2016 Schedule Is Out! (Jared Bolton)

For those who may have missed the announcement last week, the 2016 GNCC schedule has been finalized and posted! We’ve got a few changes in store for 2016, including 2 new rounds that promise to provide some really fun racing. We’ve also shifted around a couple of races, which should make the season even more fun as the simplest date changes can have a pretty big impact on a venue.

Once again we’ll be starting the season with the Wild Boar GNCC in Palatka, Florida. While Palatka was a new addition for many in 2015, it wasn’t necessarily new to GNCC Racing as it actually hosted the Hurricane GNCC in 2003 and 2004. What’s cool is, since the property is so big, when we returned in 2015 it was actually a couple of miles up the road, so it seems like a completely different place. Everyone seemed to really enjoy Palatka in 2015, so hopefully 2016 delivers and even better race.

The first change of the season will be a new venue for round two. We still haven’t settled on an exact race name yet, but we’ll be heading to the Hill Family Farm in Sparta, Georgia. The Hill Family Farm is no stranger to racing as the SORCS series in Georgia has been racing there for a few years. I actually did an 8-hour team race at the Hill Farm about 5 years ago and it was one of the most fun local races I’ve ever ridden. The property was definitely the most mixed terrain I’ve ever ridden. It seems like it went from typical red Georgia clay to loamy brown dirt, to slightly sandy soil, to a few rocks, and then back to red clay again all in the span of a few miles. Overall, I think everyone is really going to enjoy this facility, and I’m excited to pay a visit there again.

From there, we’ve got the usual Carolina races with Steele Creek and Big Buck, but then we visit our second new track of the year. This one is also waiting for a finalized race name but it will take place at Moree’s Sportsman’s Preserve in Society Hill, South Carolina. Yes, it’s exactly what the name implies. The facility is a big getaway for the outdoorsman with hunting for everything from quail, pheasant, duck, deer, turkey, plus fishing and more.

While it’s a new stop for GNCC Racing, it’s also no stranger to the racing world. The Camp Coker Motocross facility was located on the property and hosted its fair share of races over the years including Loretta Lynn’s qualifiers, AMA D-29 events and more. The track actually closed several years ago, but parts of it are still there and I’d say it’s likely that it will be incorporated into the track. Camp Coker was pretty a pretty popular track in it’s day, but while we’ll be racing there, that doesn’t mean that the track is re-opening for business. This is the only time you’ll have the opportunity to ride an ATV or bike at this venue!

There’s been a lot of chatter about the new South Carolina round being “another sand race” and while it will be sandy, don’t let that fool you, as it won’t be like the sand in Florida. The motocross track had sand added to it, which contributed to its reputation of being a nice, tough sand track in the Carolinas. However, the woods are more of a sand and black dirt mix. It’s a little more like the Sumter Enduro in South Carolina for those who have experience racing there. I think it will definitely add a unique spin for the series and will ultimately end up being a really fun course.

After Camp Coker, the series will make its way up north to Indiana for the Limestone 100, then onto the John Penton. Tomahawk makes the move to June 11-12 while Snowshoe returns for it’s typical weekend leading up to summer break. Once the break ends, its back to Unadilla, while the Mountaineer Run makes the move to late September. This is when things get interesting! Powerline Park is actually the weekend right after the Mountaineer Run. Back-to-back GNCC weekends later in the season will put another unique spin on the season before heading to the finale at the Ironman in late October.

Overall, we’ve got a pretty amazing 2016 season in store. With some fresh tracks, and a couple of other changes, 2016 is promising to be one of the best GNCC Racing seasons of all time. The countdown is on! We’ll be going race before we know it. Click HERE to view the entire 2016 schedule!

Weekly Updates (Chelsea Taylor)

Excitement is buzzing this week, as the banquet is just two weekends away now! However, we have good and bad news to share. The bad news is that the Waterfront Place Hotel is completely sold out for Friday night, but the good news is that we were able to make an extra room block at the Holiday Inn- University Area for a discounted rate of $119 plus tax. Just call (304) 241-6649 by December 14 and say the code “GNC” for the discount. And yes, “GNC” is correct as they only have 3 letter codes.

If you plan on staying at the Waterfront Place Hotel on Saturday go ahead and reserve your room before they are full too! Either call 1-866-782-9974 to reserve your room by saying, “2015 Night of Champions” or go online and use the code 282101. There is just one day remaining to be able to receive the discount rate of $120.

ATVs and UTVs kick off the celebration on Friday, December 18, and then bikes will be on Saturday, December 19. The earlier you reserve your banquet tickets, the better. So don’t wait until the last minute!

Looking for a job? Like dirt bikes and ATVs? Well there is still one day left to apply for the administrative assistant position available at Racer Productions and Racer X Illustrated! Hopefully you spent the Thanksgiving holiday brushing up your interview skills and perfecting your resume, just click HERE to find out who to send email your information to.

Maryland Wolfe Pack (Rodney Tomblin)

If you follow the GNCC you any whatsoever then you may be familiar with the latest east coast invasion of the Maryland Wolfe Pack. The same may be true if you follow the AMA ATV Motocross National Championship as well. No, there are not two packs running around, it is the same one laying claims in both realms. Westley Wolfe is without a doubt one of the fastest rising stars in the ATV sport today.

During the 2015 season Westley captured the GNCC College-A championship, won his XC2 Pro-Am debut, finished 11th overall twice this season and earned the national number 17 for 2016. Add to that his ATVMX accomplishments of two A-class national titles and was named AMA ATVMX Amateur Rider of the Year. He is also the first to win national championship titles in both GNCC and ATVMX in the same year. Truly remarkable feats. Many only hope to win a title in one but Westley won in both.

