Birch Creek MX, Danville, VA 2004
- Updated: April 4, 2004
“Diggger” Doug airs out his Suzuki in route to three GNC wins in a row!
GNC MX Round 4
Birch Creek MX
Danville, VA
April 3-4, 2004
Special thanks to Julie Farr and Brant Russell for help with this report
Photos by: Julie Farr and Matt Robertson of Blue Groove Photos
Round four of the ATVA Grand National Championship MX series took place this past weekend in Danville, Virginia. The Birch Creek course has had a history of exciting racing and equally exciting weather. This year’s event proved true to form in both categories. Last year, the race was cancelled due to snow! A cold and windy day saw close racing action up front, but not just any ordinary race action. This time it was a battle of the brands as Suzuki, Honda and Yamaha fiercely duked it out in both motos. In the end it was Suzuki/Yoshimura mounted Digger Doug Gust pulling the three-in-a-row-hat-trick.
The Birch Creek layout is fairly narrow and very slick. Most of the competitors were lighting up the rear tires all day getting around the corners, which looked as smooth and blue grooved as an Ashtabula TT Polish turn. The track was fast but technical at times, especially over Birch Creeks’ 90 foot uphill triple. This jump separated the top runners from the also-rans.
Farr backs it in with 19 riders in hot pursuit.
Honda’s Tim Farr (Honda/Baldwin Motorsports/DG) saw the fast paced Birch Creek MX track as a great opportunity to get back in the swing of things. Farr’s TT skills would be an advantage on a track like this and he knew it. Meanwhile Doug Gust (Suzuki/Yoshimura/Weekend Warrior Trailers/Roll/Elka) showed up eager to add to his two race winning streak, but knew he would have his work cut out for him.
“This track is really hard to pass on,” said the “Digger” after practice. “Last year was sort of a ram-a-thon, lot’s of contact and that sort of thing. If I can get a good start and stay out of trouble, we should be O.K today.”
How close was the race action in Virginia? This close! Here Farr barely leads Gust and Jones in a fast left hand turn.
Enough Talk Let’s Race!
In the first moto, Farr grabbed the holeshot aboard his Honda TRX450R. Dust and high winds gave riders an additional challenge to overcome. Out front, the lead group pretty much freight-trained it around the twisting track until about the halfway point. Farr led Gust and Yamaha’s Jeremiah Jones (Yamaha/Sparks/ ITP/Image Racing/SHIFT) but not by much. The three ran away from the rest of the field and introduced what is sure to become an epic red vs. yellow. vs blue battle of OEM ATV equipment for years to come. All the while the trio put forth a very exciting race. For twenty minutes trackside spectators were no longer cold.
At one point, Gust appeared to have passed Farr, but Farr jumped past him in the air on the huge Birch Creek triple to take the lead back. This year’s ATV GNC series couldn’t get much more exciting. The three battled wheel to wheel like this with Gust taking over the lead. “I got a good drive in that left-hander before the jump and made a nice pass,” said Gust about the move that put him into first place. Farr soon was battling with Jeremiah Jones for second. On the last lap, Jones went for a bonsai pass at the end of a long downhill. Rather than crash, Farr had to get on the brakes and settled for third at the checkers.
“It was a little bit exciting out there with that wind,” Gust said after the first moto.“It was like Glen Helen a little. One time, Timmy and I came off of that big uphill, double side by side, and the wind blew us both almost off the track. When we landed, we almost tangled up with each other. It was kind of scary there for a second.
Back to his old self at last! Tim Farr and Honda’s new 450R led the way in both motos.
Joe Byrd switched brands and showed up on a new Honda 450R. It looks like the red quad suited him better. He ended the day with a respectable 6th place overall.
Grudge Game, Set and Match – Moto 2
After moto one’s display, it was clear that the second race would be a tough one and no one would walk away with an easy win.
Race two was almost an identical race with a slightly different outcome. Farr once again grabbed the holeshot and was followed by Gust, Jones and Kory Ellis (Alba/atvscene.com/Kenda/Fox). This time, Farr and Gust managed to pull a bit more of a lead on Jones. Nonetheless, the racing was just like moto one – ultra competitive, fast, and furious.
Gust would charge up to Farr and then drop off a little. He did this over and over in an attempt to get by Farr.
“About three quarters of the way through, I knew I only needed second to get the overall so I backed off a little bit,” Gust said after the race, On the victory podium Doug was quick to thank his crew and ended his interview with the following, “My Suzuki is keeping me up front! Tim’s quad started to get really wide and I decided to play it smart and get the overall points. It’s a hard track to pass on and I didn’t’t want to do anything stupid. It all paid off in the end. Three in a row! ” A jubilant Gust said from the top step of the podium,
Farr lead every lap of the second moto. The two battled often, as it seemed they were each faster in different areas of the track. “I felt very comfortable this weekend,” said Farr following the race. “My Honda was wicked fast and smooth. With the strange luck I have had so far this year, I am extremely happy to finally get my first moto win today!”
Red, Yellow and Blue on the podium.
Doug Gust and Suzuki were cornered this time out. In the left corner is Jeremiah Jones and Yamaha, in the right – Tim Farr and Honda
Rounding out the top five were Jones, Ellis and John “Ironman” Natalie (East Coast ATV). Natalie and Ellis traded fourth and fifth place respectable to finish the day off with valuable top five GNC series’ points.
Current Points Battle
1.Doug Gust (115
2. Kory Ellis (87)
3. John Natalie (80)
4. Jeremiah Jones (78)
5. Tim Farr (59)
6. Tavis Cain/Jason Luburgh (53)
7. Jasmin Plante (49)
8. Keith Little (47)
9. Jason Dunkelberger (45)
10. Joe Byrd (37)
