by: Rachel Gutish
Monday, June 17, 2019 | 5:00 PM
Tomahawk Youth Bike Race Report
Cunningham and Goodman victorious at Tomahawk
The Dunlop Tomahawk, round seven of the 2019 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series presented by Specialized, an AMA National Championship, took place last weekend on June 1st and 2nd. On the schedule since 2015, the Tomahawk is one of the newer rounds on the schedule. The trails are fast and flowy, especially the long, sweeping grasstrack sections. Although this area of New York is hilly, there aren’t any dramatic hill climbs out in the woods, just lots of gradual elevation changes. However, there is a little bit of loose rock and plenty of exposed tree roots as well, so it’s no picnic out there.
According to the track map, the youth bike course was 4.8 miles and the micro course was 1.6 miles. While conditions weren’t too bad during the micro racing on Saturday morning, the youth bike race on Sunday morning started out with a light rain and then got drenched by mid-race, making conditions especially challenging for those riders. Of the 132 bike youth riders competing at the Tomahawk, Jojo Cunningham was the overall winner, while Colby Goodman beat 54 other riders to win the micro overall.
Canon Kuneff had a strong start this race. Although JoJo Cunningham was initially leading, a mistake on his part allowed Kuneff to take the lead for the first two laps before dropping back to third. He encountered problems on his seventh lap, dropping back to sixth and finishing one lap short of the leaders. On lap three, JoJo Cunningham moved into first place. Although he did eventually take the win (keeping his perfect season intact), Brayden Nolette stayed on his rear fender all day, swapping the lead with him several times. Payton Gwinn earned his first podium of the season and was the only other rider to stay on the lead lap with Nolette and Cunningham. When asked about his race, Cunningham said “Tomahawk was definitely a survival race. I had too many mistakes which almost costed me the race, so I’m glad I was able to come out with my seventh race this season.”
Unlike Cunningham, Grant Davis finally lost his perfect season at the Tomahawk. While it looked like it was going to be a repeat of the usual finishing order, on his seventh lap, the muddy conditions took their toll and Davis’ bike blew up. Jack Joy and Cooper Jones hadn’t been very far behind Davis, and as soon as he was out took over the number one and two positions. Cooper had been in second most of the race, with nearly a minute over Joy when Davis went out. So he was the first to take the lead, but Joy was coming. His lead was down to thirty seconds going into the final lap. Joy was able to erase the deficit and make a pass for the lead on the last lap, taking his first YXC2 win. Jones finished about ten seconds down in second place, while Garyson Smith placed third. When asked about his race, Joy said “My first win was one I really had to work for! I was pushing hard because I knew I wasn’t that far off of him [Jones] and I finally passed him on the last lap.”
The overall non-YXC rider in the bike youth race was Dakota Cunningham (YAM) racing in the 85 (7-11) class. He finished 9th overall.
There were a lot of riders in the running for the MXC1 win at Tomahawk. Ashton Pellegrini came through in the lead on lap one. By lap two Caleb Wood had moved up from third into the lead. The following lap, Colby Goodman had taken over the number one position, although at any given point in time during the first few laps, the top three riders were spaced less than fifteen seconds apart. However, as the race wore on Goodman was able to slowly amass a lead of two minutes by the end of the race. Pellegrini ended up finishing second while Wood placed third. When asked about his race, Goodman said “It was awesome to get another overall win in New York! This was the best track of the year so far, It was really tight and rooty, but had great flow and enough field sections to keep my bike cool.”
Tomahawk marked Nash Peerson’s third MXC2 win in a row and his fourth win of the season. He also tied his best overall, placing second in the micro race. Peerson started out in third place, but by lap two had worked his way into the lead. Maddox Moretz was able to hang with him for two laps, but by the time the two lap card was out, Peerson was out of sight. Moretz rode by himself the remainder of the race, as did the eventual third place finisher, Logan Shafer.
The overall non-MXC rider in the bike micro race was Linwood Patton (COB) competing in the 50 Sr. (6-11) class. He placed 7th overall.
