Weekly Updates (Chelsea Taylor)

We’re officially on the road to Snowshoe Mountain! We’ve got a jam-packed schedule for you this weekend so make sure to read through all the updates because we promise that there is something that pertains to you in this Quick Fill section. 

Since tech won’t be set up at Snowshoe due to location restraints, Maxxis would like to remind everyone who is participating in their contingency program to stop by the truck to get your form stamped. All forms that are not stamped or returned before 30 days after the race will be denied. Also, please remember to fill out the entire form including sections 1, 2 and 3, as instructions are listed on the form. 

Earlier this week we received news that Snowshoe will be Donnie Pruett’s last GNCC race. Pruett is a long time ATV racing legend with many accomplishments to call his own including the 1987 VA ATV Olympics overall winner and two Loretta Lynn National titles. For more information on Pruett’s accomplishments please read the article HERE. From everyone at the Racer Productions office we wish you the best in your future endeavors Donnie!

Chances are if you were at the Tomahawk GNCC for the 1 p.m. start on Saturday you may have seen Adam McGill doing pushups before the rider introductions. Many people just assumed that he was warming up, however this activity was a part of something much bigger. McGill will be participating in Mission 22 again this Saturday. Mission 22 is an organization dedicated to bringing awareness to veteran suicide. In 2015 an average of 22 veterans committed suicide every day as a result of PTSD. GNCC Racing encourages each rider and fan to join McGill, Josh Merritt and Jay Shadron in doing 22 pushups this Saturday before the start of the Pro ATV race. Brad, ambassador of Mission 22, will also be at the race selling merchandise including t-shirts, stickers, bracelets and much more to fundraise money for the organization. 

With the help of Polaris, RG Powersports and Elkins Motorsports will be offering demo rides on Saturday (9 a.m. – 5 p.m.) and Sunday (9 a.m. – 3 p.m.). You’ll need to hop on the Ballhooter chairlift and head down to the bottom of the mountain. They’ll be set up as soon as you get off the lift!

Don’t forget that the ISDE Golf Tournament Fundraise will be taking place Friday at Snowshoe Mountain Resort’s Raven Golf Club. Then on Friday night Larry Keel will be playing in the Village at 8:30 p.m. with both Wyatt Turner following him at 10 p.m in The Junction and DJ Judd in the Village.

The GNCC Graduation Commencement will be taking place Saturday at 6 p.m. We’ve got a hefty group of graduates that we will be recognizing so make sure you are down at the podium to help us celebrate their special achievements. After the GNCC Graduation Commencement, Chuck Lemaster with Team Faith will be conducting chapel service at Snowshoe at 7 p.m. at his tent.

Live entertainment kicks off at 8 p.m. with Andy Ross who will be opening for the Davisson Brothers who are set to take the stage at 9 p.m. After the Davisson Brothers there will be a silent disco party. 

We just received the XC1 Pro and XC2 Pro-Lites trophies from Never Summer Industries. We’ve posted a picture of the trophies above, but make sure you join us for the podium celebrations so you can check them out in person because the attention to detail is evident. These trophies are definitely in the running for the coolest trophy on the GNCC circuit. Never Summer Industries has been involved in motocross for a couple of years and has even made trophies for the Thunder Valley Pro Motocross National!

Update From The Woods of Snowshoe! (Jared Bolton)

All season long, Ryan Echols and myself have gotten a lot of requests from a lot of racers about wanting to have an ultra-tough Snowshoe event for the racers in the 1PM races. By no means should anyone expect an “Extreme Enduro” type of event, but I feel like we’ve searched around and found a few more places to add into this year’s course to make things a little more challenging. 

We’re actually going in the same direction as last year’s event, which is a little unusual as we try to reverse direction on each course each year, but at Snowshoe that requires running everyone up a pretty difficult hillclimb, which a couple of times has been taken out for the 10AM bike races and puts them riding about 3/4^th mile of paved road, which is pretty cool with the switchbacks but can be a little on the sketchy side and makes things tough on traffic flow. Luckily, even with going the same direction, we’ve been able to add in a couple of fresh pieces of trail and use some sections that haven’t been used in a number of years.

The west side of the mountain will once again be the longer of the two. As I’m writing this, we’re still getting the final mileage set but it’s going to be in the neighborhood of 12 miles, while the east side of the mountain is just over four miles, making for a grand total of just over 16 miles to make up the entire loop. When you set out on the west side, you’ve got the usual down and uphill sections with a little mudhole thrown in as you work your way to Top of the World. From there you’ll cross over the paved road and off the west side of the mountain.

There’s a good, rooty, rocky downhill section off the side that will lead you all the way to the plateau, which has a good mix of some open stuff, rocky areas, fun flowing trails and more. The 1PM bikes will drop even further off that plateau, all the way to an area known as “Grandma’s House” which is a good down and uphill section that hasn’t been used in quite a few years, so this will be a perfect “welcome back” for the Grandma’s House section.

