Dirt Trax Television Co-Host Luke Lester hops aboard Can-Am’s ultra-horny Renegade 1000 X xc and rides it like a champ.
There comes a time in everyone’s life when maybe you have worked for a company or yourself many years and getting back to living has become a priority.
The many years of making a career have come to the pinnacle of what most determine to be success and its time to hang it up.
In the racing world this is only partly true. The racers get in on the ground floor and work their tails off to get recognized as stiff competition and champions in their perspective classes.
You fight for the number one plate and fight off others who try hard to steal your thunder. The mere fact that you could accumulate more than one championship is a feat in itself and bridging the divide to championship one, two, three or even four means your dedicated. Not to mention you will probably have a lot invested in the journey.
For Cliff Beasley of Team UXC in the GNCC racing series recently had his weekend. Cliff is a savvy businessman and has many irons in the fire. The fact that he runs multiple businesses as well as preps and races a national series makes the many championships he has won even that much sweeter.
When I asked Cliff what he intends to do with his now extra time he explained that maybe spending time with his wife and kids or a little fishing and hunting would be some of the first things on his mind.
I have personally witnessed Cliff Beasley come up through the ranks as a Utility ATV racer and champion with a humble determined spirit that speaks volumes of his genuine personality.
Cliff laid it all down at the final round of the GNCC series in Hurricane Mills Tennessee with no regrets and with a big smile he left all he had to give on the track.
Thanks for the ride my friend.
Yamaha Motor Corp., U.S.A.’s, OHV Access Initiative – the industry leader in Guaranteeing Responsible Access to our Nation’s Trails (GRANTs) – approved new funding last month that will help seven different organizations across six states.
These organizations are helping to implement Yamaha’s mission of supporting safe, responsible riding and open, sustainable riding areas through a variety of projects on the ground level.
Since its inception in 2008, the Yamaha OHV Access Initiative has funded nearly 200 such projects across the country.
To date, Yamaha has funded projects in 36 states in pursuit of its goal to support OHV access projects nationwide.
This number continues to increase as Yamaha receives quality applications from around the country. New Hampshire received its first Yamaha GRANT this cycle with funding provided to the North Country ATV club based in North Stratford.
“Yamaha remains focused on supporting quality projects that represent significant opportunities for local OHV communities,” said Steve Nessl, Yamaha ATV and SxS marketing manager. “These projects take many forms; from improving a trail systems’ access to local amenities and protecting sensitive environmental zones near and within riding areas to expanding legal riding areas.”
These organizations were awarded GRANTs totaling more than $75,000 in the third quarter 2012 funding cycle of the Yamaha OHV Access Initiative:
* Border Riders Sportsman Club – Jackson, Maine
* Great Lot Sportsman’s ATV Club – Booneville, N.Y.
* MTN Trail Riders – Jonesborough, Tenn.
* North Country ATV – North Stratford, N.H.
* Northeast ATV Association – Troy, N.Y.
* Thunder Mountain Wheelers – Delta, Colo.
* Snow Shoes Rails to Trails – Clarence, Pa.
Yamaha is actively seeking qualified projects at local, state and federal levels. To date, projects have been funded in 36 states across the country; click here to see a map of GRANT projects.
The current OHV Access Initiative GRANT application form and guidelines are available online at www.yamahaohvaccess.com.
The next deadline to submit a GRANT application is Friday, November 30, 2012.
About Yamaha Motor Corp., U.S.A. – Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A., (YMUS), a leader in the motorsports market, makes the toughest, most capable and versatile ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles. The company’s ever-expanding product offerings also include motorcycles, outboard motors, personal watercraft, snowmobiles, boats, outdoor power equipment, accessories, apparel and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of dealers in the United States.Headquartered in Cypress, Calif., since its incorporation in 1976, Yamaha also has facilities in Wisconsin and Georgia, as well as factory operations in Tennessee and Georgia.
For more information on Yamaha, visit www.yamaha-motor.com.
Yamaha ATV Racing has captured 2012 season championships in motocross and cross-country, from North America to the Southern Hemisphere, all aboard the worldÂ’s most high-performance, race-dominating ATV, the YFZ450R.
