Welcome to Quick Fill.

Eleven down, two to go. If you think that sounds like a countdown to the end of the 2013 season you’re exactly right. But not because I’m excited for the end. The GNCC season begins the first week in March and stretches all the way to the end of October, which ends up being a long span when it’s all said and done. However, when you reach the point of summer break and beyond, time seems to run backwards and these final two rounds take forever to get here. Thankfully, tomorrow is the day that we head to St. Clairsville, Ohio for the second to last (penultimate) round of the season. Thankfully again, it’s only about an hour and a half from the Racer Productions HQ here in Morgantown. For once we’re seeing nothing but blue skies and moderate temps heading into the race weekend, which means a dry Powerline Park GNCC and an all-around great weekend for the family.

Speaking of wholesome family fun, Saturday evening will host the ITP Karaoke contest on the GNCC podium from 7-10 p.m. Anyone and everyone is welcome to come on over to sing a tune and at the end, a “podium” will be chosen with first, second, third place finishers receiving a trophy and the WINNER gets to take home a set of ITP rear ATV tires. So not only will it be a fun time but hey, you might even walk away with some cool stuff.

This weekend’s ITP Powerline Park GNCC will be co-sanctioned with our friends at the New East Coast Cross Country (NECXC) so if you’re a member with those folks, don’t forget to take care of your paperwork to take advantage of dual points this weekend. If you’re not familiar with the New East Coast series, definitely check out their events HERE and try to make it to their final event of the season the weekend between Powerline Park and Ironman.

It was announced today that Chris Bach and Josh Strang will be heading to Japan next month to compete in the AAGP finale for the Japan National Cross Country Series. As part of the really cool alliance we have with the JNCC Series, each year a GNCC racer is invited to come over and compete in their season finale and this year it was Chris Bach who was chosen to go over to the AAGP finale, which will take place on November 3 at the Jigatake Ski Resort located in Omachi City, Nagano, Japan. Strang has actually been to this race two years already but he’s made such good friends in Japan that he will return for a third time this year. Bach will compete aboard a KTM 450-SXF provided by KTM Japan and Strang will actually be on a KX-250F, courtesy of RG3 Japan. I am so very excited to announce that I will also be accompanying the boys, along with Dale Cooke (CB10 mechanic) on this wonderful journey in which we’ll be staying for six days total. I am beyond excited actually, and can’t wait to experience the Japanese culture and take in everything I possibly can in a week’s time. I fully plan to blog and report on the race, as well as post photos and video of the journey. Other GNCC Racers who have gone over for the AAGP include Paul Whibley (2006), Charlie Mullins and Rodney Smith (2007), Nate Kanney and Thad DuVall (2008), Josh Strang and Kailub Russell (2009), Cory Buttrick (2010), Jesse Robinson and Jason Thomas (2011). More information about the JNCC can be found at www.jncc.jp.

In case you haven’t seen or heard, we announced the 2014 schedule DATES only this week. Our team is still working on getting the exacts worked out as far as which location is when but we did want to put out the dates as early as possible in order to give you folks adequate time in planning your schedules for work, school and other things. Here’s a link to the dates for next season and be on the lookout for locations around November.

Next month will be the GNCC Banquet, which is set to take place once again at the Waterfront Place Hotel on November 22 and 23 here in Morgantown. We haven’t opened the online registration just yet but that information should be out shortly. You can get a jumpstart by booking your room now at www.waterfrontplacehotel.com.

That’s going to be it for me. Looking forward to a great weekend in Ohio! And hopefully you all enjoy these priceless #throwbackthursday #tbt photos from the 2012 ITP Powerline Park GNCC.

Here’s @JaredBolton:

So picking up where I left off last week with the ISDE info overload, obviously the race finished itself out over Thursday through Saturday of last week. If you haven’t heard already, Team USA came away with a 2^nd place in the World Trophy, which was the first time USA has podiumed the World Trophy category in about 30 years. USA has won the Junior Trophy twice, 1991 in Czechoslovakia and again in 2006 in New Zealand, but still has never won the World Trophy. Who knows what next year could bring though!

I caught up with Charlie Mullins for Tuesday Toolbox this week, and got some first-hand info from him on his experience at the ISDE. Check that out if you haven’t already. When asked to explain the ISDE format that a lot of Americans don’t seem to understand, Charlie put it the best of anyone I’ve heard, he said it’s “basically a big dual sport ride with 6 special test somewhere along the trail.  The special tests range from 5-10 minutes so they are really short and sprint speed is key.” In years past, I think the sprint speed is what has kind of hindered Team USA from podium performances since off-road races here in the US are long, grueling events. Even sections (or tests if you prefer) at National Enduro’s are generally around the same length as 1 lap of a GNCC, so it ends up taking a lot longer than a 5-10 minute test like the ISDE/World Enduro format.

Josh Strang also had a solid ISDE performance and actually finished as the “top GNCC Racer” as I’ll call it, with a 7^th in the E2 class, just ahead of Mullins. Mike Brown finished 3^rd in the E3 class, aboard a KTM 500XCW. A few of us actually had a discussion earlier this week about Brownie riding the 500 as opposed to riding a 300 2-stroke. Brownie is no stranger to the 300 and can absolutely rip on one, but he chose to monster around the 500XCW, which is heavy and isn’t really regarded as something you see many professional racers on, as it’s designed to be a little more geared toward the “trail rider” but Brownie made it work, and that’s another testament to how gnarly that guy really is. Well, if you didn’t know that already. The list could go on.

