"Mountain Challenge" Outlaw Race 1-12-08

[Pappy]

With some prompting from atv racing fans in the area, what was scheduled for a bike race was worked into holding an atv xc race on saturday. Being smack dab in the middle of the off season for a large portion of the GNCC teams, it offered a killer oppertunity for those able to make it as race testing is where it is at when it comes to dialing in new riders and equipment.

John Gallahger was on hand to give the Polaris Outlaw a thrashing, which is nothing new, however John would be racing a straight axle version to see if this model could be incorperated into his racing during the 2008 season. John has been campaigning in the Senior class in the GNCC series aboard an IRS model.

Race Photo gallery (http://www.photoreflect.com/pr3/store.aspx?p=37929)

[Pappy]

Womens class GNCC champion Traci Cecco basks in the warming sun as the days event was just getting started.

[Pappy]

GNCC Pro rider Brent Sturdivant gives his factory backed Can Am DS450 a once over before the race. Brent was working with his suspension sponsor, Custom Axis, and the entire weekend was devoted to getting his ride dialed in for the upcoming season.

[Pappy]

Another member of the LTE racing team, Jeremy Dudding gets geared up in anticipation of the noon start. Dudding is wicked fast aboard his Can Am Renegade and was trying to work out some issues at this race that will benefit him when the GNCC season gets underway.

[Pappy]

Don from LTE Racing made the trip from his home in California to see that his team was getting what they needed for the new machines. here he watches as the crew from Axis tweaks some shock settings.

[Pappy]

On his way across the country, Don flew into Texas and picked up Lexie Coulter (Womens Class GNCC Racer and LTE Team rider)

Lexie and Don get her Can Am gassed up before the start

[Pappy]

Brandon Sommers, now officially a GNCC Pro rider, was all smiles as he returns from signing in for the days event. Brandon was ready to rip aboard his proven GT Thunder Yamaha.

[Pappy]

Sturdivant's machine would be sporting Custom Axis new "Pro Air" shocks. The previous day's testing had shown they were working well as rider feedback was reportedly "incredible"!

[Pappy]

Cruising the pits found talent everywhere. Some where secretly disguising themselves and riding your basic hot rod in cognito:cool:

[Pappy]

Intense manufacture rivalries develop, even at a local in the hills of North Carolina! Make no mistake, in a few classes, there would be epic battles developing!

[Pappy]

There is nothing greater then watching someone dump it in the pits....and it's amplified 100 fold when your brother makes sure everyone see's it!

[Pappy]

The real talent would not be racing today, however I did see him throwing down some sick moves in the pits!:D

[Pappy]

Duane Johnson made the long trip from his home in Missouri to attended the Axis testing and LTE photoshoot this weekend, and running the race was icing on the cake for this incredibly talented rider.

[Pappy]

I had heard rumors that the race would be graced by none other then Alan Copeland, aka "Gump". For the other atv racers in attendence, they could rest easy as Gump felt not the need to assert his dominance on this day and would be destroying the bike ranks at sundays race:cool: (Gump, send payment to....LOL)

[Pappy]

With the start time approaching, the rows of racers was filling up. The front row was looking like a mini gncc.

[Pappy]

With a great turn out, terrific weather and some big names on tap, this was going to be a fun race to watch.

[Pappy]

Brandon Sommers does a few hundred push ups prior to the start. Next race I expect to do a full Marine Corps PT for 15 minutes leading up to start time. OOORAHHHH:macho

[Pappy]

Mike Houston was in attendence at todays event to give the KTM a workout

[Pappy]

While Sommers drew a crowd as he did push ups, Traci Cecco was getting ready to do her pre race workout. I can not repeat what was said, but the tongue lashing, inspirational like banter that was used to get her blood boiling must have worked because the second Johnny C put his finger in her face, it was on:eek: Jerry Springer this was not, and there was no big bald bouncer to save Johnny:devil:

[Pappy]

The entire ordeal lasted mere seconds, and I learned two things....


1) Johnny will approach Traci with a helmet on his head before the next motivational speech:eek2:

2) As Johnny cautiously circles back to the starting area, I suddenly realized that he bares a striking resemblence to the Sasquatch in that film from the 1970's:eek:

That right folks, Johnny C is actually the guy in that monkey suit! Well, either that or he is going after Jack Links as a sponsor:devil:

(All in fun folks, no one was injured in any pre race tactics....I think:D )

[Pappy]

You know folks, every once in awhile a man will pick up a deer horn and prance. I have no further explianation :huh

[Pappy]

All kidding aside, we were only seconds away from the start and soon the green flag was flying!