Yamaha employees gathered outside of the company’s U.S. headquarters in Southern California today to celebrate their champions and make their annual Feed the Children food drop along with the Star Touring and Riding Association.
This year Yamaha helped raise more than $27,000 through employee donations and corporate fund raising efforts that will provide food and essentials for approximately 2,000 families across the country through next year. Today’s food drop will support 400 families in Garden Grove, Calif.
Among the champions in attendance for the Yamaha celebration and food drop were Chad Wienen and Traci Cecco-Pickens.
Chad Wienen joined Yamaha Racing just this season and raced his YFZ450R to his first ever AMA Pro Championship. He dominated the Pro class taking six wins and 10 straight podiums before locking in his first ever season championship in August. Thomas Brown, a Yamaha racing veteran of five years, took an impressive fifth place overall in the Pro series helping to secure the coveted AMA ATV ManufactureÂ’s Title for Yamaha.
Following the 2012 AMA season, Wienen and Brown drove north to take the top two spots at the 2012 Montreal Supermotocross in Quebec in September. Wienen topped the podium and Brown finished second — both aboard their YFZ450Rs — in what became one of North AmericaÂ’s most competitive races this year in front of an estimate crowd of 40,000 fans.
In October, Wienen continued to carry his championship momentum overseas capturing the New Zealand All Terrain Vehicle (ATV) Championships title over the local favorite and Australian national champ.
In Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) action, Yamaha’s Walker Fowler and Taylor Kiser battled the field consistently aboard their YFZ450Rs landing second and third XC-1 Pro class finishes respectively with 14 combined podiums.
Yamaha’s Traci Cecco-Pickens captured her historic ninth Women’s class championship a full two races before the season ended. Known as the winningest woman in GNCC ATV racing history, Traci announced her retirement at the Ironman GNCC event October 20.
In her final season, she secured her place among the best cross country racers of all time finishing atop the podium in every race this year including seven wins.
Longtime Yamaha rider Dustin Nelson and his Nelson Racing team member Josh Row were joined by Travis Dillon and D.J. Noerr to make a winning foursome in the Baja 500 Open Pro 450 class aboard their YFZ450R this June. The Baja 500 is a world famous event and one of the toughest tests of any racer or machine.
This accomplishment was all the more impressive for Nelson coming in the middle of his QuadX Series season. Nelson, who holds a record five QuadX Series titles, battled for the 2012 championship all the way to the final moto ultimately landing second this year.
Yamaha has worked with Feed the Children for more than 10 years raising several hundred thousand dollars and feeding tens of thousands of children. This is the sixth year Yamaha employees and Star Touring members made the ride from Yamaha to the local Feed the Children office to drop off donated supplies.
Feed the Children is an international and nonprofit relief organization that delivers food, medicine, clothing and other necessities to individuals, children and families who lack those essentials.
About Yamaha Motor Corp., U.S.A. – Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A., (YMUS) a leader in the motorsports market, makes the toughest, most capable and versatile ATV and Side-by-Side vehicles. The company’s ever-expanding product offerings also include motorcycles, outboard motors, personal watercraft, snowmobiles, boats, outdoor power equipment, accessories, apparel and much more. YMUS products are sold through a nationwide network of dealers in the United States. Headquartered in Cypress, Calif., since its incorporation in 1976, Yamaha also has facilities in Wisconsin and Georgia, as well as factory operations in Tennessee and Georgia.
For more information on Yamaha, visit www.yamaha-motor.com.
When it comes to taming tough terrain in a Wildcat, Arctic Cat is prepared to go the extra mile. Setting the pace is an all-new Wildcat demo ride experience center at the Glamis Beach Store located in the heart of the famed Glamis sand dunes in California.
The new Drive Evolution Wildcat trailer display will be the epicenter of demo ride opportunities, as well as a place where Arctic Cat consumers can relax, and associated aftermarket partners can display their Arctic Cat off-road vehicles and product.
On these select holiday weekends, Arctic Cat invites all Side x Side enthusiasts to experience a Wildcat first-hand. Additional dates will be added, please visit the Arctic Cat website for updates.
