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Ironman
GNCC
Round 12 - ATV Racing Links |
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Crawfordsville, IN (10/21/2012)
- Nearly 10,000 spectators attended Saturday's Amsoil Ironman GNCC, Round 12 of the 13-race Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Series. Ballance Racing Yamaha's Walker Fowler secured his first-career XC1 Pro class win in Crawfordsville, Ind., but it didn't come easy for the rookie. Heavy rains leading up to the event made for an unpredictable 11-mile course, filled with plenty of deep mud pits and rocky hill climbs, ultimately leading up to a five-way battle for the lead in the final moments of the intense two-hour race.
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Maxxis' Craig Bowman grabbed the XC1 Pro ATV Holeshot at the Ironman GNCC |
Indiana's very own Craig Bowman grabbed his first $250 Motosport.com Holeshot Award of the season, leading a stacked field of competitors on the opening lap. Bowers / Coastal National Guard / Yokley Racing's Jarrod McClure was the first to take over the lead on Lap 1, beginning a constant trade-off that would highlight at least four different leaders throughout the afternoon.
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National Guard / Yokley Racing's Jarrod McClure took over the lead the first lap but fell back & crossed the finish in second aboard his Coastal Racing Honda 450R ATV |
Although Motoworks / Can-Am's Chris Bithell got a back-of-the-pack start, he was able to make his way into the lead by Lap 2 after McClure dropped back, battling with Maxxis/Yoshimura's Chris Borich for second place. Meanwhile, the Ballance Racing Yamaha duo of Taylor Kiser and Walker Fowler tailgated the leaders and slowly inched their way towards the front.
Bithell later explained, "I really didn't want the lead early on, it's easier to follow on a day like today [muddy conditions] where you let these guys make a mistake in front of you and you learn from their mistake."
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Ballance Racing's / Yamaha's #5 Walker Fowler grabbed his first GNCC XC1 Pro Career win at the Amsoil Ironman GNCC. Fowler sits second in the XC1 Pro ATV Points |
Fowler then grabbed the lead around the halfway point with Kiser close behind and the running order continued to shift even more. McClure, Bithell and Borich battled back and forth, where they all tried different passing lines through the woods. Heading into the final lap, it was a five-way battle for the race-win and the rough and tumble obstacles of Ironman proved to be most difficult after two hours of racing. McClure was the first to fall victim to the hill climb on the last lap but several Indiana race-fans quickly pulled him up, allowing him to salvage a top three position in the final stages.
