2008 GNCC-Round#4"Pirelli Big Buck " Amatuer Race Coverage

[Pappy]

Round #4 of the Can Am GNCC Series headed south to Union SC for the Pirelli Big Buck and once again mother nature decided we needed to play in the rain!

This round marked the 3rd straight race where the weather would impact the event as rain hammered the region late friday night and throughout the morning. The weather friday was hot!!with temps way up in the 80's. As folks stood in line for registration, they were treated to a free copy of ATVInsider to help pass the time.

[Pappy]

This round of racing also marked the start of the UTV race as many machines were tooling around the pits as fans got a glimpse of what would be competing.

[Pappy]

A few folks asked me where I was friday afternoon, and the truth is I was about 3 hours late getting to the race. I arrived just in the nick of time to get in a quick shoot with Adam McGill and then took my spot in line to register:p

I had this shot all picked out in my head, to bad I blew it:p

[Pappy]

So, only getting a few minutes with McGill (hey I wont be the one who causes his quad to develop a problem or get him hurt by spending 2 hours taking pics the night before a race:p ) not getting to waunder around and chat, I found myself at dark with having to get some grub and still prep my sons quad:ermm:

So complaining doesnt work, because the more I moaned about never enough time blah blah blah, the lightening grew worse. By the time I figured out it was my punishment it was to late and we were getting hammered with rain and lightening:p Sorry!

[Pappy]

To be truthful, I got a pretty decent nights sleep as the rain piter patered on the trailer roof:p Reminded me of the tim roof on the farmhouse when I was a kid.

No alarm clock was needed as the first stuck truck of the day found itself right next to me spinning wildly at 6 am:p I drank my coffee as I watched the poor feller slip and slide.

So, finally venturing outside and praying teh rain would spare us any further downpours I headed off to the starting line. There is nothing that will wake you up more then happening upon Dudding doing his "self sych up" routine:devil:

[Pappy]

The sun actually popped out right before the start, but the clouds off in the distance had a different story going on. I bet Hooper he wouldnt go give Big Johns pony tail a good yank!!!

He chickened out:scary:

[Pappy]

The Warnert Racing crew stands by as their riders get ready on the line. Warnert puts a ton of hours in each week getting ready for these events and it shows both in their trackside presence and in teh results they get on the track.

[Pappy]

Jennifer Albright hams it up for me before the start. Jen has been having a mixed bag of results this season, which peaked at the opening round with a solid 3rd place finish. It hasnt been for lack of trying, she sure has had the hammer down in some bad conditions at rounds 2 and 3.

[Pappy]

Angel Atwell opened the season with a big bang, taking the win but failed to follow that up in the subsequent 2 rounds. This had to have had her pumped for yet another chance to lay the smack down at the Big Buck!

[Pappy]

Traci Cecco gets ready to roll as I caught her on line before she messed up her hair for the day:p Cecco has been on a roll, securing 2 wins and a 2nd place finish so far in 08

[Pappy]

John Gallahger Sr chats with a fellow Polaris rider before the start

[Pappy]

Scott Kilby has been climbing up the ladder in finishing order and should be good to go from here on out.

[Pappy]

That Dudding guy was still busy showing his GQ moves on the line:p

[Pappy]

Duddings pre race moves have some wondering what the heck that nut is up to:p

[Pappy]

Rick Cecco was eyeing up the start as the clouds remined dark and I felt a few sprinkles:ermm:

[Pappy]

I had to go to the last row to find the sunshine:p Schoolboy 13-15 racer Brandon Boso was all smiles before the start

[Pappy]

Kyle Riley was ready to rip!

[Pappy]

For me, getting to the last row is mandatory to make one last check on my son.Many parents lately have asked how i can just leave him and I just shake my head because I dont have an answer....its hard :p

I still want to know how he got so muddy before the race:huh

[Pappy]

Walker Fowler returned to competition this round after tearing a bunch of ligamints in his anlkle at round 2. Great to have you back boy!!