After the plateau, you’ll work your way back to Top of the World and come back to the finish through the same sections we typically use and head out on the east side. At the one-mile mark on the east side, the 10AM races will drop down a steep downhill section to the infamous Howard’s Hole, while the 1PM races will head out towards Shaver’s Lake Road, which is the access road located near Silver Creek which leads to the bottom of the mountain. You won’t be crossing the road, but you’ll run out the powerline next to the road, which is a good tough, rocky section that will lead you back into some more tough and rocky woods.

At the three-mile mark the 1PM bikes will split off into a pretty tough rocky section that will lead them to Howard’s Hole. This is brand new trail that’s never been used before and it goes through some pretty big rocks. You guys wanted something tough, well, here it is! The 1PM quads will continue straight on at the three-mile and to Howard’s Hole. Once again, Howard’s Hole looks to be the muddiest and most popular spot of the course. There’s a bunch of lines through it, so make sure to take your time, pick a good line through and you won’t have any trouble.

Once you’re out of Howard’s Hole the rest of the eastern side is good, easy, open trail and ski slopes all the way back to the finish line once again. All in all this is shaping up to be one of the most fun Snowshoe courses to date, with some tough sections thrown in as well. Don’t miss out, its going to be a good one!

Take Me Home (Rodney Tomblin)

It’s hard to believe we will celebrate the 42^nd anniversary of the running of “America’s Toughest Race” this coming weekend. Many of us were nowhere around or possibly even born at that time, and I was only a mere five years old. I had no idea that off-road racing history was being written only a few hours away. Honestly, it would be hard to say that even Big Dave, Rita and all those involved would realize what an impact it would have on the world of racing until a few years later, and even then who really knew that it would spawn a true world premier championship series. We as a “GNCC Racin’ Nation” are the backers of dreams becoming even bigger than they may have been dreamed and we celebrate this weekend with the 10^th running of the AMSOIL Snowshoe GNCC, deemed “America’s New Toughest Race!”

The question of whether or not it is truly the toughest race can only be answered by the masses that set out to tackle the task. Some may say it is challenging but not the toughest thing they have ever done, but many more make their way off the track saying it was the “toughest” thing they have ever done. The challenges are there and it is the most unique race on the series. On the spectator side it may also be one the best as the resort life coupled with racing brings a whole new atmosphere to make it a true celebration.

The thing to remember though is that even though this is a celebration, it is a race. It is actually a very important race that can set the tone for the long summer break the championship is about to go on. The ATV championship is quite heated and after a couple of big wins by Walker Fowler, Adam McGill finds himself in a bit of a hole to dig out of as the championship heads into the homestretch when racing resumes next fall. The bike side of things is even more heated than it has been in a very long time. It may prove to be one of the most important races of the season as Kailub Russell tries to rebound from the misfortunes of the Tomahawk where the two collided rendering Russell’s machine unable to finish.

Adam McGill may have some good karma on his side being this is a celebration race and the 10^th running. He is so far the only natural born West Virginian to win Snowshoe and has done it two times. If you believe that this is some magical force that may help drive the outcome of the event then you may feel that he is the one to beat. Past performances prove too that he is comfortable there and added to the fact the McGill Mafia and all the West Virginia fans will be on hand he may have the upper hand.

Walker Fowler has won here before as well and the momentum to do it again. After the three straight losses to McGill earlier in the season, Walker has made it a mission to win and win big. The Tomahawk was a good point but to run the speeds at Snowshoe he did at Tomahawk may be not be how to win. We have seen the approach of attacking the track in the past and it has paid off for some but more times than not that approach doesn’t work because of the rough, rocky, mountainous terrain. The one thing though that Walker has seemed to figure out as a young champion is how to calculate when to push and when not to.

Another class to watch this weekend will be the 4x4 Pro class as it has not only become a very challenging class but conditions may lend its hand to making this a very interesting race for them. The competition level of this class has been continuously raising and this season may present the best battle it has ever seen. Bryan Buckhannon who is the classes’ only champion so far is meeting his biggest challenges and sits forty points behind in the championship in sixth place. And even though there have been five different winners in this class Buckhannon is not one of those and here home in West Virginia he may be able to make it six different winners.

Kevin Cunningham currently leads the points and has taken three wins and has a 16-point lead over Michael Swift. Kevin Trantham is another nine points back with one win. Jordan Phillips has scored two wins this season but is still another 11 points back in fourth but things are really tight behind him. Cody Miller who has a win is only two points behind Phillips and another two points back in sixth is Buckhannon. All thirteen rounds count toward the title in this class like all GNCC Pro classes so the coming rounds are going to be critical and it looks like we may be on the way to seeing a new champion crowned in this class as forty points with this years competition will be hard to make up for even Bryan Buckhannon but a win this weekend could get him on the right track.

The fun times will be had by all in festival type atmosphere but in reality this running of Snowshoe GNCC may carry the most weight of any in its history. The championships are tighter and more competitive than any I can remember and may be bring a whole different feel to the battles. The fans will likely feel the difference and the energy they will bring could make this possibly the best Snowshoe GNCC yet.

