Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1545293
Perry Mountain 24 Hour Challenge T eam Carolina XC took the top spot at the 2026 Perry Moun- tain 24 Hour Challenge in Stan- ton, Alabama, on June 6-7, with a time of 24:11:29 and 45 laps. This makes three 24 Hour overall wins in a row for the Elite team of Zach Hayes (KTM), Chase Hayes (KTM), Cade Henderson (KTM), Jesse Ansley (Kawasaki) and Andy Carlson (KTM). The past two races they won were uneventful, but this year they had to deal with a few gremlins. "Cade had a fuse blow and had to push the bike back to the pits, costing us 20 minutes," said team leader Zach Hayes. "This was around midnight. On the first lap, Chase had clutch issues. Then, when I went out, something didn't feel right, and we found out I had a spring break in the forks. I just had to man up and finish my three laps. This was a tough race. The course was brutal, even in the first few laps. In the morning, when the rain came, it was much better. It slowed things down a bit. Everyone's hands got a lot of blisters. This was a much more physical race than the others." This year's course was 11.4 miles of tight woods, including wide, fast trails, and an MX sec- tion. With a turnout just shy of 480 riders, it was the largest in years. It was less dusty than previous years, and the temps were a bit cooler in the mid-80s. Around 6 a.m., a thunderstorm rolled in, clearing the dust but making things sloppy for the next four hours. Finishing in the runner-up spot and first in the Expert class was Team Max Motorsport/Fastlap, consisting of Ty Roberts (KTM), Colby Yarbrough (BET), Dominic Goff (Husqvarna), Landon Clay- ton (KTM), Rider Knight (KTM) and Evan Chisolm (GasGas). The team finished in 24:15:55 for 44 laps. They were in a tight battle with the third-place team for most of the race. "It was a pretty smooth event for us," said Ty Roberts. "We had no bike issues at all. One of our riders, Landon Clayton, had serious hand blisters. That was about it." Rounding out the podium spot and taking the 30+-class win was the Bush Lights Banditos squad. They finished in 24:30:14, complet- ing 44 laps. The team consisted of Sammy Dorris (Kawasaki), Travis Hardcastle (Kawasaki), Dustin Simpson (GasGas), Geoffrey Sand- ers (Kawasaki), Josh Cetto (Hon- da) and Teddy Mullins (Kawasaki). "We had a good race, got into the lead early in 30+, and then started catching the leader, the number one team," said Sammy Dorris. "We moved into second. We had a good battle with the Max Motorsports team. We had some lighting issues at night that cost us a couple of minutes. We just were not able to make up the time." WIND IN THE P44 The Zach Hayes team won the Perry Mountain 24-Hour Challenge for the third consecutive year. PHOTOS: KENNY KING