Shan Moore | December 23, 2021
This year’s Grand National Cross Country Series Championship chase turned out to be one of the most exciting and heated finishes in the series history, ending with both title rivals, Ben Kelley and Steward Baylor, in a dramatic fight for survival in the rain and mud at Ironman Raceway. Despite any controversies there might have been leading up to the finale, in the end none of it mattered, and Kelley walked away with one of the most coveted titles in off-road: 2021 GNCC Champion.
Words and Photography by Shan Moore
Kelley’s rise to the top of off-road racing is not much different than most other kids who aspire to be championship dirt bike racers. Many go down the same path, however, few have the determination and drive to make it to the pinnacle like he has. Kelley has been a rising star in the off-road world since he raced his first ISDE Qualifier in Ohio in 2014.
Growing up in Connecticut, Kelley started out racing the NETRA hare scrambles series.
“I grew up in New England and there were no good places to just go and ride that were legal so the only place you could ride your dirt bike was to sign up for a race,” said Kelley. “There were some pretty fast guys, I remember. I guess definitely one guy—Nate Kanney, who I think is from New York, was fast in New England. Then also there was Jake Korn who had some help from KTM. He would show up and do the local races and stuff. I was still on an 85cc, and he was winning on a 250F KTM. I believe he did good in the XC2 class and stuff like that. He was kind of one guy I recognized and saw what he was doing and thought it was really cool. Before Jake was Kevin Hines, he was from Massachusetts. So, the NETRA Series is where I was introduced to racing.”
It was at a NETRA race were Ross Mauri “discovered” Kelley and promptly signed him to ride for his Trail Jesters Racing KTM Team. Mauri and Trail Jesters Racing have served as a feeder program for the KTM Factory Off-Road Team for several years now, and Ross has been instrumental in grooming many of KTM’s factory riders for the pro ranks.
Mauri recognized Kelley’s talent right away. “When I first noticed Ben, I saw a rider with a smooth, attacking style,” said Mauri. “He was clearly young and fast, and I could see in his body type and style he was going to be good. There was an ISDE Qualifier in Ohio, and I talked Ben and Josh Toth into going to it and at that event I watched Ben race against pros. I watched him ride in his attack style and I saw how smooth he was. He got second in the E2 class, and I thought to myself he was something special.”
As a member of Mauri’s Trail Jesters Racing KTM Team, Kelley went on to win the XC2 division in back-to-back years before moving up to the XC1 division for the last three rounds of the 2019 season. Kelley immediately turned a lot of heads when he won the final two races of the season. That was a baptism by fire right away for Kelley, who was thrown in with the “big boys,” and suddenly and he was winning right away.
Expectations were high when the 2020 season rolled around and Kelley was expected to challenge for wins, however he missed the first five rounds due to shoulder injury—one that required surgery—but still managed four runner-up finishes in the final eight rounds.
After a chaotic 2020 season, Kelley entered the 2021 season as one of the clear favorites. The Kailub Russell era was over, the eight-time champ having retired after dominating nearly a decade of GNCC racing, and a handful of riders were tabbed to take the reins, with Kelley and Baylor at the top of the list.
Kelley got off to a slow start with a fifth at the 2021 season opener in South Carolina but won at the following round in Florida. He then took the points lead with a second behind Steward in Georgia. It was a lead he would hold until round 11 in Millfield, Ohio, when Baylor took over by the slimmest of margins. Kelley’s run of six runner-up finishes was frustrating, to say the least, especially rounds 10 and 11 when he led both races only to be passed on the final lap by Baylor.
“I think it was two races where I led the majority of the race and then got passed on the last lap,” says Kelley. “That was a bummer to lead the whole race and feel like I was the fastest guy and then just get passed halfway through the last lap, because I just was doing everything I could but just couldn’t hold him off. It wasn’t because I got tired. It was just a little mishap. The track was technical, and I was just going fast, and I had a crash and broke my shifter, and that was all she wrote.”
