Thursday, February 12, 2015 | 3:50 PM
Welcome to Quick Fill.
The excitement builds as we are three weeks (and counting) from the season opener in Palatka, Florida. For those of you already down south, please don’t hold this warm weather hostage. Those of us in the colder states are really counting on that sunshine to bring an end to winter, but as we know, that could be wishful thinking.
Jeff Russell, Barry Hawk and the boys are getting ready to migrate south before the end of the month, which means things are about to get real. I’m not sure if many of you know this, but the track crew actually goes to Georgia first and lays out the track before heading down to Florida for round one. Why on earth would they do that, you ask? It will most likely be Tuesday by the time they finish cleaning up and tearing down the GNCC in Florida, and then they have to drive up to Georgia and start the process all over again. So, the decrease their set-up time by laying the groundwork ahead of time. It sounds easy enough but there’s a lot of strategy incorporated in that gig.
“Housekeeping” (JenKen)
All right, racers, I’m going to give you a little checklist to help better prepare you for the opening round (and hopefully beyond). Ask yourself each of these questions before March 7, and if the answer is no, click the corresponding link and help yourself out!
- Did I confirm a number? Check out the 2015 Confirmed Numbers to be sure you did the proper paperwork. Each discipline is sorted by the rider’s last name.
- Is my AMA Membership still valid? If not, please don’t forget to sign-up or renew through Racer Productions’ special link so part of your dues can go back to the GNCC Rider Foundation to be used for folks in need!
- Have I pre-registered? If not, head over to the Rocky Mountain ATV/MC Fast Track Registration Program to earn $20 in the form of an RM gift card and decrease your wait time at registration. You get one of these every time you pre-register, which means you’re looking at $260 for simply pre-entering every round this season!
- Did I register for contingency? Have no fear, we’re updating this daily as manufacturers and companies finalize their programs. Here is the most comprehensive Contingency List.
- The specialty credential link is now available for riders who finished inside the top 10 of the PM race in 2014. Those riders may also bring one guest through the credential program. More information is on the GNCC Website.
Hopefully this will get you started in making sure you’re ready to go when that green flag drops next month!
More Racing Happening! (Jared Bolton)
The last few weeks I’ve mentioned a few of the races happening down south, and that’s been continuing. Last weekend saw the 3rd round of the Mid-East Winter Series happen in Hickory, North Carolina at the famous Hickory Airport, which hosted a couple of GNCC events in the 1990s.
From the photos and video clips I’ve seen, it looked like it was a pretty big turnout. I spoke with Ben Weathers who is the sales manager at RidePG and he said he rode his KTM Adventure bike over to the race to spectate and said everyone was literally parked door-to-door. That’s pretty cool to see such a big crowd show up for an off-season event.
Mid-East has been racing at the Airport for a long time, and with some development in the area land use is starting to decrease there. However, Buren has been able to add some extra trail and from what I heard, everyone seemed to enjoy it. Chris Bach ended up coming away with the overall win ahead of Trevor Bollinger in second, while 2014 Mid-East champ Takeshi Koikeda rounded out the podium in third.
It’s nice to see Chris Bach on the gas lately with an impressive 6th place at the Sumter National Enduro, which is pretty much raced on a whim, and then landing the win at the Mid-East race. Last year Bach had a few struggles adjusting to the Honda but it seemed like he adjusted to the bike as the year wore on.
Now with some off-season seat time under his belt as well, Bach is looking pretty good on the Honda. He could add yet another challenge at the front of the XC1 class.
Big Time (Rodney Tomblin)
Last week I re-introduced the fact that we have another pro class in the GNCC. The 4x4 Pro class virtually in it's infancy has a long history in it's making. One of the pioneers of this class is one of GNCC Nation’s true leaders from the front line; I am referring to Pennsylvania's Rick Cecco. Rick has been racing GNCC since the 1990s and has enjoyed a rather illustrious career. Many of you may know and recall the recent stories of Rick, but what about the stories that built the man we know today?
At the risk of things getting too long I will just put it like this, Rick used to run a sport quad in the GNCC. His last season aboard a sport quad was in 2004 where he finished 10th place in a very fresh Pro Am division featuring top names of that era including Jeremy Rice, Chris Jenks, Todd Demaree and even Adam McGill. After that season Rick turned his attention to the quickly growing and soon-to-be premier morning class race.
In 2007 Rick Cecco had landed the deal a lifetime. That was the first year for the 4x4 Open and for the then powerhouse Warnert Race Team. He was dueling with the likes of Bryan Buckhannon and Scott Kilby, but Rick would take the win in that title fight. In 2009, Rick captured the U2 championship in another hard fought battle as well as one of the most remembered for many fans. Rick battled ruthlessly against another GNCC staple of the era, Mike Benson as well a very young Jordan Phillips and Robert Smith. Eventually Rick left the Warnert program and took a small break before re-dedicating himself to the sport that drove him in all sides of his life.
Fast forwarding to the 2014 season, Rick Cecco began a couple of partnerships that not only put his program back on the map, but also brought an outside the industry sponsor as key element to the venture. Factory Polaris and Cold Cock Whiskey were his main sponsors in 2014, and even though things did not finish quite as well as they started, Rick ran a good portion of the season in a top contention spot for the Inaugural title of the 4x4 Pro class. In the end, Rick managed to salvage 5th in the class and a whole new desire to win in 2015.
