10/19/2003

Traci Cecco - 2003 Ironman GNCC Champion AND 2003 Women's GNCC Champion!

Friday afternoons weather was filled with blue skies and a comfortable cool 65 degree Crawfordsville, Indiana weather. From the pits the track looked to be very easy and fast with much of the field sections within a 360 degree view of our pit area. Racer Productions fooled everyone from thinking that the 2003 Ironman track was a cakewalk with a ton of surprises lurking in the woods. The 10 mile track had every obstacle that a true GNCC track should have with tight woods, HUGE hill climbs, DEEP mud, and FAST field sections. Saturday morning brought just a few drops of rain - then clear skies that would reflect Friday conditions as being perfect - Perfect for a championship face off with the top 2 GNCC women riders Alba Action Sports Traci Cecco and Honda of Troys Stephanie Parton.

The rules were simple - win the race - win the championship.

Off the Start Cecco settles into 3rd place and within 3 turns passes her way up to 2nd to follow Stephanie Parton into the woods to battle back and fourth for the first 3 laps. By the start of the 4th lap Cecco pits for fuel and goggles over 57 seconds behind the current leader Stephanie Parton. By the 6 mile marker the Alba pit crew radios in that Traci is only 25 seconds back and that she successfully conquered the one of the largest hills of the race for the last time. The last 3 laps were averaging 30 minutes a lap and we knew Traci currently running 5 seconds per mile faster than Parton that it would be a battle at the finish. Within seconds of Traci dropping into a ravine she will find herself in a line of over 50 quads in a large bottleneck but could see Parton only 9 quads ahead of her. As racers ahead of Cecco moved over to let Traci by she catches and passes Parton by plowing thru a huge mud hole just in time for the course officials to clear the path as Parton blasts past Cecco to regain the lead with a battle to the finish as Cecco successfully passes Parton on the final hill climb of the race to keep the lead as they raced to the finish line.

"Wow - what a race", " Stephanie and I battled all day back and fourth swapping leads several times" "On the 3rd lap I got stuck in a bottle neck that Stephanie missed by taking a different line - by the time I got out and made it back to the start / finish line I was 57 seconds back - we pitted for fuel and goggles" " When I dropped down into the ravine I was shocked to see Stephanie only a few quads ahead of me - so I weaved my way thru the line and gambled on a mud hole that everyone was trying to avoid - I made it and the bottleneck broke free" " Stephanie blew past me and I followed her and passed on the final hill climb and kept the lead for the rest of the race" " My Alba Action Sports YFZ450 was unstoppable today"

It all came down to this one race - and Traci Came through in the end!