt, Husaberg’s Nick Fahringer, GNCC XC1 Pro #984 Chris Bach, GNCC XC2 Po Lites #7 Jason Thomas and even Vet A contender “Shotgun” Shawn Remington were in attendance to a number of folks surprise.  Even local National AX star Nathan Skaggs rode the race on a 1999 RM 250.  I asked him why and he said his sponsor Dallas Avery at Spinechillers Racing would have his head if he put his bike through the rigors of this type of race.
 
Skaggs actually fared well through qualifiers and did not show signs of wavering till near the end.  It appears that huge rock gardens, logs, tight trees (posts) mulch piles, huge tire obstacles along with the motocross took its toll on him.

In the end Bobbitt controlled the main event over Fahringer who was challenging nearly the whole way until a bobble in a boulder section causing him to lose time and fall in a battle to hang on to second with Chris Bach and Jason Thomas.  Bach and Thomas battled ferociously until a couple of laps after Nicks problems Thomas found the same fate.  In the end it was Bobbitt, Fahringer and Bach for the top 3.

It appears that the “Hurricane” Eric Hoyland XC2 Pro Am ATV racer recently threw his leg over a two wheeled machine and competed in a local Virginia motocross on a YZ125. I am not sure what prompted this other than working at a bike shop and the cross training he has been doing may have given him an itch to try. I don’t know what class he raced but I hear he finished 5th out of about 17 in his class. Way to go Hurricane.

I ran across a really good ATV video from the Snowshoe GNCC. It was produced by ninenine films and shows a great perspective of the race and the entire atmosphere it brings. Check it here.

Has anyone seen Chris Bithell? The last I heard of him he was somewhere in Deep Creek running low on supplies.  It appears a few Bithell Fanatics from the Deep Creek Region may have heisted the GNCC ATV racing star and may be forcing him to have a good time.  It could be just what the program has ordered to position him for a challenge for some wins once the break is over.

Many of you may have seen the John Michael Rainey video recently released “One Last Time” .  The boys at OffRoadViking.com put together an amazing piece on a kid that is at a turning point in his life that not many people face in life.
 
The video really hit home for me knowing the dedication and drive this young man has.  Watching him grow up through the youth ranks and accomplish all he has accomplished has truly been an honor.  JMR and his family are a true example of what GNCC Racing is all about.  Good luck to John Michael and his family as they will surely impact a lot more people with their warm and friendly personalities. Don’t be strangers and farewell.
 
One last thing before we go. Keep in your thoughts and prayers the the Glenn “Jody” Pritchard family. Prayers and love to all the family during these rough times. “Fly Like An Eagle!”Â
 
That’s it for now. Till next time, God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs.