In his first year of XC1 competition, Henthorn put forth his best performance of the season with a third place overall finish at the season finale.
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The infamous Ironman Hillclimb and Twin Peaks Hillclimb lended a hand to some of the most excitement of the day |
"Today was awesome, I didn't ever think I would be there. It's kind of unbelievable," Henthorn said. "I finally beat the sixth place curse I've had all year! I really have to thank Kevin Yoho, he's the one who pushed me all day out there and kept me going."
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Racing XC1 Pro ATV Podium (left to right)
Braden Henthorn (3rd), Chris Borich (1st),
Walker Fowler (2nd) |
Yoho finished only 16 seconds behind Henthorn to capture fourth place overall for the day, securing a career-best #5 plate for 2014. After a successful season of competition in the College A Class, Jay Shadron made his XC1 Pro Class debut, where he finished an impressive fifth place overall from the front row. McGill was able to salvage sixth place overall after losing time to adjust his ATV in the pits.
With absence of Shadron in the College A Class, it was a head-to-head battle all afternoon between Pennsylvania's Cole Richardson and Indiana's Marshal Goings. The duo set a pace that wasn't even matched by the XC2 Pro Am Class, as they finished seventh and ninth overall respectively, ahead of all Pro Am riders. Richardson's impressive seventh place overall earned him the Top Amateur honors for the day.
Hilltop Motorsports rider Chad Jones landed himself a position in the center of the podium for the first time ever as he claimed the XC2 Pro Am victory in front of his home state crowd. Indiana's Jay Humphrey grabbed the $100 All Balls Racing Holeshot Award but it was 2012 XC2 Champion Patrick McGuire who claimed the early lead in the class. McGuire led the first three laps of the two-hour race but an unfortunate mechanical issue hindered his ability to finish the race.
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Racing XC2 Pro-Am ATV Podium (left to right)
Josh Merrit (2nd), Chad Jones (1st),
Randy Hamilton (3rd) |
From there, Jones made his way into the lead position and never looked back. Ohio's Josh Merritt began the race just inside of the top ten but quickly moved his way through the pack. As the white flag fell, Merritt held a comfortable second place position as the battle came for third place. New Jersey's Randy Hamilton and Indiana's Nathan Wallpe flip-flopped the third place spot but in the end, it was Hamilton who claimed the final podium position.
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Racing Morning ATV Podium (left to right)
Kylie Ahart (3rd), Dave Simmons (1st),
Cody Collier (2nd) |
In the 10 a.m. race, it was Super Senior 45+ winner Dave Simmons who topped the AM Overall podium, claiming the final GT Thunder Overall Amateur Award of the season. Ohio's Cody Collier and Maryland's Wesley Wolfe once again battled it out in the Schoolboy (13-15) Class until Wolfe ran into mechanical issues that ended his morning after only two laps. As a result, Collier captured the class win, as well as the #201 plate and the Schoolboy (13-15) Class Championship in his first season competing in the 10 a.m. race. Recently crowned 2013 Women's Class Champion Kylie Ahart ended the season on a high note as she secured her second overall-podium finish of the season with third overall and yet another victory in the Women's Class.
