And some of it is old news. Check out this funny Blackwater clip on YouTube-now over 500,000 hits!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gOZqj5ycXo&sns=em
Anyway, our reporters have plenty of news to share, including the new schedule locations and our proposed pro rules. Let's let our Gossip Girl, Rachel "Chris Farley" Fluharty, explain more.
I thought that when racing season was over, press release season would slow down too, but I was wrong. Really wrong! This week Racer Productions has had a lot to announce. First, 2010 National Numbers are now official and up on the website.
http://www.gnccracing.com/pages/2010-gncc-national-numbers
If you haven't picked up the December 2009 American Motorcyclist, go do it now (and if you raced GNCC, you're an AMA member so you should have the mag in the mail). GNCC's very own Randy Hawkins, owner and Team Manager of Am-Pro FMF Yamaha, graces the cover along with fellow inductees to the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame. I chatted with Randy yesterday about this special honor. In the magazine Randy is touted as the off-road legend, but Randy told me when he started racing, he didn't even know the AMA Hall of Fame existed. He just rode for fun on the farm he grew up on. Maybe you didn't know this but Randy started out racing go-karts and had early dreams of being a race car driver, until his parents bought him his first motorcycle. Hawkins worked his way through the ranks until he won his first AMA National Enduro in Texas in 1986. Hawkins signed his first factory deal in 1987 and won his first championship in 1988.
Photo By: Jason Hooper
250 two-strokes could become a big part of the series again once they're racing in the XC2 class.
The most significant changes highlighted are for the bike classes. Racer Productions has established a minimum age requirement that will be implemented over a one-year grace period. The 2010 minimum age requirement for the XC2 Pro Lites class will now be 15 years old, and 17 years old for the XC1 Class. In 2011, these ages will increase to 16 and 18 years old for the respective classes.
The second change for bikes allows the use of 250 two-strokes in the XC2 Pro Lites Class. This change is consistent with the AMA Amateur Racing Rulebook.
We're also announcing the 2010 Locations today! We've had the dates up for a few weeks now, but now we're finally able to see where we're going to be trucking for the 2010 season. We're back for the opener at the West Gate River Ranch as part of Bike Week and from there we'll travel to the same tracks we went to in 2009. We'll be back to hang out at Henry Turner's Big Buck farm and hope for a dry weekend at the Titan.
The May 8-9, 2010 date hasn't been announced yet, but we'll get that to you shortly. To check out the full schedule, click here.
I always thought Parker Jones was a really shy, quiet type until I called him up to talk for Tuesday Toolbox. Usually I can tell in the first two questions who's chatty and who's not and Parker was fantastic to talk to. He was working hard on the farm loading trucks with corn, but he still told me a lot about his season and how he started racing. While most guys get to train during the day or in the evenings during race season, Parker is working tilling, planting and harvesting on the farm. But his bosses are GNCC fans too and are pretty lenient about him leaving for races. Parker stood up to some pretty stiff competition in the XC2 Pro-Am Class with FRE KTM's Josh Kirkland and privateer Brian Wolf. Next year, who knows what could happen from the 20-year-old Parker? Kirkland will be back but who knows about Wolf yet. Only time will tell.
In GNCC Facebook Gossip, Yamaha's Taylor Kiser decided he needed another adrenaline rush besides ATV racing and decided to go skydiving. Taylor was kind enough to send me an awesome picture that makes my stomach hurt to look at, and talk about what it's like to just casually jump out of an airplane strapped to a complete stranger. That's trust.
Also, happy birthday to Barry Hawk's wife, Kristen! Barry better have gotten you something awesome. And if anyone see's our GNCC Morning Race announcer Hannah Reid tomorrow, make sure you wish her a Happy Birthday, too.
Ok, that's it for me! I hope everyone has an awesome Thanksgiving. I'm headed home to the Fluharty farm for a meal with my very wonderful, very loud family.. mmmm sweet potato casserole.
