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As a MINT 400 rookie everything was new to me. It was my first time racing it so I knew that just like every race it was going to be a learning experience.

Friday we went through tech and contingency which was absolutely crazy! Going to this really gives you an idea of how big this race really is and it is so cool to be apart of it. After the craziness of tech and contingency we headed back to Primm to finish everything up and get some rest before race day!

Alarm going off at 4:30 A.M. Saturday morning, it was go time. First cars were off the line at 6 so about 10 minutes later it was our turn. I was feeling very confident knowing we had gotten a lot of our problems with the car figured out so I was mainly hoping for another solid race! Boom the green flag drops and we are off the line. With the 2 lane start we were able to holeshot the car next to us and get a good start to the Mint 400!

Problems Early

There was just one problem the car seemed very bogged down and underpowered just as it felt at the last race. I kept going and just wanted to get going before we tried to figure out what was wrong. I let the main pit know what was going on and we just kept up a good pace trying to catch the people in front of us. We did get by some of the people in front of us but also people from the rows behind us were beginning to pass us.

I was pretty bummed at this point knowing that we didn’t have a car that was running at 100%. So we kept pushing but all of a sudden coming out of a corner around mile 40 the car lost just about all of the power it had and we were now down to about 30 MPH down the straight aways… something was really wrong. Knowing that we couldn’t race like this and be competitive I pulled over to try and figure out what was wrong. I just simply shut the car off and on a couple of times, took off, and boom we had full power again. I was so pumped we were on the gas it was like a totally different car and we were passing people left and right… until the car lost power again. There seemed to be nothing we could do about it so I kept going shutting the car off and on every once in awhile but it didn’t seem to help anymore.

We were almost done with our 1st lap, around mile 90 when the car wasn’t steering straight, I immediately thought it was an axle so my co-dog Kurtis hopped out to see what was up, it was just a flat tire which we quickly got changed and were back on the track.

Main pit we gassed up assessed the car and got going again. I didn’t want to even mess with the car and try to get the problem fixed because I knew it would take awhile and it was something I could deal with. Lap 2 was pretty clean we once again kept a good pace, got in the groove, and started passing cars. We had a clean lap and came into the main pit for our 3rd and final lap.

In the pits we thought a new ECU would fix our problem so we put a new one in but now the car wouldn’t even run. We put in the old ECU and it was time to deal with it. Lap 3 I gave it my all we were still in a great position, around 5th place, and I was content with that with the problems we were having. Coming towards Pit B we were on the homestretch I believe we were 2nd in class and around 5th overall. Just as we turn into Pit B the car looses power and won’t turnover. Me and my co-driver immediately hopped out and tried to figure out what was wrong. Thankfully we broke right at the pit so one of the the awesome BITD volunteers towed us too our pit and my crew went to work on our car.

Our exhaust actually fell off so we assumed that was our problem. Big thanks to Gene Towler who welded up my exhaust dropping some dimes and had it looking good as new! Unfortunately this wasn’t our problem so we kept looking, this went on and on for about an hour until we unfortunately had to call it. We looked over everything tried everything and unfortunately just couldn’t figure it out. Our Mint 400 experience was done.

It really was a heart breaker, but I know that we have to just keep pushing and we will get all of these problems solved. We have the car, the speed, the crew, and some awesome sponsors supporting us and I am not letting any of these problems get to me.

A big thank you to everyone who is apart of our Mint 400 team!!!!!!

As a MINT 400 rookie everything was new to me. It was my first time racing it so I knew that just like every race it was going to be a learning experience.

Friday we went through tech and contingency which was absolutely crazy! Going to this really gives you an idea of how big this race really is and it is so cool to be apart of it. After the craziness of tech and contingency we headed back to Primm to finish everything up and get some rest before race day!

Alarm going off at 4:30 A.M. Saturday morning, it was go time. First cars were off the line at 6 so about 10 minutes later it was our turn. I was feeling very confident knowing we had gotten a lot of our problems with the car figured out so I was mainly hoping for another solid race! Boom the green flag drops and we are off the line. With the 2 lane start we were able to holeshot the car next to us and get a good start to the Mint 400!

