GNCC Racing

Ironman GNCC Women’s Race Report

Ironman GNCC Women’s Race Report

Tuesday, November 5, 2019 | 12:20 PM
by:
Tuesday, November 5, 2019 | 12:20 PM

Ironman GNCC Women’s Race Report
Osburn and Tricker win at the Ironman 

The last race in the 2018 AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) Series, an AMA National Championship, took place on October 27 and 28. Named after the late, great “Ironman” Bob Sloan, the race is now in its 24th year on the GNCC schedule. Ironman is one of the most popular tracks in the series. It features creek crossings with elevation change, fast, flowing trails, and gigantic grasstrack sections through the recently harvested cornfields. As an added bonus, select parts of the Ironman Pro Motocross track are usually included. Unfortunately, the downside to this added popularity is that the sheer number of participants in the AM races usually creates an added obstacle for all the morning class riders. 

Katelyn Osburn took home the Ironman WXC ATV class win.
Katelyn Osburn took home the Ironman WXC ATV class win. Ken Hill

This year, conditions were incredibly muddy. On Saturday the rain came down hard all day, and while there was no rain on Sunday, the damage had already been done. Parts of the track were decent, but for most of the course it was a challenge to avoid the deep mudholes and a struggle to plow through the deep ruts. There was a ton of standing water in the field sections too. Of the 91 females who competed at Ironman (the largest turnout this season), Kate Osburn and Mackenzie Tricker were the winners in the premier WXC classes.

In the ATV WXC race, Traci Pickens took the holeshot again, but was unable to pull much on the other riders in the top five. Megan Shepherd came through the scoring zone in second, Andrea Berger (a new face in the WXC class) was third, Kate Osburn came through in fourth and Hannah Hunter was fifth. None of these riders had more than three seconds separating them. 

Hannah Hunter came to battle once again claiming second in WXC on Saturday.
Hannah Hunter came to battle once again claiming second in WXC on Saturday. Ken Hill

The second lap was where things got interesting. All five riders came to a huge bottleneck in the trail at about the same time. Pickens and Shepherd tried to make a new line around it, and were able to made it out of the mess a little faster than the others. Berger saw a hole open up in the crowd and tried to charge though it with Osburn and Hunter right behind her – but just before they got to the opening, a lapper slid into it, blocking them off. They got off their machines and started trying to help the other riders who were in their way, aided by Hunter’s mechanic. 

Meanwhile, Jaida Phillips had worked her way up into fifth. Unfortunately, on the third lap, both she and Berger experienced problems that took them out of the race. This left just Sadiee Gorrell and Crystal Diebold battling for fifth place. Though Gorell had a substantial lead going into lap three, Diebold ran a consistent lap and was able to reel her in. By this time the 4x4 pros had caught the pair, so the third lap was their final one.

Charging hard, Osburn and Hunter were able to make up the time they had lost in the bottleneck. By the third lap, all four riders were now within passing distance of each other. Hannah Hunter had already made it around Shepherd, and though Shepherd was able to hold off Osburn for the better part of a lap, Osburn was able to edge her out on the far side of a creek crossing and drop her. She finished fourth – a lap ahead of fifth place, but well out of sight from the leaders.

Traci Pickens pushed through the conditions to finish third in the WXC class.
Traci Pickens pushed through the conditions to finish third in the WXC class. Ken Hill

The third lap was where the majority of the battles took place. Osburn found an alternate line and passed Hunter, then got around Pickens in one of the corners on the grasstrack. Hunter was able to pass them both back, but not long after she came into a corner too hot and slid over the top of a berm, stalling her quad. Osburn took the lead again, and held it all through the final lap and right to the checkered flag. Hunter was able to get back around Pickens, giving them second and third, respectively.

When asked about her win, Osburn said, "It feels good to end the season on a high note! I'm looking forward to some good battles in 2020." Hunter’s response was similar: "I stayed calm and just raced my own race since I couldn't move up or down in the points. To finish off the season with another podium is amazing, and I can't wait for next year!" Though Pickens was third in the race, she was still the 2019 GNCC champion, having wrapped up the title several rounds ago.