The next round of the 2019 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series will take place on June 22 and 23 in Snowshoe, WV with the Snowshoe GNCC. ATV racing will take place on Saturday while Bike racing will take place on Sunday. Due to the difficulty of the terrain, there is no micro racing at this event.
For more information on the GNCC series, visit the official website at www.gnccracing.com or call (304) 284-0084. Join the conversation on the series Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and be sure to always hashtag #GNCC.
- Facebook: @gnccracing
- Instagram: @gncc_racing
- Twitter: @gnccracing
- YouTube: @racertv
Tomahawk GNCC
Odessa, NY
Round 7 of 13
June 1st and 2nd
Bike YXC1 Race Results
- JoJo Cunningham (KTM)
- Brayden Nolette (KTM)
- Payton Gwynn (YAM)
- Lane Witmer (YAM)
- Blake Yahraus (KAW)
Bike YXC1 National Championship Standings
- JoJo Cunningham (KTM) 140
- Brayden Nolette (KTM) 132
- Canon Kuneff (SPE) 102
- Lane Witmer (YAM) 88
- Lucas Hol (HQV) 84
Bike YXC2 Race Results
- Jack Joy (KAW)
- Cooper Jones (YAM)
- Garyson Smith (KTM)
- Hayden Surrena (TM)
- Nicholas Defeo (HON)
Bike YXC2 National Championship Standings
- Grant Davis (KAW) 132
- Cooper Jones (YAM) 131
- Jack Joy (KAW) 108
- Garyson Smith (KTM) 107
- Nicholas Defeo (HON) 95
Bike MXC1 Race Results
- Colby Goodman (KTM)
- Ashton Pelligrini (HQV)
- Caleb Wood (KTM)
- Ty Morris (KTM)
- Brian Pointdexter (KTM)
Bike MXC1 National Championship Standings
- Colby Goodman (KTM) 113
- Caleb Wood (KTM) 127
- Ashton Pellegrini (HQV) 108
- Hunter Porco (COB) 99
- Brian Poindexter (KTM) 91
Bike MXC2 Race Results
- Nash Peerson (KTM)
- Maddox Moretz (KTM)
- Logan Schafer (KTM)
- Bently Saxon (KTM)
- EJ Lingenfield (KTM)
Bike MXC2 National Championship Standings
- Nash Peerson (KTM) 137
- Maddox Moretz (COB) 116
- Logan Shafer (KTM) 105
- Bentley Saxon (KTM) 102
- EJ Lingenfield 101
About GNCC Racing
The AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series presented by Specialized is America's premier off-road racing series. Founded in 1975, the 13-round championship is produced exclusively by Racer Productions. Cross-country racing is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The grueling three-hour GNCC races lead as many as 2,400 riders through tracks ranging in length from eight to 12 miles. With varied terrain, including hills, woods, mud, dirt, rocks, and motocross sections, GNCC events are tests of both survival and speed. The series draws talent from all over the U.S., Central America, South America, Europe, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand. GNCC Racing is televised weekly on NBC Sports and RacerTV.com. For more information, please visit www.gnccracing.com.
How to Watch
Racer TV and NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) are the official homes for coverage of the AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) events. All 13 rounds, from the season opening Big Buck GNCC in South Carolina to the finale at Ironman Raceway in Indiana, will air in 30-minute, taped-delayed telecasts on NBCSN, while Racer TV provides live streaming coverage of the 1 p.m. ATV and motorcycle races from each event. Catch all the action at http://www.nbcsports.com/ and http://www.racertv.com/.
About the American Motorcyclist Association
Founded in 1924, the AMA is a not-for-profit member-based association whose mission is to promote the motorcycle lifestyle and protect the future of motorcycling. As the world's largest motorcycling rights and event sanctioning organization, the AMA advocates for riders' interests at all levels of government and sanctions thousands of competition and recreational events every year. The AMA also provides money-saving discounts on products and services for its members. Through the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in Pickerington, Ohio, the AMA honors the heroes and heritage of motorcycling. For more information, visit www.americanmotorcyclist.com. Not a member? Join the AMA today: www.americanmotorcyclist.com/membership/join.