Problems Early

There was just one problem the car seemed very bogged down and underpowered just as it felt at the last race. I kept going and just wanted to get going before we tried to figure out what was wrong. I let the main pit know what was going on and we just kept up a good pace trying to catch the people in front of us. We did get by some of the people in front of us but also people from the rows behind us were beginning to pass us.

I was pretty bummed at this point knowing that we didn’t have a car that was running at 100%. So we kept pushing but all of a sudden coming out of a corner around mile 40 the car lost just about all of the power it had and we were now down to about 30 MPH down the straight aways… something was really wrong. Knowing that we couldn’t race like this and be competitive I pulled over to try and figure out what was wrong. I just simply shut the car off and on a couple of times, took off, and boom we had full power again. I was so pumped we were on the gas it was like a totally different car and we were passing people left and right… until the car lost power again. There seemed to be nothing we could do about it so I kept going shutting the car off and on every once in awhile but it didn’t seem to help anymore.

We were almost done with our 1st lap, around mile 90 when the car wasn’t steering straight, I immediately thought it was an axle so my co-dog Kurtis hopped out to see what was up, it was just a flat tire which we quickly got changed and were back on the track.

Main pit we gassed up assessed the car and got going again. I didn’t want to even mess with the car and try to get the problem fixed because I knew it would take awhile and it was something I could deal with. Lap 2 was pretty clean we once again kept a good pace, got in the groove, and started passing cars. We had a clean lap and came into the main pit for our 3rd and final lap.

In the pits we thought a new ECU would fix our problem so we put a new one in but now the car wouldn’t even run. We put in the old ECU and it was time to deal with it. Lap 3 I gave it my all we were still in a great position, around 5th place, and I was content with that with the problems we were having. Coming towards Pit B we were on the homestretch I believe we were 2nd in class and around 5th overall. Just as we turn into Pit B the car looses power and won’t turnover. Me and my co-driver immediately hopped out and tried to figure out what was wrong. Thankfully we broke right at the pit so one of the the awesome BITD volunteers towed us too our pit and my crew went to work on our car.

Our exhaust actually fell off so we assumed that was our problem. Big thanks to Gene Towler who welded up my exhaust dropping some dimes and had it looking good as new! Unfortunately this wasn’t our problem so we kept looking, this went on and on for about an hour until we unfortunately had to call it. We looked over everything tried everything and unfortunately just couldn’t figure it out. Our Mint 400 experience was done.

It really was a heart breaker, but I know that we have to just keep pushing and we will get all of these problems solved. We have the car, the speed, the crew, and some awesome sponsors supporting us and I am not letting any of these problems get to me.

A big thank you to everyone who is apart of our Mint 400 team!!!!!!

As a MINT 400 rookie everything was new to me. It was my first time racing it so I knew that just like every race it was going to be a learning experience.

Friday we went through tech and contingency which was absolutely crazy! Going to this really gives you an idea of how big this race really is and it is so cool to be apart of it. After the craziness of tech and contingency we headed back to Primm to finish everything up and get some rest before race day!

Alarm going off at 4:30 A.M. Saturday morning, it was go time. First cars were off the line at 6 so about 10 minutes later it was our turn. I was feeling very confident knowing we had gotten a lot of our problems with the car figured out so I was mainly hoping for another solid race! Boom the green flag drops and we are off the line. With the 2 lane start we were able to holeshot the car next to us and get a good start to the Mint 400!

Problems Early

There was just one problem the car seemed very bogged down and underpowered just as it felt at the last race. I kept going and just wanted to get going before we tried to figure out what was wrong. I let the main pit know what was going on and we just kept up a good pace trying to catch the people in front of us. We did get by some of the people in front of us but also people from the rows behind us were beginning to pass us.

