Moto Spy pays a visit to Kailub Russell as he takes on a round of the GNCC Championship.
The Grand National Cross Country Championship (GNCC) is America’s premier woods-racing discipline in the two-wheel world. With 13 rounds spanning the woodlands of the East Coast, the GNCC Championship pits some of the world’s best enduro riders against the elements, insanely rough tracks, and each other to determine a champion. Each race lasts around two hours, and with riders’ heart rates averaging around 180 bpm throughout, GNCC is a battle of attrition more so than just about any other form of offroad racing.
KTM’s ace in the hole in GNCC is a young North Carolinan by the name of Kailub Russell. The 26-year-old has three GNCC titles to his name, and seems on his way to a fourth so far in 2017. At round four in Camp Coker, South Carolina, Russell took Red Bull Moto Spy through yet another one of his winning weekends in GNCC.
GNCC racing is a game of finesse, and aggression. Gone are the days when a race could be won by just cruising around riding at half throttle the whole time. GNCC racers now are on a level of fitness and bike ability that closely rivals the stars AMA Pro Motocross — many GNCC racers are also professional caliber motocross athletes.
In fact, to the untrained eye, GNCC looks just like motocross, just in the woods. But the tracks and racing in the woods is a far cry from the 100-plus-foot jumps and deep, loamy soil of MX. GNCC riders are much more subject to natural terrain and elements seemingly designed to trip them off their rhythm, be they trees, roots, dust or extreme dirt conditions. It’s a discipline not for the faint of heart, as proven by Russell’s heart rate data from round one in 2017.
To most people, a dirt bike race is a dirt bike race. But racers who have set tread on a GNCC course know that it is a form of racing unlike any other. A fast pace, a technical and brutal race track and the heat and humidity that overtake the eastern United States all make GNCC an arena that separates the men from the boys, as just about any GNCC fan is sure to tell you.
David Knight MBE is certainly a legend of the HydroGarden Weston Beach Race. The four-time Enduro World Champion has won at the event six times, including a quad victory, and this year he’s back, he’s ready for it and he’s looking forward to a great weekend on the sands of Weston-Super-Mare on October 13-15. We caught up with the Manxman to find out exactly what he’s beenup-to…
Knighter it’s been a while since we’ve heard a lot about what you’ve been doing or racing, can you give us a bit of an update? “I’ve done quite a few races this year, but I had a new hip put in late November 2016. I’d had hip surgery in 2011 to tidy things up, but it only worked well in my left hip. I was out for a long time with that, but in the last three years I’d say I’ve really been struggling. I’ve been scared to put my foot down and going through the cycle of pain killers, hurting it, struggling with it, more pain killers. I was living in agony, and the worse thing was I couldn’t do the little things like bend down and play with the kids. Even watching TV was uncomfortable. The first guy I saw said I’d probably never race again, but I saw a really good surgeon in the Isle of Man. It didn’t matter really to me, as I was in so much pain it had to be sorted whether I could race again or not.”
Things must have gone okay as you’re back on a bike and seem to be riding a fair bit, right? “Ross (the surgeon) was convinced I would be fine. I was pretty ill for the first couple of weeks after the surgery, but on the third week I started feeling a bit better, then in week four I rode a bike for the first time. I was at a practice day and Ross called to say he thought I could ride. I thought he was joking and said I’m not bothered, I’d rather leave it longer, but he thought it would do me some good. I couldn’t put my socks on at that point, but after getting on the bike and stretching it a little bit, it was sore for sure, then after a night’s rest I could get my socks on the next day and I never looked back.”
So you didn’t mess about much and got back racing again? “After a steady few weeks I was getting there. I did a race in Wales in January, I was battling with Graham (Jarvis) but took a wrong turning and ended up in a hole up to my handlebars, although apart from that I was racing for the win, which was really nice for me because while I didn’t have the fitness, my hip felt good. It’s August now and they said it would take 18 months to get the hip to its best, but even looking back over the last two months since the race I did in Mexico, my hip is a lot better than it was then. Hopefully in another three months it will be another big step in flexibility. It’s probably better now than it has been for 10 years.”
