GEICO Mountain Ridge GNCC
Team Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/FAR Kawasaki
GNCC Round 9
Somerset, PA
After a long summer break the Monster Kawasaki FAR Off Road Team was ready
for some GNCC racing at Somerset, PA.
The weather was in the mid 70's and the
track was a rocky 10 mile loop.
 Watkins takes third in XC2 |
With the drop of the flag Monster Kawasaki FAR rider Jesse Robinson was all business. He rounded the 1st turn in 8th place and was on the move. At the end of the 1st lap Jesse was in 7th place with 4th, 5th and 6th inches ahead of him. On the 3rd lap Jesse put the Monster Kawasaki into 5th place and was looking to pass some more riders. Jesse was on the move and working his way to the front when, going into one of the many rocky sections, Jesse hit a rock and bent his rear sprocket. The chain guide held the chain on until there was no more chain guide. After the chain guide was gone the chain started falling off. Jesse put the chain on 4 times and still finished 7th in the class!!
Jesee said "I worked real hard over the break and was riding really good today. I had a top 5 ride today until my chain came off. That's racing. I am looking forword to the next race."
XC2 Class
At the start of the XC2 class Monster Kawasaki FAR riders Josh Weisenfels was in 3rd with Scott Watkins in 5th and PA Allen in 8th place. When Josh came through the pit, Josh was in 2nd place with 1st in his sight. At the scoring tent Josh was on the leader's rear wheel. Josh stoped and put new goggles on and droped back to 3rd place just in front of fellow team rider Scott Watkins.
Josh came around the 2nd lap in first place with Scotty in 4th. On the gas stop on the 3rd lap Scotty was 3rd and Josh was in 4th after having trouble in one of the rock gardens. Scotty got into 2nd place at the white flag and Josh was still in 4th. At the finish Scotty came across in 3rd with Josh in 4th.
Scotty said: "I got stuck in one of the rock gardens and that how I got passed. I am looking to put the Monster Kawasaki FAR bike on the box the rest of the season."
Josh said: "I was fast all day and got to the lead only to have trouble in the rocks each lap. That cost me a spot on the box today."
PA ended the day in 10th place. With 2 lap left to go, while in 8th place,
a rock put a hole in his motor and ended his day.
Maxxis
Maxxis All-Over Pro & Amateur Podiums; Borich
Takes GNCC ATV Lead
The summer break is over,
and the Killer Bs are ratcheting up the tension again.
Chris Borich won the first GNCC ATV event of the fall,
nabbing a three-point lead in the race for the title.
Bill Ballance took third place at the Geico Mountain
Ridge GNCC, held September 1 in Somerset, Pennsylvania.
“What a race,” Borich told gnccracing.com. “Some people think I haven’t been training over the break, but guess what? I have been. I got the points’ lead now, and I’m just going to come out here and do the best I can and hopefully win the rest of them and grab me a championship. I need one.” Borich finished in 1:56:25 hours, after a bruising contest that was closely fought all the way to the finish line.
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Ballance was not discouraged despite his difficulties during the race, which included mechanical problems. “Hey, I got third. I don’t know how, it seems like we were just barely going around the track, but it’s what I needed to hopefully move onto the championship after all this,” he told gnccracing.com.
Other Maxxis riders also rode their Razrs to the top ten: Matt Smiley took fifth place, and Brandon Sommers took seventh overall, along with his seventh Pro Am victory of the season. Duane Johnson grabbed eighth, Brent Sturdivant was ninth and Taylor Kiser rounded out the top ten. Sommers also won the ATVRiders.com holeshot award.
In the morning race, it paid to be part of the Maxxis-riding Team Warnert Racing Can-Am: Michael Swift, Scott Kilby, and Cliff Beasley swept the morning podium and won the Limited 4x4, Open 4x4 and Lites 4x4 classes respectively.
Maxxis congratulates Chris Borich and Michael Swift on their victories and thanks all of these fine riders for their outstanding performances.
Warnert Racing Can-Am
Warnert Racing’s
Swift, Kilby, Beasley Sweep Mountain Ridge Podium
Warnert Racing’s Can-Am Race Team returned
from the Summer Break on fire with yet another Can-Am Outlander
Podium Sweep. Warnert Racing’s Michael Swift (4x4
Limited) secured his first career Overall win by edging
out teammates Scott Kilby (4x4 Open) & Cliffton Beasley
(4x4 Lites) amazingly tying for 2 nd Overall, which is
another first in GNCC History.
