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Borich Could Take Huge
Step Toward GNCC Title this Weekend in North
Carolina
Eleventh round of the Can-Am Grand
National Cross Country series visits Yadkinville
North Carolina on September 29 & 30. Top
locals invited to compete against the nation’s
best.
Yadkinville, NC
– For the first time in eight years, Yamaha’s
Bill Ballance is on the ropes in the Can-Am
Grand National Cross Country Series. Another
solid rider this weekend by East Coast ATV’s
Chris Borich could shut the door on Ballance’s
record-breaking title run, which makes the Elka
Yadkin Valley Stomp GNCC pivotal for the season.
Borich, with six wins on the
season including two in a row coming into this
race, holds an eight point lead over Ballance.
If he wins again and Ballance finishes second,
he’ll hold a 13-point lead heading into the
final two rounds, meaning he would only need two
runner-up finishes to wrap up the title.
“You have to get worried when
it’s this close, getting down to championship
crunch time,” says Ballance. “I’ve been in some
really pressure points before where I had to
make things happen, so you just go back and go
through the bike one more time, train hard for
two weeks and come back and try to win these
last races. Hopefully we’ll get the
championship, but it’s going to be tough. Chris
is riding good and we’re going to battle all the
way to the end.”
Borich knows full and well
that wins and runner-up finishes are not
guaranteed in the rough and tumble world of
cross-country racing, so he surely won’t count
points until the finish. In addition, a
determined pack of spoilers could mix the
results of the “Killer B’s.” Each week,
LTERacing.com’s Chris Bithell, Baldwin
Motorsports’ Adam McGill and GT Thunder’s Duane
Johnson are right in the hunt for the win, and
this weekend should prove no exception.
“I want to win one of these so
bad, it’s hard to even put it into words,” said
McGill before the previous round at Unadilla,
which he led into the final lap. “It’s like
there’s a big birthday cake sitting right in
front of me, but I can’t eat it yet. It’s so
close I can taste it, but I can’t eat it.”
The Elka Yadkin Valley Stomp
GNCC begins with ATV racing on Saturday. Youth
riders race at 8 a.m., followed by the showdown
with the Utility and 4x4 Classes as well as the
Women’s class at 10 a.m. Yamaha’s Traci Cecco is
looking to lock up yet another Women’s title
this weekend. The XC1 and XC2 pro classes race
at 1 p.m., with East Coast ATV’s Chris Borich
holding back Yamaha’s Bill Ballance in the chase
for the GNCC #1 plate.
Bikes race on Sunday, with
Youth racing at 8 a.m., a 10 a.m. morning race,
and a three-hour race at 1 p.m. for XC1, XC2, A
and B classes. Red Bull KTM’s David Knight holds
the series lead, but the rider from the UK is
racing an indoor race Saturday night in Denver,
Colorado, and then flying in a private plane to
North Carolina to race Sunday. That should take
a lot out of the Knighter, and open the door for
competitors like Barry Hawk, Charlie Mullins and
Jimmy Jarrett.
The Can-Am Grand National
Cross Country Series is the largest off-road
racing series in the nation. The top pro racers
make a lucrative living in the sport, reigning
in six-figure salaries and endorsements, as well
as a share of a $130,000 prize purse and over $3
million in contingency and bonus money. GNCC
events also offer classes for amateur riders of
all skill and experience levels. Four-wheeled
ATVs will compete throughout the day on
Saturday, September 14, and dirt bikes will race
on Sunday, September 15. Riders can sign up at
the track. The amateur racer entry fee is $40.
Spectator passes run $12 for
the full weekend, with pro pit access and pro
autographs at no additional charge. On both
Saturday and Sunday, youth riders race at 8
a.m., beginner riders race at 10 a.m., and the
top amateurs and the pros race at 1 p.m.
For more information, check
out the official series website at
www.GNCCRacing.com or call 304-284-0084.
Directions: I-77 to Exit 73A
to Highway 421 South. Go 10 miles to Exit 256,
Unifi Industrial Road. Turn left, go 1.2 miles
to end of road. Turn right on old Rte. 421. Go
2/10 mile, turn left on Myers Rd. Go 1 mile,
race track is on left.
About GNCC Racing:
The AMA/ATVA-sanctioned Can-Am 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 1,800 riders through tracks ranging from
eight to twelve miles in length. GNCC Racing
airs weekly television shows on Versus (formerly
Outdoor Life Network) every Saturday at 3 p.m.
and Thursday at 4 p.m. beginning on April 14.
With varied terrain including hills, woods, mud,
dirt, rocks and motocross sections, GNCC events
are tests of both survival and speed. GNCC
featured sponsors include BRP Can-Am, Parts
Unlimited, Moose, Maxxis, Pirelli, Wiseco,
Acerbis, Elka, Geico, Klotz, FMF, ITP and
Weekend Warrior, and riders compete for over $3
million in series prizes and contingency money.
Associate sponsors include Alpinestars, Cometic,
EK Chain, HiPer Technology, Laegers, Moose
Utility Division, The National Guard, Powersport
Grafx, Race Tools, REM, Scott, Thor, Tire Balls,
Twin Air, and MotoTee’s. Media Sponsors include
Racer X Illustrated, ATV Rider, ATV Sport,
ATVRiders.com, Quadzone.com, Dirt Rider and ATV
Insider. For more information log on to
www.gnccracing.com.
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