Menzies wins a thoroughly exciting PRO 2 race in the mud and Deegan wins his first-ever race @ Crandon in PRO Lights

CRANDON, Wisc., (Sept. 4, 2011) – The three-day, three-event granddaddy of all short-course off-road racing – Traxxas TORC Series, presented by AMSOIL’s Crandon International Raceway World Championships – came to a smashing crescendo (quite literally) on Sunday as the bang up world of off-road truck racing recoded yet another epic chapter in the long-running Crandon story

Thousands upon thousands of diehard fans packed the Crandon hillside and remained – despite the rain (as Brian Deegan would later point out) – to watch Traxxas TORC Series, presented by AMSOIL, off-road racing’s equivalent to the Super Bowl. Here are the results.

PRO 4

For a guy thathadnever won at Crandon before, Adrian Cenni (Atrium Payroll/Maxxis/Mastercraft Safety) sure had a pretty wonderful weekend. On Sunday the New Yorker made it three-straight at the TORC/Crandon World Championships with another rip-roarin’ run to the checkers in his blaze orange Ford.

“The hat trick!” yelled Cenni to the tens of thousands of fans hillside at Crandon and bunched up next to the podium stage. “We got a good start, coming out in second – which is right where you want to be. I was able to make a pass for the lead early and got out and built a big lead. We had some carnage going on, but nothing was stopping us from building a good lead – even after the competition yellow.”

Leading the pack out of Crandon’s famous Land Rush start was Mark Jenkins (Traxxas/BFG/AMSOIL), who’s been flying all weekend. But coming into the start of lap two – body work already flying all over the place – was Cenni, taking the lead with the Crandon fans on his side. In hot pursuit was Ricky Johnson (Red Bull/KMC Wheels/Mopar/Ram), who got by Steve Barlow (Maxxis/Ebay Motors/Metal Mulisha) and Kyle Leduc (Rockstar/Makita/Toyo).in a mad charge to 2ndplace.

Just before the competition yellow something let loose in Johnson’s Ram – a billowing white cloud of smoke marking the end of his weekend. Everything at that point looked to be tilted in favor of Johnny Greaves (Monster Energy/Toyota/Maxxis), who was charging up towards the front after a mediocre start.

At the competition yellow Cenni pulled a train of TORC PRO 4 trucks into the first big sweep turn, followed by Barlow, Greaves, Scott Douglas (AMSOIL/BFG/MasterCraft Safety) and Mike Jenkins (Traxxas/BFG/AMSOIL). Douglas would throw the first punch in at the top three, muscling past Greaves. Greaves countered with an all-out assault on Douglas, passing the veteran off-roader for second – only to suffer a mechanical failure of his own.

So with the two PRO 4 leaders (Johnson and Greaves) out of contention, Barlow battled Mark Jenkins out into the infield and back to the finish line to take 3rd, while Mike Jenkins put up his best finish of the weekend with a 2nd.

PRO 4 results

PRO 2

“Five minutes to go” … the call goes out over the USAC radios … “We’re running in the rain!”

Sunday’s PRO 2 race went off in a steady downpour, though the Crandon faithful stayed put to watch on of the more thrilling races of the weekend. Pulling the holeshot on a course that offered up about as much traction as a frozen pond, Scott Taylor (Miller Electric Welders) pulled the holeshot and was off to the races – quite literally. With Marty Hart (Monster Energy/Maxxis/Toyota) and Bryce Menzies (Red Bull/KMC Wheels/Mopar/Ram) in pursuit, the three looked to have separated themselves from the rest of the pack. Hart then over-cooked the turn before the finish line, slid up and over the four-foot concrete barrier (courtesy of a thick mud transition leading up to the top of the wall) and then dropped down a six-foot dirt wall and onto the start straight.

As Taylor clicked off laps Menzies stayed in 2nd, even though he was some 15-seconds back. At the competition yellow Taylor led Menzies, Jeff Kincaid (Ford/BFG) – who’d fought back to the front after a tough first lap – and Mike Oberg (AMSOIL/BFG/King Shocks). With three laps to go Taylor had a three-second lead on Menzies and looked to be in control, until a ride off the track after the Traxxas RC Launch Zone jump flattened his right rear tire and allowed Menzies to take the lead.

When the white flag flew Menzies was up by three seconds on Kincaid, with Oberg and Rob MacCachren (Traxxas/Mopar/AMSOIL) surviving the muddy mess as well. Then, one the last right hand sweeper just prior to the finish line, Kincaid spun out and handed 2nd to Oberg, with MacCachren taking the third and final podium spot.

Said Menzies on his win: “That was probably one of the craziest races I’ve ever been in … a real mud fight!”

Noteworthy: The Oakley Bomb Award for the fastest lap at Crandon’s final PRO 2 event of the weekend went to Chad Hord (BOSS Snowplows/AMSOIL/Nissan).

PRO 2 results

PRO LIGHT

Brian Deegan (Rockstar/Metal Mulisha/Traxxas) saved his best race for last at Crandon, running his Traxxas-owned & prepared TORC PRO Light truck to a 1st place finish on Sunday. The truck that Andrew Caddell (Traxxas/Mopar/AMSOIL/BFG) set the track record in last year at Crandon suited Deegan well as he came out of the Land Rush start in 2nd place behind RJ Anderson (Walker Evans/Ram). Deegan would take the lead on the second lap – and led the remainder of the race, en route to his first-ever TORC Series victory.

Said Deegan: “I had such a great time, so cool to be here at Crandon. I can believe it … poured all day and everybody’s still hear! You’d never see that in California.”

Great racing going on behind Deegan as the previously wet track turned to blue grooved and showcased maximum speeds for the TORC PRO Light trucks. Caddell and

Casey Currie (Monster Energy/General Tire/Nissan) swapped top three spots at one point.

Just prior to the competition yellow Deegan was four seconds up on Anderson, with Currie and Caddell close behind. On the restart Currie, the defending TORC PRO Light champ, blasted up on top of a berm trying to overtake Anderson and lose several spots. Soon-there-after both Samuel Hubinette (Traxxas/Mopar/AMSOIL/BFG) and Shawn Morris (Maxxis/Chevy) were lost from the contest.

As Deegan continued to rail around the Crandon course, Caddell would move into 2nd - setting up what looked to be an interesting battle for the win. But with a TORC PRO Light class overall points chase to preserve, and not to downplay Deegan’s driving skills, Caddell seemingly settled into second behind Deegan (Deegan would later say: “I knew Caddell’s truck was good, but it was up to me to put it on the podium.”

Again running a strong race through the finish in the PRO Light division at Crandon was Brad Lovell (AMSOIL/BFG/Nissan), who scored his third podium finish of the season with a 3rd place effort on Sunday.

