Blazing the jinx: Chris Jenks rips aboard a Four-Stroke Tech Honda.(hot wheels)

Go ahead, yell Chris Jenks' last name out loud. It sounds just like it reads, jinx. Yes, the same jinx siblings and friends yell at each other for the silent treatment and to bring bad luck to the unfortunate person hexed. Now, say Jenks one more time--like the childhood game, you just lifted the curse. And, for good reason, because Chris Jenks is riding like a man free of bad luck aboard his Four-Stroke Tech Honda.

With a third of the GNCC season already completed, Jenks has made the jump from the Pro-Am ranks to the Pro class look easy. After tallying second place and two victories as a pro-am rider in 2004, Jenks took the next logical step.

Just three races into the season, a surprised Jenks scored his first podium finish aboard his Honda 450R--that's powered by a Honda 500R engine--at The General in Georgia. Jenks set a fiery pace as he piloted his blaze-orange quad to the holeshot and first-half lead. "I didn't think I was ready for this yet," remarked Jenks to the GNCC contingent at the podium. "But at the end, I knew I wasn't alone, and I wasn't going to give up."

Spotting Jenks, even when he's hitting breakneck speeds, isn't too hard at the races. Jenks No. 7 Honda wears Maier sharp-cut orange plastic. But the beauty of Jenks' Honda is more than plastic-deep. Four-Stroke Tech bored out the 500R to 99mm, while still using the stock stroke. The result, Jenks' Honda rips. Jenks uses Janssen +1-inch A-arms and swingarm for their toughness and stability. For a smoother ride, Elka Long Travel shocks are stationed in the front and back. Other key aftermarket parts, mixed with Jenks' riding skill, have created a tough GNCC foe.

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