[Pappy]

Brandon Sommers grabbed the holeshot with Johnny Gallahger pulling up behind him.

[Pappy]

The biggest drawback that i have seen so far with teh new Can Am DS450 is it is not the fastest starting atv on the front row. They are working it out of it however, and by the time the season starts it should be able to get fired and off the line quickly.

[Pappy]

The other classes were soon ripping through the first turn and heading for the woods

[Pappy]

The start was in a small field, but the remainder of the course was on the side of a rather large mountain. Pulling power and breaking would be a good thing at ths race

[Pappy]

All classes started clean and thankfully no first turn connections were made.

[Pappy]

The last class off the line was the Utilities, and they wasted no time covering the ground to the first turn

[Pappy]

Dudding grabbed the holeshot and set his LTE Renegade to full speed ahead as he closed in on the woods.

[Pappy]

the last of the racers head to the woods as we all could hear the front row clawing it's way to the top of the mountain in the distance

[Pappy]

With 2 hours of racing on tap, all the riders would get a good workout for themselves and their machines. Lap 1 complete, and Sommers was out front and pulling away!

[Pappy]

Johnny G was holding down teh number two spot as he ripped past my position.

[Pappy]

One of my favored riders at the races is Dave Simmons, and I was glad to see him at this event. he was holding down the 3rd spot as lap 2 began.

[Pappy]

Traci Cecco and Duane Johnson rounded out the top 5

[Pappy]

Being that I did not know many of the racers personally, I can not comment on a few of these so if you happen to know them, feel free to give them a shout out when I am finished.

[Pappy]

Having fun is the name of the game, and when you can go fast and have fun at the same time, how can you lose!

[Pappy]

Sturdivant was charging hard, but to no avail. He had rolled the quad hard the previous day and a problem had developed as a result of it, causing him to spend the day pushing himself and continue to work on suspension. They did find the issue and it was minor, but this will occur when your testing brand new things!

[Pappy]

Some good natured ripping and racing for bragging rights was underway in a few of the classes!

[Pappy]

To me, the fun racing between friends will always trump the big money rides:D

[Pappy]

Traci was plugging away and riding well...as usual:p

[Pappy]

The two creek crossings were cold! the first wasnt to bad, just a bit of mud exiting the creek, the second was alot deeper then it looked.

[Pappy]

Lexie Coulter was getting used to her new DS

[Pappy]

Other then the water being cold, it sure looked like a fun course

[Pappy]

Dudding would stop every other lap or so and make some changes and discuss the set up with the guys from Axis

[Pappy]

If I had someone else to shoot for me, I would have been right there with you guys on the UTE's!!!

[Pappy]

Sommers continued with the lead and was looking great!

[Pappy]

Johnny G was making his YFZ work and work well!

[Pappy]

Johnson was making up time, and would soon overtake the second spot

[Pappy]

Houston was working out things with the KTM, and by the season start he should be up to speed on it.

[Pappy]

I ventured up one of the hills and found a nice comfy spot to set up. It wasnt long before the leaders came back around and Sommers was still setting the pace

[Pappy]

Jeff Pickens was riding well, and this practice will serve him well

[Pappy]

The uphills were rough in sections, and a good suspension would pay off as the race wore on

[Pappy]

Sturdivant late in the race, still making changes and dialing it all in.

[Pappy]

John Gallagher Sr rode to a class win, but due to a scoring error he will be listed as 2nd. The winner posted a 1 minute lap time on one lap...he was so fast i did not even see him:p

[Pappy]

The terrain at this event reminded me of a cross between Steele Creek and Yadkinville.

[Pappy]

Dave Simmons enters a turn as John Gallahger Sr exits one in the back ground.

[Pappy]

The deepest crossing had a few quads popping and choking on water as they headed for scoring

[Pappy]

The kawasaki puts the moves on the 450r rider as he attempts to gain the last few feet on a fellow class racer

[Pappy]

A damn the torpedo's run at the creek

[Pappy]

This riders 400ex is swallowed by the deep water

[Pappy]

I bet you that if yoiu checked his family photo album, that there willbe a picture of him at age 3 playing in a mud puddle:p

[Pappy]

Lexie Coulter brings her Can Am through the crossing

[Pappy]

Back on dry ground, the speeds picked back up to race pace

[Pappy]

I heard a few mention about why all the Pro level riders in attendence, and it was great to see them ofcourse, but local events are a favorite of mine because you get to see those who do it for the fun of the sport and pay for the beating they take on monday when they head back to work. Weekend warriors rock!