PRO Light results

Unofficial TORC season overall points

PRO 4

1 22 GREAVES JOHNNY TOYOTA/MAXXIS 195 3

2 48 JOHNSON RICKY RAM/BFG 180 2

3 7 DOUGLAS SCOTT FORD/BFG 166 1

4 25 JENKINS MARK FORD/BFG 152 0

5 83 BARLOW STEVE FORD/MAXXIS 149 0

6 47 JENKINS MIKE FORD/BFG 134 0

7 11 CENNI ADRIAN FORD/MAXXIS 121 3

8 69 MAZANEC MILAN 76 0

9 32 DREWS AL FORD/BFG 38 0

10 99 LEDUC KYLE FORD/TOYO 34 0

11 4 LEDUC TODD FORD/TOYO 23 0

12 43 LEDUC CURT FORD/TOYO 12 0

12 6 GUNDERSON CASE 12

PRO 2

1 7 MENZIES BRYCE RAM/BFG 202 3

2 21 MACCACHREN ROB RAM/BFG 176 2

3 9 HORD CHAD NISSAN MOTORSPORTS/BFG 167 2

4 4 KINCAID JEFF FORD/BFG 151 2

5 8 TAYLOR SCOTT FORD/BFG 140 0

6 80 OBERG MIKE CHEVY/BFG 138 0

7 77 VANDEN HEUVEL MIKEY CHEVY/MAXXIS 124 0

8 15 HART MARTY TOYOTA/MAXXIS 122 0

9 29 STEELE KEITH CHEVY/KUMHO 30 0

10 10 ADLER GREG FORD/BFG 28 0

11 33 WOERNER DOW CHEVY/BFG 26 0

12 30 PIERCE ROBBY FORD/BFG 18

PRO Light

1 43 CADDELL ANDREW RAM/BFG 213 5

2 44 LOVELL BRAD NISSAN MTRSPT/BFG 149 0

2 1 CURRIE CASEY NISSAN MTRSPT/GNRL 149 0

4 77 HUBINETTE SAM RAM/BFG 140 1

5 27 MORRIS SHAWN CHEVY/MAXXIS 112 0

6 37 ANDERSON RJ RAM/GOODYEAR 111 0

7 11 ELLER RANDY FORD/MAXXIS 110 0

8 5 CUNNINGHAM TODD CHEVY/MCK TMP 100 0

9 14 JOHNSON LUKE RAM/BFG 93 0

10 33 GREAVES CJ TOYOTA/MAXXIS 91 1

11 38 DEEGAN BRIAN FORD/BFG 63 2

12 76 ZIPPERER ANDY FORD/BFG 58 0

13 17 DORR MITCH FORD/GDYR 57 0

14 73 RUPPEL ERIC FORD/BFG 56 0

15 4 ELLENSON/JANUSZBRETT/JASONTOYOTA/TOYO 51 0

16 21 HOEK ROSS FORD/BFG 49 0

17 8 PORTER MIKE FORD/BFG 37 0

18 7 KINCAID KEEGAN FORD/BFG 24 0

19 30 OBERG MARK 15 0

20 18 BAKER MICHAEL FORD 7 0

21 26 PETERSON DERRY 4

Sunday Sportsman class results from Crandon

Classix

Stock Truck

1600 Light

Super Truck

Formula 4×4

1600 Buggy

Super Buggy

Super Stock

About TORC

The Traxxas TORC Series, presented by AMSOIL, is the fastest, most punishing short course racing series on the planet! TORC events are packed with flag-to-flag fender banging as drivers push the limits over whoops and jump-filled natural terrain race tracks. Off-road racing fans come from far and wide to experience the most challenging form of high-octane competition. And once they taste TORC for the first time they’re hooked for life!

Hord gets a head start in his PRO 2 truck and holds off a field of PRO 4 drivers including Scott Douglas & Johnny Greaves

By Pat Schutte

CRANDON, Wisc., (Sept. 4, 2011) – Local racer Chad Hord (BOSS Snowplows/Nissan/AMSOIL) took advantage of a head start in is PRO 2 truck – followed feverously by a field of hungry PRO 4 drivers – and, with an added advantage of missing out on all the bumping going on behind him, raced and won the generous $25,000 cash prize purse put up by AMSOIL for the oil industry leader’s namesake Cup.

“We had a fast truck all weekend and raced four times, but after the last race we had about a thousand pounds of extra weight on our truck (mud) and it took a bunch of work from the team and my family and friends to clean ‘er all up,” said a beaming Hord from the podium. “I really have to thank my team for this one. Sure feels good.”

As both Hord and Mike Oberg (AMSOIL/BFG/King Shocks) – the lone PRO 2 drivers in the AMSOIL Cup race – were released from the gate early, Adrian Cenni (Atrium Payroll/Maxxis/Mastercraft Safety) pulled the PRO 4 holeshot and led the early chase of Hord and Oberg. Two laps into the AMSOIL Cup Cenni sketched, twice, and gave up the lead to Kyle Leduc (Rockstar/Makita/Toyo), with Johnny Greaves (Monster Energy/Toyota/Maxxis) and Scott Douglas (AMSOIL/BFG/MasterCraft Safety) in hot pursuit.

With the customary TORS Series competition yellow waved off for the AMSOIL Cup, Hord continued to pound out fantastic laps on the Crandon track, at times topping the PRO 4 drivers (1:22 to 1:23). Then, just before the six lap mark, Leduc made a mistake that allowed Douglas and Greaves to get by. And at that point in the race Hord was seven seconds up on Oberg and 11 seconds up on Douglas and Greaves.

With Ricky Johnson (Red Bull/KMC Wheels/Mopar/Ram) not able to answer the bell after tearing his truck up in the PRO 4 main earlier in the day, Douglas and Greaves became the only contenders with a chance at catching Oberg and Hord. By lap four they did just that with Oberg, then set their sights on AMSOIL Cup race leader Hord.

As the final few laps clicked off, Hord ran mistake-free. And while the two PRO 4 driver were able to peel back maybe a second each lap, Hord stayed strong and held off a mad rush from Douglas (2nd) and Greaves (3rd) at the finish line – each of whom was rewarded with $5,000 and $2,500, respectively, for their efforts.

AMSOIL Cup

About TORC

<p>The Traxxas TORC Series, presented by AMSOIL, is the fastest, most punishing short course racing series on the planet! TORC events are packed with flag-to-flag fender banging as drivers push the limits over whoops and jump-filled natural terrain race tracks. Off-road racing fans come from far and wide to experience the most challenging form of high-octane competition. And once they taste TORC for the first time they’re hooked for life! </p>

The Monster Energy Off-Road team battled the field and weather to come away with a single podium. Weather is always a factor in Crandon and Sundays racing would not be immune to mother natures wrath.

Song Info: Be Careful What You Wish For [INSTRUMENTAL] By Memphis May Fire
Available on Bullet Tooth Records

Directed by The Martelli Brothers. Produced by Mad Media.

The Monster Energy Off-Road team battled the field and weather to come away with a single podium. Weather is always a factor in Crandon and Sundays racing would not be immune to mother natures wrath. Rain soaked the track overnight and into the first half of the day turning the Pro-2  race into a “Who can survive the mud?” race. Marty Hart got a good start slipping by (literally) the competition moving up to third place. But the combination of running a manual transmission and the unpredictable track conditions took him out of the race. Hart slid into a giant mud bank in the back section of the racecourse and was stuck until a support vehicle could pull him out of the three and a half foot bank of mud. “That was crazy! I was just trying to get around the track. I couldn’t control the truck at all. Racing in conditions like this sucks because we don’t really get to race, we just have to survive.” Stated Hart.

Johnny Greaves had a rough start in Pro-4 getting caught in traffic into turn one. Undeterred Greaves stayed focused and fought his way up to 2^nd through the traffic, rain and super muddy track conditions. As Greaves began to stalk down the race leader Adrian Cenni he got a right rear flat causing him to go into the hot pits for a spare. Greaves returned to the race to get the finish putting him in the points lead for the championship as the weekend concluded.

Casey Currie and CJ Greaves both went out swinging in Pro-lite and managed to get through turn one in the front pack. Currie fought his way up to 3rd before he succumbed to a wheel/tire failure due to the combination of giant holes and embedded rocks. After getting a spare Currie returned to the race to get a finish. CJ also had a tire failure late in the race and was unable to return to the race in time.

CJ also racked up a first place finish in Pro-buggies earlier in the day besting a stacked field of experienced competitors. At just 16 years old, he undoubtedly has a bright future in off-road racing.

The Cup race is a spectacle to behold! The race puts pro-2’s and pro-4’s against each other in war to see who can get to the finish first. The pro-2’s are started first in an effort to even out the competition between the two classes. The Pro-2’s rarely win. The Pro-4’s rocketed off the line as Johnny Greaves managed to get into the front pack. After some heated battling Greaves got in a tangle in the back section with a group of pro-4’s, but managed to get through by driving over Kyle Leduc’s front hood. Greaves managed to get to third place before the checkered flag. “We got tangled up behind Kyle and I knew after that it was going to be hard to catch Chad Hord. I will take the podium, but I want that cup. I will be back for it next year! I hope the fans enjoyed the racing. I am glad they stayed and braved the weather. The fans at Crandon are the best off-road fans in the world!” stated the war torn Greaves.

Photos by Vincent Knakal of Mad Media

[Show as slideshow]

Adrian Cenni wins his second-straight at Crandon
Bryce Menzies tops out in the PRO 2 class and Andrew Caddell remains perfect on the weekend in PRO Lights. Brian Deegan finds success with podium and Traxxas Maxx Cash!

