| Photos courtesy of
Kinney Jones, Steve Bruhn, Mark Kariya, Mike Demaree and Raymond
Gundy |
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started out as a passion for off-road motorcycling and the zeal
to develop the best apparel and hard parts. It turned into a company
that is now considered an industry leader. Moose Racing always
gives back to the people who have made them so successful for so
long…the off-road riders of America. From sponsoring grassroots
races and riders all the way up to Pro-level stars and series,
Moose has quietly built an off-road dynasty of great racers and
numerous championship titles. Here are some of the “best
of the best” that rode Moose in 2004. |
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2004 Grand National Cross Country Champion
“I really didn’t think I would win this title this
year,” said Smith after clinching the GNCC title. “This
year I turned 40, and I don’t know what it is about that
age, but sometimes you have some doubts. But then I got a win at
40, and I think that was a big turning point for me. Winning the
title at 40, that’s such a big mile-marker, I’d say
this is the sweetest out of all the titles I have.”
Smith’s 2004 achievement is significant for several reasons.
Not only is he the first 40-year-old to clinch America’s
most prestigious off-road title, but his fifth GNCC title ties
him with series legends Scott Summers and Ed Lojak on top of the
all-time title list. “When Suzuki switched to this series
years ago, I remember thinking, I was in my thirties, and I didn’t
think I was young enough to even win one title,” said Smith. “I
definitely didn’t think I would be able to match Scott (Summers).
He’s kind of like a role model for me, he’s so professional
and he really brought the sport to another level. It’s amazing
to me that I was able to match his record.” |
What more can be said of Scott Summers? The five-time GNCC Champion
is one of the biggest reasons that GNCC Racing has grown to its current
success level. Scott didn’t just win races and titles; he did
it with class and professionalism that made him the first true superstar
off-road racer. Scott was the first rider to ever take an overall
GNCC win on a four-stroke, and even more impressive-the only person
to ever capture a GNCC title on a four-stroke. Perhaps one of Scott’s
proudest accomplishments was being presented with the GNCC Rider
of the Year award seven different times-an award voted on by his
fellow GNCC racers.
Injuries forced him to retire in 1999, but by spring of 2003, Scott
was riding pain-free again. He entered a few GNCC’s in 2003
just for fun, and his results got better every week. Scott staged
a full comeback in 2004 aboard the new Honda CRF450. He had a respectable
season, finishing sixth in points in the GNCC Series. Next season,
Scott will be back and a significant threat to take the title away
from fellow Moose rider Rodney Smith. |
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Like Scott Summers, Ty Davis is an off-road legend. And, much like
Rodney Smith, Ty just seems to get better as he gets older. “Zip-Ty” is
the only rider ever to win one AMA National event in every off-road
discipline within the confines of just one season. Ty has won almost
every off-road title you can name, including the Baja 1,000, the
AMA National Enduro Championship, the AMA Hare & Hound Championship,
several ISDE Gold Medals as well as Top American honors. He even
has an AMA 125cc Supercross West title to his credit, which he won
by beating out Jeremy McGrath.
Ty won the 2003 World Off-Road Championship Series (WORCS) in spectacular
fashion and has worked hard to defend the title in 2004. So far he
has won two WORCS events and finished second three times and holds
the number two spot in the points behind his teammate Nathan Woods.
Ty has no intention of settling there and is planning a late season
charge to hold onto the WORCS number one plate for another year. |
David finished third in points in the 2003 AMA FMF National Enduro Series.
It was a great finish when you consider that the riders in first and second
were Enduro legends Randy Hawkins and Mike Lafferty. Still, David decided
to “semi-retire” and
only race a few events for fun in 2004. But an odd thing happened; David began
the 2004 season by winning the first round of the National Enduro Series. That
victory encouraged him to go to the next round where he finished third and
maintained the points lead. Then he took two second place finishes in a row.
With a National Championship possible at the end of the year, David’s
semi-retirement was over. He maintained the points lead by consistently being
on the podium, but Hawkins edged ever closer every event. Going into the final
round, Hawkins held a six-point lead over David. In the final race of the season,
David battled fiercely, but could not overcome Hawkins lead. David’s
performance (finishing #2 in the AMA National Enduro Series) was amazing when
you consider that he began the year with the intent of retiring.
