Whibley GNCC

[raglanash]

Tuesday, March 04, 2008



David Knight pulled a monster lead and a massive win at the Parts Unlimited Triton GNCC. Once Knight passed early leaders Travis Pastrana and Nathan Kanney, he checked out and never stopped charging. Why? According to Knight, the track got easier as you went faster, because you needed to float over the sand whoops and the roots. So he kept charging and charging and was pretty darned spent at the end.

But that was nothing compared to Jimmy Jarrett and Garrett Edmisten, who finished second and third and were way tired at the finish. Barry Hawk battled Edmisten right to the finish for fourth, with Paul Whibley fifth.

Yamaha swept the XC2 Lites class with Thad DuVall on his Am-Pro Yamaha taking the win, and Monster Energy/Andrews Racing Yamaha teammates Josh Weisenfels and Dustin Gibson taking second and third.

[takitimu]

Be great to get this on TV, wish Sky would turn the Rugby Channel into the Rugby / Motorsport channel.

[FlangMasterJ]

Where did Pastrana come in?

Is he doing the whole series?

[Quicker_with_age]

Travis only planned to compete in the one round I believe. He came 17th overall 12th in his class.

[raglanash]

Mullins Takes the General

Sunday, March 09, 2008



FMF Suzuki's Charlie Mullins bounced back big after a tough day at the GNCC season opener in Florida to win series round two, the Maxxis General GNCC in Washington, Georgia. Mullins followed Red Bull KTM's Nathan Kanney through the first two laps as the pair made a two-man break away, opening a gap of over a minute over the rest of the field. GNCC Champion David Knight climbed into the number-three position, but he was never able to close the gap, and in fact lost some time throughout the race. Halfway through, Mullins passed Kanney, and while Kanney chased "Hot Rod" all the way to the end, he wasn't able to get into passing position.

FMF Suzuki riders Paul Whibley and Jimmy Jarrett finished fourth and fifth in front of Barry Hawk, who grabbed the Racer X Holeshot Award but made a few mistakes on the first lap.

In XC2, Am-Pro Yamaha's Thad DuVall romped to his second-straight win, with Monster Energy Kawasaki's Andrew Matusek taking second in just his second pro race. Monster Andrews Yamaha rider Dustin Gibson overcame a first-turn crash to take third.

Look for more here later as we post stories and photos right here on GNCCRacing.com

[takitimu]

Race Report, Rnd 2 GNCC Georgia.
Rider, Paul Whibley.
Team, FMF Suzuki.
Bike, Suzuki RMZ 450
Result, 4th

Four days after round one we lined up on the red clay soils of Georgia for Rnd 2. A drop in temperature and some rain brought about some different racing conditions than we encountered in Florida. I was so impressed with my suspension that Rob had dished for the sand that I decided to run the same setting for the clay.
From the start my bike fired quickly but I got pushed wide and ended up at the back of the pro feild. Moving up was difficult as there were a lot of bog holes and different lines. The team had some man power out in the feild pionting lines which helped a lot. The track got pretty wide in places so it was difficult to pick the fastest and safest route without the help from the crew. My lines begain to come together as the race progressed and I begain to move up through the pack. I got into a brief battle with my teammates Jimmy Jarrett and Josh Strang before moving on, chasing Knighter in 3rd. Late in the race I was making time on Knighter but on the last lap I got roosted hard by a lapper, jamming my goggles. After taking some time to clear my sight I got back into my rythem but had lost some of the time I had made up.
I ended the race in 4th place, I was again happy with the flawless performance of the RMZ 450 and look forward to returning to the podium soon.

[raglanash]

Knight and DuVall in North Carolina

Sunday, March 30, 2008



If you checked the results live right here at www.gnccracing.com, you saw David Knight overcome a challenge from Barry Hawk to top the FMF Steele Creek GNCC in Morganton, North Carolina. Hawk ended up second, with a furious battle between nearly the entire FMF Suzuki team for third. Paul Whibley ended up third ahead of Josh Strang, Jimmy Jarrett and Charlie Mullins.

Thad DuVall romped to his third-straight win in XC2, with Kailub Russell notching his first career podium with second and Dustin Gibson mounting another come-from-behind run for third.

Look for more information on the site here--live results will be available until 6 p.m. EST.

[Danger]

Good going by Whibsy! Thanks for the update.

[takitimu]

Paul got 4th, with Suzuki 2,3,4 . Knight was fast really fast he was in the second batch of riders 10 minutes into the race & was up to 4th by the end of the 4th lap, awesome looking track pretty much like Whangamata, though wider & drier, mind you with 600 riders going around 6 odd times it needs that width .