By Pat Schutte   CRANDON, Wisc., (Sept. 3, 2011) – As heavy skies began to open up on the Crandon International Raceway faithful at round, the only thing brighter that the fast-approaching glowing red and yellow blobs on the Doppler was Adrian Cenni’s (Atrium Payroll/Maxxis/Mastercraft Safety) hunters orange Ford, which wrapped missile-like laps around the Crandon track, topping local favorite Johnny Greaves (Monster Energy/Toyota/Maxxis) and Ricky Johnson (Red Bull/KMC Wheels/Mopar/Ram) in a mad dash for the checkers before the storm hit.   With Greaves leading the race and running strong, the competition yellow flew and regrouped Cenni (2nd) and Johnson, along with Kyle Leduc (Rockstar/Makita/Toyo). The four off-road greats left the rest of the pack in a competition train, only to have Cenni bring the massive crowd to their feet when he returned from the far reaches of the expansive Crandon track – out front of Greaves and putting time on the Wisconsin native.   “I some weird way I liked chasing him (Cenni),” said Greaves. “And I’m kinda proud of him.”   Cenni, who scored his first career TORC PRO 4 win at Crandon on Friday, was again pumped with his team’s effort on Saturday at the legendary short course off-road track: “We had some contact and I did my best to get around (Greaves) clean … my team did such a great job today. I’m really, really proud of them.”   Racing back to the checkers Johnson was right on Greaves, but not in a position to pass – so he held onto 3rd. Fourth place went to Leduc while Mark Jenkins (Traxxas/BFG/AMSOIL) and Steve Barlow (Maxxis/Ebay Motors/Metal Mulisha) came together right at the finish line, bringing a thundering close to TORC’s Saturday at Crandon.   PRO 4     1 11 ADRIAN CENNI 9 0 01:23.7 01:20.2 7 2 22 JOHNNY GREAVES 9 0 01:23.2 01:20.9 7 3 48 RICKY JOHNSON 9 0 01:22.5 01:21.3 3 4 99 KYLE LEDUC 9 0 01:26.3 01:21.4 3 5 83 STEVE BARLOW 9 0 01:27.0 01:23.6 2 6 25 MARK JENKINS 9 0 01:25.8 01:22.9 8 7 47 MIKE JENKINS 9 0 01:30.2 01:23.5 2 8 7 SCOTT DOUGLAS 9 0 01:30.3 01:23.2 1 9 69 MILAN MAZANEC 9 0 01:38.2 01:31.7 5 10 6 CASE GUNDERSON 1 0 01:24.9 01:24.9 1 11 4 TODD LEDUC 7 0 01:33.6 01:24.5 2 12 43 CURT LEDUC 8 0 01:31.2 01:23.6 6     PRO 2 Having already taken the overall Traxxas TORC Series PRO 2 class season points lead from his mentor, Rob MacCachren (Traxxas/Mopar/AMSOIL) on Friday at Crandon, Bryce Menzies (Red Bull/KMC Wheels/Mopar/Ram) took advantage of an apparent Jeff Kincaid (Traxxas/Ford/BFG) mechanical malfunction late in the race and to record his 3rd win of the season with a hard-charging effort at the track where he holds the class fastest lap record.   “I can’t thank my team enough for setting this truck up – it ran as good today as it did earlier in the year at Crandon when we set the track record,” said Menzies. “Was hoping Jeff (Kincaid) and I could give the fans a great show with run to the end, but he ran into some trouble and that pretty much wrapped things up for us.”   For a time it looked like a rematch of the Menzies vs. Chad Hord (BOSS Snowplows/AMSOIL/Nissan) battle for 2nd place at Crandon on Friday was going to rematerialize, but Hord just didn’t have enough for the PRO 2 points leader as Menzies maintained a consistent 1.5 to 2-second lead on the Michigan local.   Benefitting the most from the mandatory restart was Marty Hart (Monster Energy/Maxxis/Toyota), who jumped up two spots to 4th. And just about as soon as Hart moved into 3rd, MacCachren, whose truck was limping to begin with, had a rear shock come flying off his truck which ended his day – and seriously dashed his 2011 TORC PRO 2 title hopes.   Kincaid, who had locked down the Oakley Bomb Award for the fastest PRO 2 lap, pulled off the track on the top of the right hand sweeper, obviously bummed that what looked to be in the bag in terms of a second-straight Crandon win was now done.   So with Menzies, Hord and Hart on the podium, the top five would be rounded out by Mike Oberg (AMSOIL/BFG/King Shocks) and Mikey Vanden Heuvel (Maxxis/ATD Trans/Boatec), who beat Scott Taylor (Miller Electric Welders) to the line for 5th in a great battle between those two that lasted the whole race.   PRO 2     Place No. Name 1 7 BRYCE MENZIES 2 9 CHAD HORD 3 15 MARTY HART 4 80 MIKE OBERG 5 77 MIKEY VANDEN HEUVEL 6 8 SCOTT TAYLOR 7 33 DOW WOERNER 8 4 JEFF KINCAID 9 21 ROB MACCACHREN 10 29 KEITH STEEL   PRO Light   For the second straight day Andrew Caddell (Traxxas/Mopar/AMSOIL/BFG) took charge of the TORC PRO Light class, pulling the holeshot, leading the race from green to checkers – and   But while the fans had one eye on Caddell, the other was trained intently (as was Caddell’s spotters’ eyes) on Brian Deegan (Rockstar/Metal Mulisha/Traxxas). The former supercross racers, X Games freestyle motocross star and, more recently, rally racer was on fire, getting past Samuel Hubinette (Traxxas/Mopar/AMSOIL/BFG) and Brad Lovell (AMSOIL/BFG/Torchmate) in his pursuit of the podium. Deegan would clock the Traxxas Maxx lap for the fastest PRO Light spin around the 1.5 mile Crandon track with a 1:27.113 in his pursuit of Caddell, but ran out of time. Lovell rounded out TORC PRO Light podium in 3rd.   Said Caddell: “I knew Deegan would be coming. Heard over the radio ‘He’s third and moving up,’ and I was like ‘OK, here we go.’   Added Deegan: “It’s cool to race in front of so many people.”   Noteworthy: Deegan was driving Caddell’s 2010 truck that holds the TORC PRO Light track record at Crandon.   Rounding out the top five in the PRO Light class on Saturday were Shawn Morris (Maxxis/Chevy) and defending TORC Series PRO Light champ Casey Currie (Monster Energy/General Tire/Nissan) in 4thand 5th, respectively.   PRO Light     Place No. Name 1 43 ANDREW CADDELL 2 38 BRIAN DEEGAN 3 44 BRAD LOVELL 4 27 SHAUN MORRIS 5 1 CASEY CURRIE 6 11 RANDY ELLER 7 77 SAM HUBINETTE 8 37 RJ ANDERSON 9 17 MITCH DORR 10 73 ERIC RUPPEL 11 4 JASON JANUSZ 12 8 MIKE PORTER 13 7 KEEGAN KINCAID 14 76 ANDY ZIPPERER 15 14 LUKE JOHNSON 16 33 CJ GREAVES 17 30 MARK OBERG 18 5 TODD CUNNINGHAM     Unofficial TORC season overall points   PRO 4   1 22 GREAVES JOHNNY TOYOTA/MAXXIS 181 3 2 48 JOHNSON RICKY RAM/BFG 175 2 3 7 DOUGLAS SCOTT FORD/BFG 154 1 4 25 JENKINS MARK FORD/BFG 130 0 5 83 BARLOW STEVE FORD/MAXXIS 128 0 6 47 JENKINS MIKE FORD/BFG 118 0 7 11 CENNI ADRIAN FORD/MAXXIS 94 2 8 69 MAZANEC MILAN 66 0 9 32 DREWS AL FORD/BFG 38 0 10 99 LEDUC KYLE FORD/TOYO 30 0 11 6 GUNDERSON CASE 6 0 12 4 LEDUC TODD FORD/TOYO 5 0 13 43 LEDUC CURT FORD/TOYO 4   PRO 2   1 7 MENZIES BRYCE RAM/BFG 176 3 2 21 MACCACHREN ROB RAM/BFG 156 2 3 9 HORD CHAD NISSAN MOTORSPORTS/BFG 149 1 4 4 KINCAID JEFF FORD/BFG 139 2 5 8 TAYLOR SCOTT FORD/BFG 122 0 6 80 OBERG MIKE CHEVY/BFG 116 0 7 15 HART MARTY TOYOTA/MAXXIS 112 0 8 77 VANDEN HEUVEL MIKEY CHEVY/MAXXIS 110 0 9 29 STEELE KEITH CHEVY/KUMHO 30 0 10 10 ADLER GREG FORD/BFG 28 0 11 30 PIERCE ROBBY FORD/BFG 18 0 11 33 WOERNER DOW CHEVY/BFG 18 0 13 218 BAKER MICHAEL 0 0 14 217 BADOUX DAN FORD/BFG 0   PRO Light   1 43 CADDELL ANDREW RAM/BFG 2 1 CURRIE CASEY NISSAN/GENERAL 3 77 HUBINETTE SAM RAM/BFG 4 44 LOVELL BRAD NISSAN MTRSPT/BFG 5 27 MORRIS SHAWN CHEVY/MAXXIS 6 5 CUNNINGHAM TODD CHEVY/MCK TMP 7 11 ELLER RANDY FORD/MAXXIS 8 37 ANDERSON RJ RAM/GOODYEAR 9 14 JOHNSON LUKE RAM/BFG 10 33 GREAVES CJ TOYOTA/MAXXIS 11 73 RUPPEL ERIC FORD/BFG 11 4 ELLENSON/JANUSZBRETT/JASONTOYOTA 13 17 DORR MITCH FORD/GDYR 14 76 ZIPPERER ANDY FORD/BFG 15 21 HOEK ROSS FORD/BFG 16 38 DEEGAN BRIAN FORD/BFG 17 8 PORTER MIKE FORD/BFG 18 7 KINCAID KEEGAN FORD/BFG 19 18 BAKER MICHAEL FORD 20 30 OBERG MARK 21 29 RAYFORD CHAD  NISSAN 22 26 PETERSON DERRY   Saturday Sportsman class results from Crandon   1600 Light     1 73 STEVE OMAN 5 0 01:49.3 01:49.3 5 2 28 MATT SOLKA 5 0 01:50.2 01:50.2 4 3 72 GREG STINGLE 5 0 01:47.6 01:47.6 5 4 95 MATT GERALD 5 0 01:45.2 01:45.2 5 5 14 BILL KORTENS 5 0 01:50.3 01:50.3 5 6 17 BARRY WHALEN 5 0 01:50.8 01:50.8 5 7 0 CRAIG PAITL 5 0 01:49.9 01:49.9 5 8 77 MATT ASHER 5 0 01:55.5 01:50.7 2 9 151 BILLY BUTH 5 0 01:52.3 01:52.3 5 10 81 MICHAEL CAREY 5 0 01:53.1 01:53.0 3 11 188 BEAU AMBOS 5 0 01:51.6 01:51.6 5 12 187 JUSTIN FOLKMAN 13 120 TRACI FLEISCHMAN 5 0 01:53.0 01:53.0 5 14 44 STEPH PAITL 5 0 01:54.7 01:54.7 5 15 111 JOSH FRANKLIN 5 0 01:52.2 01:52.2 5 16 169 ERIC LEAR 5 0 02:00.0 01:58.3 4 17 26 CRAIG RABE 5 0 02:00.2 02:00.2 5 18 170 WENDY LEAR 5 0 02:11.1 02:03.3 1 19 125 JAMIE KLEIKAMP 3 0 01:52.1 01:52.1 2 20 119 MAGGIE ZIPPERER 2 0 01:57.6 01:57.6 2 21 104 SPENCER FEDDER 2 0 03:30.1 02:27.9 1 22 9 TODD LEMKE 1 0 01:53.2 01:53.2 1     Stock Truck   Place No. Name Laps Adjust Last Time Fast Time Fast Lap Misc 1 587 MATT IVES 5 0 02:01.4 02:00.7 3 2 526 BOB BIRKHOLTZ 5 0 02:00.9 02:00.9 5 3 517 BEN WIERZBA 5 0 02:00.3 02:00.3 5 4 599 BOB REINHARDT 5 0 02:00.9 02:00.9 5 5 555 NICK BAUMGARTNER 5 0 01:59.4 01:53.9 4 6 521 TROY PETERSON 7 512 MARC ROGACZEWSKI 5 0 02:08.5 02:08.5 5 8 538 ROBERT CLEMO 5 0 02:06.9 02:03.6 3 9 577 MATT DALE 5 0 02:16.7 02:15.3 4   Classix     Place No. Name Laps Adjust Last Time Fast Time Fast Lap Misc 1 631 SCOTT MUELLER        5 0 02:18.9 02:06.5 2 2 612 JAKE VANDERVOORT 5 0 02:17.0 02:17.0 5 3 699 PETE DELOREY 5 0 02:20.1 02:20.1 5 4 682 KURT SCHUCH 5 0 02:15.6 02:15.6 5 5 687 MIKE MISCHLER 5 0 02:22.9 02:22.9 5 6 621 ROB WEILAND 5 0 02:41.7 02:16.8 4 7 640 AARON KONITZER 5 0 02:30.3 02:18.3 4 8 606 WILLIAM GROBOWSKI 5 0 02:19.0 02:19.0 5 9 646 JEREMY FORBES 5 0 02:28.0 02:28.0 5 10 696 JEREMY DRAKE 3 0 02:32.1 02:29.6 1 11 604 SHANE THEIL 12 613 DALE CHESTNUT 1 0 02:12.1 02:12.1 1 13 601 BILL WILSON 1 0 02:28.4 02:28.4 1