I was pretty bummed at this point knowing that we didn’t have a car that was running at 100%. So we kept pushing but all of a sudden coming out of a corner around mile 40 the car lost just about all of the power it had and we were now down to about 30 MPH down the straight aways… something was really wrong. Knowing that we couldn’t race like this and be competitive I pulled over to try and figure out what was wrong. I just simply shut the car off and on a couple of times, took off, and boom we had full power again. I was so pumped we were on the gas it was like a totally different car and we were passing people left and right… until the car lost power again. There seemed to be nothing we could do about it so I kept going shutting the car off and on every once in awhile but it didn’t seem to help anymore.

We were almost done with our 1st lap, around mile 90 when the car wasn’t steering straight, I immediately thought it was an axle so my co-dog Kurtis hopped out to see what was up, it was just a flat tire which we quickly got changed and were back on the track.

Main pit we gassed up assessed the car and got going again. I didn’t want to even mess with the car and try to get the problem fixed because I knew it would take awhile and it was something I could deal with. Lap 2 was pretty clean we once again kept a good pace, got in the groove, and started passing cars. We had a clean lap and came into the main pit for our 3rd and final lap.

In the pits we thought a new ECU would fix our problem so we put a new one in but now the car wouldn’t even run. We put in the old ECU and it was time to deal with it. Lap 3 I gave it my all we were still in a great position, around 5th place, and I was content with that with the problems we were having. Coming towards Pit B we were on the homestretch I believe we were 2nd in class and around 5th overall. Just as we turn into Pit B the car looses power and won’t turnover. Me and my co-driver immediately hopped out and tried to figure out what was wrong. Thankfully we broke right at the pit so one of the the awesome BITD volunteers towed us too our pit and my crew went to work on our car.

Our exhaust actually fell off so we assumed that was our problem. Big thanks to Gene Towler who welded up my exhaust dropping some dimes and had it looking good as new! Unfortunately this wasn’t our problem so we kept looking, this went on and on for about an hour until we unfortunately had to call it. We looked over everything tried everything and unfortunately just couldn’t figure it out. Our Mint 400 experience was done.

It really was a heart breaker, but I know that we have to just keep pushing and we will get all of these problems solved. We have the car, the speed, the crew, and some awesome sponsors supporting us and I am not letting any of these problems get to me.

A big thank you to everyone who is apart of our Mint 400 team!!!!!!

Sunday before The MINT 400 we would make our way out to Barstow to do some shock tuning. Getting the car dialed in makes a huge difference. It was a night and day difference over what we had at the last race. Thursday morning we would hit the 15 north towards Las Vegas for the Mint 400. We would arrive around 9:30 to pic out a main pit area and set up. After we set up we would go over and catch some of the qualifying going on in Primm.

Friday morning we would get up early and head into Vegas as the Yxz1000r had to be in the Fierce offroad booth by 7am on Fremont street. Once we got the car dropped off and had some breakfast we would sit in line at registration for a few hours and then get our cool back pack of goodies. We would make our way back down to Fremont street and spend the rest of the day meeting with friends and sponsors, tracking down Cory to get the car tech inspected. When I went over to get our IRC tracker I would learn they were over sold and we would be starting the Mint 400 with no tracker, this was also a shame because it would put down our lap times and have any chance of running for the fast lap award either. At 3:30 pm I would be asked to do a live interview on NBC 3 Las Vegas for there 5:00 news. So we would hang out and talk with the news crew for a bit and then do the live interview, yeah I was nervous but it was a awesome opportunity and I was glad to do it. After the interview we new a storm was coming in so we would load the car and race back to Primm arriving just as the storm was coming in. We would quickly unload the Yamaha and get it into the trailer for some last minute adjustments and checks as the wind,sand and rain would come in.

