Photo By: Matt Ware
Will Borich celebrate again when the season is over?
Along the way, announcer Rodney Tomblin started interviewing me at the races each morning, and the interviews grew longer and longer each week. The TV crew covering the GNCCs picked up on it and gave me a shot on the ATV shows, since they didn't know anyone else who really knew the racers. They liked it enough to let me try to bike shows too, and at that point I guess I was being considered an announcer in general, so Rodney and I started splitting time at the races. There was one GNCC weekend ever, Georgia in 2006, when Rodney had to host an ATV motocross race, and I had to work the whole weekend myself. I give Rodney huge credit now...it wasn't easy.
By then, I had subbed in with announcing at outdoor motocross nationals, which led to a supercross job, which led to more TV with Arenacross and then motocross. My plate was pretty full and I was getting to fewer and fewer GNCCs. I still love the people and love the races, but it's not fair to the series for me to pretend to cover events I don't even get to go to anymore. To alleviate that, we started incorporating others into this Quick Fill column, like Rodney and Rachel and Hooper. Now we've brought on a new guy, veteran Motorsports journalist and photographer Shan Moore. Between he and Rachel, they'll have all the GNCC text and photos covered, and new technical director Jeff Canfield will handle your class and rules questions. I'm going to take a reduced role in the series for now on, but I'm still coming to Florida and whatever other races I can fit in, and I'll still work with Hooper on the TV shows. After ten seasons, I'll miss being the "GNCC PR guy" very much. But I think everything is left in capable hands.
Speaking of, that let me turn this over to Shan Moore right now for his report. And I'll see you folks at the races.
Photo By: David Scearce
Nate Kanney is the only bike racer carrying a win streak into this race. One in a row!
Cory Buttrick, Charlie Mullins and Nate Kanney made the trip to Greensboro to get "race-hardened" after the cold and snowy winter and Buttrick and Mullins (who also rode the first enduro round in South Carolina last month) pretty much dominated the event. Buttrick ended up getting the win when Mullins mistook an Observation Check in section five for an End Check and slowed down. In all, Mullins won five of the six tests, but his mental snafu in the fifth check dropped him from an almost certain win to an eventual fourth overall. It would have been his second win in a row since he also won the enduro opener in South Carolina last month. Mullins was a little disappointed at not getting the "V", but he was happy about his performance and felt he was in good shape heading into the first round of the GNCC series.
Buttrick was equally excited about his GNCC prospects - not to mention his first win in national enduro competition. For the enduro, Buttrick rode the lighter KTM 250 two-stroke, but will be on the big-bore four-banger for this coming weekend.
Kanney finished seventh overall, and was "okay" with his race, although he told me GNCC is his main focus right now and he spent the winter in California living with the KTM suspension guy and he has his setup all dialed in for next week's race, so watch out for "Special K" this year.
"I rented a room with KTM's suspension technician in Corona," Kanney explained. "It was a good chance for me to be close to KTM and testing-wise, I was able to get a lot done. Plus the weather is usually reliable so you can get in a lot of riding. It rained a lot out there this year, which was good because with all the rain I didn't have to go ride at the motocross tracks, I was able to just go ride in the hills and I was able to make a practice track just out in the hills, and for me that's the kind of thing I like to ride - grass tracks and special test-type things. That ended up being the best thing I had for testing. With all the rain it made it wet and technical, which was perfect. So for me, staying out there this winter really paid big dividends because I was able to ride a lot of places and I lived with my suspension guy, so we would come home and talk about my set-up over dinner. Then the next day when he would go to work he would build another shock or fork for me and bring it home and I would test it the next day. We made a lot of progress, plus the bike has a new frame this year - new geometry - some new things on the bike, so we are learning what works on this chassis, and all I can say is this package is leaps and bounds better than what it used to be."
Well, that's it from me for this one, time to get back on the road. I'm meeting up with a few off-road guys in Croome to get some photos and have a little fun.
Thanks, Shan, and welcome aboard. Let's go to Rodney Tomblin, who is warming up those vocal cords right now.
Thanks Jason! And as I had hoped last week, here I am in Sunny F-L-A. It is so hard to believe racing will begin in a matter of days not weeks. Where does the time go? Who is really ready to go? Corey B. did very well this past weekend in the Enduro as did round 1 winner Charlie Mullins. Thad Duvall had bike problems in the Mid East as did Kailub Russell. Word is that Duvall was checking out when he had problems. Russell was running well too, but must have pushed his test and practice bikes through their paces over the winter.
