Riding with Pro's......

[skiracer]

So, this weeks GNCC is being held here in Florida, so, it is customary for many of the riders to come down to the State park called Croome to get ready for the race.  As a regular rider there, I had the opportunity to be at the park this week.  There were several factory teams there, mostly from the 250 class.  Now I never said I was very fast in the woods, or that I had a lot of riding skill, but, being passed by these guys on some tight technical single track is an experience! I have been passed by many of the greats during many AHRMA XC events, but these young pros are truly amazing!  You know they are coming long before they are on your fender.  You can feel the ground shake, and hear the motors revving higher than ever.....  And when they go by, it is like you are standing still.  So fast, so smooth....  A blink of an eye, and they are out of sight.  It is no wonder when they do make a mistake the injuries are huge.  It was a great experience, glad I rode that day.....

1976 250 MC5 Original Owner
1976 Penton 175 XC

[Dale Sonnenschein]

I've ridden a few GNCC's at Unadilla. It's truly amazing how fast those guys are. Very smooth and precise. And they run that pace for 3 hours!!!  Definitely a different breed of animal.

[Pat Oshaughnessy]

Kind of like when Dick Mann & Carl Cranke Lapped me back in 1972. I still remember it very vividly![:0]

[johnborn]

I grew up "racing" at the  Amherst Meadowlarks clubgrounds , which were frequented by a bunch of guys with names like Penton , Leimbach , Lojak , and Piasecki, to name a few. You get used to it. I thought I was going pretty fast at a hare scramble in 1978 when Jack Penton went past me so fast ,I actually felt somewhat embarrassed for thinking I was going so well.

[Pat Oshaughnessy]

I finaly realized getting lapped by guys in the AMA hall of fame isnt so embarrasing after all. [^]

[Rain Man]

Wait until your reflexes are gone!!  The rules are different for different types of motorcycle racing too.
 Ams and Pros race in Vintage classes together, that's always a treat to race with too


Raymond
 Down East Pentons