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Milfield GNCC There was quite a bit of hype leading up to the race with Juha Salimen trying a GNCC for the first time. Juha is a multitime World Enduro Champion and possibly the fastest off road racer on the planet at this time. Ohio was really hot and humid this time of year. Brian felt bad on Saturday before the race and threw up a few times. He was drinking lots of water and wanted to put in a solid performance. Mike Lafferty made his way back to the racetrack after taking four months off with a knee reconstruction. He got back into the swing of things the right way and got the holeshot. Right on his tail were the GNCC regulars and Salimen. Soon three riders broke away from the rest of the pack. Jason Raines made his way into the lead, followed by Salimen and Rodney Smith. Salimen stayed close to Raines and spectators from the race said he looked very comfortable out there. Many thought he was going to fade in the hot temperatures that he is not used to or the longer race he is accustomed to but he stayed in the hunt. Brian on the other hand was hurting. He came in for gas and told Bart from Powersport Grafx that he was in trouble. An hour passed and there was still no sign of Brian. He was finally found lying in the back of Bart's trailer. It was a tough race and many riders started to drop out. Not Jason Raines though. He was riding like a machine and pulled a four minute lead during the race. The GNCC races are normally really tight and it is very uncommon for a rider to win by such a margin. Salimen held onto second throughout the race ahead of Rodney Smith. Juha was later penalized for going around a fallen rider on the last lap on the motocross track and missed a jump. |