Anticipation was high coming into this weekend’s Inaugural running of the Can-Am Mountaineer Run GNCC, Round 7 of the 2012 Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Series as the series headed back to its racing roots in West Virginia.

Despite some of the highest temperatures so far this season, there was no doubt a six-man battle to the finish for the XC1 class win.

Maxxis/Yoshimura’s Chris Borich bested the Ballance Racing Yamaha duo of Taylor Kiser and Walker Fowler for his sixth win in seven races, and padded his series points lead just a bit more.

Precision Motorsports/Lonestar Racing/Moto X Perts’ Adam Mcgill grabbed the $250 Motosport.com Holeshot Award and set sail with the early lead.

The first Llap was a virtual free-for-all with the top ten riders swapping spots every few corners on the rocky, technical “old school” circuit. McGill experienced mechanical issues early in lap two, which would ultimately end his day and leave six riders to fight to get to the front.

Borich pulled the trigger a bit earlier than normal on his now patented last lap pass, making the move on Kiser just prior to receiving the white flag.

Kiser continued to pressure for the lead all the way to the checkers, even attempting a few maneuvers of his own in the final turns, but the Florida native came up just a few inches short.

Walker Fowler had an up and down day with troubles and crashes early on, but was able to mount a last lap charge to secure the final podium position.

Motoworks/Can-Am rider Chris Bithell Finished a solid fourth after running inside the top three throughout much of the two-hour event.

Rounding out the top five was JG Offroad/FRE/American Honda’s Brian Wolf. Many expected Wolf to excel in the rough West Virginia terrain, but he was hampered by a few mistakes in the latter stages of the race. Bowers/Coastal National Guard/Yokley Racing’s Jarrod McClure took home sixth place.

BNR’s Kevin Yoho put in a solid seventh place ride, once again battling Waynesburg Yamaha’s Jeff Pickens who came in eighth. DeRisi Racing’s Bryan Cook was ninth, just ahead of GBC/Cernics/HMF/Yamaha’s Johnny Gallagher in tenth.

Tireballs backed rider Pat McGuire returned to the top step of the Pro Am podium for the first time since Round 1 in Florida, regaining the points lead in the process. Greg’s ATV & Cycle’s Matt Hanna continued his impressive streak with a second place finish.

Pennsylvania privateer Blake Kramer has been a GNCC regular for nearly a decade and made his first trip to the podium with his third place finish.

Tough luck for Waynesburg Yamaha’s Gabe Phillips, who broke down on the opening lap of the race. DeRisi Racing’s Braden Henthorn also had a rough day, causing him to lose the points lead to McGuire after a sixteenth place finish.

New York’s Roman Brown made the move to the XC2 division this weekend, leaving fellow College A competitor Brycen Neal to garner the coveted Top Amateur Award for the second time in 2012.

GT Thunder’s Dave Simmons earned his fifth AM overall of the season, also keeping his perfect season in the Super Senior (45+) class in tact. 4×4 Lites points leader Kevin Trantham returned to the AM podium with a second overall after a mechanical issue held him back last round.

Yamaha racing’s Traci Cecco grabbed the third overall spot, while also besting her toughest opponent Angel Atwell in the highly contested Women’s class. Cecco now holds four class wins to Atwell’s three in the championship chase.

Can-Am X-Team’s Bryan Buckhannon bested the 4×4 Open class and also finished second on the 4×4 overall podium behind Trantham. UXC Racing’s Clif Beasley landed the third spot on the 4×4 podium and continued his perfect season in the U2 class.

Defending Youth champ Hunter Hart took the Youth Overall win after bouncing back from a leg injury that kept him out of a couple rounds this year.

Hart took his first win since Round 2 in Georgia in the 90 Open (12-15) class, ahead of South Carolina’s Zachary Jones and Kentucky’s Kalab Hagan.

Knowledge of the local terrain paid off for Morgantown’s own Team Barron Eastgate Racing as they topped the UTV race action ahead of fellow locals Team Coastal National Guard, who came through in second.

