Afternoon ATV Race

Sean Neidlinger has a career best finish in the Pro Am Class, and he serious about the 2006 season
The final race of the day would be the Afternoon race with Chris Borich taking the win in the Pro Class and the Overall Win, but the Pro Am riders were charging hard as well in the opening round of the season with Sean Neidlinger leading the race from start to finish on his Honda 450R with a 10th Overall finish followed Jeffrey Pickens in 12th Overall. Ryan Morphew originally held the second spot, but a missed turn on the track caused him to be docked a lap.

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Posted May 22, 2006

Sean Neidlinger Wins Third Round of the Atlantic Grand Prix Series

Scott Samuel leads the start of the Main Quad event followed by Rob Hertz and Sean Neidlinger.

Sean Neidlinger showed he had what it takes to win the third round of the Atlantic Grand Prix on May 14 in Dunmore, Pennsylvania. The hare-and-hound race was all about quads, and organizers revised the 7.5 mile course on the side of Moosic Mountain based on input from the riders. The majority of the rock sections were removed and passing lanes were added.

Sunday`s race day was quite a challenge, with threatening skies and a Saturday night rainfall that left the course a little on the wet side. Talk in the pits ranged from impassable creek crossings to nasty muddy up hills, but it was just talk.

Minutes before the race, Grand National Cross Country star Chris Borich called and said that he wouldn`t attend because of a family emergency. That left Flagtown, New Jersey, resident Neidlinger in a position for a possible win.

When the green flag dropped it was a three-way battle between Neidlinger, Scott Samuel who rides out of Medway, Massachusetts, and Rob Hertz from Brookhaven, Pennsylvania. But after a couple of turns it was Scott Samuel who grabbed the lead. He would then hold on to that position for the next two laps, but would later give it up to a hard charging Neidlinger who would go on to win by nearly 2 minutes. Rob Hertz then moved into the second position and Scott Samuel would finish in the third position after two hours of racing.

In the morning race, Timothy McAndrew on a Utility Unlimited Quad pulled the holeshot and held that position for 15 miles. But hard-charging Women`s Division rider and GNCC star Stephanie Verkade (right) came from a last row start to grab the lead and go and take the overall win. Second overall went to Christopher Peipher out of Kulpmont, Pennsylvania, also on a Utility Unlimited Quad.

In the Youth Quad race, the course was shortened to a little over a mile in length, which consisted of a new woods section as well as a small hill just next to the start area. GNCC youth rider Austin Findley grabbed the holeshot and held down that position the entire duration of the 45-minute, 15-mile race. Second went to Polaris rider Dalton Dernoski.

In the 8-15 90cc Limited Class, Sarah Marsh (right) beat out Dylan Kralle after his quad pulled in water with only 13 minutes left in the race.

All and all it was a great day of racing. With 13 more races on the 2006 Atlantic Grand Prix schedule, it’s still too early to say who the winner will be at the end of the season. The next race is the fourth round on Memorial Day weekend at NA Warhorse in Dunmore, Pennsylvania, followed by the fifth round at Thunder Ridge MX park in New Berlin, New York, June 17-18.

Maxxis continues to dominate the Suzuki GNCC ATV series: Chris Jenks topped the third all-Maxxis podium of the season as he finished ahead of Bill Ballance and pro-rookie Duane Johnson at the Wiseco John Penton GNCC. The second place finish took six-time champ Bill Ballance a step closer to tying Barry Hawk’s championship record, as he regained the overall points lead over Chris Borich with six races remaining. Seven of the top 11 finishers rode Maxxis as the Razr, Razr2, and iRazr continue to rule America’s premier off-road racing series. Jenks, currently sitting in third place behind the Killer B’s of Ballance and Borich, is pumped and ready to make it three wins in a row at the Tire Balls Spartan GNCC on June 10. But the story of the weekend may have been Duane Johnson’s first podium, which moved the unheralded rookie to fourth place in the GNCC overall point standings through seven rounds.

Other Maxxis riders in the top 11 include Sean Neidlinger, who nabbed 7th place, and Bryan Baker, Chris Borich, and Tyler Lenig, who took 9th, 10th, and 11th places, respectively.

Maxxis congratulates all of these outstanding riders on their fine performances.

Currently I am on my summer break. I resume racing the GNCC series on September 9 in North Carolina. I am taking the time now repairing bikes and working on myself to stay in shape for the second half of the season.