Baylor Back On Top at Powerline Park GNCC
S
teward Baylor must have
been all smiles when he
woke up to the sound of rain fall-
ing on the roof of his camper on
Saturday morning at the Power-
line GNCC in St. Clairsville, Ohio.
The Red Bear Rocky Mountain
Kawasaki riders are considered
among the best mud riders on
the GNCC circuit, and if there is
a course on the schedule that
is notorious for its mud, it's the
Ohio race, with its hard clay base
that always develops a slimy
coat on top. It creates the kind
of mixture that makes pros look
like amateurs.
Rain fell all day Saturday dur
-
ing the quad races, wreaking
havoc on the course, but then it
lightened up on Sunday, making
the traction even worse for the
dirt bikes, as tacky mud clung to
radiators, wheels, fenders, grips
and seats.
Baylor grabbed a rare (for
him) holeshot and led Am-Pro
Yamaha's Liam Draper and Flat
-
rock Motorclub GasGas' Jordan
Ashburn into the opening lap.
"I haven't had a holeshot since
2021," Baylor laughed after the
race. "I wasn't sure what to do
with a clear track ahead of me."
The oldest of the Baylor broth
-
ers, from South Carolina, looked
in total control of the old-school,
technical course, confidently rid-
ing the slick mud. However, on
lap two, Baylor tipped over at the
13-mile mark, allowing Ashburn
to take the lead.
"I had a few mistakes out
there," admitted Baylor. "On the
second lap, I went down, bent
my bars, tweaked my front-end,
and ruined my gloves. Luckily,
we had the bike set up for mud,
so I just pulled the covers off the
grips and kept on going, trying to
run down Ashburn."
Baylor and Ashburn pushed
each other during the remaining
laps of the abbreviated five-lap
WIND
IN THE
P48
Steward Baylor shines
in the mud. That was
evident at the Powerline
Park GNCC in Ohio.
PHOTOS: MACK FAINT