How have the races gone since then? “I’ve had some real stupid luck in the races in the British Extreme and that, but my speed is there, and I know that things are in the right direction. At the Mexico race they had some issues with the organisation, but the first big full day I won and there was a few top boys there, so I know I’m getting back to where I need to be. I’ve done training schools in Mexico and Israel, which have been good, I’ve been busy with them, my training schools and tours in the Isle of Man and doing the races I want to do, without going overboard. I’ve done the Isle of Man Enduro Championship and there are some good riders in that including the McCanneys – I’ve won all five rounds so that’s been good too. They’re pretty old school with special tests like they used to be, and I did the Tough 100, which was also good. Unfortunately the Red Bull Romaniacs wasn’t great for me, I was crashing and some of the race was a bit much, but I had good days with positive results to take away.”
How do you see things going forward from here? “The biggest problem is getting enough time training. You’ve got to pay bills and got to work. I’ve been doing a bit of testing, suspension work, in fact I never know what I’ll be doing. It would be nice to have an income and a routine. One week I’m testing tyres, the next week I’m doing training schools, then a race. I’ve even been in Bosnia doing training schools as well as racing. Having said that it’s been great doing some of these special races in places I maybe wouldn’t have thought to go, because you’re meeting new people and it’s what I’ve always wanted to do. There’s much less rushing than racing world championship, and you get to socialise with it. I think I’m probably enjoying it now more than ever.”
The HydroGarden Weston Beach Race is an event you’ve always relished in doing; tell us a little bit about that? “The HydroGarden Weston Beach Race is one of those special races, I’ve only ever DNF’d or won it – I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, but luck has a lot to do with it. The last two times I’ve been really prepared, I had a Yamaha France bike and the bike was great, but it broke down after two laps and then the year after the same thing happened again. It’s typical Weston. In some years I did an indoor on the Friday and Weston on the Sunday with no prep, turned up with a bike that was a practice bike and won. It’s strange! I’ve had bad luck in the last two years, but when I won it I felt like it was a holiday race. I love it there, I’ve enjoyed the success. I’ve won on a bike and a quad, as has my brother. It would be hard to do that again and you’d need to train for it, but who knows.”
What do you think your chances are this year? “At Weston anything can happen, you can’t predict it. Jonny (Walker) could do well, but he lacks experience. To be honest you get AMCA guys that can do well because of the experience. Todd (Kellet) was impressive last year, and he has that experience you need to do well. His brother doesn’t ride a lot but can finish top 10 at Weston. It’s one of those races. We’ve had Stefan Everts and Josh Coppins there in the past and Marc De Reuver when he was the best sand rider in the world, and I lapped him! So it’s sand, but not sand like we think in motocross. So we’ll just have to see, it’s about surviving the three hours”
What is your strategy for the race? “It’s a big race; one of the iconic races in the UK. It’s a special race that’s still going – it has had its ups and downs but I think it’s on its way up a bit more again now. There’s been some lean years, which is better as a rider, but getting through the first half hour unscathed is the most important thing when the entry is as big as it is now.”
Do you have any advice for first-timers? “For a newcomer I’d say you need to treat it like a long distance hare and hound or enduro race. You see guys going into the first or second turn like they’re doing a Grand Prix motocross qualifying and end up cartwheeling down the track! You don’t need to be in the lead, but for someone looking for a win you need to be around top 10 first lap, as the bottlenecks can allow people to get ahead of you with the fences being opened. You need to use your head and bike preparation is massive for Weston. You need the bike to last for three hours in that sand. So often you can get to an hour to go and you’ve no brakes, your chain is hanging off, your sprocket teeth are worn. You need the right equipment! It still doesn’t guarantee anything, you can ride through lakes and prep on the beach and not find a problem that you might get at Weston, but it will help. You don’t want to give all your tips away though do you!”
We look forward to Knighter lining up on the start for this year’s HydroGarden Weston Beach Race event on October 13-15 2017. For more information, entry and tickets please visit www.westonbeachrace.com
Anyone who doesn’t respect Steve Dixon for the effort he puts into the sports must either have an agenda, or is just crazy. The former MXoN mechanic, current MXGP team owner, promoter of British GP’s and MXoN event, and not to mention a really good guy, has his hands full at the moment, as the biggest race (possibly) ever run will return home to the birth place of motocross.
The 2006 Motocross of Nations was probably the biggest crowd at a motocross event in decades, and there is talk that 2017 is going to be even bigger.
With the selection of all the leading teams for this year’s event, we stand to also see some of the closest racing the event has seen, and don’t be surprised if five teams go into the third and final moto with a chance of victory.
