VIEW OUR FAMILY OF BRANDS
Aluminess Company LogoBaja Designs Company LogoBestop Company LogoBullRing Company LogoMGP Company LogoSoftopper Company LogoSpeedStrap Company LogosPOD Company Logo
Status Company LogoTuffy Company Logo

Author:

KC HiLiTES driver Joshua Cobb takes a podium spot at the Mint 400

KCHiLites class 1500 car racing the mint 400
Joshua piloting the KCHiLites class 1500 car to a 2nd place finish at the Mint 400

March 14th, 2015. Las Vegas, NV – Joshua Cobb took on the Mint 400 with his unlikely team and the eclectic group, not only finishing the roughest race of the year but landing on the podium when the dust had settled. Class 1500 hot-shoe, Jordan Poole, was asked to start the race and Jordan did not disappoint. From his last row starting position, he battled his way to the front and at the end of lap 1, he had placed the 2066 car inside the top 3.

Next up, George Antill set down the microphone and put on the drivers suit he had not worn in many years and hoped in the #2066 for his lap at the Mint. The course which was fast and smooth just a lap before was now showing signs of wear and tear and the holes were growing deeper and deeper. George kept a solid pace and showed that he had not forgotten a thing as he laid down a fast lap handing the car to the 15 year old Joshua in second place.

With youth on his side and his trusty side kick Nate Ortiz riding shot gun, Josh shot out into the desert on a tear to try and make up time on the first place team. Josh was able to set fast lap of the day on the roughest track and was also able to make up over 20 minutes on the first place car on this, the final lap of the Mint 400. As the miles wound down, the young drivers would fall short of a victory but would earn a very respectable 2nd place at the biggest off road race in the US. “I was worn out and half asleep from riding the first two laps with the other drivers,” said Nate who rode every mile of the race. “When Josh got in the car I knew it was game on and I had to have my A game, so I dug deep and talked him through the last lap. It was brutal but that kid was flying through the course,” he added.

All in all a huge success and a large step towards the ultimate goal, a championship in the Best in the Desert racing series for 2015. This race would not be possible is not for the support and effort of the following companies and people. KC HiLiTES, General Tire, Rugged Radios, Mobile 1 Oil, Race Shock, Monster Seal, Rising Hy, Fall Advertising, Mc Neil Racing, Mike Leavitt, Rich Roberts, Steve Godfrey, Garrett Garner and Troy Turner, Norman Francis and Mike Lasher at SXS Performance.

A special thanks goes out to Lee Banning and everyone at Banning Motorsports who stepped up to help prep the car. This race result is dedicated to you for all you do for the sport and for our team.

Our next race will be May 1st in Alamo, NV at the BITD, Silver State 300. Check us out at Five2Productions.com or follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/Five2Productions.

Deegan 38 Motorsports Kicks Off 2015 Season at Lake Elsinore

The Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series (LOORRS) began their season March 20-21 at Lake Elsinore Motorsports Park in southern California with Rounds 1 and 2. Things looked a little different for Deegan 38 Motorsports at this first event of the season. While Brian Deegan had planned to start off the year as reigning Pro 2 Champion and making his first full-season run at Pro 4 until an unexpected surgery sidelined The General for the LOORRS opener. In order to keep his trucks in competition, Deegan enlisted Todd LeDuc to drive his Pro 4 truck and Ryan Beat to drive for his Pro 2. Deegan choose LeDuc and Beat to drive his #38 Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Power Tools Ford to safely earn as many points possible.

Pro 4 kicked off the full size classes on Friday evening with every bit of excitement fans were hoping for. After numerous incidents and cautions, LeDuc managed to steer clear of obstructions and was running a respectable fifth by lap 18. Before the checkered flag, Adrian Cenni and reigning class champion snuck back around the #38 Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Power Tools Ford and LeDuc secured a seventh place finish for the #38 Team.

Deegan 38 Motorsports opening up the Lucas Oil Off Road Season
Todd LeDuc filling in for Brian in the Pro4 class.

Pro 2 put the exclamation mark on the evening. Ryan Beat, in Deegan’s #38 Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Power Tools Ford got off to a good start, running in fourth with many of the class’ heavy hitters. Throughout the middle part of the race, Beat was in an intense battle with RJ Anderson and Jeremy McGrath as the three ran neck and neck. Although the three shifted positions back and forth, by the final laps, Beat pulled up with Rob MacCachren, and both were challenging Carl Renezeder for second. However, time was running out and Beat settled for a fourth place finish in Pro 2.

