by: Jared Bolton
Thursday, March 7, 2019 | 1:00 PM
Welcome to Quick Fill.
Wow, it’s finally here! It’s time to go GNCC Racing. It’s unfortunate that it took this long to get the season rolling due to the Big Buck postponement, but the good news is it’s now time to get things started. We’ll also have an update on the rescheduling information soon. I know it seems like this is taking a while, but there are many, many factors that go into making a decision that works logistically for us and the GNCC Racing Nation, and we’re also looking at a solution to fill the TBA date. So stay tuned as we hope to have something finalized soon.
As for this weekend’s Wild Boar GNCC, it’s shaping up to be a great event! I’ll have the low-down on the track coming up a little later but there are a few other things we’d like to mention before we get this rolling. First, our old buddy Aaron Plessinger is coming! The four-time Youth champion, turned XC2 racer, turned pro motocross racer will be the Grand Marshal for Sunday’s motorcycle race after he competes in the Daytona Supercross on Saturday night. Check out the press release HERE for more info.
Second, we WILL be having practice this weekend. It’s a tradition to host practice at the first round of the GNCC season, so we’ll have a practice track this weekend. It is not part of the racecourse, so don’t think you’re getting a sneak peek at anything, but it’s a perfect chance to get yourself dialed in for the sand. You can get all the info on the Wild Boar event page. Make sure to click the schedule tab for times. Also, if you missed it a few weeks ago, we’ll be hosting a pro row party at each event in 2019. It will take place from 11-11:30am on both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday will feature the pro ATV racers and Sunday will feature the pro bike racers and both days you will be able to meet the racers, get autographs and just generally have a blast!
Another thing to keep in mind for this weekend is that there will be NO weekend camping in the camper staging area. That’s the small grass field just before the front gate where early arrivals wait until the front gate opens. If you arrive early, you can wait there until the gate opens but there will be no overnight camping there once the gates are open. Other than that, you’re in for a great weekend of racing. We’ve got a lot of work left to do, so we’re going to keep this week’s edition of Quick Fill on the quick side. Safe travels to all and we’ll see you this weekend!
Wild Boar Track Teaser
Since it’s addition to the series in 2015, the Wild Boar GNCC has become one of the most popular and fun Florida events the series has ever hosted. GNCC Racing has been to a lot of different Florida tracks over the years including Gatorback and Cocoa Beach in the 80s before taking some time off from the sunshine state before heading to Hardrock Cycle Park in Ocala, FL from 1993-1997. From 1998-2002 it would be a long trip south to Okeechobee, FL before the first stint in Palatka from 2003-2004, which was hosted at the actual Rodman Plantation, a couple of miles from where we race now.
After that, the series hopped around a few different facilities including the Orange Crush GNCC in DeLeon Springs, then Vero Beach and Melbourne before heading to River Ranch from 2009-2013. We landed at the Mud Mucker GNCC in 2014, but the owners lost that property and we returned to Palatka in 2015 for the Wild Boar, and it’s been a great event ever since! Those who raced the original Palatka events in 2003 and 2004 remember the heavy rains that caused an incredibly swampy racecourse. While the area just up the road is the Hogwaller Mud Bog, it’s actually higher elevation and takes water much, much better than the section of property we raced on originally.
Of course, we don’t have to worry about that as there’s sunshine and good temperatures in the forecast for the weekend. When you take off from the start, you’re heading into the woods around the 4.5-mile mark. It’s a good twisty section that is a lot of new trail with some palmetto roots, but nothing too difficult. It’s a good long section that winds back and forth to the five-mile mark. Just past the five, the 1PM bike races will split off into a brand new section of trail in an area we’ve never raced on before. It’s tight, and it runs through some planted pines, so it’s going to be tough as well. The ATV racers will continue through some good flowing trail and the two sections will merge together at the six-mile mark.
At the six you’ll pick up some most open trail before heading into a section of planted pines where it tightens up just a bit. You’ll pop out of those pines and have a short road bed to run up just a ways before you drop into some really twisty trail to the seven-mile mark. That takes you into some tight and twisty trail to the Monster Mile, which begins at the big sandpit on the back of the property. That leads you into even more twisty trail with a few tight sections to the eight-mile mark. You’ll jump in and out of some tight sections before hitting the nine-mile mark.
