WORDS BY SHAN MOORE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY KEN HILL
"I
went to [the John Pen-
ton GNCC] for 15 years
and never got a win, and
now I've got two in a row," said
Josh Strang after winning this
weekend's John Penton GNCC
in Millfield, Ohio. Last year,
the Babbitts Online/Monster
Energy/Kawasaki Team Green
rider passed Ben Kelley on the
final lap to take the win. This
year, though still not 100 percent
after breaking his arm earlier in
the year, Strang led for most of
the three-hour event, taking the
checkered flag 11 seconds clear
of second place. Kelly, unfortu-
nately, didn't make the race this
time due to a broken leg suf-
fered at a National Enduro the
week before, ending the FMF/
KTM rider's six-race win streak.
"I'm a little surprised about
the win today but I'll take it,"
said Strang. "I felt like I had a
good pace, and I actually was
fairly comfortable, but I still have
some healing to do. The next
two races, I just need to get
through, have a good result and
then heal up over the summer
break so I'm ready to go for the
second half."
Like many before, this year's
John Penton GNCC was a
muddy affair after a downpour
greased up the track about an
hour before the start.
"There were some parts of the
track that were so grippy, and
then other parts that were just
VOLUME 59 ISSUE 21 MAY 24, 2022 P81
Josh Strang (114)
leads Ricky Russell
(212) early in
the John Penton
GNCC. Strang went
on to take the win
after a back-and-
forth battle on
the last lap with
Russell.