Thanks, Rachel. Yes, our proposed Pro Rules are available. As for amateurs, we will wait to chat with you folks at our Rider's Meetings, which take place the day after our GNCC banquets. Based on that feedback, we'll frame up rule proposals and send them out for you to comment on. Look for all of this to be completed in December.
Now let's turn it over to Jason Hooper.
By the time Quick Fill is posted, I'll be somewhere in Japan with one incredibly motley crew including: Kailub Russell and his dad and GNCC trail boss, Jeff, Kailub's brother Trevor and his cousin Tanner as well as his girlfriend Chandler, Jeff Cernic, David "Hollywood" Cripe, my girlfriend and awesome photographer Krista Shaw, Josh Strang and his dad Vance. That's one heck of a crew that will be representing the GNCCs, and I'm sure that I'll come back with some pretty good stories! Stay tuned to my site www.digitaloffroad.com as well as www.gnccracing.com for updates from the trip.
The JNCCs run their races in a pretty similar fashion to us, with a morning amateur race followed up by an afternoon pro/am race. I'm fortunate enough to be able to race in the morning race this year on a 2010 Fantic Caballero 200cc 4-Stroke. Yeah, that's right, a 200cc 4-stroke! JNCC President Masami Hoshino was kind enough to try and find a bike for me, and I'm pretty stoked for the chance to race in Japan. Not too many people outside of professional racers get a chance like this. Now, let's just hope that the Fantic has enough horsepower to haul my fat butt up the hills! If you want to get a look at the track Strang and Kailub Russell will be doing battle on, check out this YouTube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_I086muG0s
Speaking of video, check out this incredible video of Kailub Russell and 4 Stroke B Lites racer Pierce Blake. These kids have some crazy talent! http://www.digitaloffroad.com/2009/11/15/kailub-russell-practice-video/
I spent some time bench racing with the 2009 Top Amateur Chris Bach last night, we were mainly talking about all of the silly season rumors that are floating around out there. Bach has been working on a deal for himself for 2010, and it'll be interesting to see what he'll be riding and how he'll do with the #14 in the XC1 Pro Class. The tough economic times have definitely had an impact on GNCC factory team budgets and there are a lot of really, really good racers out there without rides at the current time. Guys like Charlie Mullins and Jason Thomas have yet to sign, and I've even heard talks of Paul Whibley going to the Am-Pro Yamaha team, or even to Husqvarna. I imagine that the JG Racing/Geico team might have a thing or two to say about those rumors!
Thanks, Hooper, and have fun in Japan. That's definitely one crazy trip, although I did just hear that the motley crew has lost Jeff Cernic, who broke his ankle and wont be able to make it. But now we just found out that Randy Hawkins himself is heading over, he's got a lot of connections in Japan. Now for more on that Chris Bach guy, we'll turn it over to Rodney Tomblin.
Wow! Thanksgiving is just a week away. I am planning my annual pilgrimage to the Winter National Olympics at Gatorback Cycle Park in Gainesville, FL. I have been doing this for several years now and it has become somewhat of a tradition for me. So I find myself usually taking some time the week before to begin my own personal Thanksgiving. I am thankful for my family and their health, for my friends and their good fortunes, for the right to live in a free nation and the choice to live my life how I want and the opportunity once again to be a part of the world's premier off-road racing series.
The GNCC has been a big part of my life for over a decade. I believe the year was 1997. I was invited to Parkersburg, WV by Big Dave. I guess John Ayers, the series announcer, couldn't be there for whatever reason. Anyway, I had been exposed to only one woods race in my life, the 1996 National Hare Scramble Race at what is now known as the John Penton GNCC. (I still have the shirt) So I was not real sure on what to expect from an announcing standpoint. I remember it had rained and the pit area had gotten flooded. So Racer Productions moved everything to the parking lot of a factory located on or next to the race track. The things I remember about the races are, it was a one day event, the start of the ATV race looked like they were on wave runners from all the water spray and in one of the most epic bike finishes I have ever witnessed, Rodney Smith and Fred Andrews were literally slamming off one another through the finish line straight onto the podium. Who won? I can't remember!!!! I think it was Freddy, but not 100% sure. What a finish though! And thus began my thirst and hunger for the world of the GNCC.