We caught up with Dixon and asked him how everything is going with organizing this massive show.
MXLarge: Obviously a week or so ago the British team among others were announced for the Monster Energy Motocross of Nations and it seems to just get more and more mouth-watering by the minute. There seem to be like six teams could win this thing. How excited are you as a fan, but also as the promoter?
Dixon: I mean, I am excited for the event. I don’t think there have ever been so many teams capable of winning. I don’t believe Team USA have a weak team, I believe they have stronger team than they actually imagine. People underestimate the statue of Thomas in the Grand Prix, with start grid and how the series works. There have been weak links in American teams from recent years, but I believe Zach, on the 250 pushing for some wins and Cole, he is the top 450 guy who can come. Dean Wilson gets on the podium and Musquin who gets on the podium and both those guys can’t race for Team USA. Take those guys out and you have one of the strongest guys in the class.
MXLarge: What about Team Great Britain. I was speaking to Mark Chamberlain, and if you line up the Team GB guys up against France, the difference is not a lot, and Team France are the favourites. What is your opinion?
Dixon: I see the team was announced and some people are saying it’s fantastic and some have comments it should be Brad Anderson, or Conrad Mewse or Ben Watson and that Tommy got picked because of the organizer. I had no part to play in it. It’s nice for Tommy to be involved, but I have a lot of work to do there anyway.
MXLarge: I think on past performances you can’t leave Tommy out?
Dixon: Exactly. Even on the 450 last year in Italy, he was a strong performer. Had Tommy had something to go for last year, because something happened to Sean, and UK were out of it. Tommy didn’t get involved with the battle with Holland, France and America. And he stepped aside. We know he rises for the occasion and he proved in Switzerland and Sweden he has the pace. He has six weeks to get fit.
MXLarge: For the European fans, Team USA will be the most popular picked in a long time. I don’t mean as far as wanting to watch a Carmichael or an Emig ride, but as far as the European fans having a connection with Zach, and Thomas, and Cole seems like a really nice guy too. I seriously think people will be screaming and yelling if Zach or Thomas lead a race.
Dixon: Zach has a huge following in the UK, he is adored by so many fans over here. You don’t have to think we won’t beat Jeffrey, or Tony or Gajser. Tonus and Seewer proved in Switzerland anything is possible.
MXlarge: So many good riders in this year, at the moment a few injuries, but a lot of fast guys picked for their country. That should bring in even more fans?
Dixon: I mean, I see Holland with a good shot, France, Great Britain, USA, Belgium, Australia, so many teams, it’s going to be really great for the fans that do come.
MXlarge: What about Tomac not wanting to come. Do you get that?
Dixon: Tomac didn’t go last year and it’s no loss to the event, it was still fantastic last year. I think what is disappointing, it’s his pride not to do it, and we can’t lose that. This isn’t about money, it’s about riding for your country, like the Olympics.
MXlarge: You think putting money into it, it would take away the pride thing?
Dixon: 100%. If you look at guys like Paul Malin in 1994 and Dean Ferris in 2013, it resurrected their careers and that is just two guys. Malin had a terrible career in 1994 on the 250 and I wanted him on the 125 and he went 1-1 and that kick started his career. Dean rode for us on the 450 and had a mega ride in 2013 MXoN and KTM signed him. For the riders, it’s a huge stage. They shouldn’t underestimate that.
MXlarge: Speaking to Mark (Chamberlain), he mentioned he is trying to get some British world champions involved, the 1994 des Nations winning team, and also the guys who didn’t get picked to ride for Great Britain. Making a special area at the race so the fans can get involved. Is that going to be organized from your side also?
Dixon: It should be possible. Kurt, Rob and Paul are around, and as Ricky Johnson said in your interview on MXlarge, those guys still want to be involved and they should be involved. We have Graeme Noyce that lives 10 minutes from the track. For the older fans, it’s nice to see these former greats.
MXlarge: I think it is important to grasp that, and speaking to Mark he is really into the whole bonding thing and getting the country behind the boys. He was really passionate about it, and England can be a country of knockers. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone was positive and could help drive this team home to victory?
Dixon: Without doubt. The crowd can have a big part in helping the team to success, give them energy and confidence. It’s a massive event for Team Great Britain, and we have the riders to win it.
MXlarge: Any other news about the event?