“Definitely the highlight for me was coming out of semi-retirement to win
the first Enduro this year in Arizona,” said David. “It was so last
minute it kind of blew me away. But it has been an exciting year and to get to
work with great companies like KTM and Moose has been an honor. My goal for next
year is simple: Go after the #1 plate again .”
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Russ is the defending AMA Hare & Hound Series Champion. He proudly
defended his #1 plate all season in a seesaw battle with his own
cousin, David Pearson and the hard charging Destry Abbott. In a classic
three-way battle for the title it all came down to the final race
of the season. Russ had to win and Abbott had to finish out of the
top three. Russ, the defending champion, battled back and forth in
the early stages of the 90-mile race before taking and holding the
lead, with Abbott holding down second. Russ did his job and won the
race, but Abbott took second place and the title by 11 points.
Still, Russ had a great series, winning two events, finishing second
twice and third twice for second overall in the points standings.
He also is a contender in the World Off-Road Championship Series
(WORCS) and is currently third in points behind Ty Davis and Nathan
Woods, with Russ having won one WORCS event as well as taking three
second place finishes. Keep an eye on Russ for the WORCS title that
is still to be decided. Next season, Russ will be back and he plans
to retrieve his #1 Hare & Hound plate. |
David finished out the AMA Hare & Hound Series third in points,
just eight points behind his cousin Russ Pearson. David enjoyed a
brief time at the top of the point’s standings and was in the
hunt for the title the whole season. It gave him a definite thirst
for the championship and marked him as a man to watch for next year.
David had a great season, taking two wins, one second and three third
place finishes. He is also currently holding down seventh in the
points for the WORCS title. |
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Even though he is less than a decade
old, Tyler McSwain is already a Motocross icon. The young mini rider
has dominated every class he has raced since he was practically in
diapers. A multi-time Loretta Lynn’s Champion, Tyler swept
every race he entered once again in 2004. Plus, he dominated Ponca
City by winning both the Pee Wee 7-8 stock and mod classes and the
65cc 6-8 Modified class. Every year the AMA gives out the Horizon
award to the best amateur motocross racer about to make the jump
to the pro ranks. Tyler won’t
be eligible for another eight years, buy you can bet that the Horizon
award will be his, as well as many big factory offers, when he turns
16. |
2004 GNCC ATV Woman’s Class Champion
Stephanie has only been racing for a few years, but she has already
racked up an impressive record. She won her first overall victory
in 1999 at the Brownsville GNCC; it was only the third race she’d
ever entered. Since then she has won two GNCC ATV Women’s Class
Championships. Plus, Stephanie has been nominated for the ATVA Female
Athlete of the Year.
“What can I say,” said Stephanie. “I had a great
season! I wrapped it up before summer break with three races still
to go. The last two years, it has come down to the last race to determine
the champ. Makes the summer a whole lot more relaxed. Plus, I won
the championship and the Overall morning win at my home track. My
family couldn’t have been more proud to witness it. I’ve
now won nine races this year with two Overall morning wins. I switched
from my Suzuki to a new Honda 450R for the last two races to get
the bike dialed in as much as possible for the 2005 season. Goals
for next year include winning another championship on a different
bike, going for the Overall morning win again, and trying my luck
on a dirt bike towards the mid/end of the season.” |
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Heather started winning national titles in 2000 with the National
Enduro Women’s title and the National Hare Scrambles Women’s
crown. She held the Women’s Hare Scrambles title from 2002-2003
and has had a lock on the GNCC Women’s championship from2002-2204.
Heather simply loves to race motorcycles and really enjoys riding
with several #1 plates to her credit. During the course of a season
Heather will race in the GNCC Series, the Hare Scrambles Series,
selected AMA FMF National Enduros, selected AMA National Hare & Hound’s
and selected local events. Her primary focus is on winning the GNCC
and Hare Scrambles Women’s championships, which she has done
for several years in a row now. With all that riding you’d
think that she doesn’t have to train, but Heather says training
is a big part of her success.
“This is Top Secret,” says Heather. “Its also constantly changing,
as my skills change I have to abandon the old routine and adopt a new one every
year. I try to come up with one new thing I can add to my program every year.