Tayla Jones came through to clinch her third-straight WXC championship.
Tayla Jones came through to clinch her third-straight WXC championship. Ken Hill

Alexis Keys was the winner in the Girls class this race. She finished one minute ahead of second place Hannah Moore. Anna Nicely rounded out the podium with a third-place finish. Andrea Rodgers was the Girls class champion for the 2019 season. Jessica Elihof won the Women’s class, her first GNCC win this season. Sydney Sams was the Women’s class champion for the 2019 season. 

In the Micro ATV race, Khyler Davis was the top finishing girl, finishing first overall! She was followed by Zoey Hawkinberry (14th), Gabryella Whitehead (28th), Grace Bender (29), Mia Decesare (30th), Grace Kemp (32nd), Raelynn Dickerson (37th), Jenna Bery (41st), and Aubrey Benner (43rd) 

Mackenzie Tricker took the holeshot in the WXC bike race. The first lap was pretty chaotic: there were multiple leaders during the lap, Tricker sunk her bike in a mudhole, and Korie Steede crashed out of the race. When the dust (or in this case, the mud) settled, Rachael Archer held the lead, with Becca Sheets nineteen seconds behind and Tayla another thirteen from her. Though help was nearby and Tricker was able to free her bike relatively quickly, she was still nearly a minute down from third place at the end of lap one.

Mackenzie Tricker (center), Rachael Archer (left) and Becca Sheets (right) made up your WXC top three at Ironman
Mackenzie Tricker (center), Rachael Archer (left) and Becca Sheets (right) made up your WXC top three at Ironman Ken Hill

The next closest rider was Annalisa Davis, who was roughly eighteen minutes down. She rode by herself the majority of the day, as she had almost the same amount of time over sixth place rider Shyann Phelps. When Phleps had a battery issue that took her out of the race on the second lap, it sealed the deal on a fifth place for Davis. This is her highest-ever finish in her first year of racing in the WXC class. 

Lap two was no calmer than lap one for the WXC class. They started to get into the lappers, and with 634 total AM bike entries, there were plenty of them out there! Archer was able to stay in the lead until her pit stop going into the third lap. After two laps of plugging away, Tricker had caught back up and took the lead when Archer pitted, and Sheets was not far behind her. Jones had fallen back to fourth place after encountering some kind of problem on lap two – her second lap was ten minutes slower than both her first and second lap were. This dropped her back to fourth for the day. 

It was an all-out sprint to the finish. Despite the (presumably) worsening track conditions, every rider in the top three ran their fastest laptime on their final lap. Tricker rode a clean last lap, and finished just out of sight of second-place Archer. Archer and Sheets briefly battled, though Archer eventually got away, leaving Sheets in third for the day. When asked about her race, Tricker said, “Today was awesome! After getting stuck I just plugged away and tried to keep it on two wheels. The last lap was an all-out sprint with Becca [Sheets] and Rachael [Archer], but I'm so stoked to come out on top, it's a great way to finish the year!” Archer was also happy about her day, saying "I'm stoked to finish fourth for the series in my first pro season! Big thanks to everyone for allowing me this opprotinity, especially the crew at AmPro Yamaha, my boyfriend Dylan and all the friends I've made over here. I'm excited to see what next year brings!" Sheets told us “"I spent a little too much time on the ground today, but I think we all had that problem... I'm just happy to finish on the box in one piece!" Although she finished off the podium at Ironman and missed a couple of rounds this season, Tayla Jones was the WXC class champion for the 2019 season.

Mackenzie Tricker grabbed the WXC holeshot.
Mackenzie Tricker grabbed the WXC holeshot. Ken Hill

Indiana rider Emma Robey took home the Girls class at Ironman. She was joined on the podium by Gracie Gooch and Ellie Winland. Although she did not race at Ironman, Nikki Russell was Girls class champion for the 2019 season. Prestin Raines took her second win in the Womens class this season. Jocelyn Barnes was the Womens class champion for the 2019 season. In Womens C, Kara Parsons was the winner, and the only one in the class to get in a full two laps. Taylor Murray was the Womens C champion for the 2019 season.