Dixon: The track is longer, more loops and areas that brings it closer to the crowd. We have a drop down start, sort of like the Charlotte Grand Prix last year, so that allows the fans to see the start from everywhere. The good thing is, nobody will have ridden or raced this track. We have also brought the crowd down into the infield. Down below the trees, like they were in 2006. We need to get everyone in. We can hold 110,000 and I don’t think we will fill the whole area.
Alfredo Gómez got the 14th edition of Red Bull Romaniacs officially up and running with victory in the Sibiu prologue. Bringing his Erzberg winning form to Romania, KTM rider Alfredo Gómez made short work of the city prologue, despite the damp and slippery conditions, to lead the field of Gold class riders home. Taking place just over a month after the Erzbergrodeo, there's no let up for the world's best Hard Enduro riders in 2017 as they arrive in Sibiu, Romania for the daunting Red Bull Romaniacs. The scenery around the Carpathian Mountains may be beautiful to look at, but the competitors won't have much time for sightseeing as they contend with four days of punishing off-road riding after tackling the famous Prologue race on the streets of Sibiu.
KTM Confirms – Jeffrey Herlings to Race Ironman National
By Dan Lamb August 23, 2017
Riders
Jeffrey Herlings Marvin Musquin
MURRIETA, Calif. – The Red Bull KTM Factory Racing Team has confirmed today that multi-time FIM MX2 World Champion Jeffrey Herlings will compete in the final round of the AMA Pro Motocross Championship this Saturday, Aug. 26 in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
Herlings, who currently holds 2nd overall in the premier MXGP Championship, made the last-minute decision to race the KTM 450 SX-F FACTORY EDITION on U.S. soil before heading to his regularly scheduled stop at the MXGP of the USA in Jacksonville, Florida one week later.
Herlings: “Since I was already coming to the U.S. to prepare for the hot and humid conditions that we’re going to face in Florida, I thought it would be a fun opportunity to race against the best riders in America while I am already here. I’m looking forward to a fun weekend with the team.”
Musquin, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s sole rider based under the U.S. tent, currently sits 3rd overall in the 450 Class championship standings as the season comes to a close. After battling a mid-season knee injury, Musquin came on strong in the latter half of the season to carry a six-moto win-streak into the penultimate round of racing. Musquin continues to strive for an additional 50 points this Saturday in Indiana.
The 40th annual Tarawera 100 miles cross country took place as it always does, near the township of Te Teko, New Zealand. A whopping 250 riders showed up to try their hands at New Zealand's biggest off road event and they were treated to blue skies and perfect track conditions which made for some great racing.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Thad DuVall continued his recent domination of the Kenda AMA National Enduro Series by claiming his fourth-straight win at this weekend’s Muddobber’s National Enduro – round six of the series in Matthews, Indiana.
Red Bull KTM Factory rider Jeffrey Herlings flies to America tomorrow, as we mentioned in our exclusive interview with the Dutchman a week or so ago. Last night the MX2 world champion mentioned on his social media pages that he has a surprise for the motocross public. Could it be he is racing the last round of the AMA Nationals in Indiana?
“What’s up guys? Today was a bit unfortunate, we wanted to go three overall wins in a row but it didn’t quite happen. Obviously, I have some interesting news most likely, it’s not 100% sure yet but if it will happen many motocross fans will happy”.
We have tried calling “The Bullet”, with no luck, and hopefully we will have more news later.
Supercross and motocross are not the kind of sports that produce a lot of comeback stories, especially not at the level of Rockstar / Husqvarna’s Zach Osborne who has comeback from complete obscurity in the US to becoming a double champion in 2017. Zach turned pro way back in 2006. By 2008, he was considered an amateur superstar bust, and no top tier teams in America thought he had the potential needed for a decent development contract. Instead of letting other people define his worth, Zach bet on himself and took the best job he could find, boarding a plane to Europe to contest the MX2 World Championship.
Zach rose to the occasion in Europe, winning a GP MX2 overall in Turkey, scoring many MX2 podiums and adding the title British National MX Champion to his resume. Even with that, the Abingdon, Virginia native still had aspirations for success at home, so he returned to American SX in 2012 with his British-based Bike-It Cosworth / Yamaha team to race four SX races. Four main events and two podium finishes later, he was getting calls from the teams that had shunned him four years prior. When it was all said and done, Zach returned to the US full time on the factory GEICO / Honda team in 2013 and his second US career was officially underway.