Kailub Russell finished out the week 13^th in the E2 class, but that was also with the 2 minute penalty he received on day 2 after he mistimed arriving at one of the checks. Had that not happened, he likely would’ve been a solid top 10 contender. Zach Osborne also put in a good ride to finish 6^th in the E1 class. Despite some struggles, Thad Duvall still ended up 8^th in the E1 class while Andrew Delong came home 12^th despite struggling through a nagging wrist injury from his recent surgery.

You could really go on and on and on with ISDE info, but I’ll cut myself short there. One other race I have some info on from last weekend was the Mid-East race at the Hickory Airport. Some old school GNCCer’s will remember Hickory as it hosted GNCC events in 1995 and 1996, with Scott Summers winning the bike overall both years. Yes, that info came straight off the top of my head. Anyway, Takeshi Koikeda came away with the overall win ahead of Travis Coy and Jesse Robinson. On the quad side, Bryan Cook snagged the overall win over Kevin Trantham and Jonathan Waddell.

Well, I feel like I just got rolling but I’m running pretty behind on making my way to Powerline Park, so I’m going to cut myself short. Until next time, Bolty out!

And here’s @HotRodney22:

Here we go into the penultimate round of America’s Premier off road championship and with only two races remaining in 2013, the ITP Power Line Park GNCC is as unique as any race on the schedule. It seems as though each round has gained its own notoriety with each passing season and Ohio 2 is no different. Known for its typical Ohio-style terrain with mud bogs and hill climbs to satisfy any racing enthusiast, I feel that as great of a track as it is, it is a race where many riders wrap up championships and we begin to see riders make their moves up in classes to test the waters of what the future will hold for them when the new season arrives next spring.

The big question is though, who will be making those moves. I am not sure that with so many championships still on the line that we will see it as much as we will see it happen at the Ironman, but with the silly season upon us, change is most definitely in the air and this weekend’s racing will not only end the championship run for some but will serve as a sort of crystal ball for us to gaze upon to see a small preview of 2014.

That being said, we know that the ATV sides of the XC1 and XC2 have been decided as far as championships go and I know we can we will most likely see some big shifts here. Brycen Neal said himself he wanted to test the waters of the front row before the season is over and we can only expect to see him fulfill his quest through the ranks and being from Ohio, what better place to make his debut.

The biggest news in the afternoon racing on Saturday will be whether or not Chris Borich gets that seemingly illusive 67^th overall win and tie Bill Ballance’s All Time ATV Wins Record. Chris has said that this little bit of history is really pushed to the back of his mind, but as each race it draws closer, you know it has to bare some weight on the mind of the now 5-Time GNCC Champ. I don’t feel it is a matter of if he will do it, but when will he do it. One thing is certain and that is with each passing round it becomes a little more difficult to achieve the goals as easily. No I am not saying Chris is getting old, I am saying the competition keeps getting faster and tougher and more determined to win. A trait that Chris is all too familiar with, it is a trait he too possesses and he knows all too well what is heading his way.

I spoke with Gabe Phillips and the stories are true…he is a woman. No, just kidding. Seriously though, you may have heard Gabe reinjured his collarbone that took him out last season. Gabe said, “I re-broke my collarbone. The one I had surgery on last season. It broke right beside the place it broke last time. I am going to try to let it heal to keep away from surgery. They would have to remove the plate and replace it with a larger one and I was told that I will most likely be out for six weeks.” That’s a bummer too as Gabe will miss the final two rounds of racing it looks like. Good luck Gabe and I know everyone wishes you a speedy recovery.

Cody Collier looks like he may actually be on point to take the coveted 201 Morning ATV Plate. A plate held onto for so many years by the Women’s Class and Ohio’s own Super Dave Simmons. Dave has had his misfortunes this year but has put up a heck of a battle. Bryan Buckhannon is another who has fought valiantly for this title and the last two rounds I do not expect any of these riders to go down without a fight. A couple of overall wins and lots of consistency is what wins the war here. The funny thing about this though is that Cody only leads his class by one point heading into the final rounds. Westley Wolfe, who has won more overall races this year than anyone in the morning, has not been as consistent but may still be able to pull off the class championship if things go well these final two rounds for him. If nothing else, it is an interesting and quite possible historical thought.

I hear Michael Swift and Don Higbee have announced that they will be running this year’s Baja race. I know this has become a quite popular thing for a number of GNCC racers to do over the years. I also heard Mike Penland was putting another team together to make the race again this year himself and to me that is pretty cool. If you have ever heard my story about Mike Swift, then you know why. In a nutshell, in 2005 Mike approached the Racer TV crew and myself and said, “if you want to know how to beat Mike Penland, strap that helmet cam on me and I will show you.” That was one of Mike’s first races and my first ever experience from a young man who had just crawled out of a tent with an old utility quad parked beside it. He has come a long way and to see Mike following in the footsteps of his hero Mike Penland is rather a neat experience for me to see how that history has all played out. Mike Penland is without a doubt a pioneer in Utility Quad Racing and will forever remain and icon in the sport.

The UTV battles continue this weekend and it should be a good weekend for it. The trails at Powerline are made more for those types of vehicles so this should prove to be one of the best tracks on the circuit for it. All eyes will be on the Coastal Team once again as William Yokely and Scott Kiger will dual it out with a field full of hopefuls. You may recall my experience in Masontown while riding with Larry Hendershot and I can only say if he could slow down enough to save his car, I don’t know if anyone can beat him, that boy is a driver no doubt, but you can also tell he doesn’t buy the parts. Lead Foot Larry! He knows one speed and that is FAST!

That’s it for now. Till next time, God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs.