Welcome to Quick Fill. Wow, just as quickly as this season came upon us - it's already gone.
Thinking back to the first race of the season in Florida, it's hard to imagine an entire race season has played out and we're already planning for 2012. Westgate River Ranch was the first time I had ever witnessed a cross-country race and surely I had never seen a dead-engine start, heard the famous "TEN SECONDS!" call or even realized that dirtbikes and ATVs pit stop just like the NASCAR folks. I was ignorant to the world of GNCC Racing, to say the least. Rodney Tomblin talks about this all the time and I think I agree - the first time I truly got hooked on GNCC Racing was at Steele Creek when after three hours of intense racing Charlie Mullins washed out just before the finish line, giving Josh Strang the last-minute win. Up to that point I hadn't fully realized the craziness that makes up GNCC and I was floored that so much could happen throughout the duration of one race.
Photo By: Jen Kenyon
Thanks to PG Graphix and Raceday Pix for the cool number plate decals for VC5!
If you're a young racer or a parent of a young racer and you feel like you're putting in more time and effort than you even thought was physically or monetarily possible, you may have stopped at some point and asked yourself - WHY? Well, I think if you were anywhere on the Loretta Lynn's Ranch Sunday afternoon, that question was answered loud and clear. By now everyone knows that Charlie Mullins is the first American-born GNCC Champion since Rodney Smith in 2004 - but what does that mean? It surely doesn't mean that our previous non-American champions don't matter or that we don't appreciate how they've elevated our sport internationally. It simply means that Charlie Mullins has ignited a new wave of racers that have grown up with GNCC Racing from the Youth ranks in hopes of one day clinching that XC1 championship title. To see the emotion between Charlie and his family/crew was something special that only validates the hard work and sacrifice it took for him to get to where he is today. I think we'll see the same thing with Walker Fowler on the ATV side as the Fowler family has a lot to do with Youth classes being around today. I think every kid has the dream to one day be not only a champion but just a part of Pro Row and the whole spectacle of glam that comes along with it. (Not to say there won't be disappointment as well, but you get the point). Hats off to Charlie and his family for achieving that "American Dream" and opening the door for generations to come that might not believe there's actually an end to the means of racing.
I know a lot of people are waiting on the 2012 schedule to be released and we're working hard to finalize things as soon as possible. We're aiming to release it before the end of next week, so hold tight and we'll throw something your way soon! We had our first-ever GNCC double-header this weekend at Loretta's and I think prior to Sunday the idea of two races in a weekend sounded like a home run; however, by the end of Sunday there's no doubt that people were spent. In planning for the future, a double-header will remain in the game but the chances it of it happening again soon aren't very likely.
Photo By: Jen Kenyon
Tons of emotion after Sunday's race win for Mullins and his family
It's about time to dive into the Silly Season headfirst. There's already rumors flying through the pits about who's going where, so stay tuned to see it unfold here on QF. Although we have a lot of riders signed and sealed for next year, there's still plenty of free agents out there so don't forget to be pro-active in planning for 2012 because if you don't, someone else will!
Banquet, Banquet, BANQUET! Don't forget to secure your reservations for this year's...uhhum banquet. In all seriousness, the new location is amazing in both the conference center and the hotel rooms so there's no reason not to stay right there at Waterfront Place and enjoy a weekend of celebration. Dan is working on a killer online registration system that is pretty much ready to go so be on the lookout for that very soon. In the meantime, though, if you have a class champion be sure to fill out the form to get your sponsor swag as soon as possible, like right now. We have a very tight deadline and we want to make sure you al get the stuff you want so fill ASAP, please :) Here are links to everything you need to attend the banquet this year:
Waterfront Place Hotel Online Reservations - use Group ID: 102186
Waterfront Place Hotel Reservations by phone: 1-866-782-9974
That's all for me. If you don't see anything on the website next week just assume I accepted the challenge to race an ATV this weekend at Fast Traxx Motoplex for the Team GP competition. Here's Mr. Bolt-On.
Thanks Jen! So we've finally wrapped up the 2011 season, or as I like to call it, "the greatest season in GNCC history". There's no doubt in my mind that this season was nothing short of epic, and yes, there I go again over-using that word but it truly is a fitting description of 2011 for both bikes and ATV's. This year we truly saw it all from run-away wins, to down-to-the-wire battles and the first ever double-header weekend. We saw bizarre weather conditions in the middle of the season and near-perfect conditions at the end. We saw multiple winners in some classes, and we saw the first-ever perfect season that Walker Fowler completed in the XC2 Pro-Am class. Given all these factors and other's that I surely left out, how could you not use the word "epic" when describing the 2011 season. Well, "awesome" always come to my mind, but that's a different story.
Photo By: Jen Kenyon
Have you ever seen an 8-Time champ look at a kid with more admiration?
