12 Hours of ATV America 2002
- Updated: October 12, 2002
Team Walsh Racecraft rode this immaculately prepared Walsh Racecraft 250R (265cc) to the winner’s circle, where they claimed the largest pay-out in ATV racing history – $9000.
Maxxis Tires 12 Hours of ATV America ™
Fort Dodge, IA
Oct 12, 2002
By John Pellan (wearing his journalist hat for the occasion)
Photos by The Webster County Wheelers and the teams themselves
Teams from 26 different states and Quebec, Canada landed smack-dab in the middle of the country, as Fort Dodge, Iowa hosted the Maxxis Tires 12 Hours of ATV America inaugural race. The track was a masterpiece that showcased the Mid West Offroad TT course in its center. In order to utilize the rest of the facility’s sections, track layout and design experts, led by ’00 Open Pro GNC National Champion, Bryan Shipley, spent months carving and sculpting the rolling hills along the Des Moines River.
John Pellan, promoter of the Maxxis 12 Hours of ATV America, writes big checks! This race featured a $20,000 purse.
The all-girls team of Traci Cecco, Stephanie Parton and Angela Moore (seen here) beat most of the men and finished up just shy of a top ten in 12th.
GNC supporters loved what was laid out for them. The TT and motocross sections with their jumps and the wide open high speeds highlighted their area of expertise. The motocross section of the track included a set of whoops, many off camber turns, a few double and single jumps and a table-top jump. The first few miles of the five-mile course were fast and wide. Riders negotiated the first wooded cross country sections with relative ease. After some sandy whoops and a high speed desert section, Iowa style that is, the track weaved its way up to the motocross section, which was built on a large plateau overlooking the wide-fast TT track. Later riders disappeared into the second half of the track. More cross-country-type terrain awaited them – this time much tighter and definitely more demanding than the previous wooded section. Most teams ran motocross widths, so the tight woods might have resembled a freeway to some die hard GNCC racers. To others, they would dread the six foot clearances, off camber turns, steep hills, ruts, and stumps that GNCC riders tend to routinely swallow up in stride. Spectators enjoyed watching the riders maneuver through “Bath Tube Hill”, a steep, muddy “V” shaped downhill section hidden in the middle of the challenging wooded portion of the track.
The gun goes off in session two and riders sprint to their quads, plug in their tether cords and hammer down to get away from the pack as fast as possible.
Areas in green were represented at the inaugural 12 Hours of ATV America. There was a total of 26 different states and Quebec, Canada on hand – not bad for the first year!
After surviving the tighter, slower section of the track’s final miles, riders would tally a lap for their team at the finish line, where the Trackside Software group would scan the bar code on their helmets while computers logged the information and displayed the team’s stats. Be it a 26-minute lap from a team encountering motor problems to a Jeremiah Jones 9:58 lap (the fastest of the day) this info would forever be permanent in the 12 Hours of ATV America history books.
Mechanics and teammates alike meticulously went over some last minute changes in the long-picture-perfect-well-organized pit lane, which allowed each team’s trailer or box van tail gate to proudly display their entry and team sponsors, while letting spectators and reporters easily follow all the pit stop action and team strategies. 54 different teams in gang-like comradery made their way to the starting area. Many entered like a college football team might enter the field of a New Year’s day bowl game. “Just keep the bike running, just keep the bike running”, teammates reminded each other. From another huddle of last minute preparation you could overhear, “get away from the pack – you’ve got to stay away from any bumping”. Another overheard comment at the line, “Just watch for my pit board, ride smooth and have fun”. 11 pro teams would be racing for the biggest pro purse in ATV racing history, ($17,600), but just as important – they too would “have fun”.
The LRD team entry of Nate Frees, Jason Dunkleburger and Jerimiah Jones, (who logged the fastest lap of the race) weren’t so lucky. The team switched the 350R motor in only 21 minutes, (thanks to their well-prepared and ready-for-anything Lost Creek Cycle crew). The lost time however pushed them back to an eventual fourth place overall.
Mike Pendland chats with announcer Mark Straubinger about their team’s domination in the 4 Wheel Drive Utility class.
Iowa be proud!
Persistency paid off for Team Great River Powersports, (Nick Eastin, Dustin Wimmer and Cory Ellerbroek – all calling Iowa home). The trio battled through a wasted rear sprocket and a Nick Eastin broken shoulder in route to winning the highly competitive A class. Go ahead and flex those muscles guys! We bow down here at the scene!
A light rain fell prior to the start and for the first few hours of the race, making the track perfect for dust-free racing and allowing for a beautiful blue groove in many of the turns. Temperatures slowly fell throughout the day, but most hot and sweaty teams welcomed the 50 degree overcast day.
At the sound of the gun riders sprinted from the starting line, plugged in their tether cords and roosted away for the start of the first six-hour session. The thunderous field of 54 riders approached the wide left hand turn eager to lead the prestigious event. Stealing the front page from future 12 Hours history books was the A class entry of Dustin Wimmer from the Great River Powesports team. Dustin stole the holeshot from the rest of the field and impressively led the charge on their Great River 400EX.
I’ll skip to the bottom line then let the riders of the fill in what happened in between. The Walsh Racecraft team, aboard a healthy Walsh 250R took top honors and won a hefty $9000 for their hard work. “We just kept a strong steady pace and really didn’t have any problems”, said “Digger” Doug Gust, the team’s anchor rider. “It was way better than I even imagined. The track was a lot of fun. I think this race can really help the sport”.
Jathan Seale displays the second place check for his JB Racing teammates.
Kory Ellis logged one of the fastest times of the second session. Amazingly, the quick lap came on the last lap he rode for the day, his 8th lap of that particular ride. “I guess I just wanted to get off the thing once and for all, so I sprinted it in”.
Two production based Suzuki Z400 entries rounded out the podium. The JB Racing team of Matt Bartosek, Jathan Seale and Brad Covington did their homework and were more than ready for the race. Each rider routinely charged hard for 7-8 consistent laps at a time. They had their sites on the leaders but just missed staying on the lead lap at the end of the first session. “Matt got jammed up in a bottle neck and Doug got past him and lapped him on the last lap”, said the team leader and mechanic, Jodi Bateman of JB Racing. In the second session we slowly reeled them back in and got back to the current lap, but couldn’t catch them. Third place overall went to Team GT Thunder using another Z400 as their weapon of choice. ATV Scene’s own Johnny Gallagher and Kory Ellis were the go to guys on this team. “I can’t say enough for the machine. Laz at GT Thunder had it running absolutely perfect. I shot the chain with some lube as Kory roosted away – that was the extent of our fiddling with it in the pits. I’m really happy with what we accomplished, there was a lot of talented riders and excellent teams out here today, we’ll proudly take this podium and be back next year to back it up”, said Johnny Gallagher with third place $3000 check in hand.
