"I set my own pace and came into the lead," Whibley said. "I was pushing hard at the end. There were so many lines down there it was hard to tell which were the fastest ones. I really want to win this year. It would be nice to win it."
Rain the day prior made the track a battlefield of deep ruts and mudholes, added in with the already challenging 15-foot creek jump. The bikes started on a grassy incline and Whibley quickly grabbed the $250 Motorcycle-USA.com holeshot award. But Husqvarna's Glenn Kearney quickly edged in front around the second turn to take the lead.
By the creek jump, Whibley had moved into first place but Kearney stayed close behind, followed by Strang and Mullins. Whibley's teammate Jimmy Jarrett, Jason Raines and Nate Kanney followed close behind. By the third lap though, Whibley began to move away from the field with Strang 50 seconds behind in second and Kearney in third.
Shock Doctor KTM's Nate Kanney and Am-Pro FMF Yamaha's Barry Hawk moved into fifth and sixth positions and were following behind Mullins. Meanwhile, Jarrett began to fall behind.
Strang knew he needed to top Whibley in order to close the series point standings back up. He put in a charge and made up time, and by the white flag he had cut his margin in half, to 25 seconds. Mullins followed a few minutes behind, after passing Kearney.
"It took me a couple of laps to get going," Strang said. "But I got going and put my head down."
But Strang ran out of time as Whibley finished about 20 seconds in front of him. "It's hard feeling like I'm the faster rider out there, but I keep making little mistakes here and there," Strang said. "Second place is good but not where I need to be."
Mullins finished in third,minutes behind.
"I felt like I rode well," Mullins said. "It is good to get third but I really wanted a win. I felt like I rode well."
Kanney moved up to finish fourth, followed by Kearney in fifth. Hawk finished sixth in front of Jim Jarrett in seventh. Kenny Gilbert, Husaberg's Jesse Robinson and Jason Davis rounded out the top ten.
The Can-Am Grand National Cross Country Series continues next weekend with the ITP Tires Power Line Park GNCC in St. Clairsville, Ohio. Whibley has an opportunity to lock up the GNCC Title at that race, putting pressure on Strang and Mullins to finish ahead of him and keep their championship hopes alive for the final GNCC round, the Klotz Ironman GNCC in Crawfordsville, Indiana, on October 24-25.
XC1 Finish
1. Paul Whibley (KAW)
2. Josh Strang (SUZ)
3. Charlie Mullins (SUZ)
4. Nathan Kanney (KTM)
5. Glenn Kearney (HSQ)
6. Barry Hawk (YAM)
7. Jim Jarrett (KAW)
8. Kenneth Gilbert (KAW)
9. Jesse Robinson (HSB)
10. Jason Davis (KTM)
XC1 Points Standings
1. Paul Whibley (274/5)
2. Josh Strang (242/4)
3. Charles Mullins (236)
4. Jim Jarrett (188)
5. Nathan Kanney (182)
6. Barry Hawk (153)
7. Kurt Casselli (146)
8.Glenn Kearney (113)
9. Ken Gilbert (110)
10. Jesse Robinson (109)