To say the least I was impressed. And each year it seems I am impressed by more riders and fans of our Great GNCC Racing Nation. This year has been no exception. Where to begin is the question? Well, for the next few weeks I'll outline some of my thoughts from the races this year, because there are several folks both bike and ATV that leave an impression from this last season.
Photo By: Matt Ware
Chris Bach being interviewed by Rodney.
Bach had raced the 250A class back in '07 finishing 4th behind some top talent like Corey B, Joe Dirt and Joe Guenther. Then in '08 what he describes as "a bum year" Chris was nowhere to be seen in the top ranks. Then in 2009, with his sights set on a new challenge, he was set to tackle the W.O.R.C.S. series when his sponsorship deal fell through at the last minute. Left with no ride for 2009, he used the one bike he owned personally to train, practice and race on. Chris rededicated himself back to the GNCC Series. He missed the 1st round of the season and then DNF'ed in Georgia for round 2. When he showed up to the Steele Creek GNCC in North Carolina for the 3rd round, he was behind the 8 ball so to speak "I finally put a good race together in NC., but Jordan Ashburn beat me by 8 minutes in NC, and I rode my heart out... he just flat beat me" Bach said. When the dust settled on that one, he was 8 minutes behind a blistering fast Ashburn. Chris had been training for a totally different style of racing and he knew at this point he needed to switch gears back to GNCC style or he was going to see this happen more often. After that, Chris was an animal on the track. He and Jordan began a war that waged through the rest of the season. Chris earned his 1st top 10 overall with 8th and captured the Top Amateur award for the day at The MotorcycleUSA.com Snowshoe GNCC. Talk about a confidence booster! Bach said: "Getting a Top Amateur was amazing! Racing with Jordan is so much fun, and so challenging, it made it one of my all time life highlights that day." At this point the hunger was there and he was focused on his mission. After Snowshoe, Chris said, "I put my head down and just did what I could do to try and be the best I could be. I won the rest of the races, and 4 Top Amateur awards, until the final race in Indiana. Realistically, I never thought all season I would have a shot at this title till right after 'dilla, but I knew I had a shot at top AM. I did what I could do on my end, and that was to win the races and get the top amateur awards. It worked on getting me the 2009 Overall Top Amateur Award, but the final race got me for the Open A Championship." In the end, both Chris and Jordan Ashburn accumulated 177 points and 6 wins each. It came down to who won the final race, and Jordan came out on top.
Still, for a rider who didn't even plan on racing the GNCCs this year, it was a good effort by Bach. What can we see out of Chris Bach next year? Chris told me, "Having reached the results I did in 2009 with one bike and almost no support, going into the XC1 class for 2010 seems like a great fit. I'm very excited about racing XC1 for next year. I was inside the top 5 OA this year during some races, so I have proven that I have the speed and fitness to do it."
I am impressed....Good Luck Chris!!! And until next time GNCC Racing Nation, God Bless Your Hearts and All Your Vital Organs
Thanks, Rodney. I talked to Chris this week and he says all he is looking for is two bikes to get through the season. He has all of his other sponsors lined up, he has a trainer and he's ready. He just needs a race bike and a practice bike and he thinks he can make an impact in the XC1 class.
So that's a lot this week, including the schedule and national numbers, which is info we know you've been waiting on. So we'll let you feast on that, and then feast on your feast next week. We'll post a very short Quick Fill here next week and come back with a full-length version on December 3rd. By then, we'll be ready for our GNCC banquets. See you there!
A little gift from our friend Amy McConnell over at Quad Zone.
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