2004 GNCC Round #10 Wisp AM Race

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For the third year, the GNCC series returned to the Wisp Ski Resort for a weekend of racing. The Wisp is the race that I look forward to all year because of the spectacular facilities and mountain views.

Also, for those that golf, Racer Productions holds a Golf Tournament on Friday to raise money for the ISDE, and it looks like a great time.

Rita and her family joined in fun with Jason Weigandt and Bevo, Scott Goggles.

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Chad Giffen, GNCC Stock Class Racer and EXriders.com member, tested his golf skills.

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Jared Huffman, the Junior Class Leader, also was in attendance. He missed the last round of the GNCC series to give his back a rest.

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I also was able to meet up with the GNCC ATV Legend, Barry Hawk, after he finished up his day of golf.

Barry had a horrific wreck at the Patriot, which left him with three broken bones in his face, and he opted to have surgery. He was feeeling great and wished he could race, and even tried to put on his helmet and goggles, but it was too painful. He is hoping to be back in action by the Penton race.

Exriders.com wishes Barry Hawk a speedy recovery!!

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Even, Pappy decided to bring out his entire family to the event! Cody give my wife Tina the lowdown on ATV racing, and he can't wait to race the entire GNCC series when he is old enough. Pappy thinks, "What have I done, looks like I will be putting in some overtime."

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The Karizz group showed me how not to roast corn on the grill!

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Jeff Russell was seen cruising around the course setting up haybails for the pavement section of the race.

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Will Cashion heads to the Tech Inspection!

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The tech inspection line remained steady Friday Night into Saturday morning, and once again, the sound testing was not conducted. I think as long as everyone keeps their quads resonably quite for the remainder of the season the sound testing will completely disappear.

They are still testing Kill switches, so be sure to having it working before heading to inspection.

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The Wisp is known for its rocky conditions and many riders headed to the ITP tent to get some new XC or HD tires for the race.

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The Tireball crew was once again busy as ever preparing tires/wheels for the rocky race.

Rod Cooper buffs down an alluminun wheel to prevent a burr from puncturing the tireballs.

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The race starting area is on the beginners ski slope

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The Black Diamond slope two turns after the start caught many riders attention before the start of the race. This hill doesn't look very impressive in the photograph, but it was easily 600' tall an very steep in sections.

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Marty Eckert once again volunteered his time to help with the coverage in the morning along with Fred Mudd and Ben Wrightsman!

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Many riders including myself lined up at the start early to get a good spot on the line because of the hill climb that soon followed.

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Bill Ballance checked out the starting area before the race to find himself a spot on the line for the Afternoon race.

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My mother made it to only her 2nd race in a couple of years, which was really cool.

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Traci & Rick Cecco were lined up and ready for another round of racing.

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Stephanie Parton posed for me with her new EXriders.com stickers.

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Rick Towery prepares for the start of the race!

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Stephanie Parton and a 400EX rider were the first ones to start up the huge hill.

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the rest of the field quickly followed to begin their climb.

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Everything was looking smooth, with Stephanie Parton over coming the 400EX and topping the hill out front. Johnny Gallagher, Traci Cecco, and Angel Atwell were all close behind.

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Before you knew it, Missie Legge's Blaster stood straight up on her which caused riders to stop their forward momentum.

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Missie's blaster began flipping down the hill and Brenda Kress also became stuck on the hill. Jay Condon with the white helmet was able to keep traction and walk up the hill.

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Brenda Kress on the Yellow Z400 begins sliding backwards down the hill as Missie in red chases after her blaster down the hill. Stock Class rider, Greg Vaughn, found himself stuck on the side of the hill also. This was his first GNCC race, and I don't think he completely understood the start procedure because he took off with the first row.

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With half the 1st row of racers stuck on the side of the hill, the Stock Class was released to get underway up the hill.

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We formed a line to weave between the stuck riders as we charged up the hill.

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As I crested the hill top, a pileup formed behind me on the hillside with brought everyone to a stop.

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Dan Kiehl and Billy Good slide down the hill trying to keep their quads from flipping over on the way down.

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With Jean Lovely's quad flipping over the hillside became an ugly site. Racer Productions decided to Red Flag the race, and sent out a search party to stop those that made the hill and have them return to the start.

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John Bowers did some 360 spins down the side of the hill and was lucky he didn't flip.

