When you look at the list of title contenders in the XC1 and XC2 ranks, many of them are graduates of the GNCC youth classes. The youth classes truly are a stepping stone for a professional career. In 2012, a new name was added to the list of Youth champions as South Carolina’s Zach Jones had a stellar season and took the Youth ATV overall title. We caught up with Zach to hear about his 2012 season and more.

GNCCRacing.com: How's everything going today? Â Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ Ã‚ 
Zach Jones: It’s going great! I'm taking care of our new puppy, Max, doing homework and studying for exams.

Not bad! So how has your winter break been so far?
Going pretty slow so far, actually. I haven't done too much, just lots of holiday stuff.  I've only been riding twice since Loretta's.  The second time was this past weekend at Durhamtown in Georgia. We actually ran into Josh Merritt, Kevin Yoho, and Nate Hornacek while we were there. Dad invited them to crash at our house before they headed back north. They are real cool and I had a great time hanging out with them.

That’s cool! Sounds fun. Alright, for those who don't know you, tell us a little about yourself.
I'm 14, a freshman in high school, and I’m from North Augusta SC. Â I play football, soccer, and basketball outside of my favorite sport, which is racing of course!   

How did you get started riding and racing?
My dad took me to Durhamtown and we rented ATVs and just had a blast! I then raced motocross at the tracks there and got pretty good.  Next, I tried the Mid-East Hare Scramble Series and really liked the woods racing. So I started racing GNCC 3 years ago.

You had a pretty impressive 2012 season, tell us how that went.
The season started out a little rough.  We weren't ready and had to borrow a motor for the backup quad for Florida.  Then we got a new quad the night before Georgia and it actually took over half of the season to completely figure the bike out and get totally comfortable on it.  The quad had tons of power but we just couldn’t get it to hook up the way we wanted, it just had a little too much wheel spin in the woods.  Once we dialed it in though, we won 4 of the last 6 overalls and finished the season 12 podiums in 13 races. That's more than Borich this year! (laughs)

How did it feel to win the Youth Overall title?
It's a dream come true and I even exceeded my expectations.  Dad always told me to stay consistent and focus on finishing races.  That's what we tried to do and also tried to finish top 3 overall knowing the wins would come and pay off. In the end, they did!

And you actually have only been racing for 3 years, does that make it feel even better?
It's the icing on top of the cake. I finished 12th overall my first year, 4th overall my second year and overall champion this year.  It feels awesome!

You landed on the podium at every race except for The General. What did it take to have such a solid season?
First, my quad had to be capable of finishing each race and Dad did an awesome job making sure it did. He felt bad about Georgia and told me he would do everything he could to make sure the quad was ready for the rest of the season. He worked on that thing all the time. Also, perseverance; I never let early mistakes bring me down.  They just made me ride harder.

What is the competition in the 90 Open class like?
It's the toughest class in the youth ranks, I think. Most of the podiums were taken by someone in that class. All of those guys are capable of winning and they get a lot of seat time.

Speaking of seat time, you actually don't have many opportunities to practice, what is it like having to go race with little or no practice in between races?
Honestly, it’s pretty tough. I don't have a track in my backyard or even in my town or any nearby location.  I have a pool and trampoline and that's all that will fit back there. (laughs) We have to trailer an hour away to practice.  I think we got 8 practices in this year. When we do practice, it is usually intense because my dad rides with me and pushes me hard. We’ve actually shared some pretty decent crashes together! Also, I have to really focus at the races to ensure I make no mistakes because I can't win against these guys if I make mistakes. If I do make a mistake, I always think about what I could have done to stop that and what to do next time so it doesn't happen again.

Outside of racing, I understand you're a pretty solid student in school too.
Yeah, my parents always tell me school comes first. I have to keep grades up or no racing.  Luckily, good grades have been pretty easy for me so far. The honors classes are getting tougher though.

Is it tough trying to balance racing with school sports and school work?
It keeps the whole family busy. Mom and Dad take me and my sister everywhere.  My sister has a lot of activities too. Racing comes first in the sports world for me and the other sports are for fun and to keep me in shape.

What are you plans for 2013?
That's a tough decision because it would be really nice to defend the number 1 plate, but I have to look at the future and get prepared to ride 450s down the road. Either way I am super excited. I’m going to be a team rider for Derisi Racing, which I am super pumped about. I also have some other great sponsors stepping up to help us out next year like ATV Four Play who is developing a-arms for my new quad. GBC will be helping us with tires and we’ll also have support from Makson Construction.  Plans aren't 100% finalized yet on what class I'm riding.  If I get comfortable on my new quad I'll move up to Schoolboy, otherwise I still have my Apex 90 and Dad plans to work with Santo Derisi to get a youth program going for Derisi Racing. Dad loves building fast minis and my 90 is really ripping now. It’s actually even faster than it was last season.

What do you hope to accomplish in 2013?
If I move up to the Schoolboy class, I hope to get comfortable on a bigger quad and a longer race. I also hope to win the class championship.

How about in the future? What do you hope to accomplish down the road?
I hope to just keep moving up and keep improving my racing program. I also hope to one day be good enough to make it in the pros.

Alright, before we wrap this up, who would you like to thank?
First and foremost, my dad for everything he does!  Also thanks to my mom and sister for their support.  Maximum RPM for working with my dad to make my quad super-fast, Fox Shox working great with Dave Carter suspension, Amsoil, Fly Racing with awesome gear, Liquid Performance, Gaerne, Dave with Racedaypix, Amy with XCountry photos, and congrats to my teammates Moliter and Walraven who also won their class championships. Thanks also to GNCC for giving me the opportunity to race.