This past weekend's Loretta Lynn's event was just another incredible page in the 2011 chapter of the GNCC history books. As already mentioned, this event featured the first ever double-header for the bikes which undoubtedly showed how tough GNCC racers are as they endured not just one, but two races just a day apart. A few riders compared it to the ISDE with a day of rest in between and four less days of riding. Regardless though, the 2011 Loretta Lynn's event will be another notable page in the history books. What about the actual racing action? Well, once again, it was nothing short of epic (I'm beating this dead horse even more). The ATV race was fitting with the theme we've seen in 2011 as the top three or five guys all basically seemed to stay wheel-to-wheel the whole time, swapping positions the whole way. Chris Bithell jumped out front to control the race early but he had challenges in the form of Taylor Kiser, Chris Borich and later Adam McGill worked his way through the pack.
The most exciting part was when the guys came onto the motocross track on the final lap. The top three were once again wheel-to-wheel and battling the whole way. Eventually, Chris Borich made the pass for the lead. Adam McGill and Taylor Kiser got tangled in a turn for a brief second and unfortunately didn't get to challenge Borich down to the final turn but the show those guys put on during their final time around the motocross track more than made up for that. In the XC2 Pro-Am class, Walker Fowler completed his perfect season at Loretta's. There's no doubt that it's tough enough just to put together a string of wins in GNCC racing, but Walker managed to string together an entire season of wins. There's no doubt that Walker is THE future of GNCC ATV racing and could very well be the one to challenge the number of ATV titles held by Bill Ballance and The Man Himself, Barry Hawk.
Photo By: Jen Kenyon
Congrats to Stu Baylor for his XC2 championship, on a borrowed bike!
On the bike side, it shaped up to be a pretty wild weekend as well. On the Friday race, it was Charlie Mullins showing his true "Check Out Charlie" form as he jumped out front early and controlled the entire race. Behind him, a good race would develop as both Kailub Russell and Josh Strang would charge from behind up to podium contention positions. Cory Buttrick also hung around in second place for, well, basically the entire race. Unfortunately, with just around a lap and a half to go, Charlie Mullins' bike let go. With the majority of the KTM team helping, they tried for several minutes to get the bike running on the trail but they were forced to push the bike back to the pits. This handed the lead over to the Axeman Paul Whibley who had also worked his way up through the pack. Whibs would hold on to the win ahead of Buttrick and Strang. In the XC2 class, Steward Baylor was forced to "steal" Allen Gravitt's bike for the race after his wouldn't start. It didn't seem to phase him much as he held on for second place behind Jordan Ashburn. The second place was good enough for Steward to wrap up the XC2 class title!
With Mullins' misfortune on Friday, this meant that the chase for the title would come down the Sunday. Once again, "Check Out Charlie" did what he does best early on and jumped out front to control the entire race. Josh Strang had begun working his way up until he went down on the second lap and ended up with a broken leg. Jimmy Jarrett and Cody Gragg both stopped to try to help get Josh back on his bike but he couldn't make it much further on the bike. We once again saw several riders begin to work their way through the pack with those being Kailub Russell once again, as well as Australian Toby Price. Cory Buttrick also ran up front early before withdrawing from the race with a hand injury. With a strong lead and no serious challenges, the door was left wide open for Mullins who cruised in for the win, and the title. Kailub Russell would put in a good enough charge to take second ahead of Paul Whibley. Toby Price ended up fourth right behind Whibley and for a while it looked like Toby was going to catch Whibs to take the final podium spot.
While it's sad to see the epic 2011 season end, there's no doubt the Loretta Lynn's event was a good way to cap off the greatest season in GNCC history. It's still early to be talking about 2012 but there's no doubt that it will have some big shoes to fill after the amazing season we just wrapped up. It seems like it was just a few weeks ago that we were kicking off the season in Florida and now we've already closed the book on the season. While some may be ready for a break, there are some of us that are already looking forward to kicking off the 2012 season. If it's half as incredible as 2011 was, then we're still in for a treat.
Photo By: Shan Moore
Weege claims that everyone else was carrying their bikes through the Cyclecross course as well....
Thanks Bolt-On. I'll pass it along to Shan Moore, who has possibly been on the road since Ironman. What a trooper!
Thanks, Jen. What a fantastic conclusion to the GNCC season! The weather at Loretta Lynn's couldn't have been better (maybe a little drab on Friday, but it wasn't bad), and the racing was fantastic. There were tons of industry types at the finale, and I think a lot of "outsiders" were getting a first or second look at GNCC racing and I'm sure they came away impressed. I spoke with Derek Sorenson, the product and racing manager of Husqvarna, and he mentioned how much he was impressed with the professionalism of GNCC racing and how important it was to the industry.
I was super impressed with the number of people who voiced support for Charlie Mullins' XC1 title at the final podium of the year at Loretta Lynn's. As Weege explained during the ceremony, Charlie is the first rider to graduate from the GNCC Youth program and then go on to win the XC1 title, and his story is a good one. After suffering engine problems on Friday, Charlie proved beyond a doubt on Sunday that he's the fastest rider in the world when it comes to the GNCC format, winning the race by over two minutes. As a matter of fact, since the summer break, he's been in a different league, and he credited his improvement with a trip to California where KTM team manager Antti Kallonen worked with him on technique and strategy.