In the micro bike race, Paisley Harris was the fastest girl, finishing 41st overall. She was followed by Isabel Boorom (49th), Cassie Fairfield (55th), Mya Dexter (56th), and Rylee Mattison (74th)

Rachael Archer battled back to earn second in the WXC class and third overall in the Ironman morning bike race.
Rachael Archer battled back to earn second in the WXC class and third overall in the Ironman morning bike race. Ken Hill

The GNCC awards banquet will take place on December 6th and 7th with the ATV, Micro ATV and eBike banquet taking place Friday night and the Bike and Micro Bike banquet taking place on Saturday. Both will take place at the Morgantown Marriott at Waterfront Place. Keep your eyes peeled for the 2020 race schedule and have a safe and relaxing off-season!

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.

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  • Twitter: @gnccracing
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Ironman GNCC
Crawfordsville, IN
Round 13 of 13
October 26th and 27th 

ATV WXC Pro Event Results: 

  1. Kate Osburn (HON) Action Off-Road/Moose Racing/GBC
  2. Hannah Hunter (HON) Ye Old Cycle Barn/Texiera Tech/Maxxis
  3. Traci Pickens (YAM) GBC/Fly/Yamaha
  4. Megan Shepherd Stewart Boys. Racing/LS4/Rage ATV/DeRisi Racing
  5. Crystal Diebold (HON)
  6. Sadiee Gorrell (YAM) Maxxis /Fivesixo Graphics/Custom Axis/Pierce Performance
  7. Jaida Phillips (YAM) Rekluse/Tirespine/Estes Motorsports
  8. Andrea Berger (YAM)
  9. Abbi Troy (HON)
  10. Jill Zink (HON) 

ATV WXC National Championship Standings: 

  1. Traci Pickens 257
  2. Kate Osburn 240
  3. Megan Shepherd 218
  4. Hannah Hunter 202
  5. Alicia McCormick 189     
  6. Sadiee Gorrell 169
  7. Jaida Phillips 154
  8. Angel Knox (Magee)   88
  9. Kara Short   56
  10. Abbi Troy   54 

Bike WXC Pro Event Results:

  1. Mackenzie Tricker (KTM)
  2. Rachael Archer (YAM) Ampro Yamaha/Moose/PWR
  3. Becca Sheets (KTM) FLY/Maxxis/Go-Ko Trucking/KTM
  4. Tayla Jones (HSQ) Rockstar Energy/Husqvarna/Moose
  5. Annelisa Davis (KTM) Ride Free Ministries/Martin Motorsports/Joseph W. Davis
  6. Abby Defeo (KTM)
  7. Elizabeth Perez (KTM) Y&S Designs/Factory Connection/Fly
  8. Shyann Phelps (KTM) Mike Beeler/Racer’s Edge

Bike WXC Pro National Championship Standings: 

  1. Tayla Jones 279
  2. Becca Sheets 270
  3. Mackenzie Tricker 226
  4. Rachael Archer 207
  5. Korie Steede 163
  6. Shyann Phelps 150
  7. Annelisa Davis 131
  8. Elizabeth Perez 122
  9. Shelby Rolen 104
  10. Rachel Gutish 85 

About GNCC Racing:

The AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country Series (“GNCC”) is America's premier off-road racing series, featuring motorcycles, ATVs and Side-by-Sides, for men, women and children of all ages. 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 trails ranging in length from 8 to 12 miles. With varied terrain, including hills, woods, mud, dirt, rocks and motocross sections, GNCC events are tests of both survival and speed, drawing talent from all over the United States, Central America, South America, Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. GNCC Racing is televised on NBC Sports and RacerTV.com. For more information, visit www.gnccracing.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.