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Family and friends gathered on the starting line to talk about what just happened and wait for the other riders to return.

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Meanwhile, the Utility Quad riders decided to give the hill a try with Mike Penland leading the way.

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Mike Penland made the hill with others and was returning down from the top, but Darrell W Thomas wasn't as lucky and was trying to turn around his Honda before it also flipped down the hill.

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Brian Weber made the hillclimb and also returned to the starting line.

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With all the riders gathered up they lined back up again, but it was dissapointing to see the ones that made it up the hlll were the last ones to be able to get a spot of the line for the 2nd start of the race.

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Almost one hour after the 1st Start, the course was rerouted. The course now had an initial gradual drag race up the side of the mountain that gave those with the most horsepower a big advantage, since the straight away was easily over one mile long.

Once Again, Rick Towery Waved the Green flag for the start of the race!

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Traci Cecco used her Powerful Alba Action YFZ to get the early lead as they head up the long straight away.

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In the Meanwhile, the Stock Class prepared to start for the 2nd time as well.

Mark Rhodes once again was on the line with his 450R and was looking for another Podium finish!

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Jarrod McClure(Left) was ready to race his 2nd GNCC. After having a good run early at Rausch Creek, Jarrod got a flat tire and dropped back, so he was hoping for better luck at the Wisp.

John Bowers(Right) finished 8th Overall last year in the Morning Class, but has been spending more time this year getting his ATV/Motorcycle Shop established, and he is Jarrod's Main Sponsor (Bowers Motorcycle Supply).

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#309 Dan Kiehl tied his best race of the season at the Patriot with a 5th place finish and has finished 4 times in the top 10.

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I decided to switch my LTZ400 to Yellow to make it look more like a Suzuki since I am usually the only LTZ on the line, and I think the Fullbore Yellow Plastic looks awesome!

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The 2nd Stock Class Start had TJ Whited on his Limited Black YFZ grabbed huge holeshot off the line

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Mark Rhodes & Will Cashion were near the front of the pack as they headed up the long gradual ski slope

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By the end of the 1st lap, Mark Rhodes had passed the entire 1st row of riders and had over 1.5 minute lead over Traci Cecco in leading the Women's Class.

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Billy Good was running 2nd overall with Will Cashion in 3rd Overall, but were still almost two minutes behind Mark Rhodes.

Later in the race, Billy and Will would end up running into problems and drop to back of the pack. Will Cashion drain plug came out which ended his race, and Billy Good dropped way back, but still completed three laps.

The rest of the class was caught in a huge bottleneck near the 4 mile marker and were stuck for several minutes.

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The top 5 women (Traci C, Stephanie P, Stefanie V, Brenda Kress, Angel Atwell) came through the 1st lap within 10 seconds of each other with Traci out front. Super Senior Rider, Johnny Gallagher was amongst the train.

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In second lap, Brenda Kress made the pass into 4th on Stefanie Verkade as they went through the scoring barrels.

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Tyler Lenig and I came through the 1st lap over 6 minutes behind the leaders after being caught up in the bottleneck. As we headed into the 2nd lap, Tyler Lenig passed me and moved into 10th place, and he was flat out hauling!!!!

I decided there was no point and worrying about the rough first lap and just start running with Tyler. Tyler and I quickly began picking off riders one by one. By the end of the lap we moved up to 5th and 6th place. I lost sight of Tyler after getting slowed down by some of the Utility riders, but I still stayed on the gas.

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Meanwhile, Jarrod McClure also stepped it up after coming through in 14th after the 1st lap, he moved up to 7th by the end of the 2nd lap.

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By the third lap, Traci Cecco continued to lead the top 4 women, which were still grouped with 20 seconds of each other.

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Stefanie Verkade moved back up to 4th after Angel Atwell dropped back with quad issues. Stefanie was only three seconds behind Brenda Kress as they headed into the final lap.

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By the End of the race, Mark Rhodes remained out front with almost a five minute lead over 2nd Overall:macho

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Tyler Lenig put in an incredible ride and moved all the way up to 2nd place by the last lap, but ended up breaking a lower balljoint and wasn't able to finish the race:(

Another tough break for Tyler

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Dan Keihl moved back up to 2nd after Tyler broke down!

