2007 GNCC series Round #9-Mountain Ridge - Somerset, PA-Pro Race Coverage

[Pappy]

Round #9 of the Can Am GNCC series was held at the Mountain Ridge Trails Resort located in Somerset PA and man what an event!! Holding the GNCC at a location that is 100% devoted to atv's set the stage for an interesting mix of terrain in one of the most scenic areas the state has to offer. 680 entries were signed up for the race and it's no wonder, with PA being stocked with some of the countries best talent! In the Pro class alone, this is home turf and all were eager to claim victory for their home state.

[Pappy]

The summer break gave many the chance to re-focus, re-train and rebuild for the remainder of this grueling series. Many that I spoke with stated that they worked extremely hard to get themselves in shape as everyone agree's the competition level in every class is top notch, and every single advantage one can get is needed each round.

Santo Derisi's son kicks back and worries about ziltch! The kid had a first class tour of the facilty and in a few short years I am certain we will see a young Derisi ripping it up in the Youth classes!

[Pappy]

Maxxis tires crew was busy as ever with riders making a beeline to all the vendors and sponsors friday to get last minute items squared away. With a quick look at the area, new tires would be a good idea as everything from wide open fields to rock invested track lay in wait.

[Pappy]

Tire Balls has to be overwhelmed with the response their product has gained over the past few seasons. They are fast becoming an item one includes in their set up as their performance has been proven round after round.

[Pappy]

Registration flowed as riders chatted as the line moved forward. Pre entry is the fastest way through the deal, however with the number of entries and additional work for the PA state series, the line went a touch slower then normal but I did not see anyone chasing anyone with a bat:p

[Pappy]

Adam McGill signs a fans cast as Pro row started taking shape.

[Pappy]

Harlen Foley was going to be the grunt of this race, and trekked off to the areas that would cause some issues for many riders.


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[Pappy]

It appears some fans wanted autographs and atleast one of the Ballance boys abliged:devil:




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[Pappy]

Speaking of Foley, don't ever hand him the keys to anything with a full tank of gas:scary: Cody and I finally repoed the Raz'r saturday night:devil:

[Pappy]

Chris Bithell has been doing his homework during the break, attending a ATVA MX race in which he competed in the Pro class and kicked some major butt and has been working with Chris Borich training hard to get closer to the level he knows he needs to reach.

Chris is non stop tweaking his set up and polishing it to better then showroom clean at each event.

[Pappy]

McGill and Emily went off to tech as Adam was sporting his new graphics. What can you say, he is a player and needs to sport a clean ride :macho :D

[Pappy]

All the trophies were on display along with all the goodies everyone loves to buy to show off the sport

[Pappy]

As the sun finally set, I stopped to take this shot and reflect on the historical significance of this area. Just off in the distance, out past the last flag, is where American flight 93 went down on 9/11. Being so close to yet another anniversary of that tragic day brought the freedoms we all share closer and made me say a prayer for all those so needlessly lost.

[Pappy]

The Pro race for the series championship still hangs in the balance(no pun intended) as Chris Borich and Bill Ballance headed into the second half of the season. Both riders want this championship in abad way for different reasons and that makes for some intense racing.

Matt Smiley, finally heading back to where he needs to be, gets ready for his call to the front row. Smiley has alot to look back on over the past few seasons and even more to look forward to!

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[Pappy]

Brandon Ballance ham's it up for camera

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[Pappy]

H-Bomb films creator Wes Miller was onhand to film for the latest edition of his series. Wes is no stranger to GNCC racing and had his cres all over getting video.

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[Pappy]

Jarrod McClure's rookie year in XC1 Pro has been terrific, with finishes well inside the top 15 all season. This young and talented rider is just gettingcranked up and his future is looking bright!

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[Pappy]

Kawasaki's William Yokely was ready to go as his crew had done all they could to give him a ride to win on. Yokely has been high speed low drag this year as he works close with Kawasaki to dail in the new machine. Willaim also became a father of TWINS!! over the summer break, adding a bouncing baby boy and a beautiful daughter into the world. A big congrats from all of us!

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[Pappy]

Johnny G gets the last bit of water in him prior to his call to join his Pro counterparts on the line. Johnny has been putting in the seat time along with promoting his sponsors tirelessly over the break.

