The first month of the year means taking down all of your Christmas decorations, trying to get rid of the fruitcake that your Aunt Martha sent you and round 1 of the World Off Road Championship Series (WORCS). This year as everyone prepared their machines to do battle out on the track, the WORCS track crew was busy re-routing the course because of heavy rains that hammered Speedworld MX all of that week. Even as riders were pulling into town Thursday night for Friday practice, they were experiencing heavy rains, strong winds and even an occasional tornado warning. With the weather we were experiencing, you would have thought this first race of the year was being held in the Midwest.inline_mediumwraptextrightBeau Baron was fastest off the start and into the first corner.26792111/features/1002_atvp_worcs_round_1_race_report1002_atvp_01_z+WORCS+SpeedWorld.jpgTrue

When Friday afternoon rolled around, I was already beginning to smell the adventure of the weekend in the air. It had been a rough couple of weeks, and getting the last issue out the door and to the printer on time left me yearning for a much-needed escape from the usual bump and grind of the office. Thankfully my release came in the form of the SxS & ATV Roundup event that was held in the blissful and remote mountains of Northeastern Tennessee at the Brimstone Recreation Park. Brimstone, which possesses 20,000 acres of premium off-road heaven nestled in the heart of Appalachia, is one of the most incredible places that you can plant four wheels for adventure riding in the States. I've experienced Brimstone in the past, and it's by far one of the top ride spots in this country for a variety of reasons and I could not wait to set foot and tires back on their trails.inline_mediumwraptextright26379827/features/1001_atvp_sxs_atv_roundup1001_atvp_02_z+SxS_ATV_roundup+action_shot.jpgTrue

Living in Georgia certainly has its advantages for ATV enthusiasts. Our crazy weather system just isn't one of them. It's not unusual to wake with ice on the ground and be wearing shorts and a T-shirt by noon. Heck, I've even been stuck in a rainstorm with bright blue, sunny skies. When it rains, it pours and I had been dealing with torrential downpours for two weeks when I received the call that there had been a change of plans and I was to attend the 2009 High Lifter East Coast Mud Nationals in Doles, GA. The Creek Bottom ATV Trails, which would be hosting the event, are only a three to four hour drive south and in most situations this would be outstanding news. Unfortunately, the weather channel currently shows otherwise. Unsure of what to expect I packed my bags remembering to bring along hip waders and a rubber raft just in case Doles, GA was completely engulfed in flood waters from the North.

If you did not catch the Nuclear Cowboyz show Saturday night in Houston TX, you have 11 opportunities remaining via Fuel TV. Starting tonight, Fuel TV will premier the Houston event at 8:00PM EST. And if your as anxious as we were and could not wait till then, click play on this video for a quick preview of Derek Guetter wowing the rowdy Texas crowd with his amazing acrobatic quad skills. The staff at ATV Rider Magazine has our TIVO's set to record. We hear the show was amazing.inline_mediumwraptextright27951787/features/1002_atvp_derek_guetter_backflipping_on_fuel_tv_tonight1002_atvp_01_z+can_am_atv_racing_teams_out_to_win_again_this_year+logo.jpgTrue

We know you've been hearing the rumors and yes, it's true! Brothers Caleb and Colten Moore of the Bomb Squad Battalion are crossing over today to compete today and Friday in both the Freestyle and Best Trick Snowmobile competitions in Aspen, Colorado. We hear these guys have some huge tricks up their sleeve and are likely to steal the show. Don't worry, their not trading in their quads for sleds, but are taking advantage of an opportunity of a lifetime and will open the eyes to a global audience as to how talented ATV athletes really are.

If you had the chance to ask your favorite rider any question, what would it be? How about 20 questions? We've taken the chance to do it just for you. We want to ask all of the questions you want to know and even some of the ones you never thought of asking or even knew why to ask. This issue we caught up with Team Motoworks Can-Am rider Chad Wienen to find out a little more about him.

So here we are ten years past Y2K, and we still don't have a name for this decade. Unlike the seventies, eighties, or nineties nothing has really stuck. The 00's, will essentially be defined by their impact rather than their moniker. There were many changes in the last ten years, but few had more impact than these. Without further ado, ATV Rider presents the "Game Changers" of the new Millennium.

Photographer: Mike Newsom
Rider: Mike Newsom Sr./John "The Monkey" Jovanovic
Location: ATVR's Top-Secret Testing Compound, Dallas, GAinline_mediumwraptextright27657070/features/1001_atvp_quad_action_shots1001_atvp_01_z+focus+mike_newsom_on_teryx_840cc.jpgTrue

Living in this great country we often take for granted the magnificent natural resources we have at our fingertips. The beautiful landscapes that adorn the Tennessee Mountains are among the many and have been calling our name for months. We were itching to get in a ride before winter fully set in and experience some of the bright fall colors while at it. The Appalachian Mountains in all their glory have many secrets and we set out to discover as much of it as we could in a short three-day trip. A tent, sleeping bag, limited survival supplies and two off-road vehicles would be our only connection to modern conveniences on our venture. On a whim, we packed the 16-foot trailer and made the haul to Windrock Mountain in Oliver Springs, Tennessee, that connected to Coal Creek mining and ORV land.