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Traci Cecco continued to lead the women half way through the last lap, but unexpectedly her kill cord pulled free and shut her down, and she didn't realize the kill cord was the problem. After trying to figure out what happened, both Staphanie and Brenda passed her and she dropped back to 3rd place.

Once Traci found the problem, she put it into high gear and was able to pass Brenda to move back into 2nd place, but wasn't able to catch Stephanie who won her 7th race of the year.

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I continued my charge until I caught up to Dan Keihl and Brenda Kress with a few miles to go. I was unable to make the pass before we headed to the finish line.

Brenda Kress lead us through the scoring barrels, and proceeded to run over Tim and knock him down as he prepared to scan her barcode. I saw what had happened and didn't know if he was going to get back up right away and went to the other lane to get scored for the sake of time.

I ended up getting scored 6 seconds before Dan Keihl was scored which technically put me in 2nd Overall, but obvoiusly Dan deserved that position which I was well aware. I just wanted to secure my finish time.

My time was still 4 seconds faster than Stephanie's Overall time which put me correctly in third overall behind Dan Keihl.

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With Chaos at the scoring tent, Mark Rhodes described his race day to the crowd.

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Meanwhile, Stephanie and Traci proceeded to the Podium. Traci was disappointed to have lost such a great race in the end to a kill cord issue, and she knows that she will need to win the last four races in order to defend her Women's Championship.

Traci ended up finishing the race 5th overall! Traci came on strong last year after being down, so the last four races should be exciting.

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Traci graciously got down off the podium after the scoring issue seemed to be resolved, and Dan and I went up on the Podium.

Racer Production then decided to switch give Dan my time and me Dan's time for the last lap, which were 6 seconds different since Dan sat waiting for get scanned after the scorer was knocked over.

This then dropped me to 4th Overall and two seconds behind Stephanie Parton.

The race was over at the checkered flag and it wasn't either Dan or my fault that the scorer was run over, and I reacted to the situation because it is a timed race. I was not going to sit and watch the clock tick away after working so hard to move back to the front.

I agree 100% that Dan was 2nd Overall, but I disagree with pentalizing me because the scorer was run over by another rider. I got a real good taste of what it is like to have your race finish stripped away from you, and I twice as determined now!

Alteast, I was able to make my podium appearance whether it is in the record books or not.

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Again, Great Ride Mark Rhodes!!!!

It was great while it lasted to have two Maryland riders on the Podium in their homestate! Mark Rhodes and I live only a few miles apart, so I think it is time for us to start practicing together :macho

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Ryan Morphew had another great race and finished 7th Overall and 4th in the Stock Class!

He also a great sporstmans because he almost flipped me in the 3rd lap while we were battling for position, and he came up to me after the race and apoligized. I knew he didn't mean to hit me, but it was great to see a guy look for you and let you know.

Congrats Ryan on your last three top 7 overall finishes.

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Jarrod McClure worked his way up to finish 5th in the Stock Class and 9th Overall in only his 2nd GNCC race. I told everyone at Rausch Creek this kid would be the one to watch just like Tyler last year!

Congrats Jarrod:macho

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Johnny Gallagher easily went on to win the Super Senior Class and finish 12th overall.

Did anyone notice he was on a Yamaha:eek:

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James Barron finished 8th in the Stock Class and 14th Overall which was his best finish.

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Salvatore Costantino once again couldn't hang with his riding partner Mark Rhodes and only completed two laps:(

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Thomas Waybright finished the race 3rd in the Super Senior Class and is now 3rd in Points.

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Ed Malott had an off weekend and finished 5th, but he remains in 2nd place behind Johnny Gallagher who has the Championship wrapped up this year.

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Jay Condon showed he isn't afraid of some air when he launched his Raptor! I wonder when he will switch to a quad that is more woods friendly.

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Utililty Unlimited

Todd Ribblett has one nice looking V-force

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Todd used his impressive looking Vforce to grab the Holeshot!

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Doug Henke was having another great race until the last lap with an eight minute lead he broke.

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Michael Shelley capitalized on Doug's failure and went on to win the race and is currently ranked 2nd in the class.

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Scott Dyer had his best finish yet with 2nd Place and is currently 9th in Points. I think all the stories the night before got him motivated:devil:

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Kevin Schmitt attempted some freestyle on his way to his best finish 5th Place

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Utility Modified

Thomas Farr was once ready to race and quickly put his Four Stroke Tech 800cc Prairie out front with Kilby and Chirdon behind him.

