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the typically unstoppable charge of KTM's defending GNCC Champion, Juha Salminen. The friendly Finn struggled big time at Wisp last year, and while he rode much better this time, he still didn't have an answer for Hawk. "It was four places better than last year, and that was my goal," Salminen said. "It still was not my best, but it's what we could do. Barry was just fast." The rugged combination of mud and rocks led to some surprises throughout the rest of the results, including WilliamsonRacing.com privateer Justin Williamson scoring his first-ever GNC podium with third. "At the beginning of this year I had to learn the determination and the dedica- tion to run with these guys," Williamson said. "It was raining out there and all I saw was sunshine. The rain and the rocks – it looks like that was a good combination for me." And behind Williamson came leg- endary AMA motocross and Supercross star John Dowd, who was racing a GNCC for the first time. While Dowd is known as a mudder to the motocross set, the Wisp was a totally different game, and he impressed everyone with his perform- ance. Dowd was actually into third at one point before succumbing to Williamson's challenge late in the race. "That had to be the hardest race I've ever done in my life!" Dowd said. "It was good. I put in a couple of good laps and a couple of bad ones. I had fun, though. I'm pretty sure I am going to come back and race the one at Unadilla. I'd really like to try a dry one!" Another surprise landed in fifth overall; Am Pro Yamaha's next prospect, 16-year- C Y C L E N E W S • JULY 12, 2006 53 The Wisp offers amenities unlike any other off-road race. Despite the rain, a big crowd turned out to ride the ski-lift chairs to the top of the mountain and check out the trails. Also, the Wisp offers paved pits and parking, which led to supermotolike conditions (albeit wet) as the riders came through. The FMF Suzuki team had advice on that section for John Dowd, who says he may try a supermoto race in the future. "Don't spin your knobs on that pave- ment," said Rod Harris, who normally wrenches for Rodney Smith. "You'll need that traction in the woods." Speaking of Rodney Smith, the five- time GNCC Champion still has a bro- ken hand, but he tried riding a few days before the Wisp to see if he could race. He couldn't. "It's really unfortu- nate, because I really like this place," Smith said. Smith will be back when the GNCC Series resumes in Septem- ber, as will Am Pro Yamaha's Jason Raines, who is still on the mend with a broken leg. One of the highlights of the Wisp weekend is Friday 's GNCC golf tour- nament on the 18-hole, par-72 Wisp golf course. This year Honda factory road-racer Miguel DuHamel even showed up to play as a guest of Honda's Ron Heben, who ran KTM's factory off-road effort last year. DuHamel and Heben teamed up with GNCC Trail Boss Jeff Russell and Juha Salminen, and the team finished fourth. Might DuHamel ever try a GNCC? "I think the course would have to be a lot flatter and a lot more hard-packed for me, if you know what I mean," DuHamel said. The rain obviously made the Wisp course tougher than usual, so Jeff Rus- sell and his crew removed the steepest up- and downhill situations to make the going a little easier. The result was a shorter, nine-mile course with lap times around the 30-minute mark, which is about equal to the 11-mile laps used in the past. In Sunday 's GNCC Youth race, KTM rider Cory Buttrick took the overall win, which should be enough to wrap up the 2006 GNCC Youth Overall Championship. The morning race was won by KTM Dealer Services rep Brooks Hamilton, who edged out KTM's multiple-time Blackwater 100 winner Mark Hyde. Also notable: Fred Villopoto, the 68-year-old grandfather of Monster Energy/Pro Circuit/Kawasa- ki phenom Ryan Villopoto, raced in the morning and finished third in the Over 55 class. Briefly... old Thad Duvall. The two-time GNCC Youth Overall Champion notched top Amateur honors by winning the 250 A class and finishing in the top five. "It was really fun out there," Duvall said. "I want to thank everyone on this team. I have such good people to learn from, with Randy Hawkins, Barry Hawk and Charlie Mullins." Mullins himself grabbed the Racer X Holeshot Award when the race began, but Salminen was soon up into second and then the lead. "It was very tough," Salminen said. "I was the first guy on the first lap. There was water everywhere. There were a lot of rocks, but I couldn't see them under the water. It was so diffi- cult, there was just mud everywhere!" Mullins and R.E.R. Motorcity Yamaha's Nathan Kanney were right behind Salminen at the end of the first lap, but both would succumb to brake troubles in the mud. Mullins had to stop Hawk was glad to see the checkered flag after three hours of mud and rocks. Juha Salminen hasn't had much luck at the Wisp race, but he did improve with a second-place finish.