Photo By: Hooper
Travis Pastrana was actually planning to race the XC2 class in Florida this year on an RM250, but he broke his collarbone while training.
As I mentioned earlier, we are here in Florida. Since last I wrote we have spent a couple days in Georgia at Aonia Pass getting a head start on the Maxxis General GNCC. Friday was my birthday, so I decided to take the day in stride. No matter what happened, I was going be relaxed. As the caravan began its journey I took the rear since I have the smallest truck. Jeff and Dean were driving the semis loaded with all our tools and of course our brand new Can Am Outlanders in the front, Tommy Harris was in the GNCC Racing water truck and I drove the Trail Boss's mobile office and ridiculously long camper. It did not take long before I noticed Tommy seemed to be lugging along under powered. There was a problem and he had to turn around and head back to the office.
The rest of us met up in South Carolina, ate dinner and decided to sleep for a few hours. When we awoke and began our drive, the call came in from Tommy. He was waiting on us in GA!!! What an animal!!! He literally turned around went back to the shop, worked on the truck and finally just grabbed the other truck and drove all night to Georgia. When we arrived a few hours later, there was still a foot of snow on top of the trucks. People were wondering where the heck we had come from. It was definitely funny.
The track at Aonia looks good. There was about 5 inches of snow the week before, but the dirt looks perfect for the race coming up there should be perfect. (Cross your fingers!)
We headed to River Ranch on Sunday evening after spending about three hours looking for JR's cell phone (which was never found, unfortunately). So Jeff won't be returning any calls!
We arrived at River Ranch on Monday and the team was excited to get the new Can Ams out again and begin to explore in preparation for the race. First thing we noticed is that the ground seemed to have more moisture in it this year. There are a few ponds of water where there was not last year, but things are very dry around these ponds so it is definitely not going to be a problem. Remember last year's bridge crossing at the road? It features running water, but our good friends at the local lumber yard have helped us build a bridge, under the bridge! Be sure to duck.
Yesterday I rode an 8 mile portion of the track. I stopped by the Finish Line Café and asked Big Gary Dellapina to come along. He climbed aboard his Can Am and away we went. The track is going to be great. Remember the Palmetto Cross section last year? Well, you will remember this one for sure! I am very thankful for the new power steering on my new XT 650! As the skies darkened and the day came to a close, Gary and I rode back to the runway. I asked him how fast he had his quad and he said he was not sure. I said, I bet this 650 will do close to 70 easy. With that he gassed straight onto the landing strip and so did I. When I went by Gary about a 1/3 of mile up the strip I was topping out at 71 MPH. Yeah Baby! I Love My New Can Am!!!!!
A couple of things to remind you of as you head out this year:
Remember we are going to work on curbing the pit riding, so please help Big John out and leave them parked! If you have a legit reason for a special pass we will continue to honor these cases but it must be cleared with Racer Productions.
There is plenty to see and do here at the Ranch for the entire family. Check out the Airboat and Swamp Buggy rides, Petting Farm and Poney rides, Putt Putt Golf, Swimming Pool and Jacuzzi, Western Store, Westgate River Ranch Saloon (for those over 21) and Championship Rodeo on Saturday night. There is even a General Store, Marina and of course the Smoke House Grill with a spectacular menu. All located within walking distance from anywhere in the pits or at the hotel here on the grounds.
Lastly, if things go well we should have Track Smack on Saturday Night with defending ATV Champ Chris Borich, and Paul Whibley, our new bike champ, on Monday nights show. Shows should start around 6:00 pm Eastern time and can be heard on GNCCRacing.com. Click the Track Smack Live link in the Quick Links section. Or at the track stop by the podium or tune in via the track FM signal.
Till next time, God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs!!!
Thanks, Rodney. Here is Rachel "The van is fishtailing all over the place" Fluharty.
Photo By: Matt Ware
Once again, it's Bill Ballance's last season.
It's a long, long, LONG 16 hour drive and on the way down Hannah and I are going to help Rodney out by making different playlists for the races. Don't worry, Baba O'Riley (Teenage Wasteland, whatever) will still be on there, but we'll add in some new stuff too. I'm thinking Diva by Beyonce for our Womens classes, what do you think?