From gnccracing.com

Red Bull KTM's David Knight mounted yet another come-from-behind charge to win the Pirelli Big Buck GNCC, giving the defending Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Champion three wins in the first four rounds of racing this season. Under near perfect weather conditions, the Isle of Man native topped FMF Suzuki Teammates Josh Strang, of Australia, and Charlie Mullins, from Ohio.

Another Suzuki rider, New Zealand's Paul Whibley, led a close pack of riders just outside of the podium positions to take fourth.

[denill]

Whibs is Currently 3rd Overall: in the series!


Race Report: Round 4, GNCC, South Carolina
Rider: Paul Whibley
Team: FMF, Suzuki
Bike: Suzuki RMZ 450
Result: 4th

Off the line my RMZ fired up quickly driving me around the first turn with the leaders. By turn two I had moved to 4th position.
The first woods section was tight, slick hard pack and I didn't feel comfortable with these conditions. I tried to ride relaxed and get into a flow but struggled and began to tighten up. I was able to hang with the top three for most of the first lap but as my armpump grew I had to back off to avoid crashing. I fell back and got into a race with Glenn Kearney, Jason Raines and Shane Watts. By the fuel stop I had dropped to 8th with armpump beginning to subside I could start to push hard and began chasing down the leaders. I past Wattsy and moved by Jason after he went down on a slick log. I lined up Glenn on the second to last lap, making a move at the end of a straight sweeping around the outside. By the start of the last lap I had Nate Kanney in my sights and mid lap I had made the pass and moved up to 4th. I continued to push hard, not knowing how close I was to 3rd placed Charlie Mullins. By the chequers I had closed the gap to about eighteen seconds but had to settle for 4th.

1- D. Knight
2- J. Strang
3- C. Mullins
4- P. Whibley
5- N. Kanney

Full Results:

One week earlier I raced Round one of the OMA series. With a good start I was following Jimmy Jarrett on lap one in 2nd position. Jimmy set a good pace and we put a small gap over 3rd. On the trail we encountered a lapped rider stuck blocking the track. Jimmy dismounted and helped push the kids bike over the rooty obstacle while I held Jimmys bike for him. Meanwhile the pack caught us and pushed past, relegating Jimmy and I outside the top five. We got going again and got on a mission. By the third lap Jimmy was up to 2nd behind Charlie Mullins and I was a distant 3rd. I past Jimmy when he crashed over a drop off. I set about reeling in Charlie. He had built about a 40 second lead. I got it down to 5 seconds but ran out of laps so had to take 2nd.

1- C. Mullins
2- P. Whibley
3- J. Jarrett
4- J. Strang
5- B. Garrahan

[denill]

Race Report Team - FMF Suzuki:
Loretta Lynn's GNCC in Hurricane Mills, Tennessee:
Bike: RMZ 450
Rider: Paul Whibley
Result: 6th

It was one of those days when things don't go quite to plan.
Right from the start it took two kicks for my bike to fire which left me at the back of the pro field going into the woods. I was riding a little tight in the rocky hard pack conditions and a couple of earlier passing attempts with dodgy outcomes only served to increase my arm pump.

I missed the pit board signal to "gas now" which led to a confusing first pit stop. But I was soon back on the track, with my arm pump easing I was able to push on and begin to make some passes. On the fourth lap I moved up to 7th passing team mate Jimmy Jarrett. More dramas occured when I came into the pits for the second fuel stop. As I entered pit row I passed a lapped rider, he moved over to the tent side of pit row. I came to the Suzuki tent and pulled in to receive gas. Unbeknown to me, the lapped rider must not of known I was coming in for fuel and clipped my rear wheel as I stopped for gas.

Mid fuel stop the guy lauches himself at us, blowing me off my bike and knocking the bike over. I was a little pissed off and would have had words with the guy if it wasn't mid race, (although the Suzuki crew gave enough words on my behalf). I got back into the race and caught back up to Nate Kanney on the second to last lap. We got on a mission and passed each other several times on the last lap. We pushed each other along and both caught and passed Jason Raines. Nate got the better of me when I got cross rutted on a hill climb trying to avoid a stuck lapped rider.

It was fun racing with Nate on the last lap and a good way to finish the race. 6th position was not what I was hoping for but I am still in 3rd place in the overall points.

1st- D. Knight
2nd- J. Strang
3rd- C. Mullins
4th- G. Kearney
5th- N. Kanney
6th- P. Whibley

Series Points Here:

[denill]

Kentucky OMA National.

Team FMF/Suzuki Off-road didn't sweep the Sidi Indian Bluff Cross-country, round two of the Parts Unlimited Off-road Motorcycle and ATV Nationals at the Royal ATV Trails park near Millerstown, Kentucky.