[Pappy]

See what Dudding started!!

[Pappy]

4x4 Open was the first class to fire up for this round and Scott Kilby was out front!

[Pappy]

The ladies were next and it was a drag race to turn two with Atwell getting the edge

[Pappy]

4x4 Limited

Micheal Swift wasted no time getting the lead

[Pappy]

4x4 Lites

The last round found me reporting how the Can Am riders had taken the lead at the starts, well at this round, the Kymco riders were going to make things much more interesting as they swarm the second turn! Jordan Phillips takes the holeshot

[Pappy]

The Can Am crew was not going down easy!

[Pappy]

U2<----the class not the band!


Micheal Benson returned to the series at the last round and quickly showed he hadn't been in mothballs long enough t forget how to get on the podium!

Benson and Rick Cecco go wheel to wheel through turn 2!

[Pappy]

Brandon Sturdivant's ride zigged when it was supposed to zag, sending him off for a wild ride!

[Pappy]

it's a good thing them WV boys are tough!

[Pappy]

He was fine, just a bit dirtier a few minutes sooner then he expected:p Its a good thing he was thrown clear as those machines are heavy! I did not get a chance to ask if he had tweaked the quad but it wasn't the start he was looking for. brandon has been running extremely well in this class and he could have done very well (2nd isnt bad, but this kid digs being the winner!)

I wouldnt post the series of shots but a bunch of his friends paid me to make sure these images were posted:devil:

[Pappy]

Super Senior

John Kenney grabbed the holeshot and wanted to give Gallagher a race!

[Pappy]

The many classes that follow the first few rows are hard to identify, but I shoot them anyway:p

[Pappy]

Getting the holeshot is a wild ride no matter what class your in!

[Pappy]

The start at this round is always a bit screwy, with off cambers and dips that send alot of riders out of shape. The morning classes seemed to deal with it pretty good this year

[Pappy]

Everyone seemed to be riding mellow at the start, maybe the thought of getting run over had something to do with it:p

[Pappy]

A few close calls but nothing major at turn two

[Pappy]

Yep, the starts were fairly normal thankfully:chinese:

[Pappy]

Even Big John was about 3 steps lower on the anxiety scale

[Pappy]

Womens Novice heads out for two hours of fun fun fun!!

[Pappy]

Leave it to the first year racers to trash the first turn:D

[Pappy]

Them guys had things flying everywhere:p

[Pappy]

I'd say that pole went 50 feet high:p

[Pappy]

Too close to call who got the holeshot because they were this way when they crossed the line!

[Pappy]

Schoolboy 13-15


Walker Fowler grabs the holeshot as he gets back into action this round

[Pappy]

Ty Seivard and BJ Wood battle at the start

[Pappy]

The leaders had clocked their first lap by the tim ethe starts had finished and I had made my way to a fairly safe location. The rain was starting again and I wanted to be a few quick steps from some cover:p

Bryan Buckhannon was the first rider to approach and was looking to make as much time as he could in the field sections.

[Pappy]

Scott Kilby was not far off Buckhannons roost and was looking strong as the second lap was underway

[Pappy]

Atwell was leading Cecco by only a slim margin at this point!

[Pappy]

Lexie Coulter was running in 3rd as she gave chase to the leaders

[Pappy]

Greg Condon is a big fellow...but dont let that fool you into thinking the man cant ride! Greg had scored a top 5 finish in his class at round 2, and was looking to get back up front this round

[Pappy]

Stephanie Verkade was now sporting the brown that seems to be all the rage this season:p

[Pappy]

Mike Benson was on a tear as he is shown here wide open and swinging wide to make a few passes

[Pappy]

Tireballs Jeff Stoess wanted to race, so we hooked him up with a stock Outlander 500, threw on some ITP Terra Cross R/T tires and sent him out to see what he could do in the 4x4 Lites class!