Saturday would prove to be a tough day for Deegan 38 Motorsports. Todd LeDuc was gunning for another top five finish in Round 2 when he crashed into the back of Doug Fortin, breaking the upper control arm of the #38 Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Power Tools Ford. Fortunately, the team was able to fix the issue in the hot pits and LeDuc came back out to finish the event and receive last place points.

In Pro 2, Ryan Beat was unable to finish after coming to a full stop early in the race due to mechanical issues that were too grave to repair in time to complete the race.

Although Deegan was disappointed to be watching his #38 Rockstar Energy Drink / Makita Power Tools Ford trucks from the sidelines during Rounds 1 and 2 of the LOORRS, he was grateful that his sponsors and fellow competitors came together to keep the #38 trucks on track, providing points to build upon for future events.

Deegan will be ready to take on the tough competition of the LOORRS when it resumes April 24-25 at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler AZ.

About Brian Deegan
Motocross legend, 2014 LOORRS Pro 2 Champion, 2014 Pro Lite Runner Up and 2013 DirtSport’s Driver of the Year, Brian “The General” Deegan is one of the most decorated action sport athletes to date. He is the only rider to compete in at least one event each year since the X Games’ inception, including his Gold Medal run in X Games 17 Rallycross. In 2015, Deegan continues to test the limits in numerous racing categories including Freestyle Motocross, Pro 2 and Pro 4 Short Course, Global Rallycross, and Monster Jam. The Deegan Racing Team is powered by Rockstar Energy Drink, Makita Industrial Power Tools, Ford Motor Company, Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels, DVS Shoe Co., Deegan 38, ODYSSEY® Battery, Gibson Exhaust Systems, 4 Wheel Parts, Compex, Defender Skin, Flu War, KC HiLITES, PRP Seats, Smooth Industries, Alpinestars, Fathead, Feld, PPG, Brembo, Fortin, VP Racing Fuels, Fox Shocks, Impact by Mastercraft Safety, MSD Ignitions, FK Rod Ends, Eibach Springs, McKenzies, Fiberwerx, JE Pistons, QTM, G2, Dailey Engineering, Brown & Miller Racing Solutions, ARP, AZ Driveshafts, Aero Motive, Answer, Rockford Fosgate, and Pro Taper. For more information, visit http://www.briandeegan.com/, Follow on Twitter at http://www.Twitter.com/MMGeneral, Instagram via BrianDeegan38, or visit on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/mmdeegan.

Jordan Pellegrino Sweeps the 4500 class at the GenRight Off Road Nor Cal Rock Racing Championship Series, Round 1

Tony and Jordan Pellegrino
Tony and Jordan Pellegrino

March 28, 2015: Jordan Pellegrino, driver of the GenRight 4585 car, brought home a definitive win at the GenRight Off Road Nor Cal Rock Racing Championship Series, Round 1, taking first place in two preliminary races and in the main 4500 class race. Pellegrino led the field of five racers for most of his time on the track and finished the day on top of the podium.

The track at Prairie City, home of the 3-race Nor Cal series, made for a rough race, knocking out 2 of the other 4500 class competitors before the main, along with countless racers from the other classes. Luckily for Pellegrino and team GenRight, we had a solid day of racing and experienced very few issues with the car.

In the main 4500 race, Jordan pulled out in front of the other two drivers, Justin Hall and Makinzie Alavazo, right off the start, gaining a quick eight second lead over Hall, who held second until the track’s second rock section threw him for a front flip hard enough to take his car out of the race. Alavazo also had trouble in the rocks, leaving Pellegrino to finish out the race essentially unmatched. Even as the only car racing, Pellegrino put up ever improving lap times, and gave the crowd a great show!

A true sportsman, Pellegrino still gave his very best effort as he completed his remaining laps and offered his sincere congratulations to his peers.

A special thank you to our sponsors: Falken Tire, Currie Enterprises, Walker Evans, Torco, JE Reel, Magnaflow, RC Injectors, Griffin Radiators, Rugged Radios, Holley Performance, PRP Seats, Howe Performance, WARN, Yukon Gear and Axle, FK Rod Ends, DEI, RCV, VisionX, R2C Performance Products, Master Pull, Cometic, Rancho Drivetrain, Advance Adaptors, Optima, King Shocks, The Brake Man, Simpson, Darton, SCAT, CP Carillo, ARP Bolts, Comp Cams, Earls, T&D, DJ Safety

More About Nor Cal Rock Racing:
Nor Cal Rock Racing takes place at the Prairie City SVRA. The 2-mile off road race track packs a huge punch, with multiple gnarly rock sections, tight turns, hills, and a super-fast straightaway. The best part? All of this can be seen from the bleachers which offer spectating better than most other races of its kind!

