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2006 GNCC Round 3

""Steele Creek"" Morganton N.C.

Mar. 29, 2006 By Ricky Sosebee

The fight is on! With the Pro ranks being shaken up by the Young guns and morning overalls being championed by the women's class we are definitely in for a fun season. Round number three was held once again at the beautiful Steele Creek Campgrounds in Morganton North Carolina. The weather was probably just as unpredictable as the race results posted throughout the day. Coming into Morganton on Friday night I encountered a heavy to moderate dusting of snow. By the time I had arrived at the motel the snow had all but stopped but would prove to be in town for a while on Saturday also. I wonder who's directing traffic up there in the weather department? For a while the sun was shining and it at least felt warm and instantly it was overcast and extremely cool which left me searching for a thick jacket to wear. Talk about unpredictable.

So now you know the weather in the atmosphere lets talk about what was happening in the pits. Bill Balance and Chris Borich are probably the most talked about riders in our series but don't let anyone fool you they are not the only riders in their class. Young Guns are sprouting up everywhere and there are just as determined riders waiting for their chance at the spot light. Chris Jenks is becoming a force to be noticed and he is more determined to do just that before the season is over. Chris Bithell is also a Pro-Am rider turned Pro and we have not seen the last of him either. Wow I think I am getting ahead of myself so lets get back to the morning stuff.











The starting line was located in just about the same place it has always been, along the biggest field section, and in much the same fashion as years before. The crowds have grown tremendously and so have the number of riders attending the race.The women's class is defiantly on fire this year and this race was really no different from the last three. Our Local service woman Jennifer Fulkerson is surely using her strength by pushing  her-------- out front on the start. This wasn't meant to be though as Traci Cecco had a lot of steam heading into the woods. Traci would find this day to begin difficult by having a good dismount but soon convinced herself she needed to stay focused in order to get back up front. And we cannot discount Stephanie Parton as she bolted up through the crowd of female riders to get her piece of the action. Stephanie would find herself succumbing to mechanical troubles before completing one lap and had no choice but to push her Outlaw behind the curtain as the show had ended in the Polaris camp. This has to be devastating for Stephanie as she has worked so hard to get to this level. So who else is pounding the earth in the women's class? Angel Atwell is doing her best to bring home the wood with her second appearance on the podium this year. Angel has struggled for years to be consistent and all the hard work is finally paying off. She will fill the third and final podium spot this weekend and once again we have all women on the stage. Its Traci Cecco with the overall, Jennifer Fulkerson trailing in second and a very excited Angel Atwell in third.

     Rick's Quick Quiz: How many guys have said they will never be out run by a woman? Look for the answer at the bottom of the page.

  
Moving on to some more exciting news from the morning race. There were amateurs racing today! Can you believe that? Some have trouble realizing that amateur means, "I have never done this before". If you are going to race in the morning classes you must understand that there will be less experienced riders racing along with you. So my advice is to be patient and do not get all enthralled in your own personal grief if they do not get out of you way when you expect them to. It's just a race. Everyone pays the same amount to show up and remember this you got beat by a bunch of women anyway!( No disrespect meant here) Have enough respect for yourself to remain calm and use your brain to beat the less experienced instead of whining and acting like a brat when it doesn't go your way. Be Patient!

    Enough soap boxing let's get back to our Amateur race coverage. Whew, I'm glad that's over.

So with John Gallagher taking home his class win Richard Martin would be glad to grab the second spot and Ken Vickerd pulled a solid third for the day. Do you think these guys get tired of always being in the front of their class? Nahhhh. With John Gallagher sr getting faster and faster on his Polaris Outlaw do you think anyone could ever take the number one plate from him? Only time will tell but this time the answer is no.

    So with only three races into the season has anyone noticed that Bombardier is greatly improving the finishing lineup? Micheal Swift is living up to his name in the Utility Stock class by running away from the pack and bringing home yet another first place finish. Swift and teammates Clifton Beasley ,Mike Penland and Scott Kilby have begun a revolution for the Outlander 800 Manufacturer from Canada. Bombardier is getting serious about how the machines handle on and off the track. Mike Rogers with BRP is on hand at every race working with each of his riders trying to get the best possible setup for each rider's style. Micheal Swift would take home the first place plaque followed closely by Sam Williams and another Bombardier rider Will McCampbell. This race however would leave class favorite Mike Penland with a flat front tire and some busted plastics after an encounter with a noncooperative object. But as always Mike put on a smile and his comments were "that's racing".

    Moving on into the Utility Mod class an very excited Brock Parker limped his Looney Tuned Kawasaki Prarie into victory lane once again. Brock let me know that even though his LTE Prarie wasn't running just right it finished the job for today. Brock has been dealing with some electrical problems for the last two rounds. This season looks bright for Brock and I hope he can finally put his past injuries and luck behind him. Scott Kilby cannot be counted out though as he was right in the mix to take home second place for the day on his Outlander 800. Scott seems to have recovered from the horrific accident that almost took his life at our last round in 2005. This is determination at its best and I think we will be seeing more and more of Scott's awesome riding style for years to come. Chad Busha and Clifton Beasley would make five. Did I mention that Clifton Beasley was riding for Bombardier also? :-)  I thought I had.

