Quick Fill #42: This Week in GNCC
Thursday, October 18, 2012 | 2:45 PM
Welcome to Quick Fill.
As you pack and up hit the road for this weekend’s penultimate round of GNCC Racing in Indiana, remember to not only grab your pink apparel and glitzy décor but also take some time to realize what it’s all about. Most of us have somehow, in some way been affected by the awful reality of cancer and it’s important that we take advantage of our fortunate ability to be around our friends, family and dirtbikes/ATVs every other weekend. It’s pretty cool that the GNCC community is able to take part in the efforts to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research, especially when we can give back to the generous Crawfordsville, Indiana community that so graciously hosts us every October.
We’re trying something new this year at Ironman, so listen up! There’s a gravel parking area just behind the shop on property and typically it’s used for staff and personal friends of the family but this year we’re going to open it up for an additional fee of $25. That seems like a pretty nominal price considering it’s a flat and substantial surface to park on, especially if you’ve got a big rig that you may not want to finagle through the crowds. If you would like to reserve a spot, please email [email protected] and I will put you on the list. Please note that there are only 40 spots available and it’s on a first come, first serve basis. An email will reserve your spot and then you will pay Keith upon entering the front gate and he will give you the pass and explain where to go.Ã Ã
Don’t forget that our friends at Motosport.com are providing a $20 Motosport.com gift card to every racer who gives GNCC their email address while registering for an event. Be sure to give your email address each weekend and you’ll continue to receive a gift card via email after each event you enter. That’s an offer you can’t pass up!
Shane Watts and the DirtWise Riding schools have just released Volume 3 & 4 of the DirtWise In-Depth Instructional DVD series. These latest two videos complete the series and are by far the best off-road Instructional DVDs produced - they are a serious "must have" performance item for the serious racer or casual trail rider.
The videos feature everything from instruction and demonstration for all situations relating to Wheelies, Logs, Rocks, and Water Crossings (Volume 3) and also for Hills, Ravines, Switchbacks, and Offcamber trails (Volume 4). It sounds like they filmed at pretty insane riding locations and there’s something to learn for every type of rider out there. Check out the trailers for these DirtWise DVDs atà www.shanewatts.com or visit YouTube: Volume #3 and Volume #4.
Miss Debbie Hawk wants to let everyone know to check the GNCC results page for the most up-to-date Unadilla scoring revisions. There have been a few more changes as we continue to work through the issues. Also, all updated plaque tags have been sent to the appropriate riders so if you receive a new tag in the mail, that just means your position did change and feel free to peel the old tag off and replace with [hopefully] an even better finish! But hey, if it ends up being a couple spots lower, there’s no law saying you HAVE to switch it unless you want to!
I’m looking forward to another great Ironman weekend. If you see the Shaver family around, be sure to thank them for all their hard work in making this GNCC such a special event. Their crew is amazing and they really go the extra mile to make sure this event stands out above all the rest. Unfortunately I won’t be racing my dirtbike this year, but good news ”â I’m going to try my hand as a UTV co-pilot on Saturday! Rich Travalena has offered up the passenger seat of his Can-Am Side-by-Side so I am going to finally see first-hand just how gnarly those races are. It’s almost as exciting as Chris Bach racing an ATV at Loretta Lynn’s next month. See you all soon!
@JaredBolton:
Well, it’s once again time to go racing, and not just anywhere, but at the Ironman. The Ironman has always stood out in my mind as one of those races that is really unique. Between the huge crowd, the huge hill climbs and just the generally awesome atmosphere to soak up, it’s darned near impossible to not enjoy the Ironman. Between championship battles, demo rides, monster truck rides, Parts Unlimited dinner, and everything else happening, there’s no doubt that it’s going to be a great weekend on and off the track.
Speaking of great weekends, Steward Baylor had a pretty good one last weekend as he put a wrap on the 2012 National Enduro title. It’s pretty impressive as he dominated that series early on just like he did in the XC2 class of the GNCC series and he even won EVERY test at the Tennessee round. Not only that, he did it at just 18 years old which is leaving many wondering how many more titles he can snag. Remember that the most dominate National Enduro champions have been Dick Burleson who won 8 straight titles from 1974-1981, Mike Lafferty who has racked up 8 titles throughout his career, Bill Baird who won 7 titles in the 60’s and Randy Hawkins, who has 6 National Enduro titles. Hoop actually broke it down earlier in the week, so head over and check it out HERE.
Now that Baylor has the National Enduro title wrapped up, it makes you wonder if he’s going to be putting forth extra effort into fighting for his second straight XC2 class title. However, as I mentioned last week, he’s now sitting 4 points out of the lead so he’s going to have to go through Jason Thomas to get that title. Of course, there’s also Andrew Delong who is only a total of 12 points out of the XC2 class lead. With 3 guys all within striking distance, these final two rounds could be even more exciting than what we’ve expected. Especially with the XC2 shakeups we saw at Unadilla and Powerline Park with guys like Morgan Moss, Nick Davis and Aaron Plessinger breaking onto the podium.
At the same time there’s still that battle for the XC1 title. I’ve talked about that for several weeks now, so let’s go down the list a little further and check in on what’s happening a little further back in the XC1 points. It’s actually kind of spread out for a few spots at Rory Mead sits a comfortable third place with a 19-point lead over Thad Duvall in fourth place. Charlie Mullins sits fifth and has yet to log a win this year due to his string of bad luck. However, we all know if there’s one guy that could pull out a win at just about any track, it’s Charlie and he very well could grab a win at one of the remaining rounds. Or if he got in between Paul Whibley and Kailub Russell, it could make the championship points battle stretch to a further gap.