Flashes of brilliance followed up with a myriad of injuries was the theme of Zach’s first few years back in the US. After a two-year injury-riddled stint with GEICO / Honda, Zach joined the Rockstar / Husqvarna team in 2015 and things really started to come together. He grabbed his first national win in 2016 and, during the offseason, added the last missing piece: trainer Aldon Baker and the riders at the Baker’s Factory in Clermont, Florida.
After spending a full offseason with Aldon training him and Ryan Dungey, Jason Anderson and Marvin Musquin pushing him, Zach showed up for the 2017 Monster Energy SX season with the full package. In 2017, Zach won his first ever 250SX main event, his first ever Regional 250SX Championship, and last weekend at Budds Creek, he capped off a dream year with the 2017 Lucas Oil AMA Pro Motocross 250MX Championship. It has been an incredible journey to witness and cover, and after the champagne was sprayed, MotoXAddicts’ Chase Yocom caught up with a very excited Zach to talk about it.
Zach, 8-1 on the day and you got the job done with the Championship. What’s going through your mind right now. You won the Eastern Regional 250SX Supercross Championship and now the 250 AMA Motocross Championship. What a year.
It’s unreal. Like I said in the press conference, there were some personal challenges this season and things to overcome, but all in all, it’s been an incredible year and something that I’ve very much enjoyed. It’s a year that I’ll remember forever. It’s a dream season if there ever was such a thing.
Coming into Budds Creek, you have a history with it. It went from you getting the name “Snack Pack” here when you faded from 1st to 18th early in your career to you getting your first win here last year then clinching your first ever MX championship here today. Can we finally close the door on that whole ordeal? (laughs)
I hope so. It’s been a long time coming to come here and win a title and, last year, my first overall victory. It’s an amazing feeling and something that won’t kick in for a couple of days.
You didn’t make it easy on yourself, especially in that first moto with the crash in the first turn. What happened there?
That was tough. I had that gate picked out for a couple of weeks now if I could get it through qualifying. It was something that I felt really good about, but I got in a little melee there in the corner and was down with a couple of guys. That was that.
It was like, if you got the jump there, you were going to be good, but if you didn’t, you were potentially getting pinched.
I think in years past, they’ve maybe been one more gate to the right—where we line up—and it was just a little too far in there. I just got stuck inside and that was that.
In the second moto—I’m not sure if you knew it while you were racing—there was some smoke coming off your bike. It looked like it was your clutch.
I had no clue. Definitely sometimes when I’m not riding great and fluid, I smoke the clutch a little bit. It’s something we’ve dealt with a little bit this year. I didn’t know it, so I wasn’t really worried about it.
Next weekend, we head to Ironman and you’re staying on the 250. I heard you mention in the press conference that you were going to potentially race the 450 there if you had the title clinched and were racing the 450 at MXoN, so Ironman next weekend and then MXoN. You’re not doing the USGP, correct?
No, no USGP because I would have to race the 450 there [you have to be 23 or under to race MX], and I’m just not quite prepared. Next weekend at Indiana, I’ll hopefully ride with the #1 plate and maybe with my Team USA gear or something like that. That would be really cool. I’m looking forward to it, and I’ll try to get another win.
MXoN coming up. There was obviously the whole fiasco with some 450 guys turning down the invitation, but you’re a guy that’s super excited about this. What are your expectations for the race?
High! I think realistically we have a chance to win. I think if all the cards fall right, we can win. There have been plenty of teams… We are not a B team by any means. I’m a national champion and I feel like my chances are good against any 250 rider in the world. Not being cocky, but more or less just saying. I feel like we can go there and do some damage.
Yeah, I don’t think people realize that. Thomas Covington is over there right now—you have a ton of experience over there—and Cole Seely is the only one that really doesn’t have any GP experience. Having you two there to give him pointers will definitely help.
I believe Cole is going to be just fine. I think it was a good choice, and he’s a solid guy. He travels well. He went to Japan last year. I think his game will be on top form. For all three of us, it’s a dream, not a task, so we’re going to give it our best nonetheless.
Thanks for the time, Zach, and congratulations on the title. Good luck next weekend. Hopefully we’ll talk to you then, but if not, good luck at des Nations.
Thursday, August 24, 2017 at 2:07PM 
