Rick Cecco

Rick Cecco is a Pennsylvania native who is growing in the ATV Racing world and already has an established history too. We spent some time with Rick to get the low down on his recent racing.
   

“I have been racing for six years in our local PA State Hare scramble series and GNCC's in either A or Pro Am classes.  In 2004 and 2005 I raced on a limited schedule as since I was busy as the GNCC Race Team Manager for Alba Action Sports with rider support.  I took the 2006 GNCC series off to race the BITD Desert series for Alba Action Sports with Cory Hove (owner) and Tyler Lenig.  We are actually having a pretty successful year with two wins out of four races with our biggest win being the 600 mile Vegas to Reno race last month.“ Remarked Rick.

What caught our eye was Rick’s performance at the recent Iroman GNCC race in Crawfordsville, IN. Cross-country racing is one of the east coasts little treasures that combines skill with endurance. After a full season of racing many racers start swapping around classes to get a feel for how they stand up in other conditions and against new opponents in preparations for the following year. This was the case over the weekend at the final race of the season.

Rick Cecco showed he had some true grit and determination to win the Utility Modified class aboard one of the new 2006 Can Am Outlander 650 XT. Rick has been training for Baja races and feels his endurance along with the machine made his win possible.

"Before the end of the 3rd lap I pitted for a flat rear tire at the Can Am pit and tried to charge as hard as I could..."
“I rode half the 2nd lap and the full 3rd lap with a left rear flat.  What made winning the race possible was Can Am giving me a tire to use at the pits.” Remarked Rick on how he felt the race went. “Plus my endurance is great! I have been desert racing and when the scorekeepers sent us out for a 5th lap I nearly got excited! I was not tired or winded and felt ready to make my final lap the fastest”.

Last season we watched Rick at a few races in the Sport classes. He had quick starts and impressive finishes. This year he has been all over the Utility ranks and tearing up the classes each time he runs. At The Wisp GNCC in Maryland Rick raced in the Utility Modified class aboard a 2006 Honda Rincon 680 and finished in 2nd place. “This was my first Utility GNCC race, which I had planned on racing Utility Stock class until I found out at registration that Tire Balls tire inserts were considered a modification.  I was there to just have fun and meet up with old friends that I have not seen in a while after taking the first part of the season off and concentrating on racing for Alba Action Sports in the BITD "Best in the Desert" Series located in Nevada.  I knew I was going to be out powered on the long uphill ski slopes but I was there to just have fun so I did not let it get to me.  About mid way thru the first lap I actually charged my way up to 2nd place but unfortunately wrecked into a stalled quad at the bottom of a grassy hill knocking my front rack and plastic back into my gear shifter which would need to be held forward for the rest of the race, otherwise it would bump out about every 1/2 mile.  I was surprised how well I did considering being underpowered and only riding with one arm on the bars and the other on the forward gear selector.”
Rick then rode the same machine and took on the Utility Stock class at the Unadilla GNCC in New York. “Wrecking on the first lap at the Wisp GNCC haunted me all summer since I know knew I had the stamina to throw a 600 lb Utility quad around for two hours so I had to prove to myself that I can win one of these. 

This time I got rid of the Tire Balls to free up some power plus put me in a class that fitted my Honda Rincon the best.  At the Wisp the only modifications I had besides Tire Balls were the Maxxis Big Horn tires and a kill switch - Everything else was 100% OEM from the wheels to the grips on the stock handlebars - Stock class is where this machine setup belonged.  After a decent start I worked my way up to 2nd place on the first lap and worked my way up to 1st on the 2nd & 3rd laps only to get bit by a stuck rider in a bottleneck on the last lap.  I could have gotten around the lapper but I had no reverse - it had been blown out for months in a non-GNCC episode so I had to wait for my line to open.  In the end I lost by seven seconds which fired me up further to want to win!“

After New York Rick made the change to his Can Am machine. When asked about how he felt about the Can-Am Rick remarked: “I love the machine. It’s got the right power and feel for me.”  Rick got a shot to test the Can Am at the Saint Clairsville GNCC.  “I emailed Steve Cowlings at BRP for some insight and contact information on getting in touch with Warnert Racing who preps the Can Am Outlander GNCC and WPSA team quads.  I wanted a Can Am since I got a chance to race against them twice now and no doubt about it the Can Am quads pulled away from my Honda Rincon harder and took to the trails much smoother than anything I have seen on the track. After my email made it thru several departments at BRP I got my contact info for Warnert Racing, which I agreed to purchase one of, their retired WPSA Outlander 650's to be delivered to the St. Clairsville GNCC.  This was perfect for me. Reason one: I was on a limited budget and reason two Warnert racing agreed to deliver the quad built to GNCC stock class rules which is exactly what I needed given my limited time available to prep the quad.