Charlie's win sort of made history because it made him the first American XC1 champ since Rodney Smith took the title in 2004. Juha Salminen held it from 2005 to 2006, David Knight from the Isle of Man was champ in 2007 and 2008, while New Zealand's Paul Whibley and Australia's Josh Strang claimed the titles in 2009 and 2010. I'm wondering how Juha would stack up against today's GNCC competition. I think the competition has stepped up considerably since 2006 and I believe it would be interesting if Juha came back to ride one of the events.
Photo By: Jen Kenyon
Easily the cutest kid on the circuit
I had the chance to spend some time with Charlie and his wife Rachel on Tuesday at their home in Hickory, doing a photo shoot for a Cycle News story and then off to watch Charlie, Jason Hooper and Weege race a CycleCross near Charlotte. It was a really cool course set in a local park, which ran around a couple of baseball fields and up and down the little hills that surrounded them. We were running a little late getting to the park and after a mad dash through rush-hour traffic we got there just in time for signup. Charlie came on strong at the end to take the win, a la Chris Borich (Charlie says that's his M.O. in bicycle racing). Meanwhile, Hoop and Weege had a great battle going between them, although I'm not really sure which one came out on top.
O
verall, it's been a great week, and now I'm off to find a Laundromat to wash two week's worth of dirty clothes.
Thanks Shan. Here's a few epic words from Rodney Tomblin.
Thanks Jen. What can anyone say about the 2011 Can-Am GNCC Series other than epic? Realizing that this is a word that has been thrown around a number of times this season, it must be said at least one more time. The definition of epic I feel describes what it was like right down to the wire in this seasons championship battles. Epic means a long series of events characterized by adventures or struggle and I do not feel anyone can deny that this was one of the most adventurous GNCC seasons as a whole in quite some time.
Congratulations to all our champions and all competitors for being a part of one of my most memorable racing seasons since I first watched the legendary Barry Hawk lead a field of ATVs across a flooded start field in Parkersburg, West Virginia circa 1995. I cannot recall a season where so many records were set or broken.
I have to do some research but I would have to say that Hunter Hart must be the youngest youth GNCC ATV champion racing in the 8-11 90 Mod class. Hunter Started like three rows back and still rode to the overall win in most of the 2011 races.
Super Dave Simmons and his amazing rides this season were also pretty historical. Dave is the first non-Women class overall morning #201 plate holder in a long time if early calculations are correct. Also in that morning race Traci Cecco captured her 8th Women Class championship, which is another history making accomplishment.
The afternoon brought even more history breaking moments for the record books. Pro Am Champion Walker Fowler won not one but two overall race victories this season beating the entire field in traditional GNCC racing starts. Walker also rode to a perfect undefeated season in the XC2 Pro Am Class this season. Not many have done the perfect season in GNCC and no one has ever done it in the Pro Am ranks. Walker is also the first "Modern Day" Youth ATV racing graduate to get a GNCC overall podium or and overall win as well.
Saturday evenings brought extra competition to the GNCC at a number of the rounds with the Side-by-Side or UTV racing action. This is a discipline that is taking on a life of it's own right now. You see everyone from Husband and Wife teams to father and son teams. Also driver and whoever else is crazy enough to ride with them teams. Congratulations to this year's top team of National Guard/Polaris/Coastal Drilling's William and Tina Yokely. This duo came in second at the final round in Indiana behind the #2 team for the season of Larry and Larry Hendershot in the Hendershot Performance Team machine.
Photo By: Jen Kenyon
WMR's Rob Fox getting down and dirty at the Seat Time Awesomeness Tire Changing Competition
The 10:00am races seemed often to bury itself among a field of Sportsman class riders that seemed to dominate the morning overall. However, as they are not scored as part of the overall, the true morning champions are often overlooked and really deserve a big shout out for the hard work they put out there. Like the #201 morning bike of Randall Riggs. Riggs is Masters A 50+ rider and has quietly been dominating the top morning results once again this year. Riggs seems to be among the front runners again for the #201 capturing 4 overall wins and finished out the top 3 overall only 3 times for the season. It is going to be a close one with he and classmate Mark Patterson and a few others but will be interesting to see what the final numbers turn out.
Then of course there is the "explanation point" to the weekend with the "Epic" battles that was the 2011 championship. Seeing the cover of Cycle News with Charlie Mullins and then reading the awesome stories by our own Shan Moore helped realize that this "long series of events characterized by adventures and struggle" was the end of a monumental season.
Don't forget to register for the banquet and your rooms at a discounted rate now and be there celebrate this season of "Epicness". This is a new location at the Waterfront Place Hotel and it is a magnificent place to end a season such as this.
Photo By: Jen Kenyon
The Youth bike championship was close-knit at the LL double-header - congrats to Austin Lee!
Till next time God Bless Your Heart and All Your Vital Organs.
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