Sat morning we would get up and stage before sunrise. Starting 32nd we knew we would have alot of work to do, the rain from the night before was awesome and just what we needed to help keep the dust down. First utvs leaving just as the sun broke over the mountains and we would now run the first part of the race going into the sun. The first 20 miles would be brutal with many cars from different classes already broken down. We wanted to pace our self as we knew we had a long rough course and race ahead, coming into remote pit A everything was fine with the car so we just passed by for a visual. Leaving pit road we resumed race speed and started passing many cars across the lake bed sections as the yamaha was killing it on the top speeds, we would make our way through the silt beds, FOX proving grounds, rock quarry and just before remote pit B we hit something super hard and caused us to lose our radio, driving the next 10 miles off of hand signals we would finally get to pit B and the crew would find the wire connector that came loose and get it repaired. Having radio communications again between co-driver and driver we would take off again heading out to complete our first lap and main pit. We would come into main pit on lap one and the crew would give us fuel and check over the car, we would also learn at this time we had started 32 and were 6th by position in class and not sure where by time and with no tracker we had no idea on lap times either. We would leave main pit and start lap two maintaining a good pace and passing more cars we would once again cruise through pit A and head out across the lake beds and silt, coming back in to the FOX proving grounds….. our FOX shocks were soaking up the massive bumps when the frame failed. The shock mounts ripped off and the front end slammed to the ground. I sat on the side of the course in shock. My shocks were blocking my view as watched my 4th place position slip away. My MINT 400 ended sitting trackside watching everyone race by. Next race we head back to Laughlin where I hope to put the 1982 on the box.

A big thanks to all the sponsors that helped me get here.

Alba Racing • PRP Seats • Yamaha • Lonestar Racing
Rugged Radios • MSA Wheels • EFX Tires
STV Motorsports • Factory UTV
Suspended Fabrication
Rhino Wraps

Sunday before The MINT 400 we would make our way out to Barstow to do some shock tuning. Getting the car dialed in makes a huge difference. It was a night and day difference over what we had at the last race. Thursday morning we would hit the 15 north towards Las Vegas for the Mint 400. We would arrive around 9:30 to pic out a main pit area and set up. After we set up we would go over and catch some of the qualifying going on in Primm.

Friday morning we would get up early and head into Vegas as the Yxz1000r had to be in the Fierce offroad booth by 7am on Fremont street. Once we got the car dropped off and had some breakfast we would sit in line at registration for a few hours and then get our cool back pack of goodies. We would make our way back down to Fremont street and spend the rest of the day meeting with friends and sponsors, tracking down Cory to get the car tech inspected. When I went over to get our IRC tracker I would learn they were over sold and we would be starting the Mint 400 with no tracker, this was also a shame because it would put down our lap times and have any chance of running for the fast lap award either. At 3:30 pm I would be asked to do a live interview on NBC 3 Las Vegas for there 5:00 news. So we would hang out and talk with the news crew for a bit and then do the live interview, yeah I was nervous but it was a awesome opportunity and I was glad to do it. After the interview we new a storm was coming in so we would load the car and race back to Primm arriving just as the storm was coming in. We would quickly unload the Yamaha and get it into the trailer for some last minute adjustments and checks as the wind,sand and rain would come in.

Sat morning we would get up and stage before sunrise. Starting 32nd we knew we would have alot of work to do, the rain from the night before was awesome and just what we needed to help keep the dust down. First utvs leaving just as the sun broke over the mountains and we would now run the first part of the race going into the sun. The first 20 miles would be brutal with many cars from different classes already broken down. We wanted to pace our self as we knew we had a long rough course and race ahead, coming into remote pit A everything was fine with the car so we just passed by for a visual. Leaving pit road we resumed race speed and started passing many cars across the lake bed sections as the yamaha was killing it on the top speeds, we would make our way through the silt beds, FOX proving grounds, rock quarry and just before remote pit B we hit something super hard and caused us to lose our radio, driving the next 10 miles off of hand signals we would finally get to pit B and the crew would find the wire connector that came loose and get it repaired. Having radio communications again between co-driver and driver we would take off again heading out to complete our first lap and main pit. We would come into main pit on lap one and the crew would give us fuel and check over the car, we would also learn at this time we had started 32 and were 6th by position in class and not sure where by time and with no tracker we had no idea on lap times either. We would leave main pit and start lap two maintaining a good pace and passing more cars we would once again cruise through pit A and head out across the lake beds and silt, coming back in to the FOX proving grounds….. our FOX shocks were soaking up the massive bumps when the frame failed. The shock mounts ripped off and the front end slammed to the ground. I sat on the side of the course in shock. My shocks were blocking my view as watched my 4th place position slip away. My MINT 400 ended sitting trackside watching everyone race by. Next race we head back to Laughlin where I hope to put the 1982 on the box.

