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#8 Andy Lagzdins
Morganton, NC - There's nothing like a little snow on the start of a GNCC race to keep the dust down. The threats by the forecasters were that the weather would once again wreak havoc on the Steele Creek GNCC in Morganton, North Carolina; but the heavy rain/snow held off long enough to set the stage for one of the closest ATV races of all time. I was waiting to wake up in my motel room to the sound of rain on the roof, but no rain came. The temperature stayed chilly though, with an 8am temp of 32 degrees! One thing that became hotter during the course of the day was the rivalry for the top spot on the podium, as points leader Chris Borich and 6-time champ Bill Ballance came to round 3 ready to battle, having each won a round in the first pair of races. William Yokley and Chris Jenks had both come close to wins, and were ready and able to take an overall victory. Round 1 podium finisher Brandon Ballance was looking to snap back from a disappointing race in Georgia, and hoped to again run at the front and challenge for the win.

The ten mile course would twist and turn through the Steele Creek campground; crossing streams, bridges, fields, hillsides, and the occasional blacktop section. The course contains everything from deep, loamy whoop sections to rocky stream beds to first-gear zig-zag off-camber slot car trails with root systems coming through the surface that would rival the haunted forest in the Wizard of Oz. The area lends itself well to GNCC racing, as there are plenty of RV hookups and camping spots, lots of spectators from the local communities, and many places where the track is easily accessed by the fans.

#1 Bill Ballance launches his Yamaha YFZ450 out front for the Holeshot with William Yokley keeping a close eye on Bill through turn one. By turn three, Chris Borich had taken over the lead.

Nineteen pro riders lined up for the start, heading up nearly 300 total racers in the main event. Did I mention it was snowing on the starting line? The wind was blowing the snow almost horizontal! Bill Ballance pulled a great start and won the ITP Holeshot award, rounding the first turn with Chris Jenks and Chris Borich eagerly trying to chase him down. Duane Johnson, William Yokley and I followed the lead trio into the woods. The first lap seemed to be a sighting lap, with the leaders eyeing up opportunities for passing and trying to stay out of trouble until the riders started to space out. As we came down into the stream crossing at roughly the halfway mark of the first lap, everyone was still rather close together. Borich had taken the lead with Jenks right behind. Bill was in third with Johnson and Yokley following. At the barrels the leaders were the same with only 10 seconds separating the top five! I was in sixth ten seconds back with rookie pro Chris Bithell hot on my heels. Chris passed me shortly after and looked to be headed to the front.

Lap two was a ditto of the first as the top five remained the same, still battling only seconds apart. Bithell was in sixth and had caught the pack at the front. Local hero Mike Houston, who lives in the nearby town of Hickory, was putting in a great ride and moved up to 7th. I was running alone in 8th with Adam McGill closing in. Matt Smiley, who was back on the solid rear axle Predator for this race, rounded out the top ten.

#14 Chris Bithell is riding well beyond his years and at the young age of 18 he has already been on the Podium twice in his short career, which is only a dream for many long term racers nearly twice his age
#4 Chris Jenks was running in the runnerup spot till the third lap when a few mistakes in line choices through lapped traffic dropped him back to a 6th place finish behind Johnson and Yokley in 4th

As the laps wound down, the course became rutted, multi-lined and occasionally clogged with traffic. In this type of race it is vital to be aware of optional lines, make quick passes, and avoid bottlenecks by looking as far ahead as possible. Chris Borich was doing all of these things, and had the lead going into the last lap. Bill Ballance had worked his way into second with Yokley up to third on the LTZ400. Bithell was ahead of Johnson now, with Jenks dropping to sixth after running more than half the race in second place. Jenks was far from out of it though, as the top six riders were still within seconds of each other!

Chris Borich extends his points lead with the win in North Carolina, and he wasn't shy about holding his pointer finger high in the air while he lite up his Maxxis Tires on the Podium
Borich and Ballance were evenly matched this day, and it would all come down to who wanted it the most. They pushed each other, and opened a gap on the rest of the field. They rounded the last lap looking for a chance to cement the win, and Chris found it in the last woods section before the checkered flag. He used a line he had tried earlier in the race to pass Bill one last time just before the finish, taking his second overall win of the season and extending his points lead. Chris Bithell put in an inspiring ride to claim with his second podium finish and first of his pro career, just ahead of the ever-improving Duane Johnson. William Yokley dropped to fifth at the finish, a brilliant ride on the now-antiquated Z400. Hopefully William's LTR450 will be ready for the next round so he can be on a level playing field with the competition. Chris Jenks came out on the downside of the battle after running so well for the majority of the event, ending up in 6th place. Mike Houston and Adam McGill put in their best rides of the season, finishing 8th and 9th respectively. I was able to hold off Brandon Ballance for 9th, while Johnny Gallagher showed a new level of consistency with a smooth ride to 11th overall.

The Big Buck GNCC is next in Union, South Carolina, and look for the heat of the championship battle to escalate. We all know that Bill Ballance responds to narrow defeats by working that much harder for the next race, so look forward to an all-out brawl to the finish. William Yokley could prove to be a spoiler, especially if his pulls a race-ready LTR450 out of his trailer. Can Chris Bithell ride the wave of momentum all the way to the overall? Find out at the next round of the greatest offroad racing series in the world!

GNCC ATV Top 10 Overall in Point Standings
Position
Rider Name
Machine
Total Points

1.

Chris Borich
Honda
85

2.

Bill Ballance
Yamaha
68

3.

William Yokley
Suzuki
59

4.

Chris Jenks
Honda
54

5.

Chris Bithell
Honda
52

6.

Duane Johnson
Honda
47

7.

Andy Lagzdins
Honda
34

8.

Brandon Ballance
Yamaha
32

9.

Sean Neidlinger (ProAm)
Honda
29

10.

Michael Houston
Honda
28

GNCC Afternoon ATV Race - Video Clip
Videos By: Ron Dernoski

The AMA-sanctioned Suzuki Grand National Cross Country series is America's premier off-road racing series. The 13-round series is produced exclusively by Racer Productions. Cross-country racing is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The nearly three-hour long GNCC races lead as many as 1800 riders through tracks ranging from eight to twelve miles in length. With varied terrain including hills, trees, mud, dirt, rocks and motocross sections, GNCC events are tests of both survival and speed. GNCC featured sponsors include Parts Unlimited, Moose, Maxxis, Pirelli, Wiseco, Klotz, FMF and ITP, and riders compete for over $2.8 million in series prizes and contingency money. Associate sponsors include Moose Utility Division, Scott, Acerbis, Alpinestars, Cometic, Outerwears, Twin Air, Polisport Plastics, Thor, Motion Pro, Hyper Wheels, Elka Suspension, MotoTee's, Weekend Warrior, Owens Motorsports, Tom's Marina Polaris, EK Chain and Laeger's. Media Sponsors include Dirt Rider Magazine, ATV Sport Magazine, www.ATVRiders.com and Racer X Illustrated. For more information log on to www.GNCCRacing.com.


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