Jordan Ashburn holds down sixth place in XC1 points, and the next close points battle is for seventh. Currently, Chris Bach holds a 2-point advantage over Garrett Edmisten. If there’s one guy that hasn’t visited the podium all year and is on a push to do so, it’s Bach. He’s shown that he has the potential to run with the front guys and is no stranger to the podium either. Nate Kanney and Takeshi Koikeda round out the top 10 of the XC1 class, and both of these guys present their own challenges.
For several years, no rider was more adept to the Ironman course than Nate Kanney. He won the event in 2006, missed it in 2007 as he was in Europe contesting the World Enduro Championship, then came home and won it again in 2008 and 2009. Nate missed it once again in 2010 due to an injury and had a rough go of it in 2011. Nate landed back on the podium at Unadilla, and historically has done well at both of those rounds. There’s no doubt that Nate could be a guy to once again keep an eye on because if anyone is the “Master of the Ironman”à , it’s Nate Kanney.
Well that’s going to about do it for me this week. Hope to see everyone at the Ironman. I just checked the weather a little earlier and we could definitely be in store for a beautiful weekend of racing with a high of 58 on Saturday and then it’s supposed to reach all the way to 67 on Sunday. With both of those under mostly cloudy skies, I really don’t think you could ask for a better weekend of racing. Until next time, Bolt-On out!
And here’s @HotRodney22:
I really love this time of year as much as I kind of dread it. It is almost a double edge sword cutting both ways. You feel so run down and tired and ready to hit the reset button for the next season and at the same time you don’t really want to see the times away from the track come to an end for the season.
The one true thing that kind of makes it all worth it to me is to get to use the word “penultimate”à . I would say five years ago I had no idea what that word meant but now I get to use it only once a year. If you are wondering like I did when I used to read the word, it simply means 'next to last' or the 'second last' one. To say I was disappointed at the simplicity would be right. However since then I have really enjoyed using it. SO”æ..
The “penultimate”à round of the 2012 Can Am GNCC series is upon us and as much as there is to say, there isn’t whole lot you can say about what this weekend holds but, HOLD ON! This could be a doozy. The Amsoil Ironman GNCC reaches its 18th stop at the legendary facility and what seems like would get old, only gets better each years.
In seasons past championships have been crowned here as it served as the final round of the championship for many of the 17 years prior. It still will carry a lot of weight in deciding the championships this weekend but it looks like the three remaining pro division championships will go down to the finale at Hurricane Mills for the Loretta Lynn GNCC. (Which by the way will run bikes Saturday and ATVs on Sunday)
The Women’s class champion Traci Cecco wrapped up her 9th title in Ohio at the Power Line Park GNCC and she will be presented the championship plate this weekend at the Ironman. It will be a special time, so make sure you join us at the podium on Saturday for this rather historical feat she has been able to accomplish.
As important as the racing is at the Ironman, it seems to be only a small part of what this weekend holds. As mentioned, it is a “Pink Race”à for Breast Cancer Awareness and there is a lot planned around that. As well several folks are pitching in with fundraisers themselves.
Adam McGill says to be sure to swing by his pits to sign up for the Mafia ââ¢Ã¥ Boobies Hoodie raffle to benefit Breast Cancer Research Friday evening and Saturday. Winner will be announced from the pro podium. And as always I am sure Adam will make it an interesting drawing.
Zac Zakowski will continue his Breast Cancer Awareness campaign as well. We mentioned a couple of week ago that Zakowski Motorsports was raising money for their local research organization. They had 300 shirts donated to them by a local sponsor and are selling shirts for $10.00 each with ALL PROCEEDS going to research.
This weekend will mark the end of the Glenn “Jody”à Pritchard fundraiser as well. In Ohio we had the opportunity to pay tribute to our racing brother with a memorial service prior to the start of the 10:00 race and it was nice to see his whole family there in attendance. The fundraiser will help Ellen as she begins a hard new chapter in her life. Stop by the Brian Wolfe pits on Pro Row Friday between 3 and 5 p.m. and then around 5:15 p.m. we will begin drawing for winners of the raffles. There are a number of things you could get from some great people and sponsors. And a heartfelt thanks to all participating, it is appreciated more than you will ever know. Updated prize list can be found HERE.
Dinner on Saturday night provided by our friends from Parts Unlimited and Moose Racing will be the backdrop for a night of fun and fundraising. There are several items that are up for auction with the Pink GNCC Podium Backdrop being one of the big items. It is a special backdrop for this event and will have the signature of everyone who makes their way up throughout the weekend. And all proceeds will benefit the local Faith Alliance for Breast Cancer Awareness and help in their amazing local efforts.
Be sure and bring your radios, you will not want to miss a thing this weekend as myself, Mike Brinkley and Delilah Long will try to keep you updated and posted on the weekends affairs.
Dress dry and warm and bring plenty to change into if necessary. The weather actually should be pretty good, but this is October in Indianan so who knows what could really happen. All I am saying is come prepared for about anything.
Chapel services will be held each race day morning at 8:30 a.m. at the Team Faith pits on vendor row. The services are non-denominational and you will certainly feel like you have some good things to think about to help you get the day started. If you can’t make it by at those times, feel free to stop by and meet Pastor Lemaster who is a fellow GNCC racer in the Vet B class.
That will do it for now. Ã If you can’t make it to the races be sure and check out the second weekend of live video and audio testing for future webcasts. Bear with us as we perfect the nearly impossible.
Enjoy this “Penultimate”à round of GNCC and until next time, God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs.