Thursday, December 5, 2013 | 11:10 AM
More than 1200 racers, family members and fans from all over the country came together in Morgantown, W. Va. on November 22 and 23 to celebrate the 2013 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country season. The Waterfront Place Hotel and Convention Center once again provided a stellar setting for this year’s GNCC Awards Banquet, as the top ATV racers were honored in front of over 600 people on Friday evening, while nearly 600 more attended Saturday evening’s ceremony to honor the top motorcycle racers in the series.
Each evening kicked off at 5:30 p.m. with dinner and opening ceremonies. The top 10 racers in each championship class were then honored on stage, in addition to a handful of specialty awards and recognition of series sponsors and supporters. Several thousand dollars worth of contingency awards were distributed to the top 5 finishers in each class and additional door prizes were raffled off to racers throughout the evening. GNCC series sponsors stepped up to distribute the biggest contingency prizes in history, thanks to AMSOIL, Rocky Mountain ATV-MC, Can-Am BRP, Parts Unlimited, Moose Racing, Maxxis, FMF Racing, Leatt, ITP, VP Racing Fuels, Dunlop, Wiseco, Polisport, Mid-State Chevrolet, Factory Connection, Elka Suspension, Cometic Gasket, Thor, Hinson Clutch Components, Moose, Utility Divison, RidePG.com, All Balls Racing, Twin Air, FOX, MotoTees, 100%, Tire Balls, Team Faith, Racer X Illustrated, Car Mate Trailers and Lazydays RV.
Door prizes included (6) certificates for an FMF PowerCore 4 Slip-on muffler, one free suspension re-valve from Factory Connection, one set of Elka Suspension, (2) Leatt chest protectors, (2) Leatt GPX neckbrace, (2) Leatt Hydration systems, and various other prizes.
But perhaps the biggest prize of both evenings came from Rocky Mountain ATV/MC, as they gave four lucky winners a paid trip-for-two to Utah for a riding excursion with the RM ATV/MC crew. Congratulations to Friday night’s winners Vet B (30+) rider Jeffrey Flinn from Old Fields, W. Va., and College B (16-21) rider Cameron Bruce from Darlington, Pa., who will be provided with Side-by-Side machines on the trip, while Saturday night’s winners 250 A rider Anthony Stone from Reedsville, W. Va., and Open A rider James Steiner Jr. from Van Etten, N.Y. will be provided motorcycles for the trip.
2013 Specialty Award Winners
ATV Winners |
Bike Winners |
Rider of the Year: Chris Borich |
Rider of the Year: Kailub Russell |
4x4 Rider of the Year: Robert Smith |
Amateur Rider of the Year: Trevor Bollinger |
Amateur Rider of the Year: Jay Shadron |
Youth Rider of the Year: Braxton McGee |
Youth Rider of the Year: Hunter Hart |
Most Improved Rider: Shane Hufford Jr. |
Most Improved Rider: Cody Collier |
Bad Ass Award: Randall Riggs |
Bad Ass Award: Kevin Yoho |
Rough & Ready Pit Crew: Pete Pratt |
Rough & Ready Pit Crew: SICC Racing |
Sponsor of the Year: AMSOIL |
Wiseco Sport Ambassador: Rick Proctor |
Manufacturer’s Cup: KTM North America |
Sponsor of the Year: Rocky Mountain ATV/MC |
State Championship: North Carolina |
Manufacturer’s Cup: American Suzuki |
In Memoriam: Kurt Caselli, Ryan Longstreth |
State Championship: Ohio |
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In Memoriam: Grady “Allen” Vest, Jay Poole |
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Immediately following the awards portion of the ceremony, musical entertainment was provided by DJ ELO, as GNCC Racers and their families continued the celebration on the dance floor. GNCC also provided a free photo booth from 8:00 p.m. - Midnight to capture the evening’s accolade and video game stations were on site all evening to provide additional entertainment for the kids.
For those racers unable to attend the GNCC Banquet, awards can be obtained by calling Jessica at the Racer Productions office (304) 284-0084. Racers will be responsible for the cost of shipping and handling prior to shipping the award. The 2014 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series kicks off the weekend of March 8 and 9 in Bunnell, Fla. for the inaugural running of the Mud Mucker GNCC. For more information, please visit www.gnccracing.com.