AMA Grand National Cross Country Series: Rounds 1 and 2 - Yokley Too!

Rounds 1 and 2

Mar. 01, 2002 By Jason Weigandt

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It's a brand-new season of AMA Grand National Cross Country action, and there are big changes at the front of the ATV-racing pack. Team Green Kawasaki's factory GNCC ATV effort is off to its best start ever, as William Yokley piloted the custom-built Kawasaki KXF250 ATV to two overall wins in the first two rounds of the series. Just behind him comes an all-new class, the Pro Production Class, which runs production-based four-stroke quads instead of the custom-framed two-stroke quads used in the traditional Pro class.

Hi-Per Technology-backed riders, Chris Borich and Matt Smiley, through the whoops!

Team Green's William Yokley on the throttle!

"I'm really happy," said Yokley. "I've never won this championship before, and that's what we want." Kawasaki/Roll/ITP/IMS/Maxxis/Klotz-backed Yokley's winning quad uses a Kawasaki KX250 motorcycle engine and a Roll Design Chassis, while a pair of modified Honda 400EXs have taken the Pro Production wins. PEP/East Coast Racing/Moose/ITP-backed Greg Trew, the 2001 GNCC Open A Champion, out-dueled Bryan Baker for the win in Florida. The Nacs/Honda of Troy/IMS/Douglas Wheel/Maxxis-backed Baker rebounded for a win at Round two.

Bryan Baker on his Nacs/Honda of Troy/IMS/Douglas Wheel/Maxxis modified 400EX

Yokley entering the woods

The two rounds subjected the ATV racers to a variety of conditions. First up was the rough, sandy, high-speed conditions of the Kirton Ranch GNCC in Okeechobee, Florida, and then came the tight, tree-infested clay of Macon, Georgia's Rebel Run GNCC. The Florida event drew nearly 300 ATVs in a variety of amateur and expert classes, while nearly 400 showed up to race in Georgia. As always, the events offered great racing and good times for the racers and the spectators, although quite a few riders were ready to settle down and ease their sore muscles after the first hard races of the year.

Bill Ballance in Macon, Georgia

The start of Round 2

Unfortunately, the races were exceptionally hard for two-time and defending GNCC ATV Champion Bill Ballance, who went through one of the worst weeks of his life down south. After finishing second in Okeechobee, the Klotz/Maxxis/IMS/Moose/Axis-backed Ballance woke from his Florida hotel room to find his race trailer and all of its contents (including his quads, tools, gear and parts) stolen. He found the trailer a few miles down the road, but it had already been emptied.

Yokley and Smiley

Yokley on the podium

"It's all gone," said Ballance three days later in Georgia. "But I have a bunch of great sponsors and a whole lot of really good friends, and they've helped me a lot. It's a bad deal, but hopefully we can get it together. Maybe I can use this to get fired up some more." For the Rebel Run in Macon, Ballance's friends and sponsors pitched in to find a machine he could ride. But he wasn't used to the suspension on his borrowed mount, and after the brakes started fading on the third lap, he hit a whoop at high speed and bottomed out hard. Ballance slammed into his handlebars chest first, and retired from the race due to the pain.
Ballance hopes to regroup and start winning races again soon. For now, he's posting a $5,000 reward for any information on his stolen equipment. If you know anything that might help locate the equipment or quad, please visit www.gnccracing.com or contact the Racer Productions office.