In case you haven't noticed, we've sent out a LOT of information the past couple of days. VP Racing Fuels is our Official Fuel for the next three years. VP will have fuel available on site at all 13 rounds, this weekend at River Ranch included, including its new U4.4, MRX01 and C12, along with other VP specialty blends.
Custom Axis has also signed up as a sponsor. We are really pumped these awesome companies have joined the GNCC family.
Jason Raines' Riding University will be hosting Motorcycle Demo rides at the 2010 GNCC season opener in River Ranch, FL on Monday March 1st from 10am to 5pm. Those interested in taking advantage of this unique opportunity, please make sure to bring your riding gear and helmet. You will be able to test specially prepared Raines Racing/Am-Pro Yamahas from 85 to 450cc on a special test course. For more information and a complete schedule of future events, please visit www.rainesracing.com.
The last time I interviewed Brandon Sommers, I could barely stop laughing long enough to ask my questions. But this week when I called him I was a little put off. He sounded less than thrilled to answer the phone, but then Brandon told me some really crappy news. He has mono. Brandon was happy to talk to me, he just sounded a little under the weather. I was really bummed to find out he might not be able to race the first round in Florida because he had such an awesome 2009 season. Sommers may be going through some bad luck right now, broken leg at Ironman and now this, but he has a great attitude about the situation. Sommers said when he started to feel sick he was worried he had lost his motivation to ride, but said he was happy to find out he was just sick. That's seriously looking on the bright side of things. Sommers is going to pack up like he's going to ride at Florida, but wont make his final decision until he hears from his doctor on Friday. We wish him a speedy recovery and we can't wait to see him battling out on the track soon.
Read the interview here: http://www.gnccracing.com/articles/1950_tuesday-toolbox-brandon-sommers
We also had a BIG announcement today, Can-Am has signed up to be our Title Sponsor for the next three years. Here's part of the announcement:
2010 Can-Am Outlander™ 800R EFI XT™
Can-Am also becomes the feature sponsor of GNCC Live Timing and Scoring over the Internet. Finally, Can-Am remains the title sponsor of the Can-Am Unadilla GNCC event held in New Berlin, N.Y. and will continue to support RacerTV. Alright, Dan is yelling at me, I better get going! See you tomorrow!
Okay, let's move over to Jason Hooper.
Needing a break from the unusually cold winter we've been having in Hickory, NC, my girlfriend Krista and I packed up our new Chevy Avalanche and headed South yesterday afternoon. I'm writing this update from my Aunt and Uncle's back porch in Leesburg, FL-stealing wireless internet from one of their neighbors-and freezing my butt off! It definitely isn't as warm as I'd like it to be.
Like all of you, I'm so excited to get this season underway. It's strange how it can feel like we just left the last round in Indiana yesterday, but at the same time feel like the winter break has been going on forever. I've only been around GNCC racing for 5 years, but I think we have one of the most exciting seasons ever on tap. Two first-time champions in both of our XC1 classes are looking to defend their titles. Paul Whibley has switched brands yet again, and I'm sure everyone is anxious to see how the Axeman has adapted to his new ride. On the quad side Chris Borich absolutely dominated the series last year, and is back on his Yoshimura-powered Suzuki for 2010. Has anyone ever swept an entire ATV season? I definitely wouldn't be surprised to see Chris make a sweep of the series this year. I'm sure there's a few guys that will have something to say about that, though.
Long-time GNCC competitor Rodney Baker ran this ad in a campaign. Pretty cool!
RacerTV has a few new faces to add to our lineup this year. Well, neither face is actually "new" as we've brought back former RacerTV cameraman Brian Risch to the crew. The second addition is our new on-air talent, my lovely girlfriend Krista Shaw. Many of you know Krista for her photos, and while she'll still try and continue shooting some, she'll be taking a shot at doing our rider interviews for the show. She's a little nervous, so if you see her around, be sure to tell her good luck!
Thanks, Hooper. Small bit of housekeeping here, we have a class conversion chart for those competing in the GNCCs that also pay points in the AMA National Hare Scrambles Series East.
http://www.gnccracing.com/articles/1967_gncc-technical-bulletin-ama-nhs-class-conversion-chart
Okay folks, that's it, we're on the road from all different angles headed to Florida and Georgia. See you at the races!
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