This season for Cecco will be no less monumental than the rest. Rick recently announced that though there were a couple changes coming, and that they were positive changes. Polaris will not be back in Cecco's arsenal, but Cold Cock Whiskey will be and even in a bigger way. You may have caught sight of the big Cold Cock blow up bottle, but Rick says to be looking for a much bigger presence this season. Rick said they stepped up in a huge way and is the main force behind his bid for the title in 2015. Rick will be racing a Can-Am Renegade X XC (no contract) at GNCC level – 4x4 Pro. Simon and Jeff from Can-Am as well as Rob Smith, Bryan Buckhannon and Jordan Phillips have all been extremely gracious with parts and knowledge to help get his ATV ready for Florida.
Rick will have his work cut out for him during his hunt for the title this season. Cecco will be miss rounds 3, 4 and 5 for Hunt the Wolf race in Romania. That's right! Cecco Racing is going international for 2015! Rick has officially registered for what is considered the hardest ATV race in Europe called “Hunt-the-Wolf” which is an extreme 5-day off-road ATV race located in Transylvania Romania. Rick has been following this race for years and when the opportunity came up to enter the race he took it. This race is very much like GNCC however it would be more similar to the “Red Bull Romantics” race in Romania as the intensity of the course is multiplied by 300% and the obstacles are not only bigger and at times impossible to complete without winching or spectator assistance – the course is also GPS guided so there will be no arrows to follow which adds another level of intensity. Rick is a grinder and his can’t stop, won’t stop attitude fits this race to a T. Rick will be the first American to enter the race ran April 27th through May 5th. That's pretty Big Time if you ask me!
Fun Facts (Jared Bolton)
Since things have been pretty quiet lately, other than some racing going on. A few weeks ago I was looking up all sorts of different fun facts for various things in this year’s GNCC program. Obviously I’m not going to spoil any of those because everyone will have the chance to see that program in a few weeks, but I stumbled across some other cool statistical type stuff that didn’t make the cut.
I figured instead of it just kind of sitting around, poorly scribbled on my notepad that I would share a few of those. So, here are a few fun facts to wrap your mind around…
Kailub Russell is the first back-to-back GNCC bike champion since David Knight’s 2007 and 2008 titles. If Kailub claims title number 3 in 2015, he’ll become the first 3-peat champion since Scott Summers back-to-back-to-back titles from 1990-1993. He’s also the only rider to claim both an XC2 and XC1 title.
1975 saw the first ever Blackwater 100, leading to the first ever Wiseco 100 Miler Series in 1980, and the first ATV series in 1983. The Wiseco 100 Miler Series would then become GNCC Racing in 1986.
Chris Borich holds the most ATV wins at 73, with Bill Ballance second with 67 wins and Barry Hawk third with 49. On the bike side, Scott Summers still holds the most wins with 46 ahead of Rodney Smith in second with 33 and Ed Lojak 3rd with 26.
Jimmy Jarrett still holds the record for longest time span between overall wins, with his first coming at John Penton (then called Burr Oaks) in 2000 and the second coming at Unadilla in 2010.
Getting to the Poynter (Rodney Tomblin)
I got a message from Big Pat McGuire and it seems that last seasons stint driving the UTV may have sparked a fire in the former off-road truck racer. It seems he and his partner Belinda have teamed up with the folks at Wicked Bilt and Can-Am for 2015. They will actually be managing a top notch UTV program with one of last seasons big surprises, Treavis Poynter to drive one of their team cars "helping keep LP's legacy alive" running the #591 in the XC1 Pro UTV division.
Treavis is stoked to be a part of the new program and should weigh in heavy with good results. Treavis is expected to be a championship contender in 2015 and a lot of focus will be coming his way soon. The knowledge of BP and Teavis' will to win should drive this tea-toothed forefront of UTV racing.
The 2015 AMSOIL GNCC will feature six rounds once again this season where UTV racing will be a highlight of the weekend of racing. All rounds are once again scheduled to broadcast live on RacerTV.com's GNCC Live beginning around 4:00 local times on race days. Like last year, the events will be archived to watch at your own will on RacterTV.com.
#ThrowbackThursdayv (Jared Bolton)
What's New on RacerTV.com?
This week The Racer X Show with Greg White features highlights from another exciting round of Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, as well as an interview with Yamalube/Star Racing Yamaha's Cooper Webb, following an impressive performance in San Diego.
Round five of AMSOIL Arenacross, featuring Ricky Carmichael's Road to Supercross took place in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania over the weekend. Host Greg White talks to Team Babbitt's Monster Energy/AMSOIL Kawasaki's Matt Goerke to hear more about his victorious weekend. We also get a first look at the 2015 MotoGP season, as riders have completed their first round of testing. Catch The Racer X Show online now, only on RacerTV.com.
News from GNCC, Sponsors and Riders:
A female racer Jesi Stracham needs our help. She was in a motorcycle accident and is paralyzed from the waist down. I've set up a Go Fund Me fundraiser for medical bills. She has a long road to recovery. You may read Jesi's story and donate HERE.
Thank you so much for your time!
CR/Honda is proud to announce Throttle Jockey as our graphics partner for 2015 and to celebrate we are making our 2015 race kit available to the public.
Upgrade your ride to full factory status with a fresh JCR Honda 2015 Race Replica graphic kit. Designed by JCR Speed Shop and Throttle Jockey. Featuring HONDA, JCR Speed Shop and LUCAS OIL, along with all the JCR sponsors. This is the official JCR/Honda graphics kit for the AMA Grand National Cross Country series (GNCC). read more...
Entering into their second year of GNCC competition, MCS Racing based in Zionsville Indiana, is proud to confirm their team riders Callan May and Scott Grills for 2015. The MCS Racing team riders will be competing for the GNCC XC2 PRO LITES Championship aboard Yamaha supported YZ250FX machines. read more...