2004 GNCC Round #14 "Ironman" Afternoon Race

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After a rain filled morning, the rain stopped before the afternoon race, but the damage was already done. The track was in horrible condition, and the starting line was about the worst that I have ever seen.

It was difficult to even walk around with out your shoes getting stuck in the deep mud.

#1 Bill Ballance rode to the starting line with his daughter in his lap.

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ATV Legend, Barry Hawk, wasn't afraid of the mud, and he ventured out to starting line to with some of the riders before the race.

Barry Hawk won 7 National Championships in a row before he switched to racing Motorcycles for Yamaha and also won the Bike Championship for 2003. Barry won't be able to hold onto his #1 plate for next season after a serious wreck put him on the sidelines. Barry has bounced back and won two races in a row and is looking to end the season on a winning note.

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Elka's, Martin, made the trip from Canada to show his support for the racers. He has worked closely with many top riders this season including, William Yokley, Chad Duvall, Andy Lagzdins, Jeff Stoess, and many other top riders.

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#5 Matt Smiley entered the race with tight points race with Chris Borich for 3rd Overall and the 3rd Spot in the Pro Class for the season. With Chris Borich winning the last two races, Matt needed to finish in front of Chris in order to hold onto 3rd.

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#20 Michael Houston has put in an incredible season with several top 10 overall finishes. Michael Houston already earned himself a spot on Pro Row next year.

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#8 Santo Derisi has had an off year, and decided to make the switch to the Honda to try to improve his luck. He ran into some issues at the last round, but hopefully, we will see Santo back in form at the Ironman.

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#16 Jeremy Rice and #13 Chris Jenks both made their move to the Pro Class class after Jeremy clinched the Pro Am Championshiop with Chris finishing 2nd.

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#10 Brandon Ballance trys to cut a line through the thick mud to help him get up some speed as he heads for the 1st Turn.

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Pro Desert Racer, #7 Mike Cafro, didn't show up to race in these horrible conditions, but he did talk with several of the Pro Riders. Temecula Motorsports will be increasing their presence in next years GNCC Series, which is awesome news.

Temecula Motorsports are extremely big on the West Coast, and I look forward to see what they have planned for us East Coast Riders next year.

[Admin]

With the starting area being in such poor shape after the morning race, many of the riders opted for either the far outside or inside line for better traction were many of the morning riders didn't ride over.

Andy Lagzdins, Greg Trew, Johnny Gallagher, Jeff Stoess, Santo Derisi, and Thomas Barrett all took the outside line.