William Yokley piloted his Polaris National Guard machine to a thirdplace finish, tightening an already heated season points chase.

Round eight of the 2012 Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Series heads to Snowshoe, W. Va. June 26 and 27 for the Motosport.com Snowshoe GNCC. For more information, go to www.gnccracing.com.

Chad Wienen came into round four of the 2012 AMA ATV Motocross National Championship with heavy momentum as the series returned to his hometown track at Sunset Ridge MX in Walnut, Illinois.

Wienen once again swept both motos of the day, marking seven of the eight moto wins this season and further extended his lead in the championship point standings.

Motoworks/Can-Am’s Joel Hetrick once again proved that he could lay down the fastest lap time as he grabbed the ATVRiders.com Fastest Qualifier Award to kick off the day at Sunset Ridge. It was Lonestar/SSi Decals/Get Dirty MX’s Nick DeNoble who captured both SSi Decals Holeshot Awards but the Wisconsin native ran into issues all day, keeping him from finishing both motos.

Wienen Motorsports/SSi Decals/Walsh Race Craft/Yamaha’s Chad Wienen picked up right where he left off last round. Wienen got out front early in Moto 1 and battled with Motoworks/Can-Am’s Joel Hetrick throughout the fifteen-lap race. Hetrick kept Wienen in his sights all day but despite all efforts to take the win, Hetrick wasn’t able to make the pass on Wienen.

Motoworks/Can-Am’s John Natalie began Moto 1 with a back of the pack start, but the defending champ moved his way inside the top three as the moto wore on. Natalie settled into third and chased the battle of Hetrick and Wienen throughout the moto. TBROWN Yamaha Racing/Moto-X-Perts rider Thomas Brown got tangled up with another rider at the beginning of Moto 1 and was forced to pass through the pack, eventually making his way up to a seventh place finish.

In Moto 2, the leaders mixed it up but it was Wienen who once again came out on top, securing both moto wins at his home track. Natalie, Hetrick and Brown didn’t make it easy for Wienen to walk away with it though, as the trio contested the leader harder than ever in Moto 2. Brown got out front early on and led for about five laps before Wienen inherited the lead around lap 10.

Natalie and Brown battled Wienen to the very end and the top three came through the checkers less than three seconds apart. Wienen and Natalie had yet another photo finish for the win, crossing the finish less than one second apart. Wienen swept both motos for the overall win, while Natalie went 2-3 for second place and Hetrick took third with a 2-4 score. Thomas Brown put together fourth overall with 7-3 finishes, putting him in fifth place in the championship standings.

Baldwin Motorports/PEP’s Josh Upperman battled with the lead pack all day and his 4-5 score earned him fifth overall. Upperman still holds the fourth place spot in the overall standings. Michigan’s Harold Goodman put in a season-best performance to capture seventh overall with a 5-7 score. Goodman now sits in eight place in the championship standings.

Derek Swartfager (HON) finished sixth overall, just ahead of Harold Goodman and Adam Clark (HON), Jeffrey Rastrelli (SUZ) and Jesse Barnes (YAM) rounded out the top ten.

The 2012 AMA ATV Motocross Championship heads to Ballance MX in Oakland, Ky., for round five of the ten-race circuit. For more information, please visit www.atvmotocross.com.

ITP has been a dedicated supporter of ATV racing since, well, almost as long as ATV racing has been around.

ITP is celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2012, has been fully committed to backing racers and events of all types throughout those past three decades.

Such was the case with round four of the 2012 ATV MX National Championship Series, held in Walnut, Illinois. ITP was the presenting sponsor of the Sunset Ridge MX, an event that drew hundreds of pro and amateur riders to this idyllic Midwestern track’s rolling hills. The real challenge for most competitors at this venue this weekend was probably the high heat and humidity.

But our talented Team ITP riders gave it their all once again and at the end of the day many enjoyed the scenic view from the podium.

One of the most frequent visitors there was Haedyn Mickelson of Root River Racing. This fleet teen scored three second-place overall finishes for the weekend, winning two motos along the way.

