By Chad Ford

The historic MX venue again welcomed the GNCC faithful for a weekend of racing action. The weather held good this time and the track was in excellent shape for the 185 youth bike riders in attendance. The season is nearing the end and there are many point battles shaping up for the series championship contenders.

Cody Mummert took the overall win at Unadilla. Daniel Brockett photo

The overall youth bike Champion and winner of the Big Wheel 14-15 class moved up to the morning race and entered the Sportsman class. Walker Fowler rode to a solid fourth overall finish showing he is ready for the next step. The Big Wheel 14-15 class winner was Cody Mummert of Glenville PA and he also topped all youth riders. Second place was Brandon Bolling from Powhaten VA, Scott Marling from Cameron WV was third, Ryan Lojak of the Tarentum PA racing Lojaks was fourth and Stephen Harris from Hamburg NJ was fifth. A review of the points for the Big Wheel 14-15 shows places 3 rd through 5th are separated by only 6 points heading into the last three rounds.

Steward Baylor from Belton NC won the battle in the Big Wheel 12-13 class and was second overall. Steward is battling with Arthurdale WV rider Zach Nolan for the class championship. At this point Steward has a 2 point lead making this a class to watch for the remaining rounds. Zach finished second at Unadilla but will be gunning for the win in the remaining rounds as always. Nick Davis from Meshoppen PA finished third, AJ Stewart from Lake Lynn PA put in another consistent ride for fourth, and Buckhannon WV rider Derrick Shaw finished fifth.

The 85cc 14-15 class has some tight points battles as well. Zackery Smith of Abbottstown PA was a first time participant and won the class on this day. Second went to class champion McKinnon Wellborn from Boonville NC, northeast rider Benjamin Gustavson from Putnam CT was third, Joel Chapman from New Cumberland PA was fourth, and Bryce Martin from Newnan GA was fifth. The race for 2 nd place in this class is a 2 point battle between Bryce Martin and Cody Carr and the race for 5 th is also a 2 point gap between Wes Hill and Wil Coleman.

In the 85cc 12-13 there is a storm brewing. Chris Meadows from Athens OH is currently 3 rd in the points but is hoping to “win out” which would grant him the class championship. Chris is getting it done so far after the summer break with wins in both rounds. Tyler Braniff from Terra Alta WV finished second in his best ride of the season. Lane Michael from Fairmont WV had his toughest race of the year finishing third and only needs to finish ahead of Meadows in one of the remaining rounds to wrap up the title. Dillon Shoemaker from Thomas WV rode to fourth and John Wagner of Confluence PA was fifth. Another close points battle in the 85cc 12-13 class is the tied race between Cody Dice of Smithfield PA and Miss Ashely Crouch who hails from Pittsburg TX for the 5 th place spot. Cody has steadily improved this season and Ashely is showing she will have something for the Women’s class contenders in a few years.

The 85cc 7-11 class winner was Jonathan Girroir from Southwick MA. Tegan Temple from West Chester PA was second, Derek Holcomb from Newark Valley NY finished third, Justin Sokol from Winsted CT was fourth and Ethan Jaudas of Harminster PA was fifth. A review of the points for the 85cc 7-11 class reveals a couple of “sleepers” as Aaron Plessinger has six wins and a second but is currently 3 rd in the standings with only those 7 races and one more win will put him to the top of the standings. Dieter Willenbrock is ranked 7 th with only six races and will jump up in the standings considerably with a couple of finishes in the next three rounds.

One of the tightest points races is in the 65cc 10-11 class. The winner in NY was Ryan Slopko from Londonberry OH, Tyler Crawford from Rockbridge OH was second, Tristian Stumbo from Laurelville OH was third, Austin Lee from Bedford IN finished fourth and Trent Smith from Hambleton WV finished strong in fifth. The top 4 spots in the 65cc 10-11 class are separated by only 6 points. A rider to watch is Tyler Crawford who apparently did his homework over the summer break as he has returned to the series with a win in PA and a second in NY.

The 65cc 7-9 class winner was Jarrett Mohn of Kunztown PA. Nicholas Johnson of Lockport NY was second. Carter Calkins from Corning NY finished third, Anthony Stone from Reedsville WV was fourth and Gary Enman from Bangor PA was fifth. The battle to watch in the 65cc 7-9 class is for 3 rd place between Mack Jones who is currently in 4 th with only 7 races and 3rd place rider Jonathan Johnson who also has 7 races.