But like round one, Charlie Mullins led teammate Paul Whibley to a Suzuki 1-2 on a tight, technical course made even more demanding by a storm two days before. They finished 50 seconds apart, with Mullins on his Maxima/Dunlop/THOR-sponsored RM250 completing six grueling laps in two hours, 28 minutes and seven seconds over Whibley and his DP Brakes/Zip-Ty Racing/Moose RM-Z450.

Mullins got it started by stealing the $200 Vemar Helmets Holeshot Award in the event co-sanctioned with the local Kentucky Off-road Hare Scrambles circuit, but Garrahan badgered him enough that Mullins yielded on the first lap. "He was picking really good lines so I just followed him," Mullins said. "I think I got around him [on] the second lap and made it stick and tried to pull away."

After that, Mullins stayed in front and largely out of trouble until the fifth lap when he got stuck momentarily in a mud hole. By that time, Whibley owned second spot and closed ground, but when Mullins turned around and spotted him on the grass track section, the eventual winner clicked it up a notch and put more distance on his teammate.

Whibley had to work his way up after falling a couple times on the opening lap and having to fight through armpump due to riding with muddy gloves. Once he exchanged those for fresh gloves, he began to flow and eventually made it up into second place. "It was kind of fun; it was kind of pretty tight and hard work," he acknowledged.

[Danger]

Another good result for the RM250 and a great result for Paul!
Thanks for the update.

[denill]

Whibs Writes In:

Race report: Round 2 OMA Series
Rider: Paul Whibley
Team: FMF Suzuki
Bike: Suzuki RMZ 450
Result: 2nd

Round 2 of the OMA series was held in Millerstown, Kentucky.
Plenty of rain on Friday had left the track drowned. Watching the quads struggling around with a head to toe coating of slop allowed a glimpse of what we could expect for Sunday.

Off the line Charlie Mullins and Brian Garrahan battle it out for the lead. We entered the woods and into the tighter than normal conditions.

Passing was tough, I was in about 5th and seemingly not making any headway. I clipped a tree with my bars and was sent off the track and into another tree. Picking myself up before too many riders passed me. I followed Jimmy Jarrett and he did the same, pinballing off some trees and going down. I went down again shortly after when I crossed an old track, I tried to turn on the track but went down hard. I had mistaken the solid, slippery rock for dirt. I got going again and some how worked my way up to 3rd by the lap end, although Charlie and Brian had gapped me.

The going was tough with long rutts forming in the soft, fresh soil. At the pit stop I traded out wet muddy gloves and got new goggles as vines had pulled half my lense out of the goggle frame. I began to reel in Brian and made a pass on the second to last lap. I had also narrowed the gap to Charlie to 10 seconds going into the last lap, but that was as close as I could get, with some bad lines on the last lap and Charlies' skill in the tight conditions secured him the win and held me to 2nd.

1st- C. Mullins
2nd- P. Whibley
3rd- B. Garrahan
4th- J. Jarrett

[Katoomer]

Whibs won another. The Penton GNCC was a mudder and Whibs is pretty good in those conditions :


Whibley Leads Suzuki Sweep at The Wiseco John Penton

Sunday, May 11, 2008



Whibley, Strang, Jarrett Lead Suzuki GNCC Sweep at Ohio Mudder
DuVall Again in XC2




One of the muddiest, toughest Can-Am Grand National Cross Country races ever ended up with a surprise finish and a podium sweep for the FMF Suzuki team. New Zealand’s Paul Whibley made a pass on his teammate Josh Strang on the last lap to take the win at the Wiseco John Penton GNCC, with Ohio’s own Suzuki talent Jimmy Jarrett third. Strang led most of the race, and he had no idea how or where Whibley got by him, just as Whibley had no idea how he took the lead.



“I think this was the muddiest, sloppiest race I’ve ever been in,” said Whibley, a veteran of off-road racing around the world. “I don’t even know what happened. I thought I was in maybe third, and I got the pit board that said Josh :52, and I thought that meant he was catching me. I guess he was ahead and I passed him somewhere.”



Strang was confused and dejected after missing his chance for a first GNCC victory, instead taking second for the third-straight race. Regardless of order, the event marked a 1-2 finish for the new EFI Suzuki RM-Z450. Jarrett, who took the Racer X Holeshot Award, rounded out the podium on his RM250.



Series leader David Knight rode fast through the mud and water, but eventually took in enough of it through his airbox to slow his bike. At one point he climbed to second and looked ready to challenge Strang, until his machine stalled. Later he had stop in the pits for a new filter, as did his teammate Nathan Kanney, and those problems cost the duo a few positions. Unofficially, Knight was credited with fourth, with Am-Pro Yamaha’s Jason Raines in fifth.