November 22-24 Thanksgiving Weekend – 10am-3pm
December 26-31 Christmas – 10am-3pm
January 1 New Years – 10am-3pm
January 18-21 Martin Luther King Weekend – 10am-3pm
February (TBD) Presidents Week – TBD
March 29-April 1 Easter Weekend – 10am-3pm
About Arctic Cat – Arctic Cat Inc., based in Thief River Falls, Minn., designs, engineers, manufactures and markets all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and snowmobiles under the Arctic Cat® brand name, as well as related parts, garments and accessories. Its common stock is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the ticker symbol “ACAT.”
More information about Arctic Cat and its products is available on the Internet at www.arcticcat.com.
The side-x-side business appears to be the new darling of the off-road industry.
The emergence of new models and most importantly, new segment breaking variants, is a sure indication this business is moving in the right direction.
So what’s making this end of the off-road business grow like crazy? Believe it or not, the upscale higher unit price of side-x-sides compared to current ATVs is actually a strength for this business.
The higher priced space SXS sales occupy is a direct reflection of the more affluent, financially stable demographic who can afford those premium priced rides.
ItÂ’s been quite a while since weÂ’ve heard any big news from the offroad division at Suzuki. The Japanese manufacturer went silent a couple of years ago with no real signs of development in its ATV line up at all.
ItÂ’s no secret that a few years ago our industry was smacked with a fiscal reality we have since been desperately trying to recover from. It seems we may be cresting a level plane now and looking forward to some form of recovery.
Suzuki recently announced it would be dropping its automotive division to focus on its offroad and marine divisions. This may not be awesome news for Suzuki car owners, but itÂ’s a step in the right direction for Suzuki ATV enthusiasts.
With a massive dealer network across the USA converging on Las Vegas to see “new models” of motorcycles one can only hope that in the next year we may also see the next generation of the KingQuad or perhaps even a side-x-side from Suzuki.
Rumors of four more units in 2013 and an additional four units in 2014 bring a glimmer of hope to our dreams.
Sport utility is the meat and potatoes of the ATV market and the Suzuki KingQuad has always been a contender. We can only hope for big news from Suzuki in the not-so-distant future.
Dirt Trax Magazine Co-Publisher Motorhead Mark Lester walks us through the mid-sized 2012 Polaris Ranger 500 with EFI.
A Grand National Cross Country season is similar to a heavyweight title fight. It’s long, it’s brutal, and in the end, win or lose, there are going to be some bruises.
A racer climbs into the ring, er, onto the course, in March with a spring in his step and fire in his eyes, bobbing and weaving and snapping out punches. When the bell sounds in the final round in November the fighter, er, racer, is staggering forward with a fat lip, arms like slinkies and the eyes of a zombie.
Both a boxing match and a GNCC season require strength, stamina, skill and the ability to take a hard blow, shake it off, and find a way to keep going – just a little better than the zombie in front of you.
Team ITP had what it took to go the distance, and at the final bell – GNCC Round 13 at the Loretta Lynn Dude Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee – lifted several championship belts, er, trophies, toward the spotlights.
Dave Simmons (Yam) scored an undisputed knockout with his ninth overall morning race victory and his 13th straight win in the Super Senior 45+ class. He’s the Muhammad Ali of amateur cross country ATV racing.
Glenn McConnell (Yam) was close on the scorecard entering the final round, then delivered a haymaker in the Masters 50+ division. The Ohio native won at LorettaÂ’s by eight and a half minutes to earn the judgesÂ’ decision by just three points.
Journeyman Matt Hanna, with Greg’s ATVs & Cycles in his corner, jabbed and jabbed throughout the season, and in the end was applauded for a strong third overall in the tough XC2 Pro Am class. He threw an uppercut in the final round for second place to secure his top-three position.
Winning the title in that XC2 Pro Am class for Team ITP was Patrick McGuire (Yam), who was far enough ahead in points that when his closest competitor could not answer the bell, all he needed to play was a little rope-a-dope defense and a take a safe fifth place to clinch.