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Todd Pew got his Grizzily off to a 5th place start

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Jim Stack was one of the last ones to head into the woods, but by the end of the 1st lap he had moved up to 3rd place right behind Scott Kilby in 2nd.

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Thomas Farr developed a three minute lead in the 1st lap after busting a new line through a bottleneck and lead the entire race!

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Scott Kilby was able to close the gap to two minutes before the end of the race, but had to settle for 2nd place.

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Now this is a very confusing photo? This is Jim Stack later in the race, but he is now on a Kawasaki? He started the race on a Honda and half way through switched to the Kawasaki.

It stood out to me because it was so clean near the end of the race, and I looked harder and realized that is Stack? What was he doing switching machines?

I didn't think this was allowed because that machine wasn't through tech and has no white tag:confused:

I guess I shouldn't have been surprised.

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Utility Stock

Brian Weber tried his hand at racing ATVs after giving it up sometime ago.

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Jim Stack and Mike Penland

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I believe Brian Mills on his Grizzily is the one grabbing the huge lead off the line.

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Ken Robey didn't waste anytime making the pass and leading the entire race! Mike Penland finished in 2nd one minute behind Ken Robey

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Darrell W Thomas rode his way to a 3rd place finish

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25-32 C Class

Maryland resident Chris Williams made his first GNCC, and he decided to call for some support on the line, but I think he got ahold of the wrong person because he didn't manage to complete one lap. Maybe next time.

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John Howard took the Holeshot, but quickly dropped back to 17th after the 1st lap, but was able to work his way back up to finish 3rd.

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33+ Class

The starting line!

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David J Bishop is now hooked on GNCC racing after finishing 2nd at the Patriot! He went on to finish 5th a Wisp and is now 12th in Points.

Congratulation Karizz on your great racing:macho

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The start of the race had 5 400EX out front off the start:eek: Who says the trusty 400EX isn't race worthy???

Check out Kenny Hill on his 450R hugging the inside line
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2 Stroke C

Randy Albright brought out his entire family to his 2nd GNCC race this year!

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The start!

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Matthew Copley went to to finish the race in 2nd place behind Hans Keck and is currently 2nd in Points.

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16-24 Class

EXriders.com member Kevin Patterson

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Chris Brooker made his 1st attempt at GNCC racing, but end up not finishing a lap:(

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Derek S Beaman has been to most of the races this year on his Predator.

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Erik Haspel and Josh Kirkland grabbed the early lead!

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Brandon Sommers had a mid pack start!

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By the end of the race, Brandon had an eight minute lead over 2nd place and finished 11th Overall

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Erik Haspel finished 2nd and is currently 3rd in the class!

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First Year Racer

Edward Nastasi has finished the last seven races in the top 10

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Maryland resident, Markham Donovan has raced the last three close races.

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Brenda Strubble decided to forgo racing against the women in her 1st GNCC race and chose the 1st year racers class.

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1st Year racer Start!

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James Parker finished 11th which was his best in three races.

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Georgia Resident, Michael Pryor finished 14th!

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Well folks that is it for the Morning race coverage, and a special thanks goes out to Marty Eckert, Fred Mudd, and Ben Wrightsman for their photo assistants.

[300exOH]

Awesome coverage. Almost like I was there.:devil:

Congrats on the great finish Harlen! You looked like you'd been through a war when I saw you near pro row.:eek2:

Also congrats to Pappy on a great finish too:macho

[Ryan]

Awesome coverage as always! Its the one thing I always look forward to :cool: !

[wyndzer]

Guess Stacks Honda, still isn't what he thought it was :huh I bet if everybody could have a spare bike to jump onto mid-race, there wouldn't be as many DNF's:devil:

[Pappy]

i was glad to be the first kick start quad off the line thank ya very much:p the new auto clutch worked flawlessly, hell the quad started first kick and i kind of wasnt ready for it..lmao it was about half way to the first turn when i realized i hadnt ever taken a turn WFO with a TWIST throttle:p well i didnt die or wreck but it did slow me way down. i reckon ill get used to it.

it was cool meeting some new members and my family had a great time!


oh yeah, stack should be barred from any sanctioned competition...thats pretty damn low.

[gump]

great job harlen!!!!!!!
pappy keep us updated on the twist, kinda wanting to go that way myself...