Elka Yadkin Valley Stomp GNCC
Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Fred Andrews Racing Kawasaki
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Monster Energy Kawasaki FAR rider Jesse Robinson got off to a last place start. The track was dusty and 9 miles long. Jesse put in a charge that put him in sixth place at the finish. Jesse said that he was not feeling good at the start of the race and was glad it was over.
XC1 Results
Charles Mullins. Yam
Paul Whibley. Hon
Barry Hawk. Yam
Garrett Edmisten. Kaw
Glenn Kearney. Suz
Jesse Robinson Monster Kaw FAR
Jason Raines. Yam
David Knight. Ktm
Jim jarrett. Suz
Anthony Roberts. Hon
XC2
Josh Weisenfels put the Monster Emergy Kawasaki FAR out front on the first lap and was pulling away until Josh hit a tree with his foot and smashed it. The smashed foot slowed Josh down. Josh led the race all the way to the white flag. The pain in his foot was too much and slowed his pace and ended up in third for the day.
Scott Watkins got off the line last and it took awhile for Scott to get the Monster Energy Kawasaki FAR bike up to speed. Scott was able to work his way up to fifth for the day.
XC2 Results
Thad Duvall. YAM
Justin Williamson. Ktm
Josh Weisenfels Monster Kaw FAR
Rodney Smith. Suz
Scott Watkins. Monster Kaw FAR
Zach Osborne. Yam
Wallace Palmer. Kaw
Brian Lawson. Yam
Eric Bailey. Ktm
Jake Kron. Ktm
David Knight
Racer Productions US Grand National Cross
Country Race Series
Round 11, Yadkin Valley Stomp GNCC,
Yandinville, NC 30.9.07
Busy weekend for Knight as victory at Endurocross Rnd 1 is followed
by eighth at US GNCC Rnd 11
Red Bull KTM Off Road Race Team’s David Knight scored a mixed bag of results during the last weekend in September as the former two-time Enduro 3 world champion competed in both the opening round of the ’07
AMA Endurocross Championship in Colorado before jetting into round
11 of the US GNCC series in North Carolina. With the opening event
of the three-round Endurocross series the first indoor race of the
season, Knight started as he means to go on by claiming victory ahead
of trials rider Keith Wineland and former World Supercross Champion
Damon Huffman.
Disappointingly things didn’t go as well for Knight at round 11 of the US GNCC series. Having claimed victory at round 10 to extend his championship advantage David could only manage an eighth place finish after crashing in turn two and then struggling to work his way forwards due to the tight nature of the course and an injured thumb.
Marking the start of the indoor enduro season the opening round of the ’07 AMA Endurocross championship saw a capacity crowd enjoy spectacular racing at the National Western Complex with David Knight showing just how serious he is about claiming back the Endurocross championship from last year’s winner John Dowd. With the event bringing together many of the States top off-road racers including Mike Lafferty, Ty Davies, Ricky Dietrich, Geoff Aaron and John Dowd, Knight claimed an impressive win and in doing so took his first step towards claiming the Motorcycle Mechanic’s Institute $50’000 Triple Crown Bonus.
Flying overnight in order to get to round 11 of the US GNCC series in North Carolina Knight’s hopes of extending his championship lead were ended when he crashed in turn two, which put him last in the XC1 Pro class. Having made more than his fair share of bad starts this season, and having always been able to work his way back to the front of the pack in no more than a couple of laps, Knight struggled to work his way forward due to the combination of having injured his thumb and the tight nature of the track. Although working his way up to 10th by the end of the opening lap Knight only managed to move forward a handful of additional positions during the following six laps and although getting as high as seventh on lap six finished in eighth.
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With two rounds of the ’07 US GNCC series remaining Knight holds a 12-point lead in the overall championship standings.
David Knight: “Obviously I’m really pleased to have won the opening round of the Endurocross championship but I’m not happy with eighth at the GNCC. Both championships are important to me but I really needed a good result in North Carolina with just two rounds of the GNCC series to go.
“The Endurocross event went really well. It was certainly different racing indoors again after such a long time. I’d been practicing a lot at home over indoor style obstacles and I felt like I was pretty well prepared. Anything can happen indoors, I guess John Dowd showed that by not qualifying, but I kept out of trouble and got the win.