[Pappy]

Brandon Sturdivant had been tossed to the gruond at the start and his machine had suffered some damagae. His bars were pushed down and his stem was tweaked.....however that did not keep him from mounting one heck of a charge as he worked his way to 6th to start the second lap

[Pappy]

The front rows had now passed my position as the hordes of other racers came into view

[Pappy]

The Youth and Morning classes have been hammered by foul weather the past 2 rounds and this one would be no exception

[Pappy]

Aaron Margaria takes a look as he rips past me:p

[Pappy]

passing was for the taking in the fields!

[Pappy]

Walker Fowler was riding smart as his ankle was still tender....but it wasnt going to keep him from being the class leader!

[Pappy]

Jesi Stracham was off the mini quad and onto a Raptor 250!

[Pappy]

Cody pulled over when he saw me and explained his quad was having issues. It was spitting and sputtering and not pulling. I checked out all the usual things that may cause it and after a few minutes sent him on his way:ermm:

[Pappy]

Traci Cecco came flying by with the lead!

[Pappy]

Excet for lap 2, Atwell and Cecco were running almost identical lap times...down to the second!

[Pappy]

Jennifer Albright was running pretty good on her Geico backed machine!

[Pappy]

Tyler Pinkston came pulling in with no rear brakes. Once he stopped we saw why!

[Pappy]

John Gallagher had worked his way to the front of his class and was now looking to hunt down the leaders for a good overall position!

[Pappy]

Dave Burton was riding solid and would work his way to another 2nd place class finish! Remeber Dave, either your first or your last!:D

[Pappy]

David Hunsacker works in another lap

[Pappy]

Brandon Boso motos on after making a pass on a Utility rider

[Pappy]

Kyle Riley keeps the hammer down as he gives chase to Boso

[Pappy]

The rain I had my eye on was now falling a bit heavier as Traci Cecco passes with the lead. Lexie Coulter can be seen in the background and was having a stellar race!

[Pappy]

Coulter has had a good season, however she knows she can run upfront at each round and would love nothing better then to score a win for Team LTE!

Bryan Buckhannon comes into view as he musles his machine through the turns to keep pace with the more nimble sport quads

[Pappy]

A lapper points the way for Atwell as she scoots by!

[Pappy]

I was pleased to see Cody had made it another lap and that he wasn't sitting in the woods somewhere:p The Big Buck hasn't been kind to him, in 2005 he was running upfront and clipped a tree sending him barrel rolling through the trees, and in 2007 he wrecked running wide open in a field and suffered a broken elbow and a concusion:scary: I had my fingers and toes crossed:p

[Pappy]

Micheal Swift and Scott Kilby working through another lap

[Pappy]

Mike benson was out front of the U2 class minus some fenders:p

[Pappy]

Brandon Sturdivant had overcome his wreck, had to deal with a less then ideal steering issue AND!!! part of his fuel system came loose spraying fuel all over the place. The fuel issue caused him to make several stops on the course to keep making repairs.....and still finished second behind Benson!


Someone call this kid up and get him on something a bit more sporty!

[Pappy]

The rain really got to coming down as the leaders headed for the checkered flag and slip and slide as I might I just missed Atwell crossing the checkers:p

yeah it was mucky

[Pappy]

Angel Atwell got by Cecco and while they were close, Atwell took the win!!

[Pappy]

Lexie Coulter took the 3rd spot and was looking like she wanted a nice hot shower and a warm cup of soup:p

[Pappy]

Traci Cecco slid in behind Atwell for the second spot,

[Pappy]

Some carnage UTE style:p

[Pappy]

that about wraps up the highlights folks. Mike benson won U2 for the second race in a row, the Can Am crew took wins in 4x4 Open, 4x4 Lites and 4x4 Limited and Greg Condon roide to a 3rd place finish behind the big money riders! Great ride Greg!

As for us, well we can add the 2008 Big Buck to the second year in a row where we leave with a bent frame:p Thankfully my rider was fine and finished the race and he wasnt bent:blah:

Feel free to add some stories as i love to check back in and hear about what all happened out there! We will be seeing everyone at Loretta's albiet sporting a different color machine!