The one-day event was an action packed day of racing, complete with a Vendor show and open pit area where fans could get up close to the race cars and teams. The event continues to grow in size and support, and promoter John Goodby is dedicated to making this a truly excellent event for races and spectators alike. The Nor Cal Rock Racing Series includes two more races which take place June 13th and August 8th. Find more info here.

Mike Gardner Wins 3rd Race in a Row, Leads WORCS by 15 pts.

Gardner clearing the step down.
Gardner putting on a show for the crowd over the big step down.

Canyon MX was the site for round 3 of WORCS in Peoria AZ. All week long the talk was about the forecast. “Are we going to have a mudfest?” Lucky for us Mother Nature held back and just gave us nasty looking clouds that made an epic back drop for pictures.

Gardner in his Dasa powered RZR flew off the line and into the lead early in the race. Track conditions were perfect and his HOLZ Racing Polaris RZR was on rails.

Gardner lead wire to wire and beat out 2nd place by a narrow 5 second lead. This win was Gardners 3rd win in the series and puts him 15 points ahead of 2nd. Not only does it take a great driver to pull off a season like this it also takes a solid team, great sponsors and best machine in the game Polaris RZR.

GMH Motorsports Sponsors - GBC Motorsports, Holz Racing Products, Rigid Industries, Mission Motorsports, Active Screenprinting, SuperATV, Assault Industries, Monster Seal, Proline Wraps, Method Race wheels, R2C, UTV Underground, Walker Evans Racing, PRP Seats, Web Cam Shafts

Danielle Weatherly Takes the Win at WORCS Round 3 Powder Puff

We drove out to Peoria Wednesday night for WORCS round 3, got the camp set up and everything prepared. Friday I ran all 3 moto practices, and the main unclassified practice which is the entire track in the GMH pit RZR 1000, and felt great. I felt pretty good going into the powder puff race with knowing the track, and being confident with being in Mike [Gardners’] 108 RZR—that thing is a beast! We made the decision that for all the Powder Puff races I will either be in the pit RZR or Mike’s RZR 1000 so that I can be competitive with all the other girls, since they run their own 1000s or husband/boyfriends 1000s.

There were 14 girls total lined up at the start. My start wasn’t that great, got ping-ponged in between a couple other girls and came out 6th. I knew up in the desert section there was a wide open straight away that I could pass on so I hung back patiently not making any moves. Once we hit that straight away I made the move. All the girls took the turn out wide and I cut inside and pinned it. Got past 4 girls (also took out a dead tree) up to 2nd place behind Savanna Brooks in the RJ37 RZR. We have some awesome GoPro footage of it so I’m going to post it on Instagram as well. I was on her bumper for about half a lap waiting to make a pass and to my advantage she entered the moto track going the wrong way followed by about 3 other girls. I made the pass around her and got into the 1st place position and led the rest of the way. Not easily though. I had a solid gap but every time I came up on a lappet Savanna was able to catch up. The last lap she was on my bumper waiting for me to make a mistake and then her belt blew. Her and I had put a pretty big gap between us and the other woman that I was able to take it a little easy the rest of the way and save the car to get the win. All in all it was an awesome weekend for Mike and myself!

Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports set to take on The Morrocan Desert

Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports in their custom TeryxCo-pilots Sara Price and Erica Sacks will be the first ever US team to compete in the Motorbike/SSV class In the 25th Annual Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles

Lake Elsinore, Calif. (March 3rd, 2015) – Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports is just weeks away from their debut in the 25th Annual Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles in Morocco Africa, an all female race that doesn’t reward speed, rather a team’s skill at navigating the shortest distance point to point (without the aid of GPS).

Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports will be challenged with plotting their route using only maps, a plotter and a compass on an unmarked course that can take longer than Sunrise to Sunset to reach the goal checkpoints in the day.  Each morning they will receive their Map along with a Coordinate or Distance and Heading to checkpoint 1 and once there they will recieve a “Road Book” containing geographic coordinates and or headings and distance of the day’s checkpoints and last checkpoint of the day being their Bivouac where they do all they can to recover and prepare for the next day.  The course is completely off-road and redesigned each year, making this rally not just physically exhausting but also mentally taxing.