Kelley rebounded with a dominant win at the penultimate race in West Virginia, beating Baylor by over two minutes to retake the points lead heading into the series finale at Ironman Raceway.
“After winning the Buckwheat GNCC, I was coming into the last race feeling really good,” said Kelley. “I like the Ironman and I wanted to put in a solid round to wrap up this championship, then the weather threw a huge curveball.”
Heading into the Ironman, Kelley needed only to finish second if Baylor won the race to claim the title, but all hell broke loose the day of the race when torrential rains turned trail into creeks and ditches into ponds.
“That was definitely stressful,” said Kelley. “I got to the track at nine and that’s when it started raining. It just did not let up all day. The whole place was flooded. I was wondering, are we even going to race?”
The tension was intense as deep-water crossings threatened to derail the race. Racer Productions did a great job of rerouting the course, cutting out the deepest of crossings, and the race was shortened from three hours to two. Still, it was a fight for survival more than a race.
“I like the Ironman and I wanted to put in a solid round to wrap up this championship, then the weather threw a huge curveball.”
Riders were all but unrecognizable when they exited the first turn as water and mud sprayed off churning tires and into the air. The race took a dramatic turn when neither Kelley nor Baylor were among the top 15 when the front-runners came into the view at the end of lap one.
Did they take each other out? Were they stalled out in a creek?
Despite the massive buildup of the title race, everything was pretty much decided halfway into the first lap when both Kelley and Baylor downed out their bikes in the wetness.
When Kelley finally got going, he found himself in 88th overall, while Baylor got underway not far behind.
“When the bike died, I knew it was from the water, but I kind of knew that there was a good chance we could get the bike running, because it happened to Josh Toth at the enduro not too long ago,” says Kelley. “He submerged his bike and he got it started. So, I’m like, ‘all right, if he did it, I can do it.’ There were times where I almost gave up. We were working on it for 11 minutes straight and it feels like an eternity out there. Guys are just passing you. It was just wild. Then even once we finally got the bike going and I went through the finish line and then stopped to get my air filter changed again and the guys are like, ‘Stew is only 30 seconds behind you.’ So, I’m like, what are the chances we both have problems in about the same time? Just crazy.”
Kelley was able to work his way up into ninth overall by the end of the race, while Baylor ultimately had to be towed to the pits, sealing the deal for Kelley.
“It was stressful; just crazy,” said Kelley. “Honestly I’ve never raced anything this crazy. None of us had any idea where we were going. We were all just swerving and weaving, and there was water everywhere. With all the talk and everything, I wanted to win this last race just to put the nail in the coffin and come out on top. Honestly, I’m lucky to finish. Just happy to finish and come away champion.”
While the Ironman had little to do to settle the matter, consistency was the key to Kelley’s run to the championship, with seven podium finishes in addition to two victories, and his well-rounded abilities were evident by his wins in Florida and at Snowshoe, where are two events at the opposite ends of the spectrum, with Florida being a whoop-filled, all-out sandy affair, while Snowshoe is rocky and perhaps the most technical course on the circuit.
“In Connecticut we have sand pits,” says Kelley. “It’s kind of weird. The majority of the terrain is very rocky, lots of roots. We have darker, loamy soil, but it’s filled with rocks and roots. Then just randomly around we’ll have these sand pits that are kind of more like orange sand. So, I get to ride in those a lot. It’s kind of two total opposites. You get the technical riding from the rocks and stuff and then kind of more of all-out speed in the sand. Just being a well-rounded rider is something I’ve always wanted to be. I just like riding and I like to be good at everything. It’s always more fun when you’re good at everything. So, that’s something I just have always focused on and try always riding different places, just with traveling around I think over the years it has helped me progress even more into a well-rounded rider.”
“With all the talk and everything, I wanted to win this last race just to put the nail in the coffin and come out on top. Honestly, I’m lucky to finish. Just happy to finish and come away champion.”
Kelley especially shined at the really gnarly tracks.