“It’s hard racing two events in one weekend, especially when one is on Saturday night and the other starts mid-day on Sunday. But I felt ok, I just had a bad race. It was a really bad track to fall on the second corner. I’ve had plenty of bad starts this season and have been able to work my way forward ok, but not this time. The track was really tight and I just couldn’t make any progress. I made some mistakes, hurt my thumb, and just couldn’t get passed riders. I guess I have to look on the bright side and I’m still leading the GNCC championship, as well as the Endurocross series too.”
William Yokley
The Yadkin Valley Stomp GNCC Race Report
Yadkinville , NC , September 29, 2007
William Yokley recorded a DNF today at the Yadkin Valley Stomp GNCC race in Yadkinville, NC. There were 172 competitors in this race including 22 XC1 Pro riders.
Summary
The GNCC race this weekend took place in a beautiful part of North Carolina known as the Yadkin Valley wine area. We arrived Friday night and I was looking forward to this race because I felt I was prepared and my KFX-450 has been working awesome. I worked on my suspension settings during the 2 weeks since the last race, and I was happy with the way the bike felt. I have got the starting solved and the engine is strong.
The weather was perfect, sunny and warm. The track consisted of a lot of tight, technical new trails, and I expected a lot of dust due to the summer drought. The red clay soil was going to be rough!
I got a good start and was right up front at the first turn, but I was pushed wide. I entered the woods in eighth place, and settled in for the two-hour race. At about the three-mile marker, I began to notice that the bike was laboring and something was wrong. Something was definitely wrong with the rear brakes, and it was getting worse.
The bike was screeching to a halt. I made it to a creek where I stopped and tried to cool things down so that I could at least make it back to the pits to make repairs. I knew things were bad because I could see sparks and smoke coming out the rear of the bike. I finally made it to the pits many minutes behind the leaders.
We assessed things and realized it was terminal. The rear disk brake had been damaged by a rock or stump and had bound up on the caliper. There was no way to make repairs, and I had to drop out. I never quit unless there is no other option, and I hated that this happened. I know these things occur, but it seems that I have been having a lot of bad luck lately. The only thing you can do is look forward, work harder, and get ready for the next race.
The good thing is the bike is working great, and I feel like I am due for a good finish. We go to St. Clairsville, Ohio in two weeks, and I can't wait. I've got two races left to get some good finishes, and I won't quit trying. I'll see you there!
Paul Whibley
Race Report: Round 11, GNCC Yadkinville
Rider: Paul Whibley
Team: Moose, Parts Unlimited,
Honda
Bike: Honda CRF 450X
Dust was set to be a factor again at the Yadkinville GNCC, as we could see clouds of the red soil rising through the trees as we drove in on Saturday. Off the line, I got my best ever start and was third around turn one, with Jimmy Jarrett and Charlie Mullins leading the way. A short grass section before we dove into really tight and dusty woods section. Lap one completed and I was still in third. Early in lap two I stalled and Barry Hawk passed me. It was hard to hang with him in the dust, so I dropped back a bit to ride relaxed and avoid hitting any unseen obstacles. After a quick stop for fuel, I was in fifth position. I got on a mission and began moving up. Jimmy Jarrett who had been running in second, crashed and dropped back. I soon caught and passed Barry, moving up into third. I was getting pit board signals that I was gaining on Garrett in second. I caught and passed him on the fifth lap. With two laps to go, I was getting signals I was gaining on Charlie Mullins, who was leading the race. By the checkers, I had narrowed the gap, but had to settle for second position. After everything that has happened this year, I was really happy to be back up on that podium.
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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. Alpinestars. Tire Balls. Vortex Ignitions. IMS.
Moto SR. Stringfellows. Darbis Accessories
Am-Pro Yamaha
Round 11 of the Grand National Cross Country series was a tough one for everyone. If you didn't start out a red head you were one by the end of the day! That red dust flew high over Yadkinville, North Carolina due to the extremely dry conditions. No doubt Team Am-Pro Yamaha was ready to take the challenges of what this tight course had to offer. Sixteen XC1 Professionals took up the front row of the day's main event. It was Charlie Mullins who had no problem getting the ball rolling at this round; he grabbed the hole shot and was a front runner from early on. Suzuki rider Jimmy Jarrett was the leader in lap one. Charlie was on his tail with Barry Hawk in fourth and Jason Raines in seventh. Thad Duvall started out the XC2's with a upper pack start but took a little cool off break when he ended up in a creek bed. He later thanked an unknown spectator on the podium for help getting him going in time to salvage a good charge for the lead.
