GNCC Racing

ITP Race Report: Racers Win Seven Classes at Mountain Ridge

Thursday, September 25, 2014 | 11:00 AM

Team ITP Grand National Cross Country series racers earned seven class victories and 11 podiums at round 11 of the 2014 AMSOIL GNCC series held in Central City, Pa. ITP also earned two regional hare scramble championships as support driver Larry Hendershot Jr., won the UTV class titles in both the American Woods Racing Championship Series and Woods Extreme XC racing.  

"Our woods racers just keep charging hard, like they've done all season long. The victories we earned at round 11 are critical for determining the GNCC amateur class championships," said Pat McGuire, Public Relations / Race Support. "Wins are wonderful, but championships are outstanding! We're very pleased to see Larry Hendershot Jr., and his Hendershot Performance racing team, win two regional racing titles using ITP tires."

Dave Simmons won the Super Senior (45+) class at round 11 of the GNCC series running ITP Holeshot GNCC tires on his Yamaha ATV.
Dave Simmons won the Super Senior (45+) class at round 11 of the GNCC series running ITP Holeshot GNCC tires on his Yamaha ATV. Photo: Courtesy of ITP

Mountain Ridge GNCC

The AMSOIL GNCC series stopped in Pennsylvania, for round 11, the Car-Mate Mountain Ridge (Somerset) round. Despite the extremely dusty conditions, ITP racers had a successful weekend, earning 11 amateur class podiums, including seven wins, as well as five fourth-place finishes. Four ITP riders, in three separate classes, earned top 15 overall finishes in the 10 a.m. session. Dave Simmons led the way, winning the Super Senior (45+) class and finishing sixth overall on his Yamaha outfitted with ITP tires. Finishing two spots behind Simmons was Honda racer and WXC class front-runner Angel Knox, who won her class for the sixth time in 2014. Two 35+ C class racers, Shawn Stuck (Honda) and Dale Batson (Suzuki), finished 12th and 13th respectively overall and 1-2 in their class at round 11. Both ITP-supported racers now have four victories in in the class, but Batson currently leads Stuck by 13 points with two rounds remaining. 

Angel Knox gained valuable points in her chase for the GNCC WXC championship with a big victory at the Car-Mate Mountain Ridge GNCC in Pennsylvania.
Angel Knox gained valuable points in her chase for the GNCC WXC championship with a big victory at the Car-Mate Mountain Ridge GNCC in Pennsylvania. Photo: Courtesy of ITP

Two other veteran racers tallied wins in Pennsylvania, as Kenny Rich Sr. (Masters 50+) and Donnie Pruett (Silver Masters 55+) each won their class. Rich Sr., now has three straight wins and eight total riding his Suzuki dressed in ITP tires. His son, Kenneth Rich Jr., also scored a victory at round 11, winning the 30+ C division on his on Suzuki ATV. The victory, his sixth of the year, moved him to within 17 points of the class leader with the final two races remaining.  

The final class win at round 11 went to afternoon racer Justin Paul, who edged fellow ITP racer Alan Blavos for the victory. The Junior B (22+) pilot won his fifth race of the year and also expanded his point lead to eight over second place. ITP racers who earned second-place class podium finishes at Mountain Ridge were Women's Amateur (13+) class points leader Kelley Deloach and 35+ C class points leader Mark Batson. Marti Lantz (Girls 8-15), Dylan Walraven (90 Open 12-15), Jordan Digby (125 Sr. 12-15), Parker Henderson (90 8-12) and Glenn McConnell (4x4 Senior 40+) all earned four fourth-place runs at round 11.  

Kenny Rich Sr., earned another GNCC victory, taking the Masters 50+ class win on his Suzuki outfitted with ITP Holeshot GNCC tires.
Kenny Rich Sr., earned another GNCC victory, taking the Masters 50+ class win on his Suzuki outfitted with ITP Holeshot GNCC tires. Photo: Courtesy of ITP

Round 12, the ITP Powerline Park - which will feature round five of the GNCC UTV schedule and round 12 of the ATV schedule - is slated for the weekend of Oct. 4-5, in St. Clairsville, Ohio.

AWRCS / WEXCR Championships

Larry Hendershot Jr. (JB Off-Road / Hendershot Performance / Can-Am / ITP) piloted his Can-Am Maverick 1000R X rs to a top-10 finish at the final AWRCS event to capture the UTV Open class title. Hendershot had reached the podium four times in the previous four rounds, including earning two overall wins, but had to settle for ninth-place at the Anderson Acres finale in southeastern Ohio.  

Larry Hendershot Sr., and Larry Hendershot Jr., teamed to take the Hendershot Performance / Can-Am Maverick to both the AWRCS and WEXCR UTV class championships in 2014
Larry Hendershot Sr., and Larry Hendershot Jr., teamed to take the Hendershot Performance / Can-Am Maverick to both the AWRCS and WEXCR UTV class championships in 2014 Photo: Hendershot Performance / Can-Am

This was the second regional hare scramble series championship for the ITP-supported Hendershot Performance team. They also won the WEXCR UTV title earlier in September after winning the final round in their Maverick side-by-side outfitted with ITP Terracross R/T XD tires.