Weekly Updates (Chelsea Taylor)

Powerline Park has come and gone, and it was a weekend full of excitement as usual! I was able to step in the woods on Sunday for some pictures and the track looked perfect! I started questioning why I never raced a GNCC because it looked like a blast! When I admitted that to WXC racer Kendall Lafollette she said, “I knew we would convert you soon enough!” I think she’s right though!

As one last reminder, don’t forget to order your pink backgrounds from Powersport Grafx! I’ll talk more about the activities planned for Ironman in next week’s edition, but if you just can’t wait you can click HERE for the details regarding the season finale.

The banquet announcement has finally been released and we are looking forward to hosting you at the Waterfront Place Hotel in Morgantown, West Virginia on December 18 and 19! Click HERE to find out all the details and to purchase your tickets!

If you’re looking to get your wheels in the dirt this weekend, check out the Interstate Shootout which serves as round two of the SETRA Series. My good friend Steve Litz has a big hand in putting this event on, and that can only mean that it’s going to be an awesome event! There are classes ranging from minis to pro, and the pro class even has a $5000 purse. Get all the info you’ll need by clicking HERE.

The Last Round Showdown (Rodney Tomblin)

A look through the championship point standings shows that there are many championships wrapped up heading into the Ironman for the final round. On the flip side, there are still several left to be decided. Some are a far reach while others are well within grasp. The great thing for racing fans and those behind the eight ball is the fact that anything can happen and nothing is a given in GNCC. I think that if nothing else, the last two seasons should be proof enough.

One of the most hyped battles will obviously be the XC1 Pro class. Even though McGill sits 19 points behind there is a chance that things could fall in his favor if Fowler has a really horrible day and McGill wins. Fowler would have to finish 11th or worse and McGill would have to win for this scenario to play out. Behind them in points there are few changes that could take place but the final round has nearly everyone in solid positions.

The Junior A 22+ class has also good battle coming down to the wire. Dwight Pollard and Steve Covert sit only five points apart heading into the final round. They also have a spoiler in the class by the name of Duck Lloyd. Lloyd has no dog in the fight for the title but is sure anxious to make a statement or two for 2016. Regardless of what Duck does it is really between Pollard and Covert for the title and it will take a lot to pull it off but it is the Ironman and the tables can change fast there.

Quite possibly the tightest class for the championship may actually be the Junior B (22+) class. There are three riders separated by only one point. Bryan Filicky has a one point advantage over Cody Wolford and Eric Hollifield. The wild thing about this class is that nine different winners throughout the season. The top three each have two wins a piece. Hollifield may be the rider with the momentum though. He won the last round in Ohio and beating the other two this next round may be all he has to do. A tall order to fill but the adrenaline has got to be flowing at this point and he may be tough to stop. It will take a smart ride as well as strong ride to achieve the goal and that goes for all three of these contenders. Nerves will be the biggest issue and who can funnel for positive energy will be the one that takes the championship.

As I mentioned this class had nine winners so far and this has made for an interesting battle in the whole top ten of this class. Two points separate the fourth through sixth place positions. Robet Mapp and Dustin Dickerson are tied as James Mauger sits only two points behind them. Both Mapp and Mauger each have a win. Mauger has also finished second a few times but some no shows and a bad race takes him out of the point battle for the championship. One has to think he will have a personal point to prove heading into this final round and could play spoiler.

Chris Bach is Heading to Japan! (Jared Bolton)

If you missed the news earlier this week, it was announced that Chris Bach will be heading to Japan for the Japan National Cross Country finale at the Jiigatake Ski Resort in Omachi City, Nagano. It has become a tradition for a GNCC rider to be selected to compete in the JNCC finale, while JNCC riders also compete in GNCC events.

Takeshi Koikeda has been contesting the entire GNCC series since 2012, but made his way to the US after tackling the JNCC series for a number of years. Of course, this hasn’t been Takeshi’s first stint in the US as he actually raced Pro Motocross and Supercross here in the US back in the late 90s and early 2000s, staying with the legendary Jim Holley and landing a career best 6^th place finish at the Steel City National in 1998. This season will also be Takeshi’s last season in GNCC Racing as he will be returning home to Japan after Ironman, so be sure to say hi and thank him for his time here when you see him at the Ironman!

As for Bach, this will be his first time making his way to Japan for the JNCC. He was originally slated to compete in the event in 2013, but last minute issues kept him from going. Regardless, Chris will make an excellent representation of GNCC Racing in Japan, and make sure to wish him the best of luck. He won’t be going alone either as his mechanic, Eric Siraton will be going along and I was also told that Josh Strang will actually be racing as well.

Randy Hawkins will be making the trip also. For those who don’t know, Randy is actually a very big star of the off-road racing world in Japan and actually has a gear company, HWK, which is named after him. I also very excited to say that I will be going along as well. This is something I’ve wanted to do for a number of years, so to finally be able to go is great and I can’t thank the Masami and everyone with the JNCC organization, as well as everyone here at Racer Productions for the opportunity.