“That’s more from the NETRA hare scramble days,” says Kelley. “Those tracks are always super gnarly there. Pretty tight and windy, and just the terrain they have out here is really technical. I would say I owe that to racing the hare scrambles. I remember going to races and doing laps and getting stuck all the time. I’d complete one lap and be like, all right, I got to try to get through this next lap. Then finally get through the last lap and wipe the sweat off my forehead and be like, all right, I made it. Those races were tough.”
Kelley attributes spending the last four off-seasons in Florida training with Kailub Russell and Charlies Mullins as a big part of his success.
“That’s been huge,” says Kelley. “That’s kind of, I would say, what jump-started it. That was when I first started working with KTM, as well. Working with KTM, being able to go down to Florida and with Kailub and Charlie, that definitely just opened my eyes. That’s where I learned so much. Before then, I would just ride and race and ride my bicycle and stuff for fun and use that as cross-training. I played sports growing up through high school, so I kind of just did a whole bunch of things. Going down there, that’s when I finally took it seriously and didn’t work any other jobs. Just focused on the racing and learning how to actually train correctly. Being from Connecticut, the winters are so harsh, so I would never ride during the winter. I would just pick up winter sports and snowboard and do all sorts of other things. So, going down to Florida and being able to ride and train all year in the brutal terrain. It’s hot and sandy and rough. Just to be able to kind of see what Kailub did and follow along with him and have Charlie there to give us good routines and just keep us in check—it was a good part of getting me to where I am now.”
“Just being a well-rounded rider is something I’ve always wanted to be. I just like riding and I like to be good at everything. It’s always more fun when you’re good at everything.”
At 6’2”, Kelley is one of the taller riders on the circuit, however it certainly doesn’t seem like an issue. “I think it’s a benefit, actually,” says Kelley. “Just being a little bit taller when conditions get rough, it’s kind of easier for me to paddle lift my bike if I need to; put my leg down if I’m in a hole or something. Just being a little taller and bigger, you can muscle the bike around a little bit more if you needed to. I just think it’s a benefit overall. I don’t set my bike up any differently, really, to be honest. I’ve tried doing different things, taller bars, higher seats, all this kind of stuff and it always just felt weird. It makes the bike handle weird. So, I just run it as it is. I have a slightly taller seat. It’s not much taller than stock, just very little. My footpegs are five millimeters down and back. Other than that, I just run the bike stock. I run the A21 Fat Bar, which is a lower bar than stock. That’s about it.”
Kelley’s aggressive but smooth style makes for a striking image when he’s blasting down the trail, leaning forward, always up over the bars.
“My style I would say comes from where I grew up riding and the terrain and being so rocky and rooty,” says Kelley. “We had a lot of races that were wet, so you had to be really smooth on the throttle. So, for years that’s how I rode, just super smooth, low RPMs. That was something I had to kind of work on getting away from at times to get more aggressive and not be afraid to give it more throttle. Kind of racing J Days, the faster races, helped me do that. That’s what I would say I got my style from. I am a lot taller, so I feel kind of cramped up when I’m sitting on the bike. People always comment that I stand up all the time. That’s kind of why.”
“I don’t set my bike up any differently, really, to be honest. I’ve tried doing different things, taller bars, higher seats, all this kind of stuff and it always just felt weird. It makes the bike handle weird. So, I just run it as it is.”
With his size, one might think Kelley would prefer the power of KTM’s 450, but this year he went with the maneuverability of the 350.
“Last year I raced the 450 at the GNCC’s and a 350 at the national enduros,” says Kelley. “I was jumping back and forth between the two. I like both bikes, but it kind of got to the point where it was a little too hard to be as good as I wanted to be on both of them, just with the amount of time we have between the races with them being back to back. So, I wanted to choose just one. In my opinion, I feel the 450 is just a lot at the national enduros. The 350 is good. It’s strong. I did a lot of testing this off-season going back and forth between the two and just decided to go with the 350. It’s worked for a lot of people. All the bikes are good, which is what made the decision hard because I just like them all. They all have certain little benefits. At the end of the day, I went for the 350. Definitely happy with my decision.” CN