Pilot Sara Price will take the wheel of the Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports Teryx with teammate Erica Sacks as navigator.  The Team will work together to tackle the mental and physical demands of the Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles thanks in part to weeks of training with highly experienced Gazelle Emily Miller, instructor and mentor for the USA Gazelles. During their training, Sara and Erica combined learning navigating skills with tackling desert terrain with the goal of making the straightest line possible to get to their goal. “Sara and Erica have truly impressed me throughout their preparation and training.” says Emily Miller.  “Combined with a capable vehicle, superior driving and navigating skills and impressive composure, they are a formidable team and excellent representatives of the United States.”

“We’re feeling very confident going into the rally, with the combination of our training with the USA Gazelles and the capabilities of our Kawasaki Teryx.  In our training we pushed our Teryx to its boundaries and it came out ready to keep going,” says Sara Price, pilot for Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports.

The durability of the Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports Teryx is going to be critical during the rally, where a mechanical issue can easily sideline the team.  Teams are not permitted to have support crews and although there will be rallye technicians; they are limited by availability and also penalized if in need of assistance during competition.  “We have to be able to do any repairs ourselves with parts that we carry with us on the car; that’s why we chose the Kawasaki Teryx.  It’s a dependable side x side that can handle a lot of abuse from harsh environments.  Plus, maintenance is fairly easy with convenient access engine components,” says pilot Sara Price. “It’s a winning platform for us.”

Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports begins their journey in the Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles March 25 through April 4.  Follow the team’s progress and receive daily updates from Morocco at https://www.facebook.com/TERYXGIRLS. For LIVE Tracking on Team 23 (Teryx Girls) and to send messages the team during the competition, visit the Rallye’s Official website at http://www.RallyeAichaDesGazelles.com. Each night, the Teryx Girls will have access to a designated team email where they can interact with their fans.  #TeryxGirls

About Team Kawasaki IMG Motorsports

Sara Price made history in 2010 as the first ever female factory Kawasaki supported racer in motocross.  Sara also achieved over 16 Amateur Championships on a Kawasaki during her amateur racing career as well as medaling in X-Games. Sara crossed over into the Side X Side racing in 2012, racing many different disciplines in a UTV and quickly became a force to reckon with.

Erica Sacks has over 15 years of off-road racing experience. She has been all over the Baja Peninsula and has raced the longest race in the US, giving her the knowledge necessary to compete in this long race. She has raced in a variety of off-road cars from Trophy Karts to Class 1 cars, and has the experience of racing in the most prestige off-road races held in world. She recently finished second place in UTV at the 2014 Lake Elsinore Grand Prix.

S3 Powersports UTV World Championship Race Report

Team S3 racing at the UTV World ChampionshipFrom Dustin Jones, S3 Powersports

The UTV world championship was a dead engine “land rush” style of start which basically means we start 15 cars wide with the cars off and key on. At the drop of the flag we all simultaneously fire the cars up and take off together in a mad scramble. We are familiar with this style of start because of our cross country experience and we felt somewhat prepared to race this way. We were lined up with some of the fastest racers in the series including Brandon Sims, Johnny Angal, Cory Sappington, and more. Being only our 2nd BITD race it is a very intimidating experience to line up with these guys that we had previously watched in a literal drag race into the desert.

When the green flag dropped we were fortunate enough to get our car fired up and get off the line quickly. Much to our surprise we pulled the holeshot in the pack of cars with Brandon Sims in a very close 2nd place. We were absolutely thrilled to have pulled holeshot and were driving hard with the feeling of a pack of wolves chasing us into the desert. We had a very strong first lap and was able to put quite a bit of distance on the competition but about 3/4 of the way though the first lap we suffered failure of both rear axels. Broke these in the “Fox Proving Grounds” which was the most brutal part of the course. We were not able to pre run the course like most of the other racers so we were running the track blind and had no idea the fox area would be so taxing on the vehicle. We continued to lead the entire first lap and went into the pits still in first but it would take us quite a while to repair the car and get back out on the track.