[Pappy]

Adam McGill started out this season with a few races he would like to forget, finishing further back then he would have liked. That all changed at round #3 and since has posted 4 top 5 finishes, including a nail biter at the Spartan round where he finished second , after the slightest of mistakes right smack dab in front of Bill Ballance, something that usually leads to finishing atleast one position back and causing nightmares:p

McGill has it folks, and he is bringing it. He is going to suffer some heartbreaks but you can count on seeing him upfront and on that podium.

[Pappy]

With everyone assembled and the anthem played, it was time to get this thing started.

(Kids, this guy carries tons of candy in that backpack, it may take a good kick to the shin to get it, but you have my permission to whack him senseless and take all you want!!:devil: )

[Pappy]

The ten seconds call was given and all fell silent, until the roar of the XC1 Pro class fired to life and rocketed to the first turn! Chris Borich was hard on the gas sweeping through the middle of the first turn with McGill on the inside and Cook and Sturdivant ripping to the outside all looking to get out front.

[Pappy]

Borich sets up for turn two with McGill on his grab bar. Cook was going to slip into the 3rd spot just ahead of a hard charging Bill Ballance

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[Pappy]

The dust was so bad that as the majority of XC1 cleared turn two, I could make out a few riders that had gotten tangled in the first turn. Chris Bithell, McClure and Micheal Houston were the unlucky few.

[Pappy]

Clearing turn two, the rest of the class was out of sight as the three riders now faced the daunting task of running them down.

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[Pappy]

Brandon Sommers leads Donald Ockerman and the rest of XC2 as the field hits turn two! Brandon will be ready for his move to the XC1 Pro class as he has shown everyone he will be the man to beat! Quietly coming of age, the days of his legacy are being built lap by lap!

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[Pappy]

Brian Toney grabbed the holeshot in College A as this highly competitive class takes to the Mountain Ridge landscape, re-arranging a small bit of it along the way!

[Pappy]

Senior 40+ had Glen Prichard out front as the class heads towards turn two.

[Pappy]

Nathan Randolph #861 fends off a hard charging Junior B 22+ class

[Pappy]

# 691 Blaine Shick dropped the hammer as he heads out of turn one, with all of Vet B 30+ shredding sod to run him down

[Pappy]

Racing across the ridgeline in an attempt to head off the XC1 class, I could hear the race down in the bottoms and knew it wouldnt take long for the front runners to reach my position.

Chris Borich was the first rider to fly past me.

[Pappy]

McGill was running in second and came by me so fast that getting a picture was pointless! The dust Borich had stirred up was just enough that all I saw was a red blur as that Baldwin machine was on the rev limiter!

Cook was in 3rd and Brent Sturdivant was holding 4th

[Pappy]

As Bryan Baker went skating past, a blue YFZ was visable as I snapped his picture. Letting off the shutter release wasn't an option as Brandon Sommers filled my lens, already he was well into the XC1 ranks.

[Pappy]

Andy Lagzdins came out of the woods and in a flash was heading back down into the valley for a long run back to more woods and rocks

[Pappy]

Johnny Gallagher works his way through one of the many field sections at the midway of lap 1. Johnny's day ended and was only able to record one lap at this event.

[Pappy]

A quick trip into the pits found carnage!!!

[Pappy]

Borich had the first look at things and poked his way into the unknown

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[Pappy]

Ballance takes a second to see where the best line around this stuff might be.

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[Pappy]

The rock garden was taking its toll

[Pappy]

The horror stories of Snowshoe were being re-written!

[Pappy]

The small amount of top soil was just waiting to be roosted away, revealing the slick sharp rocks just begging to catch a quad of thier own!

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[Pappy]

Bithell was the man on the move, clearing the bottleneck that allowed him to salvage time, he was pressing forward and heading to the front!!

[Pappy]

Borich was looking about as smooth as one could look on this rough track. The fields did not offer much salvation as they are choppy and kickers hide everywhere.

[Pappy]

McGill was creeping up on Borich and was still hard on the gas.

[Pappy]

Ballance wasn't far behind the leaders in the 3rd spot

[Pappy]

Once ZBallance had cleared my position, I turned to see the next rider and it was Bithell!! He must have had nitrous, blower and a sucker on that LTE backed quad because he was haulin' the mail and was now in the 4th spot!

