GNCC Racing

Obermeyer Yamaha Cherokee NEPG Race Report

Tuesday, February 19, 2013 | 11:15 AM

The 2013 NEPG series kicked off with round one in Georgia. The Cherokee National Enduro was held this past Sunday in some extremely cold conditions. The Obermeyer Yamaha/Raines Riding University/Offroadviking.com team was in attendance for the event. Brad Bakken had a stellar performance finishing 4th overall on the day while winning a section. Brad’s dedication to his off season training and bike setup was evident throughout the day! Brad hopes to carry this momentum with him as he prepares for the next round of the NEPG and the opening round of the 2013 GNCC series!

The reigning National Hare Scramble champion, Jed Haines was also in attendance for the first round. Although enduros aren’t his specialty, he decided to come out and get some seat time as he fine tunes his program for the 2013 GNCC season. Although he didn’t experience the kind of results he had hoped for, he will take what he has learned at the first round of the NEPG and use that to better his results in South Carolina for round two.

Our Women’s class rider, Rachel Gutish put in a great ride finishing third in the women’s class! Rachel has had a great start to the 2013 season with a third place finish at the opening round of the National Hare Scramble series as well. Rachel has already shown that she is a contender in her class no matter what series she may be competing in!

Wrapping up the results for the team was Zack Ponder. Although Zack normally rides in the youth class, he decided to compete in the 200 C class aboard his YZ85. Zack had a great day as he was competing for the overall C rider until he was forced off of a bridge and submerged his bike. After getting the bike out of the mud hole he was able to crank the 85 back to life and managed to finish the day in 2nd place, only 3 minutes out of 1st!

All in all it was a great weekend for the team! We will head up to South Carolina for the next round of the NEPG in less than two weeks! Thanks to all of our sponsors who make this possible!