| |
| Bill
Ballance has ran into his fair share of
issues for the start of the 2008 season,
so it will be interesting to see if his
luck changes over the next few rounds |
Rounding out the top 5 was 8-time GNCC champion
Bill Ballance. Ballance would find himself working
from mid pack at the start, scoring 13th at the
end of the first lap. Working through the XC1
field, and dealing with bottlenecks had the champ
using all the tricks in his bag to get himself
inside the top 10 as the next two laps were completed.
When the last lap was complete, Ballance slid
into the finish as he bumped tires with Borich
for the 5th spot. Coming from behind is not easy
however Ballance rode smart and did what he needed
to as he secured another solid finish.
Outside the top 5, the racing ran the gamut
from routine to the unbelievable. Matt Smiley
threw down another solid finish taking 6th and
keeps himself well inside the top 10 in points.
Following Smiley in was Ryan Lane who has been
capitalizing on tried and true equipment that
has him round after round finishing ahead of
team riders as the young privateer climbs inside
the top 10 again finishing 7th. Right behind
Lane was William Yokely taking 8th after overcoming
getting hung up with another quad just off the
start and working all day through traffic gaining
positions and points. For Chris Jenks, taking
9th had to feel good after suffering the first
3 rounds from a myriad of mechanical issues.
Jenks has the speed and talent to run upfront
and we should see him soon running in the top
5. The final spot rounding out the top 10 was
Johnny Gallagher who usually excels at muddy
races. Gallagher might not have had the pull
this time to keep the track as wet as he likes
it, but put in a solid finish nonetheless!
|
|
|
Matt Smiley
currently sits 6th place in points,
but he is still within striking distance
of the top three
|
William
Yokley finishes once again in the top
10, and he went on to win the Overall
in the UTV Race
|
For Jarrod McClure, a new engine and almost
no practice time with it, found himself out
of fuel in the middle of no mans land. After
finding a fellow racer who had broken down and
searching for something to hold fuel, McClure
and a discarded Mountain Dew can swiped gas
from the broken machine and was fired back up
after loosing a lot of time. The riders resourcefulness
kept him on the lead lap and allowed him to
finish 15th. For others, mechanical issues would
once again spoil their hopes of good finishes.
Michael Houston pulled his KTM in without scoring
a lap, as he would join other victims of mechanical
failure. Chris Bithell, Brandon Sturdivant and
Duane Johnson would once again find their Can
Am DS450’s parked in the pits as another
round finds some of the series best talent-playing
spectators instead of doing battle on the course.
|
| Afternoon
Top Three Overall (left
to Right)
Brandon Sommers, Adam McGill,
Bryan Cook |
The racing has been exciting for many as new
names are leaving their mark, and for some the
season must seem to be dragging on as failure
round after round takes away the momentum so
abundant prior to the opening round. It will
take more hard work, a little luck and some
serious changes if they are to turn this season
around. As we head to even more brutal terrain
in the upcoming rounds, equipment failure will
become even more evident as the riders push
even harder to win.
The next round of the Can Am GNCC Series heads
to the famous Loretta Lynn’s Ranch in
Hurricane Mills Tennessee. The terrain is steep,
the ground is hard and if everyone crosses their
fingers, we might just get in a round that is
not impacted by the wet weather!