Round #9 of the GNCC Series was held in Somerset, Pennsylvania high up in the mountains of western Pennsylvania, the course was laid out over rolling hills, open meadows and through bottom lands choked with ATV eating rocks! Warnert Racing riders were well equipped to do battle on this formidable terrain aboard their Warnert racing prepped Can Am machines. With all riders reaching for the same goals, Warnert was poised to strike at yet another national event.
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4x4 Open
Teammates Scott Kilby and Richard Cecco head
into the second half of the season just points apart in
the ultimate race for the class championship. With both
riders covering two series aboard their Warnert machines,
the racing has remained intense with neither rider getting
much in the way of down time between races. Kilby and Cecco
were standing tall before the start and each knew that
the race had great implications as both men rocketed off
the line to start the grueling two hour event. Kilby was
out front early with Cecco following close behind. The
advantage swung heavily to the two riders as the conditions
got rough and they were able to pull away from the pack
and concentrate on winning. Cecco made a great stand midway
through the race but in the end it was Kilby who took the
class victory, with Cecco following him across finish line
in second. The pair remains separated by just 2 points
with just four rounds of racing remaining.
4x4 Limited
Micheal Swift was on the line to defend his
domination in the 4x4 Limited class. Swift's remarkable
season has him in complete control of the points chase
for the 4x4 Limited class. Coming into this round, Swift
holds a remarkable 7 class wins, only dropping out of the
top spot at one round where he finished second. The race
had its twist and turns as carnage struck many racing machines,
however when the dust cleared Swift once again rallied
to claim his 8th win on the season with a minute to spare
over his closest competitor.
4x4 Lites
Cliffton Beasley has been ripping up the 4x4
Lites class, and running a great season battling with fellow
Can Am rider Jeremy Dudding. The pair has been dodging
trees and rocks together with Beasley besting the field
of talent to claim win after win. This round would once
again see Beasley out front when it counted; taking home
his 7th class win of the 2007 season.
With Beasley’s win, Warnert Racing swept the podium in the 4x4 classes marking yet another milestone in our successful year. Our racers head off for the next round to be held in Unadilla, NY on Sept 15th at the Can Am sponsored race. With our brand being the title sponsor, you can bet each rider will be doing everything possible to bring home another sweep!
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Split radiator hose denies Knighter victory at US
Red Bull
KTM Off Road Race Team rider David Knight saw his hopes
of extending his points lead in the ’07 US Grand
National Cross Country Race Series come to nothing at the
Mountain Ridge GNCC staged in Somerset, PA, when the reigning
Enduro 3 world champion placed 11th in the XC1 Pro class.
Charging through the pack during the first lap following
a poor start Knight ended lap one leading having seethed
his way passed all of his championship rivals. Extending
his lead lap-on-lap DK looked to be headed towards his
fifth win of the series when his bike lost its coolant
ending his hopes of victory. Forced to slow his pace, and
having to stop repeatedly to fill his bike with water,
on the sixth and final lap his bike finally expired forcing
the series points leader to push his 450cc KTM across the
finish line to claim an eventual 11th place finishing position
in the XC1 class.
David Knight: "I can’t believe what happened. It just seems to be two steps forward and then one big step backwards at every other race this season. The race was mine to win, I had the speed, I had a good lead, and then on the last lap my bike lost all of its coolant. I was stopped for about 10 minutes and only two riders came passed me, that’s how big my lead was. I tried to ride slowly because I knew I just had to get to the finish. Eventually the bike stopped so I had no choice but to push it to the finish. 11th is a pretty bad result considering I was leading the race for so long, but at least I managed to get some points. The way things are going this season I need all the points I can get."
William Yokley
The Mountain Ridge GNCC Race Report
William Yokley finished 19 th overall, 13 th XC1 Pro today in the inaugural running of the Mountain Ridge race in Somerset, PA. There were 245 total racers in this race including 23 XC1 Pro riders.
