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Jarrod McClure “Heartland Challenge” Pro ATV Race Report

McClure ATV Racer GNCC

Jarrod McClure & Jeff Pickens Teamed up to race the GBC Heartland Challenge and finished 2nd Overall

Carlisle, IA (11/18/2008) - With the racing year coming to a close everyone is relaxing, taking some time off and making some decisions for next year. At least almost everyone! There was one more race on some people’s agenda, “The Heartland Challenge”. The Heartland Challenge is a 10-hour team race that is held in Iowa. The race would be a test of man and machine, and the 30-degree temperatures didn’t help!

I spoke with Jeff Pickens at the last couple GNCC races, and we decided we would race it together on our Hondas. We were going to try and race one quad for the whole ten hours if we could and just use mine as a back up. He was going to rebuild one of his race bikes with help from Tom Clark Motorsports, and also Wilson Racing. He basically put all new bearings, and got some new ball joints from Laeger’s. Then we decided we would use my Elka shocks on his quad because we liked the way the felt.

I had Kenny Hill and his brother haul my quad and trailer out to Iowa, and I flew into the track on Friday. When we landed we were surprised to see that it was snowing outside! At home it was in the seventies! We got our rent-a-car and headed over to the track.

Iowa is very flat! Which meant that it was very windy. With the temperatures already cold the wind made it about 10-degrees cooler. The snow continued all day, but it wasn’t sticking to the ground it was melting on contact. The track looked like it was going to be super muddy. We made sure to bolt up a set of PowerMadd hand guards to keep our hands dry and warm.

The track was around eight miles long and took around fifteen minutes a lap. It was an awesome track, it had some jumps built, a lot of off camber stuuf, and some open fields. There was also plenty of passing. One section featured the “Can Am Challenge” it was an option lane that gained you around 40 seconds if you went through it. It featured some logs that were staggered, and also a rock section with some more logs. Jeff and I decided that we would play it safe and keep going around it. We also decided we would race for and hour or so at a time, and when we would switch riders we would also fuel up.

McClure ATV Racer GNCC

Jarrod McClure & Jeff Pickens raced on the same Honda TRX450R for the entire race while most teams used up to 3 ATVs

The race would begin at noon. All classes would line up and start at the same time. We would have to run across the track, start the quad, and take off. From then it was ten hours to the finish! I decided to start, and as noon came on Saturday I was trying to decide what to wear. I wanted something to stay warm, but not overheat in. I decided to layer up my Shift gear for my first session and go from there. We all got lined up and awaited the ten second call! The horn blew and I ran, everyone had to attach their kill-cord, then start and go. After hooking my cord up I somehow managed to knock off my run switch. It took me a few kicks to realize it, and till I got going I was way back in the pack.

I just tried to ride smart and conserve the bike. I tried to pass as many people as possible, and by the end of my first session I had passed everyone on the track except for the first two pro teams. The bike felt great, and I was really comfortable on it. Jeff had to go out now, and he had to get used to my suspension, because he never rode it before. He had a little trouble adapting a first but after a few laps he had a great pace going.

The bike held up great and by the halfway point we moved up into second. We had to stop to tighten the chain, but other then that the bike was working flawless. Team GT Thunder/Powermadd was still out front but we kept charging hard. Not going through the Can Am challenge was costing us time but we were still going with the plan of trying not to breakdown.

The track was starting to deteriorate, and places were getting rutted, but more and more lines kept opening. The track officials also did a great job of keeping the track clear and the race flowing. The weather was also getting worse as night came.

By the ninth hour we were seven minutes behind first place but still on the lead lap. We decided to just put the cruise control on and hope first place would have some type of problems. They didn’t though, and by the tenth hour we were still sitting in second place.

Finishing on the lead lap was a great accomplishment running one quad for ten hours. Jeff and I both rode well, and we figured we each rode 117 miles! It was definitely a lot of fun the only downfall was the cold weather. It was a very well organized event held by the Andy Kyner and Harlen Foley, and I look forward to racing at it again next year. Now with all the racing over for the year I plan on relaxing a little, then back to work for next year!

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