The Monster Energy Off-Road Team charged Day 2 of Crandon taking two podiums! Marty Hart managed to put it together in Pro-2 and come up with a third place finish after a hard fought battle. “It feels good to be on the podium! Now I just want to move up a couple spots. The truck feels good. It’s on for Sunday!” stated the confident Hart.

Crandon favorite Johnny Greaves dominated the Pro-4 class leading every lap until the last couple where Adrian Cenni got around him. Greaves still held on to 2nd. ” I made a mistake in the back section and allowed Cenni to get around me. It felt good to get the hole shot. I am ready to let it all hang out Sunday!” stated the champ.

In Pro-lite Casey fought back in forth through the field and finished a solid 5th place.

More action today including the notorious “Cup Race” that pits Pro-2′s and Pro-4′s against each other in an all out battle for off-road supremacy!

Photos by Vincent Knakal of Mad Media

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Crandon laid under a thick cloud of rain this morning and rumors of a cancellation where floating around, but mother nature seems to be a race fan and let the sun out throughout most of the day.

PROLITE

Today’s Prolite race started out similar to yesterday’s. Andrew Caddell right away stole the lead and never gave it away for the remainder of the race. Then the usual suspects lined up for battle.  Brad Lovell, Sam Hubinette, Brian Deegan, Schaun Morris, CJ Greaves and Casey Currie.

Not much changed in the positions until right after the mandatory yellow flag when Deegan inched himself from 5th to 4th, 3rd and then 2^nd place. The last 2 laps then had every fan on their feet watching Deegan chipping away on Caddell for the win, but all he could get was fast lap while trying.

Top 5:

1. Andrew Caddell
2. Brian Deegan
3. Brad Lovell
4. Sam Hubinette
5. Casey Currie

PRO2

Pro2  made for an interesting race until the checkered flag dropped.  Jeff Kincaid had the hole-shot out of the infamous Crandon turn 1 and he then defended it all the way until his truck let him down with some mechanical problems late in the race.

After Kincaid we had Bryce Menzies running up front followed by Rob McCachren then Chad Hord and Marty Hart. They where running hard with their Rev limiter kicking in on the straights yet maintaining huge gaps in between each other.

Right before the yellow flag Rob McCachren pulled over just to get passed by the entire field due to a failing drive shaft.

At the end it was Bryce Menzies, Chad Hord and Marty Hart on the podium

Top 5:

1. Bryce Menzies
2. Chad Hord
3. Marty Hart
4. Mike Oberg
5. Mikey Vanden Heuvel

PRO4

The Pro4 race was again the most exciting one of the three races we are reporting on. Johnny Greaves ran away with a strong lead early on and it looked like it was his to keep, but yesterday’s winner Adrian Cenni was drilling on Ricky Johnson for 2^nd place and ultimately for the win. The crowd was on their feet and when he ultimately passed Johnson and Greaves everyone went crazy rooting for the racer from New York.

The weather took a turn for the worse half way through the race with massive downpours just moments after the checkered flag.