Adam McGill (Hon) was knocked down numerous times throughout the 2012 bout, but like the fighter he is, always climbed back to his feet. He took some body blows but did plenty of counterpunching as well. At LorettaÂ’s, McGill was a contender throughout a bare-knuckle XC1 Pro match.
In the end he had to settle for fourth place, missing the podium by a mere hundredth of a second. Despite kissing the canvas so regularly this year, McGill was still an incredibly resilient fourth place in the final standings.
And with that, it’s time to throw in the towel on another Grand National Cross Country race season. See you in 2013!
Can-Am ATV racers battled through muddy, slick conditions at the final round of the 2012 Can-Am GNCC racing series in Tennessee, and came away with five class championships.
Team UXC Racing / Can-Am racer Cliff Beasley rode his Can-Am Renegade® to a second-place finish in the U2 class and repeated as the class champion. Bryan Buckhannon successfully repeated as the 4×4 Open class champion with his fourth-place run aboard his Can-Am Outlander 800R.
Kevin Trantham won the 4×4 Lites class on his Outlander 500, finished third overall on the morning podium and notched his third GNCC championship. Despite suffering his first DNF of the year at Loretta LynnÂ’s, 4×4 Senior (40+) racer Forrest Whorton successfully defended his title on his Can-Am ATV. The final Can-Am champion was Tanner Bowles, who wrapped up the 4×4 Novice class at an earlier round.
“Loretta Lynn’s proved to be a challenging finale for a lot of racers, but we had two Can-Am-mounted riders on the morning overall podium and won a total of five classes in Tennessee. And more importantly, we earned a total of five class championships so, overall, our 2012 campaign is something we can be proud of,” said Jimmie O’Dell, Race Manager, Can-Am. “I was pleased to see Robert Smith and Kevin Trantham on the morning podium and happy to see Cliff Beasley finish strong in his final GNCC race.”
At the slick Loretta’s course in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., Smith, who also competes aboard a Can-Am Renegade, notched his second U2 class victory in the last three rounds and finished second overall on the morning overall podium. Beasley, who retired from GNCC racing after the finale, secured his sixth consecutive GNCC championship with his second-place ride in the U2 class at Loretta’s. From 2007, Beasley has earned an impressive 68 class wins in 78 races while competing on Can-Am ATVs.
“I feel so lucky, 10 years and no real injuries. I knew I just wanted to finish today and have fun and that is what I did,” said Beasley. “Smith was really fast today and it is great to see him get another win. I am blessed and thank all my sponsors and friends that have supported me over the past decade.”
Another Can-Am racer to finish on the morning podium was Trantham, the 4×4 Lites class champion for 2012. He posted double-digit wins for the third straight season and is a three-time 4×4 Lites class champion aboard the Can-Am Outlander 500 4×4, but is already looking ahead to 2013.
“Today was just great, everything worked extremely well. Traction was hard to find today and I was lucky to be able to get another win plus a third overall,” said Trantham. “We are already looking ahead to the 2013 season as we will be switching to the newer model of Can Am. I hope to be just as successful next year and will be carrying a lot of support with me to the new season.”
In the 4×4 Open class, both 2012 champion Bryan Buckhannon and runner-up Michael Swift had issues in Tennessee. Buckhannon recovered to finish fourth and notch his fifth consecutive GNCC championship, while Swift posted a second-place finish and took second at LorettaÂ’s. The winner of the class, Can-Am racer Andrew Langston earned his second win of the year.
Even with Whorton’s misfortune in the 4×4 Senior (40+) division, the class podium was an all Can-Am affair. Terry Whiteside took home the top honor and was joined on the box by Mike Penland and Brent Tindall. Josh Trafelet won the 4×4 Novice class on his Can-Am ATV.
In XC1 Pro class action, Motoworks / Can-Am Pro class racer Chris Bithell had mechanical trouble and lost valuable time in the pits fixing the issue. He ended up 15th and will run the No. 4 plate in 2013 based upon his overall finishes.
For more information on Can-Am racing, the entire 2012 schedule, the Â’12 contingency program and DS 450â„¢ amateur racer support program, please visit www.can-amxteam.com.
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