The second lap was a little messy with Barry Hawk breaking his nose early in the first lap thanks to a rock thrown by Paul Whibley's tire. He said it felt like warm water running down his face from a hose! Charlie was hunting down Jimmy Jarrett who was leading lap one and two and Jason Raines had to keep high and tight with David Knight breathing down his back. Thad was still recovering from his crash and trying to make up time on the leaders Justin Williamson and Josh Weisenfels.
On lap three and four Charlie took the lead with Barry now having to pass Garrett Edmisten to get into the third place position and Jason getting passed by Knight, Robinson and Joshua Strang. Thad Duvall was still in third place chasing down the leaders with only pit boards to know where the leaders were.
Lap five and six started to turn things around for Jason Raines, he passed Strang and was behind David Knight up until just after the now famous creek jump, where he really put the pressure down on Knight and went for the pass that would this time stick for good. Charlie stretched out his lead on now second place Paul Whibley, who was followed by Edmisten and Hawk. Thad would stay in third place until the last lap just to make his parents grow one more grey hair. (Don't teenagers always try to pull that!)
The last lap would turn out to be a little hairy for Mullins. Just when he thought he had victory in sight he hit a lapper going over the creek jump and got knocked off of his bike. With some quick moves to get going he rode the rest of the race safe and to the finish for his second GNCC win on the year! Barry managed to maneuver his way around Edmisten for a podium finish, and Jason was just getting in his comfort zone. He was just 15 seconds away from Jesse Robinson, but he did put David Knight behind him to cross the finish line in seventh place. Thad Duvall wanted to make a grand entrance into the finish line barrels in first place but not before he did some "riding on the edge" moves to pass Weisenfels and Justin Williamson. Throughout the day all the team riders had to dig down deep and overcome battles with riders they thought were too far away to pass and they all were winners in their own races.
The Yadkinville land owners really put out a lot of effort to put together a great race, installing a new jump over a creek out in the woods that made it easy for a lot of spectators to go out and see that yes, woods riders really can jump, and they also had the afternoon riders run through the abandoned house again, along with the tunnel through the water. But the best part of all was that the Team Am-Pro Yamaha riders had a big part in making the show what it was, and that was a great day of racing! All the racers would like to thank Yamaha for their support this weekend and many more to come.
RESULTS
Charlie Mullins- 1st
Barry Hawk Jr.- 3rd
Jason Raines- 7th
Thad Duvall- 1st (XC2) 9th overall
Powersports GrafX KTM
GNCC Round 11 Sept 30, 2007
 Dustin Gisbon Hooper photo |
Yadkinville NC—This was the 11 th round of the GNCC series and as usual this season, it was very dry.
Jason Gilleland was the highest finishing team rider this weekend. Jason pleased the crowd with “trick riding” on the last lap as he entered the pit straight. He was most effective with wrestling his motorcycle to the ground. After taming the unruly beast he finished 11 th in the XC1 class.
Dustin Gibson got off to a great start by grabbing the “Holeshot Award” on his KTM 250XCF. Dustin sheared off his rear brake line, crashed and returned to the pits. Dustin proceeded to set his highest personal score on “Guitar Hero”.
Team XC2 Pro Lites rider and current 200A champion, Kailub Russell tested the structural limits of his kill button. After making repairs in the woods and losing a lap, Kailub rode brilliantly and put in some great laps.
Jordan Ashburn suffered from a multi bike pile-up off the start and moved up to fifth in 250A before suffering from an unusual crash induced mechanical failure. Jordan was the second person to finish in his class. Too bad it was before the checkered flag fell.
Overall it was an uncharacteristic Bad Weekend for the team… but we looked good.
Next Event: GNCC Round 12, Powerline Park, St. Clairsville, OH.
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