As far as the pack portion of the Westley, he is surrounded by a support crew that is as strong as any ever assembled. The pack consists of his Dad, Mom, Grandfather, Cousin and many other friends and family that are all firm believers in Westley and his abilities. They all work hard and like a true pack, they play hard. They are as light hearted about things as anyone can be and they all enjoy every moment and every step of progress along the way. The funny thing is that none really expected to necessarily see the successes they have so far but they are still a humble crew and exemplify “what GNCC Racing is all about.”

Looking into the immediate future, it looks like Wolfe may be one of the next big things on the horizon. The coming year may possibly be his biggest challenge so far as he steps up in both realms to full time XC2 Pro-Am in GNCC and Pro Sport and Pro-Am in ATVMX. The key word in that last statement is “may.” And on the flipside is the fact that he “may” continue on pace. If the latter is true, then we may be working with a bigger threat than originally expected. If you listen closely the howl from the east is getting much louder.

One thing to add to the whole Westley Wolfe story while you mull it over and process it; Westley will be number 17 next season, which coincidently is the same number that the great 8-Time GNCC champ Barry Hawk wore when he earned his first-ever overall win. Will it be as successful for Westley as he begins his trek into the upper ranks of the world renowned GNCC?

New Coastal Racing Team for 2016! (Jared Bolton)

We’re starting to see several silly season rumors come to life, and one of the biggest ones is the addition of the new Coastal Racing team. Throughout the end of the 2015 season, word seemed to be growing that there was a new team on the rise for the 2016 season. Well, it has finally been announced and it promises to be a big one!

While the announcement on final details and sponsors for the team are still coming, what we do know now is they’ll have a full team that will be racing all weekend. On the ATV side, Brycen Neal will be back contesting the XC1 class for the team. Brycen has really come into his own the past few seasons and really been Mr. Consistent. Finished the 2014 season sixth overall, followed that up with a fifth overall in 2015 and looks to improve more and more as time goes on. Also on the ATV side will be Eli Kiger, who will be making the move to the PM ATV race after contesting the ultra-competitive Schoolboy Sr. class this past season.

The big news on the bike side is that the team has locked down Ryan Sipes, Layne Michael and Craig Delong. Many were wondering where Sipes would land after a stellar 2015 season, including the ISDE overall win. Layne and Craig also put together excellent rides in 2015, which makes an extremely strong team for the Coastal Racing crew. It looks like the bike side will be riding aboard Husqvarna’s, with Yamaha’s on the ATV side.

The other big news is that none other than 8-time GNCC champion, Barry Hawk, will manage the team. Now, that may come as a surprise for many as Barry has spent the past 5 seasons laying out the GNCC courses and many didn’t expect the surprise. While we’re all sad to see Barry go, we know he’ll still be at the races, wish him the best in his new venture and give him a huge thanks for his hard work the past 5 seasons. Chuck Lemaster caught up with Barry for this week’s Tuesday Toolbox to get some more insight into the team and also a little background on Barry himself. It’s definitely a pretty cool read, so if you haven’t seen it yet, be sure to check it out!

The addition of this team is a pretty significant addition to pro row. Over the years we’ve seen several teams support riders on both the bike and ATV side. Walker Fowler being supported by the same N-Fab AmPro Yamaha team that supports riders on the bike side was a big step, and now the Coastal Racing team adding 3 top-notch bike pilots, along with 2 very successful ATV riders is another huge step. Could this type of effort we see happen more as times rolls on? Only time will tell, but for now it’s very exciting to see this kind of growth.

The Future is Coming (Chelsea Taylor)

The GNCC Racing Nation and off-road racing in general has undoubtedly been growing throughout the past few years, and with the expanded rider count also comes more support for the sport. One could say that it is somewhat unheard of for youth racers to be picked up by teams to help make their transition into the pro class. It happens all the time in amateur motocross, but rarely in off-road racing.

However, the 2015 Overall Youth Champion Jesse Ansley seems to be making quite the statement when it comes to the future of GNCC Racing. Jesse proved that he has what it takes to be a player as he is in this transition time. He finished on the podium 12 out of 13 times in the Super Mini (14-15) class this year, where he wrapped up the championship title at the season finale at Ironman. After the championship was finished he turned around that same day and raced the afternoon race in 200-A where he finished an impressive third place.

Jesse has riding skills that are way beyond his years, but that’s not the only thing that got him to where he is now. It’s not always good results that get people to the top; good behavior and a positive demeanor can also help attract sponsors, and that’s something Jesse really seems to understand. Even though Jesse lives in Florida, which is a pretty good drive to over half of the races, you can still see him hanging around on Sunday afternoon filming the pro class, although we won’t keep seeing that happen after he makes the change for 2016.

Jesse will compete on the FMF/RPM/KTM Racing Team Maxxis team for the next three years. This announcement will not only help bring him through his final years as an amateur and eventually to the Pro class, but also serves as a huge stepping stone for the entire youth division.

This could be just what the future stars of GNCC Racing need. The future is bright for the young guns, and I wouldn’t be surprised if more opportunities for promising youth riders appear in the near future. 

Headlines

Competition Bulletin 2016-1: Tentative 2016 Earned National Numbers are now available for public review

AMA Members Invited to Vote for AMA Athlete of the Year Categories

Tuesday Toolbox: Barry Hawk

Coastal Racing Announces 2016 Off-Road Motorcycle and ATV Race Team