At the starting line with exactly 1/8 mile of ride time on the quad I was a bit nervous since I did not know how well it was going to work since the Outlander did feel a bit bigger than my Rincon so I figured to take it easy and ride reserved for the first few laps and finish the race in the top 3.  Little did I know that within the first mile I already was adjusted to the ergonomics, power and handling and I was having a ball.  By the end of the first lap I moved up to 1st and kept it thru the 2nd onto the 3rd where I started to overheat from a mud packed radiator.  The Outlander never quit but did go into limp mode, which I rode out for about 5 miles to my pit while getting passed up to about 6th.  I was lucky my pit was only 20' away from the Can Am pit so they quickly reacted to spray my radiator down and got me on my way.  I ended up passing my way back up to 4th at the end of that lap and then to 3rd at the finish.  I was again bummed at my results but knew that I now had the right equipment win.“
That brings us to current times and what we noted at the largest and final race of the GNCC season; the Ironman. Rick entered the Utility Modfied class running his Can Am Outlander 650 (Mods: Warnert Racing Stock Class Mods, Maxxis Big Horn Tires). His finish at the end of the race? First place!

“I actually debated not showing up for this race since it is a 10 hour ride and I have been busy the prior week testing suspension for our BITD race quad and racing the Nevada 300 which the Ironman followed the next weekend and then back to Nevada for another BITD race the AVI 150 on October 28th.  It was just a busy month.  After much debating I decided to go, I wanted a win and the more ride time the better. I have not been training lately at home with all the traveling which would prep me for the AVI 150 race that I am scheduled to do 112 miles of the 150 total.

I actually signed up for Stock class but changed my mind to race Modified since I found out that the point’s race between Scott Kilby and Brock Parker. The Modified class race was left to Parker just having to finish 6th or better since Scott was out with a broken collar bone plus the points race in the Stock class was close and I did not want to ruin anyone's year end class results which seemed tighter in that class than Modified.

I was a little nervous since my quad was not modified with Tire Balls, exhaust or suspension like the others - I even tried to get a pipe from HMF in the final hours Friday night but they only had one at the track for a Outlander 800 not the 650 I had.

Off the start I pulled my way into 4th by the time we hit the woods and kept a steady pace with the leaders until a quad in front on me got a little out of control and hit a tree in a place where the was no passing.  By the time we got going the leaders were out of site so we plugged on and I finished the 1st & 2nd laps in 4th place.  Before the end of the 3rd lap I pitted for a flat rear tire at the Can Am pit and tried to charge as hard as I could since the GNCC crew predicted a four-lap race.  To my surprise the 2 lap card was out and I got pumped.  After riding the whole 3rd lap on a flat tire the Outlander now felt extremely strong as I worked my way up to 2nd at the end of the 4th to catch & pass for 1st place after the downhill / creek crossing and held it to the finish.”

Rick’s season is not over and he is already packing to head out West for his next race. He is planning on sticking with his Can Am and we foresee many future wins for him.

Rick would like to give a special thanks to Cory Hove (Alba Action Sports); Harry Tripp (Maxxis Tires); Steve Cowling, Jeff Gruhlke & Mike Rogers (Can Am / BRP); Ron Warnert, Levi & Mike (Warnert Racing); Cardio Stack, Quadzone, AEM, and Tim & Tyler Lenig for all there pit support. 

We also hear rumor that Rick's promoting team has been talking with Brad Phillips of Premis to help put together a full length video about a week in the life of a utlity racer and also that Rick is taking the steps to make this facet of racing move to the next level of media attention. I f you are interested in contacting Rick he can be reached at: rcecco@atvstars.com

Good Luck Rick!



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