GNCC Pro Round 11 Race Report
Kevin Trantham fought his way through the season’s roughest course and scored his first victory of the season during the GNCC Mountaineer Run at Marvin’s Mountain Top in Masontown, WV. Fellow Polaris/RT Pro drivers William Yokley, Michael Swift, and Jesi Stracham also turned in impressive performances with their RT Pro-equipped rides.
Trantham started on the third row and won the battle of attrition on the rough course that took out many of the top competitors. The especially difficult rock sections made it important to have components that hold up.
“It’s pretty sweet to take an overall win,” said Trantham. “We’ve been working hard for it and make progress with the new car.”To finish first, one first must finish and many competitors didn’t get that message as the course dashed many driver’s hopes. Trantham didn’t take it easy on his car and flew past the broken vehicles on his way to victory.
“I saw many cars broken down,” said Trantham. “The rock gardens were just fast and gnarly and I really pounded hard on the car. Those RT Pro components took a brutal beating. That thing is still running and driving. So my hat is off to them because without them, we would probably be one of those cars broken down on the side of the track.”
Yokley led the race in the early going before a broken wheel slowed his charge. He recovered to finish seventh and moved into the top three in points. He especially appreciated RT Pro’s Tree Kickers.
“My RT Pro components always hold up great,” said Yokley. “We had no failures. They handled everything in the rocky and rough terrain. The Tree Kickers are a handy tool in the woods. You don’t have to worry about a tree hanging you back. Plus, you don’t have to worry about another driver’s wheel flipping you over.”
Swift stuck to a “checkers or wreckers” strategy and it worked out, despite the rough conditions. Though the Polaris RZR XP1000 is a reliable UTV, the racing components, especially those supplied by RT Pro, helped him finish fifth.
“There were a lot of cars laying around the course broken,” explained Swift. “It’s not just Polaris, it’s all of the parts you put on it. The RT Pro parts did really well. It was a rough course and we didn’t take it easy on the car. That was a true test of the RT Pro parts. They took a beating today.”
Jesi Stracham was again fast at the start of the Single Seat UTV race, but a too-narrow course took its toll on her and she crashed on the first lap. The new Polaris ACE 900XC is 10 inches wider than last year’s model and series officials are looking to move the class from the youth course to the wider UTV course at the next race.
“We could fit through it last year, but our car this year is 60 inches wide and it just doesn’t fit,” explained Stracham. “They are looking to change the course for the next race. It will make for better racing and it will help grow single seat racing.”
Stracham, who is paralyzed from the waist down, uses a car specially built by RT Pro with hand controls. She hopes those hand controls are soon sold to the public because she likes the control they give her.
“I really wished they offered them to the general public because there is seriously nothing else like them,” said Stracham. “Having the front and rear brake control is a game changer. I can slide around corners like I’m on an ATV. The RT Pro A-arms seriously hold up. I bent something in the wheel itself, but the A-arm held up. At Penton, we bent the frame and the A-arms held up. The RT Pro components are unbelievable.”
These drivers, with their RT Pro Polaris UTVs, will be heading back to the GNCC Series during the next race at Powerline Park in St. Clairsville, OH October 7-8.