Even long after the race in the local restaurants in town, everyone relived their favorite moment of that Pro4 race.

Top5:

1. Adrian Cenni
2. Johnny Greaves
3. Ricky Johnson
4. Kyle LeDuc
5. Steve Barlow

Words by Klaus Rasch.

Photos by Jason Zindroski of HighRev Photography.

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Follow the Monster Energy Off-Road team as they storm the biggest, most dangerous short course race of the year! Climb in the trucks of Pro-4 Champion Johnny Greaves, Pro-Lite Champion Casey Currie, Pro-2 charger Marty Hart, and rising star in Pro-lite and Pro-Buggy CJ Greaves. We will have new videos posted daily so you won’t miss any of the action!

The Monster Energy Off-Road team storms Day 1 of TORC at Crandon to come away with three podiums! In Pro-Lite Casey Currie managed to battle his way up through the traffic for a solid third place finish. ” I am happy to be on podium. The goal for today was to be on podium without damaging the truck. We have two more days of racing. So from here on out it’s on!” Stated Currie.

In Pro-4 Johnny Greaves also fought his way to a second place finish just on the tails of Adrian Cenni who got his first win at Crandon. “I am glad Adrian got one, but that’s all he is going to get! The next two days of racing that spot on the podium is going to be mine!” stated Greaves.

In Pro-2 Marty Hart charged the stacked field finishing 5th. “I had a few mechanical issues that came up. I will be ready for the next couple days of racing.” stated the confident Hart.

In Pro-Buggy CJ Greaves put on a full court press battling off-road race veteran Larry Job all the way tot the finish where it appeared CJ overtook the lead. After review by officials it was determined Larry held on to first place putting CJ in second. Not bad for a 16 year kid who has only had his drivers license for two months!

Photos by Vincent Knakal of Mad Media

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Crandon Labor Day started out like every day with the usual Downtown exhibition and parade to the nearby race track facilities. The weather was the unpredictable Wisconsin type that brought in plenty of rain in the morning but cleared up into a partially overcast afternoon.

Todays event was unique since Friday was a makeup round from the June/Sprint Crandon race that was rained out while Saturday and Sunday will be the regular scheduled rounds.

ProLite

Caddell lead the entire race, CJ Greaves looked good until he blew up before the yellow flag and Brad Lovell finished 2^nd while Casey Currie took 3 place.

Top3:

1. Andrew Caddell
2. Brad Lovell
3. Casey Currie

Pro4

This was the more exciting race of the day despite the low entry of 9 competitors. Early on into the race Adrian ran away with the lead to never give it up again. The battle was between Greaves, Johnson and Douglas for 2^nd and 3^rd place. Jenkins got into each other a little bit sending Jenkins off track past the finish line.

Top3:

1. Adrian Cenni
2. Johnny Greaves
3. Ricky Johnson

Pro2

Very soon after the green flag dropped a single file formed that didn’t change order much until the end. In fact the Jeff Kincaid the won the race with multiple car lengths behind him.

Top3:

1. Jeff Kincaid
2. Chad Hord
3. Bryce Menzies

If you are the blood thirsty type of fan that hopes for spectacular crashes then your meets where not met at todays racing in Crandon.

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PRO4

Today’s Pro4 race was almost a carbon copy of Saturday and Friday’s races with the addition of rain half-way through the race.  Adrian Cenni killed it again and by lap 2 he was unstoppable; running so far in front of the pack that you would think he is in another faster class.  He wound up winning the race without a challenge.

The two rivals, Ricky Johnson and Johnny Greaves both ran into engine problems, Johnson’s transmission began to smoke early in the race, while Greaves got tangled up and was forced to limp around the track collecting points for the TORC championship.

Half-way through the race the rain kicked in, turning the track into a slippery slope.  Speeds went noticeably down as everyone tried not to slide off track while defending their position.

At the end it was Mark Jenkins in 2nd place followed by Steve Barlow.

Top5:

1. Adrian Cenni
2. Mark Jenkins
3. Steve Barlow
4. Todd LeDuc
5. Mike Jenkins

PRO2

The Pro2 race was a straight up mess.  Heavy rain delayed the start by over one hour over the scheduled time while track officials tried to push the heavy mud away.  Eventually they went green and Scott Taylor held the lead throughout most of the race until he spun-out and lost his podium position. Due to the mud and rain, speeds were a lot lower than what we’re used to for this class, plus they were covered in mud, making it impossible to identify the trucks. When it was all said and done, Bryce Menzies repeated his previous day’s win followed by Mike Oberg and Rob MacCachren.

Top4:

1. Bryce Menzies
2. Mike Oberg
3. Rob MacCachren
4. Chad Hord

PROLITE

Brian Deegan continued where he left off on Saturday.  Up front.  First RJ Anderson had the hole-shot out of turn one, but couldn’t hold on and wound up with a 4^th place finish.  CJ Greaves ran in the front of the pack but after he went too wide in the gravel pit turn he fell from 3^rd towards the back.  Andrew Caddell was fast but only fast enough for 2^nd place.  Brad Lovell finished again on the podium with a solid 3^rd place.  In his only second year of racing short course, the rock crawler by heart made it to the podium all three days.  Deegan took the win in his new V8 making his return to Crandon triumphant.

Top5:

1. Brian Deegan
2. Andrew Caddell
3. Brad Lovell
4. RJ Anderson
5. Randy Eller

AMSOIL CUP

The weekend’s highlight was the Amsoil Cup where the Pro2’s had a 20-second head-start over the Pro4’s for no less than $27,500 in prize money, the traveling trophy, and bragging rights to be the baddest driver of them all.

All bets where set on Adrian Cenni to conclude the weekend with 4 of 4 wins, but after lap 2 his early lead within the Pro4 pack changed when his front wheel drive failed and more things broke after a gnarly landing.

Since the Pro2’s started ahead for a Pro4′s to win they had to get around the Pro2’s entered. Chad Hord in his Pro2 gave them hell and no one came even close to passing him for a solid win in the Amsoil Cup.  It was only the third time in history that a Pro2 has won the cup.

Kyle LeDuc ran up front for a long time but after some fuel pickup issues he fell back all the way to the back but managed to finish 4^th.

Scott Douglas and Johnny Greaves ran at a steady pace the entire time without any major position changes. Good enough for 2^nd and 3^rd place.

Top5:

1. Chad Hord (PRO2)
2. Scott Douglas (PRO4)
3. Johnny Greaves (PRO4)
4. Kyle LeDuc (PRO4)
5. Todd LeDuc (PRO4)

In closing, this was a very exciting Crandon weekend but it’s unfortunate that politics between the two race series prevents a full house of racing. The race fan loses when all of the top competitors are not on hand to race.

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The 2011 TORC Fall Crandon is here! Three days of racing on the fastest, most unforgiving track in all of off-road. Who will win the war between Ricky Johnson and Johnny Greaves? Will Bryce Menzies continue to dominate Pro-2? How will Rob Mac fair with his injury? Who will come out on top in Pro-lite? Here is a little taste of what’s to come. Stay tuned to Race-Dezert.com for live coverage of the “Daytona 500 of off-road racing”.

Directed by The Martelli Brothers – Produced by Mad Media

Photos by Vincent Knakal of Mad Media

TORC Crandon live coverage

It’s that time again for the biggest short course race of the year.  Crandon is like the superbowl of short course racing and race-dezert.com is there to bring you the action.

Click here Friday through Sunday for all the race action.

• Race results
• Live video
• Produced videos
• Interviews
• Photos
• Live chat

There is one race every year that defines short course racing, and that race is TORC Fall Crandon. Every year 30 thousand+ spectators show up to witness a knock down drag out off-road war unlike any other in off-road. A land rush start, and 100 mph+ turn one guarantee for tons of drama! Not to mention the infamous Cup race that pits Pro-2′s and Pro-4′s against each other in the same race! If you haven’t witnessed it first hand you are missing out!

Here is a look back at the last few years on insane off-road action! We Can’t wait for this year epic three days of off-road racing. Stay tuned to Race-Dezert.com for daily coverage of the biggest short course race of the year!

Videos Directed by The Martelli Brothers, Produced by Mad Media

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Team Monster drivers Johnny Greaves, Rick Huseman, Casey Currie and Jeremy McGrath use the storied Crandon circuit to bring the curtain down and stamp a huge exclamation mark on the 2010 TORC season.