These runner-up performances came in Schoolboy Sr. (14-17), Schoolboy Jr. (13-15) and Super-Mini (13-15). In the season point standings in each class he now holds first, second and fifth, respectively.

Samuel Rowe was another of ITP’s tough kids, putting his Janssen Motorsports-powered Root River Racing Honda on the top step of the Schoolboy Sr. (14-17) class and into fifth in the Schoolboy Jr. (13-15) division. He won the second motos of both classes, obviously keeping his cool in the tropical conditions. This Wisconsin native currently enjoys second and third in points for those two classes.

And how about the even younger Maci Devenport, who was triumphant in both the Girls (12-15) class and the 90 Production (8-15) field. With this race in the books, Maci sits second and first in series points, respectively.

In the big-boy classes, Cody Janssen had a good day in the intense Pro Am Unlimited division, going 1-2 in the motos for second overall on his Janssen Motorsports/Roberts Racing Outlaws Honda. He stands fourth in points.

Root River’s Sean Taylor stood next to Janssen on the Pro Am Unlimited podium with third overall, and added a very competitive fourth overall finish in Pro Am Production as well. This competitor from Iowa holds third and fourth in the class standings, respectively.

Finally we have Chloe Buerster, who is not a guy but rides like one against them, and who didn’t make a top-three podium this time but came very close. The Janssen Motorsports/Roberts Racing Outlaws athlete went 4-5 for fourth overall in the Women’s class (and is third in class points), as well as 2-7 in the 4-Stroke B class (to hold fourth in the standings).

The ten-event series now moves to Ballance MX in Oakland, Kentucky, June-2-3, for some rare night racing.

Another weekend full of racing has come and gone, and with it came several more class wins for GBC Motorsports riders.

This time, GBC earned five GNCC class wins and one WORCS class win. More importantly, however, is the fact that as we near the halfway point of both series it is evident that all riders are putting in strong performances while staying healthy.

GBC Riders Rock the Limestone 100 GNCC

Hopes were high rolling into the second consecutive brand new facility for the Limestone 100 in Springville, Indiana, and both the track and the team of GBC Motorsports riders delivered.

Leading the way this weekend was sophomore XC1 rider Kevin Yoho, who led early and kept himself within the lead pack through the race, even setting the fastest lap on Lap 3.

Yoho finished the race in a season best 6th place and has been steadily improving with each round. It appears that Kevin may be right on the verge of a breakthrough performance, serving notice that this quiet speedster from Ohio is the real deal.

Johnny Gallagher put in another consistent run for 8th place and remains in the 6th position in the XC1 season standings.

Braden Henthorn’s rough start landed him in 13th at the completion of Lap 1, but he overcame these early difficulties and climbed all the way to a podium spot.

Henthorn finished 2nd in the XC2 Pro-Am class, helping him maintain a slim points lead in the class standings. Randy Hamilton earned his first ever Pro-Am Top 5 finish and continues to improve rapidly in only his second year of GNCC competition.

Brycen Neal delivered his 3rd class win of 2012 in the ultra-competitive College A division, while Kevin McKeown took top honors in the College B class.

In some morning race action Bryan Buckhannon made it 5 wins in 6 races in the 4×4 Open class, enhanced by an impressive 2nd place Overall out of more than 230 riders.

Forrest Whorton also earned his 5th win of the season in the 4×4 Senior class on his GBC Dirt Commander equipped Can-Am Outlander.

Ashley Barbee must have liked the feeling of winning in Kentucky just two weeks ago, because she made it two in a row by grabbing another Amateur Women’s class win. Kylie Ahart finished 4th in the Pro Women’s class, and is in 3rd in the season standings.

The GBC Motorsports team will return to GNCC action May 26-27 in Masontown, West Virginia for the Can-Am Mountaineer Run.

Kayla Smith a Class Winner at Race Town 395

WORCS ATV Racing traveled to Adelanto, CA for Round 5 of the 2012 season this past weekend, and one GBC Motorsports rider made an impression.

Kayla Smith not only made her third appearance on the podium at Race Town 395 – she won her class and posted the 5th best overall time out of more than 40 SXS Production racers. The victory puts Smith in 4th place in the season standings in the SXS Production 700 class.