Summary
It’s been a busy time for me
during the summer GNCC break. Our twins were born on July
16 th, and they had to be monitored in a hospital in Louisville
for three weeks. We stayed in a nearby hotel and basically
spent day and night with them in the intensive care unit.
They are now home and all is well, and are gaining weight
and healthy.
I have been training and getting my bike dialed in for the last five races of the season. I felt confident that everything was working well and looked forward to this race. We arrived Saturday morning to 48 degree weather, a far cry from the heat and humidity we had in KY all summer. The day was perfect, sunny and heating up to the low 80’s.
The start flag dropped and I got a mid pack start, and by the time we got to the woods, I was up to 7 th place. I passed a few more and was in 4 th about mid way though the first lap. I arrived at a mud hole and swerved to go around it; unfortunately, my front wheel got hung on a log and spun me around wedging it in tight. It took me a couple of minutes to get it free and on my way again; by then I was behind all the pros and half of the pro-am riders. I pushed hard to make up time and passed a few in the next couple of miles.
Then my day got worse! The track had rocks everywhere, similar to the WISP event with all sizes and shapes. My bike, suspension and tires were working great in these conditions but I hit a tall sharp rock that wedged in between my skid plate and frame. I was in 3 rd gear and the bike stopped in an instant, sending me over the bars into more rocks. It happened so fast that I wasn’t even able to get my arms out in front to cushion the impact. I face planted head first which rang my bell big time, thank goodness for my Shoei helmet! I thought I was hurt pretty bad at first, my back and neck took a lot of impact. My goggles were broken and useless.
I made sure that I could at least walk and move everything OK, and attempted to get going again. I must admit I really didn’t know where I was the rest of that lap completing it in 18 th place. I got a new pair of goggles and headed back out. Lap 2 and 3 were not much better and I was in 17 th beginning the last lap. I began feeling better on the bike and moved up to 13 th by the finish.
My weekend was not what I hoped for, but my bike is working better than ever and my fitness level is very good. I will continue to work hard and get ready for the Unadilla, NY race in two weeks. I like that track and I will be ready!
Powersports Grafx/KTM
Team KTM/PowersportGrafx
riders dominate “Mountain
Ridge” GNCC
Somerset, PA—This was the first round
back after a 2 month break in the GNCC schedule. Team riders
were ready to get back to business and they did get back
to business!
Jordan Ashburn (250B) rode his 2008 KTM250XC to an overwhelming class victory (20 th overall) and clinched the class championship. Jordan will move up to the 250A class for the remainder of the season.
Kailub Russell is now the 200A national champion (undefeated). Kailub won his class and finished 17 th overall. Kailub will make his Professional debut at the next round at Unadilla.
Jason Gilleland is recovering from his broken wrist this summer. He rode his ’08 KTM to an impressive 9 th in the XC1 Pro class.
Big news of the day was the outstanding ride put in by XC2 rider Dustin Gibson. Dustin won a hard fought battle for 1 st and at one point was in the top 3 overall! Dustin rode a flawless race on his 2008 KTM 250XCF.
In summary, that’s:
1 st in XC2
1 st in 200A (championship)
1 st in 250B (championship)
Won, Won, Won.
Thank you for your support!
We appreciate the support of our sponsors
KTM, PowersportGrafx, KTM Hard Equipment & GENUINE SPARE PARTS, MAXXIS tire, IMS products, Sidi boots, SCOTT goggles, NGK, CV4 products and MOTOREX.
Paul Whibley
Race Report: Round 9 GNCC Series
Rider: Paul Whibley
Team: Moose, Parts Unlimited, Honda
Bike: Honda CRF 450X
We arrived at the track on Saturday with enough time to sign up, find our pit
spot and get a feel for the land at the venue. Sunday came around quickly and
we were soon lined up, steering at the starter anticipating the wave of the
flag.
I got my usual start and had to work my way from the back.
I moved up to 10th in the first tricky rock section as
a few guys went down or got stuck. In the next tough section
it was my turn to wad up, the front end deflected off a
rock sending me into a tree. The bike stopped pretty quick,
lucky I was thrown clear and made a safe touch down. I
picked myself up but had
lost all the positions I had gained earlier. A few riders
were having having problems with damaged brakes and broken
chain guides but the development Morrie had done since
our problems at Sparta paid off and the bike worked great.