When we were finally able to get out of the pit we pulled out in 36th place. We had no idea we were had lost so many position but knew we would have to make a hard charge to the front so that is what we set out to do. Keep in mind these were only 16 mile laps. In the next 2 laps we made up 6 positions. The following 2 laps another 7 positions. And in the final 4 laps we were able to make up another 10 positions to finish 13th overall. The 2nd to final lap we suffered a flat rear left tire but had no idea until we passed the backside of the pitting area and our pit crew informed us we need to put and get it changed. My copilot informed me we were nearing the end of the race and i had to make the decision if i would pit or run on a flat tire. I radioed our pit crew to find out how many laps we had left before it was too late to pit. They let me know there was only one lap left in the race… I decided it wouldn’t be worth the time lost to change the tire so we chose to pass the pits and push on for another 17 mile lap on a flat tire.

This made the car very unpredictable and difficult to drive at high speeds. Battle the short coarse style infield was no easy take either. If one flat wasn’t enough we suffered a 2nd flat rear tire less than 2 miles into the desert section! We had chosen to push on with the single flat rear tire so there was no way we were going to let a 2nd one keep us from finishing. I know there were some scared spectators in the viewing and pit areas during that last lap because the car felt nearly out of control. Fortunately we were able to hold our position and roll through the finish in 13th.

It was very taxing trying to make up so much ground especially when we started in first and lead nearly the entire first lap but we knew it would be hard work if we were going to finish towards the top. Despite all the challenges we had a great time and were happy with just finishing the race and it was only a plus to finish in the top 1/3rd of the field.

CJ Bynum King of the Hammers UTV Race Report

CJ Bynum racing King of the Hammers UTV RaceBy CJ Bynum

2015 King of the Hammers UTV race was an adventure I stepped into this year. About three weeks before heading to KOH I was offered a RZR XP 1000 to race by Mr. Joe Bill Rogers. This man doesn’t even know me and offered his 20,000 dollar machine to an 18 year old kid to race KOH. Of course, I took the opportunity and Joe Bill said I better win it or come back broke! So I asked the one and only Justin from Razor-Sharp Customs to co-drive with me. He said it sounded like a plan! When we arrived in California we went out and did some pre running on the UTV course. It was a fun but rough ride out there. Wednesday rolled around extremely quick and I didn’t know what I had gotten myself into! We started at 8 o’clock Wednesday morning in 35th out of 53 racers. By about mile marker 28 we had front diff problems and only 2wd! Which made the course an even bigger challenge. After going through pit one and headed to the main pit we had moved our way up a few places. We swapped the front diff in the main pit but had different bolt sizes in the second diff and bolts ripped out at mile marker 48 leaving us with 2wd once again. So that was the ending of our 2015 UTV King of the Hammers race! It was an awesome time and I hope I have the chance to be back out there next year and get another run! Big thanks to RCV Performance, RaceLine Wheels, Super ATV, PRP Seats, Rugged Radios, ORB Fabrication, and Spyder Off-road. Also thanks to everyone that helped in the pits. Some of these guys I didn’t know and they jumped right in to help.

Gardner Wins Back to Back at WORCS Primm

Rolling into Primm on top, GMH Motorsports was set on taking home another win. Primm is the roughest course they will see all season. Gardner and mechanic Tim Smith spent the last few weeks getting the HOLZ RZR XP1000 ready for the brutal conditions.

fde47e62-ad38-41a7-a530-ec7951622267
GMH Motorsports 108 Polaris RZR XP1000 flying around Primm

The green flag flew and Gardner pulled the Holeshot. Brian Maclean of Walker Evans was driving the 37 RZR and was pushing hard. For the next 45 mins Gardner and Maclean would battle. Bumping, exchanging positions and even had some door to door contact. Gardner would edge out Maclean and again take home a big win. “The track was getting rough, when the white flag waived I knew I had it. Crossing the finish and seeing that checkered flag makes all the hard work worth it.”

Story courtesy of Fatography and GMH Motorsports.

6afd8dae-3374-46d3-ad87-d2c408487123

e90a0d75-79c3-4a01-88e7-5548f4c4e104

CJ Bynum King of the Hammers Shootout Report

By CJ Bynum

It was a good time and a great show as expected. This was my second year to attend King of the Hammers and my second year to race the backdoor shootout. The first year Bobby Tanner let me race his buggy Screaming Blue! This year I raced my new buggy, Venom. I finished Back Door with a 38 second run and 18th out of 50 other racers. I’m happy to say that the east coast came in and took the win this year-which was Bobby Tanner with a 22 second run. I had a great time in California and want to give thanks to all the people that came out and to all the people that helped me race! RCV Performance, Raceline wheel, Super ATV, PRP Seats, Ricks Powder Coat, ORB Fabrication, Rugged Radios, GoForth Tire, and Spyder Offroad-I appreciate all you do!