Produced by Mad Media

Directed by The Martelli Brothers

Champion drifter Vaughn Gittin Jr. with the help of Pro-lite champion  Casey Currie take on Crandon in the enduro class! Any other drifters want to step up and test their skills on dirt?

Produced by Mad Media

Directed by The Martelli Brothers

Day two of the Labor Day weekend resembled the  Fall racing we came here to see. Perfect blue sky.  T-shirt temperatures.  Large crowds in attendance. 

The first pro race started at 10:30am. 

PRO4x4

Both Rick Huseman and Johnny Greaves had a fair shot at the Pro4 title as this race concludes the season.  Rick would have to win and Johnny had to finish no better then forth for Rick to get his name on the TORC series title.

Right after the green flag dropped Ken Kincaid got the hole shot closely followed by Greaves and Huseman.  By turn 4 the pressure of the two Monster Energy trucks on Kincaid turns out to be too much as he cleared the course for the big boys. 

Then still within the first lap Greaves gave way to Huseman after a small driving mistake and Huseman never looked back until the end of the race.

Scott Douglas consistently defended for a third place finish.

Adrian Cenni in forth had Kyle LeDuc creeping up from behind.  There was some rubbing between the two and after some contact, Cenni approached the “Traxxis Launch Zone” jump sideways crashing into a concrete pillar.  His day was done but not before his rear tire ripped off in the violent crash.  It bounced into the opposite track and hit Huseman’s truck dead square in the front grill.  No harm done other than some cosmetic damage. 

Huseman wins the race while Greaves finishes less then one car length after him to win the overall TORC series championship.  

Top 3 Finishers
1. Rick Huseman
2. Johnny Greaves
3. Scott Douglas

PRO2wd

Ricky Johnson holds the points lead for the championship title with a 5point lead over Rob MacCachren going into the race. 

Starting with the first turn Dan Vanden Heuvel takes the lead from the group and never gives it away.  He wins his final Pro2 race as he retires from racing after the weekend.

Ricky Johnson managed to land in second place after turn one and retained that position when the checkered flag dropped.  This didn’t come easy as Scott Taylor briefly moved into second place late into the race but had to ultimately settle for third. 

Rob MacCachren had to pull into the pits for a tire change right before the yellow flag and had to work his way into the lead pack lap by lap after the green flag dropped.

Rob finished in 4th place, giving the Pro2 TORC series championship to RJ.

Robby Gordon just like Saturday had a poor outcome as he ran in the rear of the group until he eventually pulled over after he lost a engine belt and his engine started to overheat dangerously.  

Top 3 Finishers:
1. Dan Vanden Heuvel
2. Ricky Johnson
3. Scott Taylor

ProLite

The ProLite race was rather uneventful with no major battles or position changes. 
Just like the previous day Casey Currie ran up front not only unchallenged but also with a huge gap behind him.

The weekend wins also earned him the TORC series championship in ProLite

Ross Hoek just like yesterday reached the podium with a second place today.

Todd Cunningham worked his way from the middle of the pack all the way to a third place. 

Marty Hart had early problems with his hood flipping over the windshield blocking his view after he plowed into Andrew Caddell.  He was forced to pit and lost lot’s of ground.  Later in the race he had to drop out with some technical problems.

This was the last time 4-cylinders will race at Crandon as the TORC series mandates v8 engines next season. 

Top 3 Finishers:
1. Casey Currie
2. Ross Hoek
3. Todd Cunningham 
 
AmsOil Cup

The race everyone waited for all weekend was the AmsOil Cup race with a large cash prize as a reward.  20 trucks lined with the Pro2 group starting first followed by the much faster Pro4 29 seconds later.

For the first time this weekend Robby Gordon’s bright orange Speed Factory Tv Pro2 was at the front of the field.  Unfortunately before the first lap was completed the driveshaft twisted and disabled all forward motion.

“It took me 2 practice races to be where I wanted to be…..then I did a liitle bit of a wheelie and it twisted the driveshaft.” is what Robby Gordon had to say later in the pits as he signed autographs.  

It took the Pro4′s just a few laps to catch and pass the Pro2′s.  Rick Huseman soon led the pack until one of his rear tires disintegrates and not only destroys part of his fiberglass body but also all chances for the big payday. 

Eventually Scott Douglas claims the front spot and never gives up to claim victory to the first ever AmsOil Cup.  Steve Barlow finished second closely followed by Johnny Greaves. 

The Pro4 clearly were the fastest trucks in this race.  The fastest Pro2′s took fourth with Rob MacCachren driving and fifth with Jeff Kincaid.

Top 3 Finishers
1. Scott Douglas
2. Steve Barlow
3. Johnny Greaves

This concludes the TORC season for 2010.  The first TORC race may be held again in Crandon come spring 2011

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Photos by HighRev Photography

The first round of Crandon Racing is just days away. Are you ready for epic short course off-road action?

Well if you miss it in person it will be on HD Theatre soon after the race.

Check the TORC series

The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame Annual Awards Ceremony was held on August 22^nd at the National Automobile Museum in Reno, NV.  Although Jack Flannery was unable to attend, nearly 40 Flannery family members were there to represent him.

Jack Flannery

“Those up on the Inductee Wall are the greats of our sport… People like Malcolm Smith, Parnelli Jones, Rod Hall, and Mickey Thompson. The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame is truly enriched by those 2009 inductees who will join them.” said Bob Bower, Executive Director of ORMHOF.  He continued, “We had people from all over; just under 100 of them. There were about 40 in the Flannery contingent, most from Wisconsin, but also other states. From Montana was the J.N. Roberts clan. And from California, Arizona, and Baja came the supporters of Harold Soen. It was the most emotion filled ceremony we have experienced. At the start of the program there were three groups in the room, one for each inductee. At the close of the evening there was but a single group. Each group reached out to the others. Each celebrated, each became transformed, and each embraced the joy and sorrows shared by all.”

The decision was made that Mr. Flannery was to be honored in person, so Bower and ORMHOF Trustee KJ Howe, made the trip to Crandon for the 40th Anniversary Borg Warner World Championship Off-Road Race®, a nationally televised event featuring the best of the best racers in the premiere Pro 4X4 class.  This event also was to be Rounds 9 and 10 in the TRAXXAS TORC Series.

Jack Flannery

On Sunday, September 6^th, with over 40,000 in attendance, Jack Flannery stepped up to the Podium along with 45 family members for a brief presentation.  The Jumbotron lit up with a video documentary* describing Jack as, “The first powerhouse privateer in short-course racing; an expert in all aspects of the sport from track and truck design to serving as an ambassador to sponsors and fans, Jack was a fierce competitor, but the hospitality shown to his West Coast rivals and rising off-road stars helped bridge the gap and unify the sport across the Country.”

More from the video:

“We’re all from the same community, we’re all good friends and we’re just out here trying to hammer first place…I guess it was my turn.” said Flannery in a post race interview.

“Jack Flannery was the King of Crandon.  He owned it…he owned the records, he owned the trophies.  And for a guy like that, a champion who’d invite someone like me out, who was going to try to take that away from him; that says a lot about the character of Jack Flannery.”   Curt LeDuc

“Jack set some pretty high standards and even though I had been doing it for quite a while, Jack was probably some of my most fierce competition that I ever dreamed of at Crandon.” Walker Evans

Flannery’s race resume is long and impressive.  In 1991, Jack secured a factory sponsorship from Chevrolet, quite effectively launching the Chevy Thunder Truck Team. Jack gave Chevrolet their money’s worth with 9 wins in 10 races that year, capturing the championship in the SODA Heavy Metal Class.  Add to that, 6 SODA/ESPN Championships, 2 wins and one second place finish at Pike’s Peak, a win at SCORE’s 1991 Inaugural short-course race in Phoenix, The Borg Warner Cup 1996, Governor’s Cup in 1997 and 1999, and CORR Pro 4 Championship in 1998.    He also traveled west to race the Mickey Thompson Series at Riverside and twice raced the MINT 400.