The exchange of riders between the two series has been going on for a number of years now and Chris joins some pretty fast company of riders who have made their way to Japan for the event. Previous riders who have been to the JNCC finale include Paul Whibley (2006), Jason Raines, 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), Rory Mead and Josh Strang (2013), and Jordan Ashburn (2014).

I’ll be heading to Japan the Tuesday after Ironman, and will make sure to keep everyone updated along the way, so stay tuned to the GNCC website, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more. I’m sure I’ll also post some cool stuff on my personal social media accounts, so feel free to look me up @JaredBolton

Family First (Chelsea Taylor)

Continuing on from last week and the difficulties of being a female in this sport we’ll focus on Angel Knox and the ATV side of things this week. As normal, I was wandering about the podium for the 10 a.m. race looking for Angel, who keep in mind just wrapped up the WXC championship. I was for sure that she would be sitting right by the ramp waiting to go up and get her number one plate. Finally someone came up and told me that she had to take her child back to the camper because of a temper tantrum. That’s when it hit me... I’ve never heard that before with any of the guy racers. Angel had just wrapped up her third championship, but had her family to be with first.

She also brought up an interesting point about how easy it is for females to get burned out of racing. There are very few female racers who have raced their whole life, majority of them used to race or started racing later in life. But what I found really interesting was when she said she thought her pregnancy was a good break for her, and it seems as if that’s true since she’s won two consecutive titles since then!

When I was chatting with Angel after the podium she told me. “No offense men, but women take care of a lot of stuff on a daily basis. Trying to handle all that, then throw a child and work into the mix, it’s a lot,” described Angel. “I’m not just able to come home from work, train and ride because I have other priorities.”

Not saying that males don’t have other things they also have to worry about in addition to racing, but females seem to have a lot more pressure. I’d like to think the main point here is that growing up greatly affects your racing. This is when you can tell someone’s true passion for racing if they power through all diversity and keep doing their passion. I won’t go as far to say “growing up sucks,” but I think it challenges you to choose your priorities first.

On a side note, a couple weeks ago I talked about how we should keep an eye on Kara Merritt, and boy if I wasn’t right! Kara was on fire on Saturday finishing second in the ATV WXC class. Congrats Kara!

4x4 Pro Shootout at the Ironman Corral (Rodney Tomblin)

Another championship that looks to be coming down to the wire is the 4x4 Pro class from the 10:00 am start. When this class hits the track on Saturday morning these boys will be locked and loaded and ready for a figurative bloodbath. As championships go you may liken this to a three-man duel. Two are favored but one underdog may out shoot them all.

It appears the consistency of Bryan Buckhannon has once again put him in a place he could end up winning yet another title. But don’t be so surprised if that’s not the case this time. Enter the contender Michael Swift. Swift has five wins, a handful of podiums and four races scoring sixth or worse. The last round though he was able to pull himself back together to win and within only five points of Buckhannon for the title. A win will yield either of them the title at Ironman. If Buckhannon finishes second and Swift wins it would tie things up and Swift would win the tie breaker. So for Buckhannon it is imperative he beats Michael Swift even if he does not win. If for some reason neither of these riders finishes or has a bad day Kevin Trantham may find himself with the title.

This is where it gets exciting but still well within the realm of possibility. Kevin Trantham sits 14 points behind Bryan Buckhannon for the title and nine points behind Swift in second. If Trantham wins and Buckhannon finishes fifth or worse he could win the title. That would then mean that Michael Swift would have to finish third or worse to tie the points between the two and the tiebreaker would go to Trantham.

The scenarios may be farfetched again but not so in the grand scheme of things. We have seen these three battling within a second of each other and each one has a winners heart and attitude. Another thing that will make this title fight one we do not want to miss is the fact that each rider will come in with one thing on their mind and that is winning. This battle may be the most epic of any this season and when the checkers fly is when we will all know for sure how it ends. The odds truly favor no one at this point and the Ironman will be the final decision maker of who will be 4x4 Pro champion.

History Continues (Jared Bolton)

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned the historical significance of Josh Strang’s Unadilla GNCC win. It marked the first time in 27 years that a Husqvarna motorcycle had made it’s way to the center-step of the GNCC podium. Before that moment, it had been since Ed Lojak’s 1988 Buckeye GNCC win that Husqvarna could boast a GNCC overall win. The brand had seen success in the XC2 class the past few years with riders such as Andrew Delong, Craig Delong, Nick Davis, Jason Thomas and others making their way onto the XC2 podium.

Andrew Delong, Davis and Thomas actually landed XC2 podium finishes when they were still Italian-made Husqvarna’s, before Pierer Industries acquired the brand, merging it with Husaberg. Nick Davis and Andrew Delong stand out as the only pro riders to claim podium finishes aboard an Italian made Husqvarna, and the Pierer Industries owned Husqvarna.

