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Smiley Puts the Polaris Predator on the
Podium
Miles of Florida sand whoops can’t slow Mighty Matt down
 De Leon Springs, FL – Matt Smiley showed the world that the
Polaris Predator 500 can compete, and defeat, any machine in ATV
racing by landing on the overall podium at the roughest GNCC of
the year: The Orange Crush round of the Suzuki Grand National
Cross Country Series in Florida. With a strong late-race charge,
Smiley came on strong to land on the GNCC podium with third.
“I think we got a lot of people excited by getting this Polaris
up on the podium. This may be the first time, but it won’t be
the last,” said Smiley. “This course was really rough. My
machine handled awesome though, and that really made it easy.”
Smiley got a good start and was able to run with the pack from
the start. As is his customary style, Smiley chose to use a
wait-and-see approach, keeping an eye on the lead pack and
saving his energy for a late-race charge. “I was there just
staying in touch with the leaders,” said Smiley. “They pulled on
me just a little bit, but I was able to reel some people back
in.”
With a lap to go Smiley found defending GNCC Champion Bill
Balance in front of him on the track, and he dug down deep to
try and catch him. “My crew was telling me I was catching Bill,
so I went for it,” said Smiley. “I left it all out there on the
track. I didn’t leave anything in the tank.”
Smiley was able to dig deep enough to pass Ballance and finish
on the podium – an amazing accomplishment considering it’s only
his second race on the Polaris Predator. “I love this new quad,”
said Smiley. “It definitely runs!”
 In addition to Polaris’ factory effort with Smiley, Polaris
also runs a ground-breaking contingency program. The largest
GNCC ATV contingency program ever, the potential pay out for
GNCC is $250,000 and across all GNCC ATV classes, including the
class champion. The maximum per race pay out is $2000 for the
pro class. Polaris is currently the only manufacturer offering a
contingency program for the new youth circuit. The potential pay
out for youth is $10,000 and is available to all three classes,
with a maximum per race pay out of $150. Details on both
contingency programs will be posted on the GNCC Racing web site
as well as the Polaris Industries’ new ATV racing web site –
www.polarisperformance.com.
About GNCC
The AMA-sanctioned Suzuki Grand National Cross Country series is
America’s premier off-road racing series. The 13-round series is
produced exclusively by Racer Productions. Cross country racing
is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The
nearly three-hour long GNCC races lead as many as 1400 riders
through tracks ranging from eight to twelve miles in length.
With varied terrain including hills, mud, dirt, rocks and
motocross sections, GNCC events are tests of both survival and
speed. GNCC featured sponsors include Suzuki, Parts Unlimited,
Moose, Maxxis, Pirelli, Wiseco, Klotz, FMF and ITP, and riders
compete for over $1.3 million in series prizes and contingency
money. Associate sponsors include Moose Utility Division, Scott,
Alpinestars, Ohlins, Cometic, Outerwears, Race Tools, Twin Air,
SFB Racing, Thor, Racer X Illustrated, Motion Pro, Tire Balls,
Moto-Tee’s, Warrior and Laeger’s. For more information log on to
gnccracing.com.
About Polaris
With annual 2004 sales of $1.8 billion, Polaris designs,
engineers, manufactures and markets snowmobiles, all-terrain
vehicles (ATVs), Victory motorcycles and the Polaris RANGER for
recreational and utility use.
Polaris is the recognized leader in the snowmobile industry; and
one of the largest manufacturers of ATVs in the world. Victory
motorcycles, established in 1998 and representing the first
all-new American-made motorcycle from a major company in nearly
60 years, are rapidly making impressive in-roads into the
motorcycle cruiser marketplace. Polaris also enhances the riding
experience with a complete line of Pure Polaris apparel,
accessories and parts, available at Polaris dealerships.
Polaris Industries Inc. trades on the New York Stock Exchange
and Pacific Stock Exchange under the symbol “PII,” and the
Company is included in the S&P Small-Cap 600 stock price index.
Information about the complete line of Polaris products, apparel
and vehicle accessories is available from authorized Polaris
dealers or anytime from the Polaris homepage at
www.polarisindustries.com.
For more information about GNCC and race results, contact:
Jason Weigandt
304-284-0084
info@gnccracing.com
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