Army Sgt., makes the most of his day as a Husky Guest Factory Rider
"The TXC 450 was easy to ride so it worked out in the end. I feel that I achieved my goals by representing Husqvarna well and riding the bike competitively."
- Toby Atkins
You'll not find a prouder group than the men and women of the U.S. Armed Services and with the inspiring ride he logged at GNCC Round 4, Staff Sergeant Toby Atkins did himself and the U.S. Army very proud indeed. As the second Army soldier to participate in this year's Guest Factory Rider For a Day program his performance aboard a Wyatt Seals prepared factory Husqvarna TXC450 was inspiring to say the very least.
Despite some difficulty leaving the starting area "I killed the bike and ended up dead last at the start of the race!" Atkins showed himself to be quite the racer. Within minutes any of his pre-race jitters were shaken off and Atkins looked right at home aboard the Husky. Down but not out, this was a fighting man on a mission. One by one he reeled and passed rider after rider moving himself in short order to 3rd place by the end of lap one.
Now trailing the lead by about a minute or so Atkins went into full battle mode for his final assault. Before long, Atkins had passed for the overall lead and was now envisioning himself standing atop the winner's podium but, alas, it was not to be. A slight mistake resulted in him stalling his bike momentarily and allowing the lead, and a victory, slip from his grasp.
"I wanted the overall win but not sure if I would because of a lack of seat time aboard this Husqvarna," said Atkins. "The TXC 450 was easy to ride so it worked out in the end. I feel that I achieved my goals by representing Husqvarna well and riding the bike competitively. Overall it is an extremely competitive motorcycle that is great off the showroom floor."
Atkins made it a point to thank "all the people at Husqvarna for giving me the opportunity to race their motorcycle. It was a great experience and I really enjoyed putting them on the podium."
Husky Riders Spin The Wheel At Big Buck GNCC, Kearney gambles for Top 10
"I learned a lesson and if we ever run out of fuel again it won't be from my decision to push the envelope."
- Glenn Kearney
It's the little things that always make a big difference and nobody believes that more than Team Husky's Glenn Kearney. This year the talented Australian racer has had to deal with a variety of little things ranging from a broken leg (perhaps not so little) to the fuel leak that robbed him of a podium finish last weekend. Despite the setbacks Kearney still has a pair of top 10's this season.
On Sunday at the Big Buck GNCC Round 4 in Union, South Carolina Kearney started the round in good form. He was 10th at the start quickly advancing to 4th by the end of lap one. His first "little" setback came in the form of fencing wire wrapped around his rear wheel that forced him to stop and remove it thus dropping him behind the leader by a minute and a half. Repaired and again underway Kearney attacked with vengeance entering the next lap in 5th place about 20-seconds down from the lead. He tore through the pack up to second position before the beginning of lap three. With a chance to own the lead, Kearney and his race technician Wyatt Seals made a decision to roll the dice and send Kearney and his Husqvarna WR300 onto the final lap without stopping for fuel. After all, they believed, if the little gamble worked, Kearney would likely win. If not, he'd pay a big price.
"Mullins (the leader) made a mistake and I took the lead for a short period of time before running out of petrol 3-miles from the end of the lap," recounted Kearney. "The culprit was later diagnosed as a leaky fuel line. After getting petrol and returning to the race, I was only able to get back to 9th by race end."
"Bad decision on my part," confessed Seals. "We had a bigger tank than anyone I know of and I was certain that a fourth lap was not an issue. Wrong. I learned a lesson and if we ever run out of fuel again it won't be from my decision to push the envelope."