The House That Jack Built

Crandon "The Big House"

Crandon International Raceway is all about the Flannery Family.  More than 600 volunteers come out each year to help, many named Flannery.   General Manager, Cliff Flannery, (Jack’s brother), is the undisputed busiest man in off-road racing.  During events, Cliff will be seen driving a grader, front-end loader, water truck, track support vehicle (up righting the rollovers and towing the breakdowns), restocking the food and beverage booths and offering directions, help, advice and hospitality to the patrons, media and volunteers.

Jack Flannery

Race Director of 35 years Jake Flannery, (Jack’s Cousin), took us on a slow lap around the course in our rental car, “This thing ain’t made for off-road but this won’t hurt it”. Jake knows the track well, describing every turn, bank, whoop, the good lines, the bad lines and even the composition of the dirt / clay mixture (water retention is important).  We also toured the famous campground area that they call Jurassic Park.  “It gets a little crazy at night here, you’ll see things that you’ve never seen before for sure.” he said.

There was little talk of politics, money, sponsorships and the different promoters in the business.   Feeling as if I were forcing the issue, I finally asked about the sponsorship wars.  Jake brushed it off as “BS” and said, “What’s next year?  If you don’t have a yellow car you can’t race against red ones or what?”

They just want to race here at Crandon… it’s not about the money.   This was evident in an unsolicited comment made by Cliff Flannery regarding a recent offer they received from a group to buy the track.  “It’s not ours to sell; it belongs to the people of Crandon.  They started it; they volunteer every year to run it, it’s theirs, not ours.  It really has no value without them.”

Jack Flannery is in a race against cancer right now.  In a testimonial to his strength and courage, family members donned T-shirts bearing Jack’s name and car number on the back and the words “WHAT A RIDE” on the front in bold caps.  The emotion and support for Jack was evident everywhere at this event.  We wish Jack, his family and the wonderful people of Crandon, Wisconsin the very best and can’t thank them enough for making us a part this incredible, once in a lifetime experience.

From the documentary video, another post-race comment by Jack:

“Even when you can’t go anymore, you got to pick yourself up and keep going, even if you only make a lap.  This time I made it all the way, I got the checkered flag and I’m tellin’ ya’, I feel great.”

*Video produced by Crandon Raceway and Steve Weiss Clubhouse Productions

Corona, CA (August 14th, 2009)–The Traxxas TORC Series presented by AMSOIL is proud to announce that one lucky fan will have a chance to ride alongside off-road legend Robby Gordon in the Traxxas TORC Pace Truck. This ride of a lifetime will take place Labor Day weekend at the birthplace of short course off road, Crandon International Raceway in Crandon, Wisconsin.

The contest winner will also have the opportunity to meet some of off-roads finest with a private tour of the pits, watch the race from the Monster Energy VIP Stage, and take home their very own Traxxas R/C Slash- a replica of the Traxxas TORC Series pace truck that they will be riding in. The ten runners up will also receive a Traxxas R/C Slash.

Visit www.torcseries.com through August 31st, 2009 to enter and win. Contest winners will be announced September 1st, 2009.

The Traxxas TORC Series- The Off Road Championship, presented by AMSOIL is the world’s premier short course off road series. TORC drivers push the limits with 900 horsepower, action-packed fender pounding on challenging natural terrain racetracks. The 2009 season schedule includes stops in Texas, California, Nevada, Michigan, and Wisconsin. For more information on TORC please visit www.torcseries.com.

ONLY AT CRANDON RACEWAY!

What: A “Once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to ride the ORIGINAL RACE COURSE for the first Brush Run, the much talked about 25 ¼ course that made Crandon famous and the “Baja of the Northwoods!”  Much work has gone into getting approvals and permissions to use various plots of land to reconstruct the original course.  This is the first and last time for this very special activity.   It is a one time event, starting at 10 AM.  Once the last participant has taken the green flag, the gates will be immediately locked up when the trail ride is finished.   This is only a single day temporary trail.

When: Wednesday, September 2, 2009 at 10 AM.   Bring your ATV and be ready to go from the original Start/Finish line at the Forest County Fairgrounds in downtown Crandon.  That’s 10 AM sharp, the “green flag” drops.  Register begins at 9 AM at the Fairgrounds!  There will be a waiver to sign and then we are gone!  See you at the Fairgrounds and let’s do the 25 ¼ mile track and have some fun out in the Northwoods!

Who: Free and open to all racers, fans, spectators, sponsors, residents, citizens, anyone can participate!  Thanks to WOHVA for all their hard work to help make this happen.

Why: In observance of the 40^th anniversary of short course off-road racing in the U.S. and at Crandon, this is one of the special events leading up to the TORC races over Labor Day weekend.    This ride is a once in a lifetime opportunity and Crandon Raceway wishes to thank both public and private land groups and individuals for this special ride.

Where: Crandon International Off-Road Raceway, Crandon, WI (U.S. Highway 8 in Crandon, approximately 90 miles northwest of Green Bay, 80 miles northeast of Wausau, 40 miles southeast of Eagle River, 25 miles east of Rhinelander, 3.5 hours driving from Milwaukee, 4 hours from Minneapolis, 5 hours from Chicago.

Camping & Tickets: The ATV ride on the original Brush Run 101 course is FREE of CHARGE!  For the September 4-6 race weekend, adult camping is available at $30 for the June weekend and $60 for the Labor Day week.  Campground includes facilities.  Single day off-road racing adult ticket is $20.  Weekend off-road racing adult pass is $30 at June and $35 for Labor Day weekend.  Special pricing for children.  Children 6 and under free.

Contact Info: The Raceway phone number is (715) 478-2222.  Fax number is (715) 478-5815.  Web site address iswww.crandonoffroad.com. TORC is located at www.TORCSeries.com.  Forest County Chamber of Commerce: www.visitforestcounty.com.  WOHVA is at www.wohva.com.

In all fairness, I may have been a little harsh in my criticisms of The Off-Road Race Championship Series and their Ft. Worth, Texas debut a little over a month ago. As a new series, TORC is obviously going to experience a multitude of unforeseen circumstances. While some of the early mistakes could have easily been avoided through hard-earned promoter experience, I do have to commend Ricky Johnson and Mitch Covington for their vision and bringing the reality of Professional short-course racing to life in the larger venues. As Evan Evans says, “Never Give Up,” and that attitude certainly applies here – (I will expand Evan and his incredible attitude later in this article, so keep reading)!

Nothing compares to Crandon International turn one and two

Rounds 5 and 6 of the TORC Series were held at the historic Crandon International Raceway in Wisconsin over Father’s Day weekend and the event ran almost flawlessly! The forward strides the series has made in the last five weeks have been incredible and the results have certainly paid off. The folks at TORC continue to improve upon the series and implement the lessons learned from each event. I also would like to commend the staff and the volunteers at Crandon International Raceway for a job well-done. With 40 years of experience under their belt, the folks in Crandon know exactly what they are doing and how to treat their fans!

The painful learning curve TORC experienced during the first two events resulted in an adjustment to ticket pricing (to the spectator’s favor), nearly immediate results broadcasts through various internet mediums, and a drastic change in the delivery of Wes Kain’s P.A. announcements (sans discussions of brass knuckles and violence). It seems as though TORC is taking to heart the suggested improvements and really running with them.

The Traxxas and Team Associated (RC-10) conflict continues to rear its ugly head and Travis Coyne is still conspicuously missing from TORC competitions – even though his name appeared in the Crandon race program. Ironically, the July issue of DirtSports magazine not only headlined the series’ debut in Texas with the tagline, “TORC’s New Vision Comes to Life” – the very first copies of the magazine were delivered to the Crandon raceway hot off the presses. Turning the magazine over to the back cover, Team Associated implemented a creative marketing technique by featuring Coyne’s truck with the big red X’s and asking the seemingly innocent question, “What are they afraid of?” The ad then directed people to their web-site. While this is mostly an inside joke, it has definitely garnered the attention of those in the know. My suggestion to Traxxas? Turn the other cheek? While that is commendable, I think it would be an even better PR move to turn this into a farce and have a little fun with the situation. How about a little show-down between the two rivals at one of the events? We are talking about radio controlled cars for heaven’s sakes – they are supposed to be fun!

