BY SHAN MOORE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MACK FAINT
T
his year's Big Buck Grand
National Cross-Country
Series marked the start of
the 50th anniversary of the se
-
ries. And it's only fitting that the
season opener had a historic
finish. For the first time ever, all
three overall podium finishers
were from the XC2 class.
This year's Big Buck was one
of the most difficult in recent
memory. A hard rain the morn
-
ing of the race made sure of
that, leaving the South Carolina
red clay prime for bike-swal
-
lowing ruts, almost unclimb-
able hills, deceptively deep
waterholes, and a generally
choppy and chewed-up course.
This, of course, benefitted the
XC2 riders, who start each race
one minute behind the XC1
class, giving the XC2 riders
the benefit of letting the bigger
bikes break trail and establish
which ruts are deep and which
lines are fastest.
"When we start from behind,
because the XC1 class is lay
-
ing all the lines, it's like when
you're cycling, you're hopping
behind someone and you get
pulled along," said XC2 rider
FMF KTM Factory Racing Team
Landers' Angus Riordan, who
was third overall. "Those boys
are doing the hard yards, and
we're just learning from watch
-
ing. It's a lot less work."
ROUND 1 / FEBRUARY 16, 2025
BIG BUCK / UNION, SOUTH CAROLINA
OFF-ROAD I PROGRESSIVE GRAND NATIONAL CROSS-COUNTRY SERIES, PRESENTED BY SPECIALIZED
P76
South Carolina's Nick
DeFeo took a surprising
win at the GNCC opener,
where the top three
overall finishers came
from the XC2 class.
WILD START
