MOUNTAINEER RUN; Masontown, WV — The Mountaineer Run, held at Marvin’s Mountaintop in Masontown, West Virginia, was another new stop on the 2012 Grand National Cross Country schedule, but for many it had an “old school” feel. Round seven of 13 was held on a technical, rough, rocky, semi-muddy course not far from the familiar Snowshoe GNCC site (the next stop for the series). Plus it was also just good old fashioned hot, which all added up to a challenging weekend for man and machine. But Team ITP was up for it, and notched a number of victories using a variety of ITP QuadCross and Holeshot tire setups.

A most impressive display of skill and endurance was put up by Patrick McGuire (Yam). The Valencia, Pennsylvania, native blasted out of the first turn in first and never looked back, leading the XC2 Pro Am class from start to finish to win his second round of the season by nearly three minutes. It was good for ninth overall out of 186 top competitors in the afternoon wave of racing, and moved him back into the points lead.

Finishing second in XC2 was Matt Hanna, backed by Greg’s ATV and running ITP tires on his Yamaha YFZ450. It was Hanna’s third podium appearance of the season, which puts him in fifth place in the class standings.

The morning race was once again the domain of Dave Simmons (Yam). It’s the fifth occasion this veteran has taken the overall victory in 2012, this time ahead of 250 other amateur class athletes. He’s also undefeated for the year in the Super Senior 45+ class. Maybe age really is just a number…

The Masters 50+ class proved to be a slugfest, as ITP’s Glenn McConnell (Yam) came up just five seconds short — in over two hours of racing — of his fifth win of the year. He’s still in it to win it when the series concludes in early November, as he holds a close third in the class standings.

Speaking of close, the Women’s class championship could very well be decided by a tiebreaker. Angel Atwell (Hon) finished second in class and sixth overall at the Mountaineer, and is just two points out of the points lead. It was her seventh straight podium finish in seven events, including three victories.

Still searching for that elusive top step is Adam McGill (Hon). Bad luck has plagued this XC1 Pro star all year, and this event was another agonizing example. McGill nailed a decisive holeshot and was battling for the lead on the first lap when a mechanical failure put him on the sidelines early. But McGill is one of the most popular, upbeat riders on the circuit, and he’s remaining focused on that checkered flag.

The next event takes place at the ski resort in Snowshoe, West Virginia, June 23-24.

Photos by Amy McConnell, XCountry Photos

Finishing second to McGuire in XC2 Pro Am was Matt Hanna, also on ITP tires. It was his third podium appearance of the 2012 GNCC season.

That guy again! Super Senior 45+ marvel Dave Simmons captured the overall morning victory for the fifth time this year.

After more than two hours of racing, Glenn McConnell finished second in Masters 50+ by just five seconds.

Angel Atwell grabbed her seventh straight podium finish in the remarkably competitive Women’s class title fight, and holds second in the standings by just two points.

Cursed? Adam McGill (2) was once again in the mix for XC1 Pro glory, and once again left on the sidelines with a mechanical issue. Winning the holeshot award was the best that came out of his Mountaineer weekend.