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GBC Motorsports Heartland Challenge
Registration is Now Open
Arctic Cat, Can-Am, Polaris,
and Yamaha Pro ATV Racers Signing Up
Carlisle, IA (10/6/2008) - The
GBC Motorsports Heartland Challenge, presented
by PIAA, race weekend on November 7-8th is quickly
approaching and teams are beginning to sign-up,
but don’t delay because classes sizes are
limited and filling up fast. Racers can sign up
online at heartlandchallenge.com
to reserve their spot, and for their convenience,
can defer payment until the day of the race. All
racers who are planning to attend are encouraged
to sign up now in order ensure their place in
their appropriate class.
As race day draws near, the Pro ATV & Utility
classes are filling up quickly especially with
GBC Motorsports offering $7,500 to the winner
of each class, and several factory teams have
confirmed that they will be in attendance.
“I think it’s going to be a good
race and good event. I know the people who are
supporting this will do it right,” said
Yamaha’s Bill Ballance, who will be racing
with Brandon Sommers in the Pro 450 class aboard
the new Yamaha YFZ450R. “I’m really
looking forward to the race. I think Brandon and
I will do well and it should be a lot of fun out
there,” the eight-time GNCC champion said
enthusiastically. Although Ballance and Sommers
should do well, there will be plenty of competition
in all the classes.
The competition in the Pro Utility class should
be pretty exciting as Can-Am/Warnert Racing’s
Michael Swift, Cliff Beasley, and Rick Cecco plan
to team up for the event. Swift and Beasley have
already wrapped up the GNCC championships in the
4x4 Limited and 4x4 Lites classes for the 2008
season and are gearing up for the Heartland Challenge.
“We won the 12 hour race last year, so I
think we have a good shot at winning this as well,”
said Swift.
Arctic Cat’s Jesse West and Josh West are
also looking forward to putting their machines
and their endurance to the test. “Arctic
Cat is really excited about this event. We are
already making preparations for the race,”
said Jesse. “Even though there are going
to be factory teams out there, anyone still has
a chance at winning because with racing for ten
hours, a lot is going to depend on how well your
quad holds up over who has the most horsepower,”
stated Jesse, who hopes that the $7,500 first
place payout attracts a lot of racers.
Daryl Rath and his team, consisting of himself,
Frank Batista and a third unconfirmed rider, who
is rumored to be motocross pro, Jason Dunkleberger,
will be competing in the Pro Utility class. “I’m
really looking forward to this race. I think that
it is really well organized and will be a big
success,” said Rath. “I know there
are going to be several factory teams out there,
but I hope that it doesn’t discourage any
privateer teams from participating because I think
this event has the potential to be one of the
best annual ATV events out there,” Daryl
concluded.
There are still several factory teams that are
still undecided as to whether or not they will
be able to attend, including KTM’s GNCC
team. “Taylor (Kiser) and Tim (Farr) and
I have talked about it and we would really like
to go out there and race. We are hoping to know
for sure in the next few days if we will be able
to,” said Adam McGill.
Once again the Heartland Challenge encourages
all teams to turn in their registration as soon
as possible to reserve their spot and be featured
on the GBC Motorsports Heartland Challenge Website.
To register, simply visit the Heartland Challenge’s
website at www.heartlandchallenge.com.
www.Heartlandchallenge.com
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