Ever had a question that you wanted to ask the pros but were just too embarrassed to ask it? Well, we weren't, and in this issue we pinned down WORCS ATV series pro Tim Shelman to answer all of the questions you were afraid to voice. Some of the answers rolled right off of his tongue, while other questions had him looking at us like we were crazy. Either way we got what we wanted on one of the series' more popular privateer racers, maybe even more than you wanted to know.inline_mediumwraptextright27123490/features/0911_atvp_exit_interview_with_tim_shelman0911_atvp_01_z+exit_interview+tim_shelman.jpgTrue

Photographer: Adam Campbell/ACP
Rider: Thomas Brown
Location: Competitive Edge MX Park, Hesperia, Californiainline_mediumwraptextright27126673/features/0911_atvp_quad_action_shots0911_atvp_01_z+focus+yamaha_YFZ450R.jpgTrue

My road trip story is more about the amazing people I've met and the incredible locations I've been lucky enough to experience every time I hit the road for a photo shoot rather than how badly we love pulling the E-brake on our rental car or the endless nonsense that goes along with the whole travel scene. I've been experiencing life to its fullest by traveling all over the country, and the world for that matter, over the last 10 years of my life photographing ATVs, motorcycles and everything in between. There are so many great stories I could tell, but I'm actually having a hard time narrowing them down to a single trip. However, there is one photo shoot in particular that does stand out in my mind, and like most of our more epic trips, it was a shoot I did recently at the Glamis dunes in the deserts of Southern California.

Don't disappoint by giving tacky Isotoner gloves or a useless travel manicure kit as gifts to your friends and loved ones this holiday season. Santa's hot little helper recently delivered the sickest new gift ideas from the ATV and side-by-side industry to our studio so that we could share them with you. Use this gift guide and get shopping early this holiday season; your friends and family will be totally stoked if you do!

If you know anything about the automotive industry, then you know about the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show. This is the granddaddy of all automotive conventions that is known worldwide for companies that exhibit their latest and greatest products. At this show everything from the most exotic cars to beautiful Las Vegas showgirls are on display to draw consumers into the booths to see what the various companies have to offer. This was also the first year that SEMA has invited the powersports industry to display their products to increase consumer interest for new and innovative products.inline_mediumwraptextright31555074/features/0912_atvp_atvs_invade_las_vegas_convention_center0912_atvp_09_z+2009_SEMA_show+custom_paint_atv.jpgTrue

Now in its second year, the annual GBC Heartland Challenge 10-hour endurance race seems to have become a premier family-oriented event that draws racers and spectators from all over for a weekend of great racing and an all around good time.

The 2009 ATV MX season will go down as one of the hottest ever seasons in ATV MX history. ATV Rider Magazines MX connoisseur Jorge Cuartas joined 450 racers and their families to celebrate the incredible accomplishments of 2009 at the Grand Resort Hotel and Convention Center in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. ATV Rider Magazine would like to congratulate all of the winners of the 2009 ATV MX series. We hope you enjoy both our class winning interviews and our banquet photo gallery. We'll see you guys next year.

Round 7
Terror and triumph

Rider: Jorge Cuartas

Location: Carolina Adventure World, Winnsboro, SC
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Each issue we've been approaching pro riders of every aspect in ATV racing to find out just a little more about them. We want to know more than just the basics, so we've slipped in a few surprises that they probably did not expect and thrown in a few that made them think outside of the box. This time we caught up with one of Can-Am's factory team riders, Jeremy Lawson. Here is your chance to find out a little more about the man than maybe you ever wanted to know.

A fond memory for me since I've been involved in the ATV industry has to be the start of the 2002 or 2003 ATV National MX Series season. I had never been to an ATV National MX race before and had always wanted to make the trek back East to see what it was all about. Being from Southern California, the only ATV racing scene I had experienced at that time consisted of local MX, short course and the Mickey Thompson-style stadium races that came through at the beginning of every year. While these races could prove exciting with the talent of our local pro racers, I was told the racing back East was a completely different experience altogether.

As an ATV enthusiast growing up, I remember walking through the pit areas at the Mickey Thompson race series wishing one day that I could be one of those racers. When I walk through the pro pit area of a World Off Road Championship Series (WORCS) race, I still have that bit of envy as I see the factory teams of Can-Am, Yamaha, Kawasaki and Polaris with their professional appearances. These pits are filled with everything a racer can dream of having when they're at the track and more, which is why being on one of these teams is the ultimate dream for many.

Think way back to the 1980s when Honda's almighty TRX250R pretty much dominated in the world of high-performance ATV competition. Depending on the year model, the 250R put out 26 to 28 horsepower to the rear wheel. In the 1990s, Honda then released the TRX400EX that put out 26 horsepower to the rear wheel. At that time it was imperative to start with motor work and then maybe later a little suspension work if you really wanted to be competitive in racing. But as time moved on and ATVs evolved, that theory has actually reversed places. Today, with most of the 450s being up around 50 horsepower with just bolt-on power mods, the power is at the point that the average rider will actually not do faster lap times with the extra power and speed. The fact is that even with all of this added power, the stock suspension without proper setup is not adequate for going fast for long periods of time, carrying speed and ultimately dropping lap times. But a properly dialed in suspension setup can actually unleash your quad's full potential, therefore making you more of a threat to your competition on the trails or at the track.

I generally consider myself fairly lucky to have traveled to the places I have and experienced the four-wheeled adventures that life has thrown my way over the years. I've ridden the lush mountains of Hawaii, carved through the massive sand bowls in California, explored West Virginia's rugged Hatfield-McCoy trails, sunk deep in East Texas mudholes and have literally been raised dodging trees and the occasional abandoned moonshine still in the thick technical wooded trails of Northern Georgia. In all honesty, I can't even remember half of the places that I've been fortunate enough to let loose my wheels. But one thing is for sure: It's difficult to forget those places that throw in an interesting twist to the overall adventure. Which brings us to my latest endeavor as an ATV adventurist, that being the Mines & Meadows ATV/RV Resort.