Well the final Utility class is the Unlimited's. I spoke with a young man just before the race to see exactly what his plans were and even though we didn't get to finish our chat I did see a familiar grin and something about him said" Im here to win"or maybe"I  am here so that he may be also"..This young man is non other than our 11 time utility stock Champions son. Hoyt Penland is following in his fathers footsteps and doing quite well. Although Kevin Johnston would take the win tin this race and Micheal shelly grabbed second Hoyt was just as excited to get fifth. I think with more and more seat time and with an instructor like his father, Hoyt Penland will be up front in no time. Consistancy my friend, that's what you need right now and the wins will come with time. The legendary name lives on.

The stock class is another tough one with last years podium regular Billy Good doing his best to get another championship. Allthough Billy would come in at seventh place he is never to be discounted. This guy is very fast and should be pulling off some amazing finishes before the season wraps up. Scott Sleppy took the gold in the Stock 0-350 class and Blake Chasserean took second. These guys are all good competitors and will be tough throughout the year on anyone brave enough to stage their machines on the same line..

    Well the morning classes are winding down and I took this chance to run back to the truck for some nourishment. Only to find I had left an electric fan on in my truck and the battery was dead as a hammer! What can you do. I just decided that I would act as if nothing was wrong and sneak back off to the starting line for the evening race.

The racing began with Ricky Towery throwing the green flag and then staring at me across the field to see if I was going to catch the Holeshot rider on film. As you know the ITP tire guys have been giving away one hundred dollars to the first quad in the Pro class that reaches the silver line just outside of turn one. Bill Balance barely nudges out Chris Jenks for the extra cash. There must have been at least two tread lugs of space between these two when they reached the line. Bill Balance would go on to rally himself past a few more riders but someone was watching from behind. Chris Borich had made plans to sneak up on Bill and do some snipeing before the day was over. Chris had scoped out a final chance line and made sure that he positioned himself just right for this spot." I didn't want to use this line while Bill was behind me because it was a faster way through and he might have seen it so I just let him ride out front and waited for my chance to take it" says Borich. Chris Borich would do just that and in the final few hundred feet Borich made his move and stole the thunder from under Balance. They were literally wheel to wheel at the finish line. While Chris was waiting on his chance to steal Bill's glory a true battle was forming right behind them. Chris Bithell had been up on the podium before and wasn't sure if it was luck or skill. I think that this weekend he showed everyone that skill is defiantly the culprit here. I love to see the excitement in these young guys eyes when they get up in front of their friends and family and all the hard work pays off. What a confidence booster that must be for him. Another rider that has set his goals high this year is Duane Johnson. Duane hails from the Pro-am ranks and is surly getting some respect as he battled all day to be fourth in the Pro class as well as the overall. William Yokley would get fifth and Chris Jenks would have to settle for sixth place.

The 2 stroke A and B class would see some history show up as Mike Robinson of Stanley North Carolina would come to the starting line on his Kawasaki Tecate 250 fourwheeler. This was the first time I had seen the famous Tecate in person. I can still remember when the three wheeled version hit the pages of Dirt Wheels Magazine and i was just a young boy then. Although the Kawasaki legend couldn't keep up with its Honda counterparts it was still good to see something different in this class. Ryan Shockling brought it at this round and seems to have set his goals on a class title also. Ryan is a 250r regular and I hope he can be consistent enough to keep the Honda Legend up front. Mark Stoops handled the second place with Mike Robinson getting third and with only four in this class Justin Mayes would have to settle for that spot. The class for the two strokes seems to be getting smaller every year and but I think as long as Gncc has a spot they will always allow these two strokes to race.

Four stroke A class seems to have one young gun looking to make a statement here in the GNCC series. Brandon Sommers has won the last two rounds and is doing so with great confidence. Last week we saw Georgia native Richie Brown totally dominate the class and a last minute decision for Brandon made all the difference. Brandon is putting in his time and doing what it takes to get up front. Training,discipline, and persistence is what you need to go racing in this series and I think more and more people are realizing that it is not easy to be "Tha Man". It takes determination and you have to do your homework to be a front runner. Chris Jenks said it best" If you work hard, never give up and train you will see results". I believe that totally.









So once again I have watched hundreds of racers make a day of fun and excitement for all of the spectators. My wife seems to enjoy the bridge tunnel where the riders had to duck low to get under while wading through the creek. I think the best part was spending my time with her at the races. After all its fun right? I wish every one of you could go with me to the next round and if you do make it please stop by and say hello.

   The next round on April 8th is heading toward Union South Carolina and "The Big Buck". This is always a fun race and very spectator friendly with the mighty Creek Jumps and awesome hill climbs.

   Don't forget that the series will be aired on OLN on April 1st starting at three o'clock.

       Ride safe and I'll see you at the races.
RS
 
Ricks Quick quiz answer:  All have!!!


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