Help those who help us!
Patronize the fine sponsors
that back the Nationals:
GNCC - Round 8 -- Uhrichsville, OH -- June 2, 2001
Ballance overcomes extreme slop and bottlenecks
 |
| Fox Sports Net interviews Bill Ballance on his Scarecrow win and his further points advantage. |
Bottlenecks and wet-muddy-slop hindered riders in their go around on the big 10-mile long GNCC layout. "There were some good sections where you could actually get some traction and go. Then there were sections that got so extremely chewed up so fast that you just couldn't get through them at all. It got so bad I was hoping they would call the race off!", said eventual winner Bill Ballance. "I think Jeff Russell and Racer Production did the best they could to reroute the track on the fly and make it accessible", added the 2000 National Champion. Ballance overcame a get-off when he collided with a tree while negotiating an alternate route in one of the many bottlenecks. The champ quickly remounted, got going again only to slow to another stop when he came up on 40-50 ATVers in a stand still for as far as he could see. The massive arrangement of ATVer chaos included lappers and pro class competitors alike. "There was a place beside it that myself, Bryan Baker, Stevie Holbert and Chris Borich found that dropped us off a bank and around the whole mess. I got the lead on that move around the bottleneck and held on to it from there on".
 |
| Chris Borich scores 1-2 in the last two GNCCs. An impressive task for someone that's only ridden for four years and is only 18! |
 |
| Wiseco Piston's Steve Johnson owns and operates the Crow Canyon facility (seen here from 2000 feet) in Uhrichsville, OH -- home of the "Scarecrow" -- GNCC round 8 |
 |
| Get this. Curtis Crump bought this Yamaha Raptor from good friend Joe Jirousek at North Ridge Yamaha in Geneva, OH, bolted on a pipe, a set of PEP front shocks, and some Maxxis meats and charged hard to a third place podium spot! |
PA's Chris Borich backed up his recent Wilderness GNCC Round 7
win (his first pro win) with a second place at Crow Canyon. Borich looked fast,
smooth and much wiser than his 18 year old age might let you think. "Hard
to believe I made it to second place. My tranny just went at the end. I lost
1st and 2nd gear", reported Borich on the podium. What makes Borich's recent
success that much more impressive is the fact that the youngster has only been
riding for four years!
Rounding out the top three was Ohio's Curtis Crump on his BONE
STOCK North Ridge Yamaha Raptor. "I caught a great break on a bottleneck
at about the 9 mile marker. I was running about 20th in the first lap so unlike
the leaders, I was pretty happy to see those jam-ups". said Crump in a
post race conversation with announcer -- John Ayers. "I love my Raptor.
Especially in severe mud like today. They're tremendous mud machines",
added a modest Crump about his choice ride.
Pro Results: (More results here)
1. Bill Ballance -- Oakland, KY -- LSR -- 4 01:51:04
2. Chris Borich -- Sunbury, PA -- HON -- 4 01:53:58
3. Curtis Crump -- Hubbard, OH -- YAM -- 4 01:56:25
4. Kim Kuhnle -- Newbury, OH -- YAM -- 4 01:56:34
5. Jeff Seegott -- Burton, OH -- PRD -- 4 01:56:40
6. Bradley Page -- Mount Hermon, -- -- KY ROL 4 01:58:58
7. Rob Hertz -- Brookhaven, PA -- LAE -- 4 02:05:17
8. Bryan Baker -- Centerview, MO -- ROL -- 4 02:05:41
9. Bryan Hulsey -- Villa Ridge, MO -- HON -- 4 02:06:54
10. Santo Derisi -- Casar, NC -- ROL -- 4 02:06:59