The track was pretty dusty out of the woods so passing was difficult. I gradually moved my way forward but by the end of the race had only worked my way up to 10th, with a last lap pass on Kawasakis Jessie Robinson.
I was a little disappointed with the result but I'm looking
forward to the next round at Unadilla, with hopefully a
little less dust.
Thank you to my following sponsors:
Parts Unlimited
Moose
Honda
Honda Pro Oils
HRCA
WER
Cycra
RG3
Motion Pro
Sunstar
Braking
Wiseco
Ek
Tag
Powersport Grafix
Thumper Racing
Pirelli
CTi
Smith
Alpinestar
Tire Balls
Vortex Ignitions
IMS
Moto SR
Stringfellows
Darbis Accessories
Team Am-Pro Yamaha
The weather couldn't of been better at round 9 of the GNCC series in Somerset, Pennsylvania. The sky was clear and sunny with a slight breeze from the west.
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All the big guns showed up including David Knight, putting to rest rumors of a broken collar bone. Jason Raines started out picking his starting launch pad for the first time in over two years at a GNCC event. Barry Hawk was just two spots to the left and Charlie Mullins about dead center of the pro starting row. But it was team Suzuki's Glenn Kearney that claimed the holeshot and an early lead that did not last long due to a collision with a down log early on.
Barry, Jimmy Jarrett and Charlie were running one, two and three heading into the woods section but Mullins was having a number of problems starting with his camelback not working then with his chain coming off so many times it finally broke and raveled up in his wheel resulting in a rhino having to tow him back. Charlie's pit crew quickly worked to repair the damage meanwhile Knight had come from dead last in the first turn to pushing his way through to the front runners which was lead by Barry and Jimmy now running one and two.
By the start of the second lap Knight had made his way to the front and was creating some what of a lead. Charlie jumped back in, almost 35 minutes down and ready to make up some lost time. Barry Hawk was busy trying to work his way though the woods while Jason Raines was trying to ride through the dust of the front runners finding it tough to dodge the rocks lurking below.
As the race wore on into the passing mile markers giving them more visibility, Jason worked his way through improving his position one by one. Charlie's day ended early when the chain problem just couldn't be fixed giving way for Hawk to gain points and chase down Knight, that at one point had over a minute and a half lead. Charlie's bad luck also struck Jason when he hit a huge rock and bent the shifter into the sidecase making shifting with his hand the only way to limp back to the Am-Pro Yamaha pits for repairs. After over 10 minutes of bending, breaking and replacing the shift lever, Jason's hopes for battling with the big dogs again was going to have to be for another day, this day was about salvaging what was dealt to him. Still that hunger for racing another GNCC was boiling in his blood and Jason wasn't about to give up. He had many lappers to contend with and even collided into another rider that cut across the pit area, spinning him around and knocking the other rider to the ground.
At the half way point Barry was hunting down Knight and trying to keep at bay FMF Suzuki rider Jarrett still in third. All Charlie Mullins could do was watch from the side lines as his second place points in the standings were fading away . Meanwhile Raines was picking off other pro riders in his class with his determination, but the mishap in the morning still left Jason behind in the pack.
As the white flag waved high, so did white smoke from front runner David Knight's radiator. Making the possibility for problems for KTM, and opportunity for Yamaha's Barry Hawk to go after the win. Hawk had been pushing an intense and focused race the whole time waiting for the right time to pounce on his prey, and that time came with less than a lap to go when Knight's bike finally gave up. Hawk rode in to the finish line winning the race and making his wife's hopes of winning today come true for their anniversary. Jason Raines rode a smart race for the rest of his debut back to the GNCC circuit knowing that their would be plenty more to come. He challenged his way to 10th place in the pro class and coming out of it walking on both legs and ready for the next race.
All the racers would like to thank Yamaha for their support through the weekend and many more to come.
Results:
Barry Hawk 1st
Jason Raines 10th (in pro class)
Charlie Mullins DNF (Broken Chain)
Thad Duvull DNS (Broken Collarbone)
Points with 4 races
left:
Barry Hawk (2nd, 5 points out of lead)
Charlie Mulins (3rd, 26 points out of lead)