Country Roads Take Me Home! God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs.

Snowshoe Turns Ten! (Jared Bolton)

This year marks the tenth annual edition of the Snowshoe GNCC. After it’s addition to the GNCC schedule in 2007, Snowshoe became an instant classic with it’s ultra tough terrain that is reminiscent of the original GNCC event, the infamous Blackwater 100. The first edition of Snowshoe would prove to live up to its expectations of being tough. With fresh trail littering the mountain and numerous springs, rocks and everything else underneath, the 2007 Snowshoe GNCC still stands out to many as one of the toughest GNCC events to date.

That first year would see Bill Ballance emerging as the first-ever ATV winner and David Knight claiming a dominating win on the bike side with a 10-minute lead over second place finisher, Barry Hawk. As a side note, Barry Hawk is the only rider to hold podium finishes in the Blackwater 100 and Snowshoe GNCC as Barry won the final Blackwater 100 ATV race, and claimed second at the first-ever Snowshoe GNCC bike race.

2008 would see another dramatic Snowshoe event with Adam McGill claiming the ATV win, and David Knight once again claiming the bike honors. However, Knight’s win was overshadowed by the strong performance of Thad Duvall. At that time, Thad was racing the XC2 class and finished second place overall, just a mere three seconds behind Knight. In 2009 and 2010, Brian Wolf would claim the ATV wins as an XC2 Pro-Am class rider, making it obvious that GNCC Racing is anyone’s ballgame and even someone outside of the premier XC1 class can claim an overall win of their own.

Since these opening years, the Snowshoe course has evolved into an animal of it’s own. Some of the deeper muddy spots have given way to hard bottoms, while some trails that were flat and smooth have developed big rocks and have become even tougher. GNCC courses are ever evolving and Snowshoe seems to evolve even more so than others. Regardless, Snowshoe still pays tribute to the one event that helped create GNCC Racing as we know it today, the Blackwater 100. Located just a few mountains away, Blackwater stood out as the toughest and gnarliest race of it’s time and many who attended it will agree that some sections of Snowshoe will make you feel like you’re back at Blackwater.

This year we pay tribute to Blackwater once again, and Snowshoe itself as we celebrate ten seasons of racing at Snowshoe. As one of the premier events of the entire GNCC schedule, Snowshoe provides a fun, beautiful atmosphere to cap off the first part of the season. This year is no different. Hope to see you on the mountain, it’s going to be a good one!

Snowshoe Bike Park (Snowshoe Mountain)

Hey mountain bikers! We have good news! This year the Snowshoe Bike Park will be open for you with limited terrain. The Basin Area (the side the lake is on) will be closed to ALL mountain bike traffic; however, the Western Territory section of the park will be open the following hours: 

Thursday, June 23:   10:00am – 5:00pm
Friday, June 24:         10:00am – 6:00pm
Saturday, June 25:    10:00am – 6:00pm
Sunday, June 26:       10:00am – 4:00pm

In order to ride the Western Territory you must purchase an extra one-day ticket which is for sale Thursday through Sunday. The cost is $25 plus tax and will allow you to use the chairlift to bring your bike back to the top. You can purchase your ticket at the Inn at Snowshoe.

Please also note that there is NO GREEN TERRAIN open in the Snowshoe Bike Park this weekend. Multiple trails located in the backcountry trail system will also be impacted by the GNCC Event, please use caution and do not cross the race course.  Please consider your skill level before purchasing a Bike Park ticket.

You are required to have a bike park ticket or season pass to access the Western Territory area of the Bike Park during this weekend, and bikes will only be loaded on the Western Express lift this weekend. Bikes are not permitted on the Ballhooter lift during the duration of our GNCC event.

As usual, your GNCC armband will allow you unlimited access to the Ballhooter lift that will take you down to the lake and back up to the village. You will not be able to ride the Ballhooter lift without a GNCC wristband. 

In addition, a bike park ticket, bike park season pass or a GNCC wristband will grant you access to the Western Express lift. 

There will be NO bike lessons during GNCC.

Headlines

Walker Fowler Leads the Way into 10th Annual AMSOIL Snowshoe GNCC

Video Report: Tomahawk Bikes

Video Report: Tomahawk ATVs

Watch GNCC Live on RacerTV.com and GNCC on NBCSN This Weekend

What's New on RacerTV.com?

Don't miss the online coverage from Round 9 of the 2016 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Maxxis, an AMA National Championship this Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m. EST.

Saturday, June 25
ATV Racing

Online: 1 p.m. EST, www.RacerTV.com (LIVE)

Saturday, June 26
Bike Racing

Online: 1 p.m. EST, www.RacerTV.com (LIVE)

Don't forget to set your DVR's for this Saturday at 2:00 p.m. for the GNCC Limestone 100 Bike Feature show on NBCSN. 

Saturday, June 25
Limestone 100 Bike Feature Show
Television: 2 p.m. EST, www.nbcsports.com