It keeps it interesting for me. I look at other athletes and see if I can implement
their ideas even if they are not off-road racers. Any athlete can offer new ways
to think about training. I’m looking to step up in the overall results
in all my series. I’d like to learn some motocross this year as well as
maybe some Supermoto.” Heather has a great website at CrashingGirl.com
and loves to hear from other racers. |
2004 World Off-Road Championship Series (WORCS) Champion
Nathan Woods crept up on the WORCS Championship with determination
and focus. He began the season with a fourth place finish and then
followed that up with a second place in the next event. Nathan then
took the overall win in the third race of the series. “It was
definitely a high point for me when I won the third round at Lake
Havasu,” said Nathan. “From that point on, I knew I could
win these events.” There was no stopping him after that. By
the time he clinched the title he had won five times, finished second
twice and third twice. In fact, Nathan’s worst finish was the
fourth place he took in the first race.
“This is my first title so it’s a good one,” said
Nathan. “It’s a big weight off my shoulders, I am really
happy for Moose, Yamaha and Zip Ty Racing. I want to thank Ty Davis,
Kenny Parry, my wife and everybody else; they all put forth a big
effort towards my program this year. I especially want to thank Ty
and his wife, they used some of their own sponsorship money towards
my program and I wouldn’t be here without them. There is one
other person I would like to thank and that is my wife. She is there
through thick and thin and she is the one who gets me up in the morning
to go train.” Nathan came into Off-Road racing from Motocross
where he had contested the Outdoor Nationals, Supercross and the
4-Stroke Nationals. He was mentored into Off-Road by his Teammate
Ty Davis and likes the atmosphere of Off-Road. “These guys
are a different breed,” said Nathan. “There’s a
real family atmosphere and no matter what team you’re on, we
often get together to go practice or just go riding. “It’s
a good time.”
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Jim Neese is a veteran of the Motocross world. In 2004 Jim went after
the Arenacross circuit and was considered a contender for the title. “I
think as far as being prepared, I was probably more prepared than
I have ever been going into a series,” said Jim. “But
I got hurt the second round, and every time I would come back, I
would keep getting hurt. So it was just one of those seasons.” Even
though the Arenacross season was a disappointment, Jim salvaged two
titles by winning the Suzuki RM Cup 125cc Expert Championship as
well as the +30 Expert Championship.
Like many privateers, Jim is a full time racer and he earns extra
money by teaching other hopefuls how to play the game. “Recently
I started to do a bunch of riding schools,” said Jim. “And
it has taken off great. I have an arenacross and motocross track.
We have a little house over at the shop for the riders to stay at.
We’ll ride in the mornings, and then we’ll go train in
the afternoons and stuff. I keep the classes small, so it’s
a lot more personalized. It seems to be working out really good.” With
all that practice and training, Jim will be in great shape to take
on the Arenacross Series again in 2005. |
5-time GNCC ATV Champion
When the 2004 GNCC ATV season began, there was a lot of hype about new machines,
stiffer competition, and the possibility that someone would finally de-throne
four-time GNCC ATV series champ Bill Ballance. But the 2004 season is now over
and Bill has added another GNCC ATV title to his record.
“I expected to have to work a lot harder to get a championship than the
way it turned out,” said Bill. “The sponsors really helped out. We
did a lot of early testing through the winter, and we even went south to some
spots where we could ride. I give a big part of this year’s success to
being to ready in Texas. We had the bike ready then while a lot of these guys
took four or five races to sort it out. We were probably more ready this year
than any other year before because the bike was so new.” Ready indeed,
Bill had seven wins this season and a handful of podiums, dominating the field
on his way to his fifth straight GNCC ATV Championship.
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Caselli, the 2-time AMA National Hare & Hound Champion, recently
participated in the FIM 2004 ISDE held in Poland. And for the second
year in a row he was ranked as Top American in the ISDE competition.
Kurt competed on a 2005 KTM 250 EXC in the Enduro 2 class where he
finished in third place and was ranked tenth overall. Kurt was also
riding as a member of the USA Trophy team. The only American to have
fared in ISDE competition better than Kurt would be fellow Moose
Racing rider, Rodney Smith, who was ranked third overall in 1992.
“This was another great experience”, said Kurt. “I had a lot
of supporters out there and I’d just like to thank everyone for being behind
me. Everything worked out really well, except for the last day because they didn’t
run the final event. Besides that, the bike was running really well, I felt great
and everything just fell into place for me.” Kurt also competes in the
WORCS series where he has two-second place finishes and is currently sixth in
points. |
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