Morgantown, W. Va. (September 20, 2011) - Rockstar Makita Suzuki's Chris Borich is well on his way to another championship title after his signature final-lap pass on Warnert Racing Can-Am riders Adam McGill and Chris Bithell last round at Unadilla. Borich now holds a thirty-six-point lead over McGill heading into round eleven of the Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Series at Mountain Ridge ATV Trails in Somerset, Pa. this weekend.
The thirty-six-point margin doesn't fully reveal the season-long battles between Borich and McGill, or even the competition level within all the top five XC1 contenders. Chris Bithell has been exchanging podium positions with his Warnert Racing Can-Am teammate all season long and is now only ten points behind McGill for second place.
GT Thunder-backed Brian Wolf is the only rider besides Borich and McGill to claim an XC1 class win, and due to a couple strings of bad luck, Wolf is trailing Ballance Racing Yamaha's Taylor Kiser by thirty-eight points in the championship standings. Kiser has consistently put his blue machine inside the top five and a race-win at Mountain Ridge would keep him in the running for the championship title.
Ballance Racing Yamaha's Walker Fowler continues to impress - the young rider claimed his second overall win in New York, beating out the premier riders on time adjustment. Fowler is undefeated in the XC2 Pro Am division and looks to grab his tenth consecutive win this weekend in Pennsylvania.
ATVs will compete throughout the day on Saturday, September 24 and the dirt bikes will compete on Sunday, September 25. Local riders are invited to race the event as well, as GNCC racing offers classes for riders of all skill and experience levels. The amateur racer entry fee is $40 and riders can sign up at the track.
Spectator passes run $15 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.
The Can-Am Grand National Cross Country series is America's premier off-road racing series. Founded in 1979, the 13-round championship is produced exclusively by Racer Productions. Cross-country racing is one of the most physically demanding sports in the world. The grueling three-hour GNCC races lead as many as 1,500 riders through tracks ranging in length from eight to 12 miles. With varied terrain, including hills, woods, mud, dirt, rocks and motocross sections, GNCC events are tests of both survival and speed. Riders compete for more than $3 million in prize money, which draws talent from all over the U.S., Europe, Australia and New Zealand. GNCC Racing is televised and airs every week on the Versus Network. For more information, please visit www.gnccracing.com