A big thanks to all the sponsors that helped me get here.

Alba Racing • PRP Seats • Yamaha • Lonestar Racing
Rugged Radios • MSA Wheels • EFX Tires
STV Motorsports • Factory UTV
Suspended Fabrication
Rhino Wraps

Sunday before The MINT 400 we would make our way out to Barstow to do some shock tuning. Getting the car dialed in makes a huge difference. It was a night and day difference over what we had at the last race. Thursday morning we would hit the 15 north towards Las Vegas for the Mint 400. We would arrive around 9:30 to pic out a main pit area and set up. After we set up we would go over and catch some of the qualifying going on in Primm.

Friday morning we would get up early and head into Vegas as the Yxz1000r had to be in the Fierce offroad booth by 7am on Fremont street. Once we got the car dropped off and had some breakfast we would sit in line at registration for a few hours and then get our cool back pack of goodies. We would make our way back down to Fremont street and spend the rest of the day meeting with friends and sponsors, tracking down Cory to get the car tech inspected. When I went over to get our IRC tracker I would learn they were over sold and we would be starting the Mint 400 with no tracker, this was also a shame because it would put down our lap times and have any chance of running for the fast lap award either. At 3:30 pm I would be asked to do a live interview on NBC 3 Las Vegas for there 5:00 news. So we would hang out and talk with the news crew for a bit and then do the live interview, yeah I was nervous but it was a awesome opportunity and I was glad to do it. After the interview we new a storm was coming in so we would load the car and race back to Primm arriving just as the storm was coming in. We would quickly unload the Yamaha and get it into the trailer for some last minute adjustments and checks as the wind,sand and rain would come in.

Sat morning we would get up and stage before sunrise. Starting 32nd we knew we would have alot of work to do, the rain from the night before was awesome and just what we needed to help keep the dust down. First utvs leaving just as the sun broke over the mountains and we would now run the first part of the race going into the sun. The first 20 miles would be brutal with many cars from different classes already broken down. We wanted to pace our self as we knew we had a long rough course and race ahead, coming into remote pit A everything was fine with the car so we just passed by for a visual. Leaving pit road we resumed race speed and started passing many cars across the lake bed sections as the yamaha was killing it on the top speeds, we would make our way through the silt beds, FOX proving grounds, rock quarry and just before remote pit B we hit something super hard and caused us to lose our radio, driving the next 10 miles off of hand signals we would finally get to pit B and the crew would find the wire connector that came loose and get it repaired. Having radio communications again between co-driver and driver we would take off again heading out to complete our first lap and main pit. We would come into main pit on lap one and the crew would give us fuel and check over the car, we would also learn at this time we had started 32 and were 6th by position in class and not sure where by time and with no tracker we had no idea on lap times either. We would leave main pit and start lap two maintaining a good pace and passing more cars we would once again cruise through pit A and head out across the lake beds and silt, coming back in to the FOX proving grounds….. our FOX shocks were soaking up the massive bumps when the frame failed. The shock mounts ripped off and the front end slammed to the ground. I sat on the side of the course in shock. My shocks were blocking my view as watched my 4th place position slip away. My MINT 400 ended sitting trackside watching everyone race by. Next race we head back to Laughlin where I hope to put the 1982 on the box.

A big thanks to all the sponsors that helped me get here.

Alba Racing • PRP Seats • Yamaha • Lonestar Racing
Rugged Radios • MSA Wheels • EFX Tires
STV Motorsports • Factory UTV
Suspended Fabrication
Rhino Wraps