[Pappy]

Sommers heads to scoring with 2 to go, still holding the lead

[Pappy]

I awaited at the last creek crossing as the white flag was now out

[Pappy]

I know I was wet from marching across the creek, and the shows were left at the hotel as that fine NC silt filled them:p

[Pappy]

Sommers crossed the creek for the last time, taking the win! Good ride Brandon!

[Pappy]

The race for second was hot as Johnson enters the creek, Pickens stabbed the throtle in one last effort to make something happen. The pair finished as shown.

[Pappy]

Johnny G brings home the 4th spot

[Pappy]

Feedback to Axis after the race was immediate. It was pretty cool getting an inside look at what they do and how they do it this weekend.

[Pappy]

Post race inspections on the new models show the abuse they take and any weaknesses are addressed for the next race

[Pappy]

Thats gotta hurt!

[Pappy]

That about wraps up what I have for you all. I enjoyed the race and chatting with many of you for the first time in person!

See everyone soon!

[Jersey450R]

nice report and awesome pics as usual pappy! i noticed alot of riders without nerf bars. how did brent like the shocks?

[BROOKS]

Awesome Coverage Pappy! You have just made my year. Thats me on the green Prairie.

It was for sure an epic battle, Feelings were hurt, pride was lost, and heroes were made. Friends off the track became mortal enemies as the flag dropped for the ute class. The battle for bragging rights had begun.

The battle was intense, the riding aggressive, the smack talk plentiful. Lap after lap, we fought, slowing with each click of the odometer. lol

But in the end there would only be one winner, one lone warrior who would rise above the rest........

I would like to congratulate John Yelton on his victory and the right to call himself 2008 CBATV Mountain Challenge Champion......



:mad:

[Lurkin]

great job pappy. thats me on the cardio stack ride. if you didnt know.

[JoHn YeLtOn]

thanks, pappy for driving all the way down and taking pictures of us big rednecks!!!:D
we had one heck of a battle in the ute class.......here is a better pic of jr's front end.:eek2:

[gump]

congrats to yall local ute riders, that was the best race on the track, other than the gncc guy who by the way didn't just run off and leave yall.. not bad for guys that don't race !! very intertaining for us spectators that seen all the smack talk... :D

[chuck50]

The results from MILLERS CREEK, N.C. is at www.nchsa.org middle of page under ( other things going on )

[xcountry]

As usual, AWESOME PICS!!!:)

[Crashmore 22]

What is the deal with the LTE CAN-AM's top a-arms, it looks like they have them upside down? It is very easy to see in the pic of Brent's machine on the first page.

[national425ex]

Originally posted by Crashmore 22
What is the deal with the LTE CAN-AM's top a-arms, it looks like they have them upside down? It is very easy to see in the pic of Brent's machine on the first page.

Just a powdercoat goof. Pap already explained it.

[cook65xc]

Originally posted by gump
congrats to yall local ute riders, that was the best race on the track, other than the gncc guy who by the way didn't just run off and leave yall.. not bad for guys that don't race !! very intertaining for us spectators that seen all the smack talk... :D


x2

[03recon]

Yeah Pappy, thanks for coming down and taking some great pics. Not so happy about posing for that tri-pod photo though!

Good Job Yelton. That was fun as hell!! My wallet is glad we only do it once a year though! I'll get you next time brother.

JR

[ridding4fun]

Those are some killer picts pappy. And the comentary was awesome too, thanks to all that made the journy to our neck of the woods. Hope to see you guys next time.

[JoHn YeLtOn]

Originally posted by ridding4fun
Those are some killer picts pappy. And the comentary was awesome too, thanks to all that made the journy to our neck of the woods. Hope to see you guys next time. it looked like they was alot of good riding around there.......especially off hwy 88........you need to invite us down for a trail ride sometime. :)

[ridding4fun]

Hey no problem Yelton, come on down. We ride almost every sunday around 12 or 1. sometimes we get a early start but not usually.

[JoHn YeLtOn]

me too....i usually work 6days a week so my play time is on sundays as well....
we will get a ride up when it gets warmer.

[badazz400ex]

Us Ohio boys had a GREAT time down there. It was good to meet you Gump. If theres another race there we will be down there again in a second.