Last year Andrew Delong secured Husqvarna it’s first XC1 podium finish in a number of years (he had landed on the overall podium from the XC2 class previously), but a win still eluded the brand until Strang was able to put the once dominative brand back on top. What’s unique is the success hasn’t stopped there. After remaining winless for 27 years, the brand has now claimed the win the past 3 GNCC events with Strang’s 2 wins at Unadilla and Powerline Park, along with Thad Duvall’s Mountain Ridge GNCC win.

This gives Husqvarna the record for the longest time between overall wins at 27 years. Kawasaki is another brand who saw a long period between wins at 6 years with Chuck Woodford’s 2003 Patriot GNCC win preceding Paul Whibley’s 2009 General GNCC win. Honda went a little over 5 years between Paul Whibley’s 2007 General GNCC win and Thad Duvall’s 2012 Unadilla GNCC win. This goes to show that you can never count out any brand of motorcycle in the world of GNCC Racing. Somewhere, there’s someone that can get the job done on just about any machine!

Headlines

2015 AMSOIL Ironman GNCC Preferred Parking Lottery Is Now Open

Grand National Cross Country Series Announces 2015 Awards Banquet

Chris Bach to Compete in Japan’s JNCC Season Finale on November 8

Tuesday Toolbox: Jordan Ashburn

Video Report: Powerline Park ATVs

KTM Video: Kailub Russell Crowned National Enduro Champion

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News from GNCC, Riders and Sponsors

Mid-State Chevrolet

With one more off weekend in the GNCC season, go visit our friends at Mid-State Chevrolet this Friday and Saturday night. Stop by as they celebrate with their annual Fall Midnight Madness and see how they "stack 'em deep and sell 'em cheap”! Travis Taylor & Matt Facemire will be there with their crew until midnight, or the last person leaves all weekend. 

Mid-State Chevrolet Buick
I-79 Flatwoods Exit 67
2040 Sutton Ln.
Sutton, WV 26601
midstatechevy.com

Zakowski Motorsports

Zakowski Motorsports is having our annual Breast Cancer Awareness fundraiser at the Ironman GNCC.  This is our 6^th year in operation and it gets bigger every year.  Sassy breast cancer t-shirts will be for sale in the Zakowski  Motorsports pit on UTV Pro-row at the Ironman GNCC, along with other fun goodies.  Shirts are only $10 each and every penny of that is donated on every product sold.  We want people to realize that this isn’t buying a shirt; you are donating $10 to foundations.  Sales right now are over $7,000 heading into the Ironman.

In 2014, Zakowski Motor Sports raised $14,379.32, falling just short of their $15,000 goal.  These funds were forwarded to four foundations:

Spiering Cancer Foundation, WI                $3594.83

Pink Ribbon Riders Foundation                  $3594.83

Breast Cancer Fund of Ohio                         $3594.83

Faith Alliance, Crawfordsville, IN               $3594.83

Our $3594.83 donation to the Faith Alliance Crawfordsville, IN, was matched $.50 for every dollar by the Giving Indiana Funds for Tomorrow campaign, increasing the total donation to $5,392.24.             

We are setting the bar high this year, shooting for $17,000.  If we reach $17,000 we are going to add a fifth foundation to our list, that being the American Cancer Society. 

Help us get there by purchasing a wig, a key chain, rain poncho, cap, t-shirt, or just make a donation.  100% of all sales/donations are given to help others in need.  All these foundations can be found on the web. 

We couldn’t do this without so many people.   Mike Chirdon started our Ironman Fund Raiser out first thing Friday morning last year with a check for $550 raised by his family and employees at their restaurant, The Parlor in Wooster, Ohio.  Amy at Moto-T’s donated homemade scarves and ponchos to be sold at our booth, Adam McGill donating a bumper and autographed gear, KP Jewelers in Appleton Wisconsin donated pink crystal broaches to be sold at our booth, Kristy Stumpf of Thirty-One donated her monthly commission.  And then of course, we couldn’t do it without all the race families, friends, co-workers, cancer survivors and families of cancer patients that come and support our cause.  We love doing it, paying it forward.  Every cancer journey, no matter what color ribbon is associated with it, is a difficult and scary one.

RacerTV Visits Cleveland

The RacerTV crew recently made the trip up to home of Rock and Roll, Cleveland, OH to visit series sponsors before the last round at Powerline Park. With St. Clairsville being in close proximity to Northeast OH, RacerTV took this opportunity to visit Wiseco Performance Products, Cometic Gasket and FPS Racing who all call Cleveland home base. All three companies make their products in Cleveland and are proud of it! GNCC Racing is proud of that too, so check out the videos below to learn more about these companies and the industry-leading products they make. 

Wiseco: 

Cometic:

FPS Racing: