Cypress, CA (3/8/2011)
- Yamaha captured nearly half of all available
podium positions in the top three ATV classes
- including an XC2 Pro Am win - at the opening
round of the 2011 GNCC off-road series in River
Ranch, Fla. on Sunday, March 6. Walker Fowler
and Gabe Phillips put together a 1-2 sweep for
Yamaha in the XC2 Pro Am class, Taylor Kiser took
second in the premier XC1 Pro class, and Traci
Cecco added a third-place finish in the Women's
division. With at least six ATV manufacturers
fighting for podium finishes in the series, Yamaha
riders taking home so many trophies in round one
bodes well as the 13-race season fires up.
The long River Ranch course was typical for
Florida - generally flat, with
miles of woods and sand, and this year, dust.
Fowler started only seventh
in the five-lap XC2 Pro Am race, which followed
one wave behind the premier
XC1 Pro class. But once the pack settled in,
he began moving his YFZ450X
through the XC2 field. Fowler made it into second
behind Phillips, the
early leader, by the end of the first lap, and
then passed his fellow YFZ
rider for the lead on the third lap. From there
Fowler was never
challenged, eventually finishing nearly two
minutes ahead of Phillips, who
in turn was over seven minutes ahead of the
next competitor. All in all, it
was a dominating Yamaha sweep.
Despite earning some blisters and soreness
from the deep whoops that formed
in the Florida sand, Fowler finished the two-hour
event in good shape - a
far cry from last year's River Ranch season
opener, in which he DNF'd after
a nasty crash. "It's great to win the first
race of the year, especially
after our experience here last year," he
remarked after the event. Donnie
Luce, Yamaha's ATV racing manager, added, "I'm
proud of Walker for his
great ride today, and for the entire Ballance
Racing team for securing
podiums in all three major classes."
| 2011
GNCC ATV XC1 Pro Points - After Round
1 - River Rach, FL |
| Position |
Rider |
Point |
| 1 |
Chris Borich |
30 |
| 2 |
Taylor Kiser - Yamaha |
25 |
| 3 |
Chris Bithell |
21 |
| 4 |
Adam McGill |
18 |
| 5 |
Bryan Cook |
16 |
| 2011
GNCC ATV XC2 Pro-AM Points - After Round
1 - River Rach, FL |
| Position |
Rider |
Point |
| 1 |
Walker Fowler - Yamaha |
30 |
| 2 |
Gabe Phillips - Yamaha |
25 |
| 3 |
Eric Hoyland |
21 |
| 4 |
Aarol Bright |
18 |
| 5 |
Dustin Canipe |
16 |
| 2011
GNCC ATV Womens Points - After Round 1
- River Rach, FL |
| Position |
Rider |
Point |
| 1 |
Lexie Coulter |
20 |
| 2 |
Angel Atwell |
19 |
| 3 |
Traci Cecco - Yamaha |
18 |
| 4 |
Kristen Atwell |
17 |
| 5 |
Kara Merritt - Yamaha |
16 |
About Yamaha Parts
and Accessories:
Yamaha Parts and Accessories Division (YPAD)
develops and distributes accessories for Yamaha
products. House brands of GYTR, Star Custom,
Genuine and Outdoors provide products that are
developed and tested in conjunction with new
model development resulting in the best performing,
best fit and best quality accessories available
for Yamaha riders. YPAD also partners with industry
leading brands to distribute products that fill
gaps in our product offering though our “distributed
by” program. So whether you’re a
top lever racer or a casual rider, Yamaha Parts
and Accessories Division is the first and best
choice for the Yamaha rider.
