ATV MX Nationals: Birch Creek 2010

By John Pellan
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Updated: May 9, 2010

By Dave Porter
Photos by Susan Guadagnino of go-go-photo.com

Below is my little summary from the third round of the coolest ATV racing series in the world, the AMA ATV Motocross Nationals at Birch Creek in Danville, Virginia….

Dustin Wimmerr and Josh Upperman
The first moto in Virginia for Dustin went pretty much text book. He had a good bit of pressure from his teammate Josh Creamer, but continued his winning ways with first moto victory. The second moto didn’t go so well for the champ. He finished fifth but his final moto impressed me more than his first. You see right about the second lap the seat on his Suzuki QuadRacer R450 came loose and fell off.

Now over the years we have all seen many riders come around the track without a seat. Not often, but sometimes it even happens to the best riders and teams in the world. The last time I remember it happening was at the High Point in ’08. Josh Upperman lost his seat about three laps into the pro moto. I’m only going by my very bad memory here but after his seat fell off he was only passed by one rider and finished a very respectable fourth place. I was so impressed with Upperman’s determination to salvage a good finish at one of the roughest tracks on the circuit without a seat that I walked over to him and shook his hand.

This year, Wimmer took it one step further. Wimmer dug deep, ignored the pain and earned himself a second place overall spot on the podium. Knowing Suzuki mechanics Kevin and Glen I bet we don’t see that seat come loose again.

John Natalie
Okay I have to call out my ole buddy Ironman John Natalie. I’ve got to go back to the Ballance Moto X round to make my point, and I had to ask John about this to confirm it. You see at this year’s Ballance National John had a great weekend going — winning the first moto and turning some heads in the process. In the second moto his factory-backed Can-Am DS450 let go of something and forced the multi-time champ to pull to a stop at the side of the track. This stuff happens and I think John knows this as well, but at the time he wasn’t too accepting of his moto two DNF.

Anyway, I got word from his mechanic that he tried to “fix” the problem with his helmet. Now I’ve been working on ATVs for about 30 years and I’ve never made sure I had a helmet packed in my tool box. You can’t fix an engine by throwing a helmet at it. All kidding aside, you can look at this in two ways. One may see John taking his frustration out by chucking his helmet at the quad as a “poor loser”, but I see this act as proof that John’s desire to get back to his winning ways is full on, and he simple let his emotions get the best of him for a moment. It’s kind of like slamming the end of your bat down after striking out. It’s not a good thing to do but I’ve seen many pro baseball players do this after striking out. I’m not saying it’s okay to get pissed and throw a fit, what I am saying is I like seeing some fire from Natalie. When he gets fired up and the machine performs like it’s supposed to, he’s unbeatable.

Back to Birch Creek… John’s 6-2 finish put him just one spot from the podium. Don;t look now, but I think we’re about to see John and his Can-Am in the hunt this year. These last few rounds have me convinced that Natalie, his mechanic Casey Greek and his Motoworks Can-Am team are about to put together a very special season. I for one can’t wait to see John and his crew win some races.

Josh Creamer
Holly crap! Two in a row for Dreamy Creamy. Damn, this guys rolling! Okay you could say Creamer won because Wimmer’s seat fell off. Well that’s a big whatever from the way I look at it. Josh doesn’t care and neither does his fans. I’m here to say I’m a fan and I’m very happy for him. If he keeps his head on straight you never know – maybe he can pull of the big “C”? Josh and I talk at least twice a week about just that, staying focused and keeping his eye on the prize. If it happens, I’m here to say it couldn’t happen to a more worthy rider.

Thomas Brown
I’m surprised and I’m not surprised that Thomas was on the podium at Danville. I’m surprised because he did it on something that’s not red or yellow. I’m not surprised because I know Thomas works his butt off and shows up on race day fully prepared to win. My hat goes off to his dad Kent. Like the son he raised, Kent’s a great guy that works his butt off for his son. That podium must have been a great father and son moment. I hope the two of them keep the momentum and continue to put their YFZ450R in the money this year. I don’t know about you, but I’m a little tired of constantly seeing red and yellow up there. Keep ’em coming T Brown.

Birch Creek National
I don’t have the exact numbers but turnout was most definitely down at Birch Creek this year. I suppose there could be a few reasons for the lack of riders in Virginia. Maybe guys don’t like the track, the economy, the season started too early for a lot of riders – who knows. I just hope it gets better. And I certainly hope it doesn’t get worse. If you’re contemplating on whether to race a National, go for it. You’ll love the experience not to mention the many great people you’ll meet.

Susan Guadagnino
Speaking of great people….
If you’ve noticed an improvement in the photos from Virginia it’s not because I got a great new camera to replace the one that housekeeping stole from my room in Alabama, and it’s not because my son Matt is taking photography in school. It’s because I lucked out and met a great ATV photographer with an even greater name, it’s Susan Guadagnino of go-go-photo.com, but I like to call her “Quad-Neeto”.

Check out the incredible crash and burn shot Susan took below. Bad luck for Can-Am riders Jeremie Warnia (the crasher on the left) and Chad Wienen (the crasher on the right) — but good luck for Suzuki’s Josh Creamer who seems to be in the perfect spot to slip between the two without a problem. Nice shot Quad-Neeto!