After the nine, there’s a really cool section that winds back and forth with some really big berms. That gets you back to the sandpit once again for the FMF Powerpoint. You’ll hit a fast section out of the FMF Powerpoint that will snug up to the ten-mile mark. Right past the ten, the 10am and 1pm bikes will run a different section of trail, while the quads will shoot straight over to the 11-mile mark. The bike-only section is tight, twisty and lots of fun! You’ve got some faster trail at the 11-mile mark that hits a couple of short tight sections before you come to the 12-mile mark.
When you see the 12, you’ll be headed towards the finish through some open trail which brings you past the 13-mile mark and over to the finish. On the other side of the finish, you’ve got a section where you’re zigzagging back and forth through planted pines before you cross a road, into some slower trail and head back towards the start. At the one-mile mark, you’ll turn right and go behind the starting line, through a big field section and head towards the pro pits. The two-mile mark is behind the pro pits and after that you’ll run a section of trackside pitting to the three-mile mark.
After the three you’ll work your way around the mud bog park, but before you freak out we’ve avoided all the big holes. You can pick your way around all the water and the one little water hole you have to go through has a solid line through the middle that is only about 3 inches deep. No big deal! That brings you back into the big field section once again which passes the four-mile mark and takes you back into the woods where you started. It’s going to be around 13.2 miles for the 1PM bikes and just over 11 miles for the 2PM ATVs. Overall this is a great track, lots of fun and will make some great racing. Don’t miss out because you’ll regret it!
Aaron Plessinger: Off the Beaten Path, From GNCC to Supercross
he road to the premier class in the Monster Energy AMA Supercross Championship is not an easy one. Aaron Plessinger found his way there off the beaten path, so to speak. Coming from an off-road background by heritage, Plessinger turned heads in the motocross scene and worked his way forward into Yamaha’s feeder system, first through the Cycle Trader Rock River Yamaha team, and then Monster Energy Star Yamaha Racing team. It all hit pay dirt for the Ohio native in 2018, earning both titles in the 250 ranks – 250SX West and 250MX – which translated to a promotion to the 450 class with the Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing Team for 2019.
Every rider has a story, but Plessinger’s isn’t the same as the run-of-the-mill moto kid. There are a lot of similarities though, as like most, racing was in the blood. His dad is a multi-time off-road racing champion, with two GNCC, and two National Hare Scrambles titles to his resume. Just because he came from that bloodline didn’t mean he was born in riding gear either. It turned out that it was definitely something that he took to at a young age and loved it
“My dad was a two-time GNCC Champion, and then a two-time National Hare Scramble Champion,” Plessinger said. “I guess he wanted to get me a bike and let me start riding. I fell in love with it and was all right at it, so he let me stick with it, and here we are today.”
To read the full story, click HERE.
GNCC LIVE on RacerTV.com
Don't miss the online coverage from the Moose Racing Wild Boar this Saturday, March 9 catch pro ATV racing at 2 p.m. EST and pro motorcycle racing on Sunday, March 10 at 1 p.m. EST on RacerTV.com.
Florida native Jesse Ansley will be one to keep an eye on during Sunday afternoon’s pro motorcycle race. Hailing from Myakka City, three hours from Palatka, Ansley will be defending his FMF XC3 125 Pro-Am National Championship. Last season, Ansley was able to secure seven out of 12 possible wins in his class to earn his first XC3 championship. Now that Ansley has made a name for himself in the XC3 division, he’s looking to continue his success aboard his new team, Trail Jesters KTM Racing, in front of his home state fans.
Another Florida native, Ben Parsons, will be making the jump from the Open A to XC2 250 Pro class. Parsons finished runner-up last season in the highly-competitive Open A class, and will now shift his focus to the XC2 class with his Coastal Racing/Husqvarna team. Last year Parsons earned three class wins, and an amateur overall award at the ninth round in Snowshoe, West Virginia. Parsons will be looking forward to showcasing his progress with his new team next weekend in his home state.
Additional Reading This Week!
This week's edition of Quick Fill is a little on the short side, so if you're looking for some additional reading this week, then you're in luck! Our friends across the office at Racer X gave me the chance to write "The List" this week. Essentially, it's a cool feature that lists (duh) a few key points on a particular subject.
I'm used to just writing Quick Fill where things just roll out and you can pretty much talk about anything and everything to do with GNCC Racing. This was a little different. The spin on it was to write about five things for the opening round this weekend. Well, I put my head down one evening, put some thought into it and I think the finished product was pretty cool. Those guys are professional writers, and they polished up a few things for me and really made it good.
So, take a look at the article HERE. There's some pretty cool info and is definitely worth a read. Enjoy!