Fellow GBC driver Mitch Guthrie Jr. put up a season best 5th place finish in the SXS Production 1000 class, moving him up into a 5th place tie in the standings.

WORCS Racing will take competitors to On the Edge Raceway in Enterprise, UT for Round 6 of the season.

Can-Am X-Team racers earned four 4×4 class overall wins at the inaugural Limestone 100 in the Can-Am / Grand National Cross Country (GNCC) series event and also won both the Pro and Pro-Am classes at round five of the Texhoma Quad Racing Association (TQRA) series.

Can-Am ATV and Commander side-by-side racers also competed In the World Off-Road Championship Series in Southern California.

“Can-Am racers had a busy weekend with mixed results. We competed in three different racing series in three different states. Chris Bithell put in a good effort to finish fourth after he started the Pro class race at the back of the pack at the Limestone GNCC,” stated Jimmie O’Dell, Race Manager, Can-Am. “Our Can-Am 4×4 racers tamed the new course, as Bryan Buckhannon, Cliff Beasley and Forrest Whorton each posted convincing wins their classes. In the WORCS series, Dillon Zimmerman put in another top-five performance on his Can-Am DS 450 while Josh Frederick salvaged a top-10 finish and still sits second in the points chase. And in Texas, Hunter Miller had a great weekend in the TQRA series winning two classes and finishing third on the UTV Pro class podium.”

Can-Am / GNCC Racing

Round six of the Can-Am / GNCC series made its first stop to The Limestone 100 outside of Springville, Ind. Bryan Buckhannon edged Team UXC / Can-Am X-Team racer Michael Swift to win the 4×4 Open class and finish second overall on the morning podium.

“It feels good to have a little more cushion in the points lead. I can’t say I’m going to relax though, because the competition is still really tough and I want to win as many rounds as I can,” said Buckhannon.

Cliff Beasley remained perfect on his Team UXC Racing / Can-Am Renegade 800R Xxc in 2012, winning the U2 class by more than three minutes. Tanner Bowles won his fifth in a row, taking the 4×4 Novice class victory.

Forrest Whorton (Can-Am X-Team) earned his fifth victory in six rounds with a win in the 4×4 Senior 40+ class.  Motoworks / Can-Am DS 450 pro racer Chris Bithell took fourth in Indiana.

After a slow start, Bithell fought his way through traffic and into sixth place. He caught a break late in the race and moved up to fourth. He’s currently fifth in the XC1 Pro class point standings.

WORCS

Racetown 395 in Adelanto, Calif., hosted round five of the 2012 WORCS schedule. Motoworks / Can-Am DS 450 racer Dillon ZImmerman finished fifth in the Pro class. Zimmerman started the race in sixth and rode steady, to post another top-five finish in 2012. He’s currently fourth in the Pro class point standings.

“The track was rough in some areas and wet in others, but my quad held up great, even with it being so hot.” said Zimmerman.

Josh Frederick finished ninth after battling the heat, dust and a mechanical issue. Frederick, who worked his way up to second place and started to pull away from the third-place rider, battled fuel issues and lost several positions as his team corrected the matter.

Frederick was at the back of the pack, but rode hard to notch a top-10 finish. He’s currently second in the Pro class points race after five rounds of racing.

TQRA

Hunter Miller raced his Can-Am DS 450 ATV to wins in both the Open Expert and Pro-Am classes at round five of the TQRA motocross series held at Village Creek MX in Ft. Worth, Texas.

Miller outran his Louis Powersports / Can-Am teammate Cody Miller and the rest of the field during his 1-1 moto sweep in the Open Expert class. In Pro-Am class action, Hunter took the win in the second moto to give him the overall.

The Miller brothers each piloted a Commander 1000 X to a podium finish in the UTV Open class, as Cody finished second and Hunter was third.

For more information on Can-Am racing, the entire 2012 schedule, the ’12 contingency program and DS 450 amateur racer support program, please visit www.can-amxteam.com.