Morganton, NC - The FRE/KTM ATV GNCC Team had its share of ups and downs at the third round of the GNCC Series, but still managed to walk away with a season best finish for XC1 rider Bryan Cook.
Cook got a decent jump off the start line of the XC1 class and came around the first turn in 5th position. At the end of lap one he had already climbed up to 3rd place behind Bill Ballance and Taylor Kiser. He held his position until the end of lap 2 where he was passed by Adam McGill and Chris Borich and dropped back to 5th. Cook was able to follow their lines and stay close to the front group. On lap 4, McGill suffered a mechanical problem and Cook was able to move past him and into 4th place. Cook held that position through the end of the race and finished in 4th overall for his best finish this season.
In the XC2 class, FRE/KTM rider, Josh Kirkland, started 4th around the first turn. Two corners later he found himself tangled with another rider after being hit from behind which dropped him to the bottom ten. Kirkland charged forward and quickly moved back into 5th position. Unfortunately a problem on the course broke his nerf bar and he struggled to maintain his lap times with the nagging nerf bar. He eventually finished in 9th position.
Reigning Women's Champion, Angel Atwell, got a great start off the line pulling the holeshot and leading the first half of lap one. Unfortunately, Traci Cecco was able to make a pass by her near the end of lap 1 and Atwell dropped to 2nd. Atwell remained close to Cecco until the third lap where she overshoot a berm and went straight into a tree. The crash resulted in damage to her ATV that was too severe to finish the race. "I am bummed about the way my race ended today, but we do have a throw away race and I plan on this one being mine," remarked Atwell.
2010 FRE KTM ATV Team sponsors: KTM, FRE, DWT Tire, FMF, Douglas Wheel, DID, Houser Racing, Baldwin Motorsports, Custom Axis Shocks, PowerMadd, FASST, Rath Racing, Wiseco, Precision Racing Products, IMS, Sidi, Scott Goggles, Quad Tech, JB Racing, Moto X-Perts, PG Graphics, Motorex, Rekluse, KTM Hard Equipment, and Twin Air.
Next Event: Round 4 - Union, SC - April 10-11, 2010
Overall Results - XC1 -
1) Chris Borich
2) Taylor Kiser
3) Bill Ballance
4) Bryan Cook - KTM
5) Jeffrey Pickens
6) Donald Ockerman
7) Brandon Sommers
8) Johnny Gallagher
9) Jarrod McClure
10) Sloan Jackson
Overall Results - XC 2 -
1) Brian Wolf
2) Kevin Yoho
3) Dustin Canipe
4) Parker Jones
5) Walker Fowler
6) Gabe Phillips
7) Josh Beavers - KTM
8) Eric Hoyland
9) Josh Kirkland - KTM
10) Mark Notman
Overall Results - Women -
1) Traci Cecco
2) Lexie Coulter
3) Jennifer Albright
4) Kristen Atwell
5) Shanna Bradshaw
6) Kyrie Brafferd
7) Jennifer Britts - KTM
8) Kara Merritt
9) Angel Atwell - KTM