One criticism I have is a comment from an interview of Mitch Covington that appeared in the aforementioned July issue of DirtSports. When asked about the sponsor issue Covington responded with, “People get focused on Race-Dezert as being ‘they’…as in that’s what ‘they’ are saying. The reality is that people that write on Race-Dezert are not the people we are trying to win over. The people we are trying to win over are the ones that came through the gate in Dallas who will talk about it for years to come.” It has been my experience that RDC has a major following and a wide-reaching audience. Race promoters and sponsor companies closely monitor the forums to find out what is happening and be in the know. Many of the top names in the sport (whether it is desert or short-course racing) post race reports and cater to their fans through this venue. This is not an audience that can be ignored and discounted and it definitely is not in the best interest of TORC to alienate the participants on this enthusiast driven web-site.

Eric Chernetski, in the No. 699 Chevy Grassroots Classix. Chernetski currently claims the fourth place points position.

So what about the racing, you ask?! The first competition of the weekend began with the “Grassroots Classixs,” a class of passenger or sport utility vehicles using only two wheel drive. The cars are limited to 460 cubic inches of horsepower or less and the original suspension concept and springs must be maintained. Looking at these vehicles, one can certainly imagine their debut at this legendary raceway and the excitement the crowd felt as they watched their local hero pilot his garage-built beauty around this 1.75 mile track. While I anxiously look forward to the undeniable adrenaline-producing action of the Pro 4×4 trucks, the commencement of the Grassroots Classix race establishes a benchmark for the evolution of short-course racing. After two rounds of Classix racing, it was Dale Chestnut in the No. 613 Ford Bronco who came out on top. Earning the first place finish on both Saturday and Sunday, Dale currently has a comfortable points lead as he heads to Bark River, Michigan for Rounds 7 and 8 of TORC Series Racing.

Rick Huseman has every reason to smile

By the time the Pro 4×4 race staged, the crowd was more than ready to experience the thundering sound of the 800 horsepower unlimited trucks heading toward turn one during the land rush start. As the trucks lined up and the green flag dropped, it was Rick Huseman in the No. 36 Monster Energy-sponsored Pro 4×4 that swept the class during both rounds of competition. Once again earning the Oakley Bomb Award for the fastest lap times during both rounds, Huseman narrowly missed breaking Johnny Greaves’ track record on Saturday. With five top podiums, one fourth place finish, and six (yes, SIX!) Oakley Bomb Awards, Huseman is leading the points and is well on his way to a season championship in the TORC Series.

Saturday’s Pro Light race delivered immediate carnage when Chad Hord and Jeff Kincaid smashed into each other just after turn one while fighting for the same piece of real estate during the land rush start. Kincaid quickly recovered and continued on with the race while Hord barrel rolled four times across the track and narrowly missed taking a swim in the lake. After being righted, Hord pulled off an amazing feat by miraculously working his way back up through the ranks and earning a fourth place finish. It was Marty “the one man party” Hart who swept the podium and took home both first place trophies during Saturday and Sunday’s race action. As far as the points standings, Kincaid is currently in the lead with Hord and Hart following closely behind in second and third, respectively.

Crandon's Turn 1

The Pro 2WDs were the last race to run on Saturday and the fans could hardly keep up with all the mayhem. Mike Jenkins in the No. 25 Traxxas-sponsored truck lost control after the Borg Warner turn and hit the wall – hard! In a separate incident, Rhonda Konitzer suffered from a spectacular crash towards Calamity Corner and the track went to full red. Once the carnage was cleared racing resumed and quite frankly, it was refreshing to see someone other than Ricky Johnson win in this class. After an eight year hiatus, Rob MacCachren in the No. 11 Rockstar Energy-sponsored truck returned to Crandon International Raceway and claimed the highest spot on the podium during the fifth round. During Sunday’s Pro 4×4 action, the largest trophy went to Scott Taylor in the No. 8 Skyjacker-sponsored truck.

The much anticipated 16th Annual Forest County Potawatomi Chairman’s Cup Challenge is the longest running off-road cup race in the country. With the winner potentially driving away with two checks totaling $28,500 (Ford generously provides a $25,000 check to the overall winner – if they win in a Ford) this competition is the one to watch! The Pro 4×4’s staged at the starting line for the land-rush start while the Pro 2WD’s lined up for a staggered start towards the infamous Borg Warner corner.

When the flag dropped in the Chairman’s Cup Challenge, complete chaos ensued within the ranks of the Pro 2WD class. As the Pro 4×4‘s were barreling down the track towards the bedlam created by the Pro 2WDs – officials scrambled to not only avoid the mess but to clear the track. Rob MacCachren, Greg Adler, and Mike Jenkins fell victim to the log jam created by the staggered start and the early pile-up took the three trucks out of contention. The attrition rate of the Chairman’s Cup Challenge was extremely high in both the Pro 2WD and Pro 4×4 classes. In the end, it was Ricky Johnson in the No. 48 Red Bull Ford who proudly claimed the two checks totaling $28,500. Bet Ricky is glad he runs a Ford!

Evan Evans Truck earlier this year during TORC practice

Earlier in this article I mentioned Evan Evans and his “Never Give Up” spirit. Evan is the son of legendary off-road racer Walker Evans and was practically raised at the track. Paralyzed from the chest down in a devastating motorcycle accident, Evan’s determination to continue racing despite his disability is an inspiration to anyone who meets him. While Evan has overcome his disability with a specially outfitted hand-controlled Pro 2WD, his tight budget has made it difficult to make all the races and spread his inspirational message.

While walking around the pits in Crandon I heard of the selfless donation the guys over at Racer Services made to Evan’s race program. Upon learning of Evan’s budgetary constraints, Jake Velasco and Paul Mishel of Racer Services generously donated their shop, their prep services, and their time to make the Crandon race a reality for Evan. After performing a full tear-down and prep to the No. 5 Pro 2WD, Paul and Jake also organized an all-volunteer pit crew to drive out to Wisconsin and assist at the Brush Run race.

In addition to the already unselfish donation of their services, Jake and Paul also rallied the off-road community to provide additional parts and materials. Bill Sleeper at Pro Power generously donated a complete engine while Tony at RDE provided Evan with a new transmission. Roy at Pro-Am helped offset the race entry fees by donating money and also providing hubs. Sakata Racing Electronics assisted Evan’s program with additional funding and is currently engineering a custom hand throttle control. BF Goodrich and MasterCraft also stepped up to the plate with the donation of much needed tires and safety equipment. TORC Series racers also rallied behind the cause and Greg Adler donated much needed funding through Pro Comp / 4 Wheel Parts while Curt LeDuc provided Evan with spare parts…..I am sure I am missing some.

As I walked up to the No. 5 pit, I could truly see the appreciation and gratitude Evan felt for everyone who made the Crandon race a possibility. Anyone who walked through the pit was asked to sign the hood of the Pro 2 “for good luck” and Evan never missed the opportunity to pass along his inspirational message.

So how did Evan do? After working his way up to the third position after the land-rush start on Saturday, Evan had to pull off the track half-way through the race due to an issue with the ring and pinion. Working well into the night, the crew was able to get the truck dialed in and back on the track for Sunday’s action. Unfortunately an issue with the torque converter once again prevented the No. 5 from completing the race. Regardless of the issues, Evan is still a winner and a hero in the eyes of the children that visited his pit to sign the hood of his Pro 2WD. Evan’s “Never Give Up” motto and the selfless donation of time, money and services by the off-road race community is a lesson that will stick with me for quite awhile.

While I may have been critical of the first TORC Series race, it is stories like Evan’s and the guys over at Racer Services that prove to me that unification within the off-road community is a possibility. In a day and age when it is seems like everyone only looks out for themselves, it is refreshing to hear of unexpected and random acts of kindness. It is this level of generosity that not only captures the essence of off-road racing and the foundation of the sport, it also exemplifies the warmth and hospitality demonstrated by the dedicated Crandon International Raceway staff and volunteers.

In all honesty, I was initially dreading another 5 days on the road in hotels and the grueling flight schedule from LAX to Wisconsin. By the time I boarded the plane for my flight home – I discovered I had a completely different attitude. I left Wisconsin with a new appreciation for the efforts of the TORC Series and renewed hope for short-course racing in general. The fans and the locals add to the flavor of the experience while the staff and the volunteers at Crandon International Raceway are in a class by themselves. I have nothing but positive things to say about my weekend in Crandon and I would definitely recommend finding out for yourselves why this raceway has been coined “The Big House.”

For Complete Results and Current TORC Series Standings Check Out the RDC Grid

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