[Pappy]

The speeds increased as the course widened, but the rocks never let up as this riders front tire gets hammered

[Pappy]

Cook was holding his own as the brutality continued. This was a good old fashioned XC race!

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[Pappy]

A sure sign your wallet will not like you after this race:chinese:

[Pappy]

Matt Smiley was doing what he does best, ride..ride and ride some more!

[Pappy]

Taylor Kiser was riding a good solid race

[Pappy]

Bryan Baker's race was hampered by some damage to his quad, but he still finished the day in the 16th spot

[Pappy]

Pro MX rider , Josh Creamer sure picked a rough race to cross over on:p Josh completed 2 laps, which isnt bad considering just how bad some sections were

[Pappy]

The woods were becoming littered with broken quads, one of which was Chris Jenks who suffered from a broken linkage bolt.

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[Pappy]

Atleast they werent covered with 8 inches of mud:chinese:

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[Pappy]

Adam McGill's name crackled over the loud speaker as the announcer tried to get the scoop from the check point. After a few tries the gargled message affirmed that McGill had taken the lead!

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[Pappy]

Borich was holding second, Ballance was in third and Cook was running 4th, with Matt Smiley gaurding the top 5

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[Pappy]

Pit crews had thier chance to make things happen during the pit stops, now all everyone could do was hurry up and wait. When the loud speaker came to life and claimed Bithell had taken the lead from McGill, quite a few cheers erupted as this comeback was shaping up to be awesome!

[Pappy]

The pro pits were pretty quite as we all awaited the next news from the track. When word finally reached the announcer, Borich had regained the lead, followed by Bithell and Ballance.

[Pappy]

Borich was looking good, all he had to do was get this last lap in and he would claim the victory

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[Pappy]

Bithell was solidly in second and it did not appear ballance was mounting a charge to over take him.

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[Pappy]

McGill had taken a spill thanks to a kicker in a field section, setting up the spoils of one moment and one mistake. Re-mounting his ride, 4th spot was all his unless he could reel in Ballance


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[Pappy]

Smiley was solidly holding the 5th spot, and he would continue to the chekered flag securing it. This marks his 5th top 5 this season, Mr. Consistancy is back in town!

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[Pappy]

Borich skirts the last turn and checks behind him for anyone wanting a last second try at taking him off the top spot.....


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[Pappy]

Alone, with just Bithell in sight, Borich raised the wheels and headed in for his 5th overall of the season.

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[Pappy]

After a tangle at the start, one rough and nasty track, 2 hours of racing in "comeback" mode, Chris Bithell heads in taking second in one awesome race!

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[Pappy]

Ballance rounded out the top three, and explained on the podium that he had issues all day long with his machine. Managing to fend off such talented rivals on a hurt set up, Bill proves once again he is the man!

[Pappy]

The champagne was sprayed in due time, but for a few moments, the three top riders stood tall over all comers.

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[Pappy]

Borich did a nice burn out on the podium and about scared jason Weigant to death:p

[Pappy]

The few rows of fans cooled off as the extra large bottles were uncorked and let loose!

[Pappy]

Brandon Sommers clinched yet another XC2 win and ran well inside the top of XC1 for most of the race, most as in half way through the first lap! Rock on Brandon, next year you can show 'em who's boss!

Thats all I have folks, we had a great time and look forward to seeing everyone next round!

[Admin]

<li><a href="http://www.atvriders.com/gallery/2007gncc09somersetyouthatvrace/index.html"><font size="1" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Youth ATV Race Photos</font></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.atvriders.com/gallery/2007gncc09somersetmorningatvrace/index.html"><font size="1" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Morning ATV Race Photos</font></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.atvriders.com/gallery/2007gncc09somersetafternoonatvrace/index.html"><font size="1" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Afternoon ATV Race Photos</font></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.atvriders.com/gallery/2007gncc09somersetmiscatvrace/index.html"><font size="1" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Misc Event Photos</font></a></li>

[Meat]

Wish I coulda been there. Thanks for all the pictures. GO BORICH GO !!!!

[M0n5t3r]

WOW!!!! Awsome pics and writeup!!! I felt like I was at the race myself.