2021 Snowshoe GNCC | Race Report & Highlights

June 30, 2021

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PHOTOS & VIDEO | GNCC

The 2021 Grand National Cross Country series returned to the mountains of West Virginia for the 2021 Snowshoe GNCC and the ninth round of the East Coast off-road series. Multiple winners in the elite divisions kept the standings close through the first part of the season, and only a handful of points separate key contenders as they enter a long summer break.

Benjamin Kelley and Stu Baylor’s battle for supremacy in the XC1 division continues to be the biggest story of the 2021 season, as both riders are eager to win the first championship in the post-Russell era. Kelley’s win at round two and consistent results since kept the FMF/KTM Factory Racing rider in control of the class, while five wins helped Baylor make up for earlier issues and put the AmPro Yamaha rider within a few points of the leader. The outcome of Snowshoe was likely going to determine the rider’s overall results going into the summer recess, and of course, the two battled for the win.

A crash by Baylor on the paved street section at the start of the race allowed Magna1 Motorsports/Husqvarna’s Jordan Ashburn to take the early lead, but Baylor was quick to remount and overtook Ashburn by the second lap. Kelley maintained third place through the first part of the race, and as the hours went by, he clicked off considerably quicker laps, caught up to Baylor, then pressured and passed him for the top spot. Kelley’s charge continued to the checkered flag (a 29:29.900 on the final lap was his second-best), and he crossed the line 30-seconds clear of Baylor for his second win of the year.

The Kelley-Baylor result kept the championship rank the same, but Kelley now holds a nine-point advantage.

Jonathan Girroir continued to reign over the XC2 division, as the Coastal GASGAS Factory Racing rider claimed the lead two laps into the race, stretched out a minute-plus advantage over the field, and scored his sixth victory of the season. With this result, Girroir is now up 34-points on Craig DeLong.

760 Motorsports/JDP Suspension/FXR’s Ben Nelko worked from 13th place to second place for a career-first podium in the XC2 class while Enduro Engineering/Kenda/XC Gear’s Ryder Lafferty finished in third place in his return to action after missing multiple rounds with injury.

2021 SNOWSHOE GNCC

XC1 Pro Event Results

1. Benjamin Kelley
2. Steward Baylor
3. Jordan Ashburn
4. Josh Toth
5. Grant Baylor
6. Thad Duvall
7. Ricky Russell
8. Josh Strang
9. Layne Michael
10. Benjamin Herrera

XC2 250 Pro Event Results

1. Jonathan Girroir
2. Benjamin Nelko
3. Ryder Lafferty
4. Evan Smith
5. Liam Draper
6. Craig DeLong
7. Cody Barnes
8. Jesse Ansley
9. Aaron Riordan
10. Ruy Barbosa