Spidertrax | Thom Kingston | CC BY 3.0
So very busy these days with Spider 9 housing production. Not only does our 3-1/2″ Ultimate & Pro Series Spider 9 Housings continue to lead the industry, our new 4″ Pro Series Housing is quickly becoming the new Ultra4 standard.
All Spider 9 products are made in the USA, always have and always will be. Back to work we go, let’s make it a great week!
DrivingLine | Doug Dienelt | © 2015 All Rights Reserved
The dust has settled, and champions honored, but before we hit our next set of Ultra4 races best we keep up with those that have past. The 2nd ever Ultra4 Sturgis Off Road Blowout just took place, and our friends over at DrivingLine have a great race recap to share. Be sure to check that out at http://www.drivingline.com/2015/08/ultra4-sturgis-kentucky-2015/, perfect reading for what should be a perfect weekend.
Next up, the Fallon 250 which is replacing Ultra4s traditional venue at Miller Motorsports Park. The drivers list for this race is just crazy, and I can’t wait to see everyone in person. Looking forward to attending this one, we’ll have plenty of photos and stories to share no doubt. Until then, have a great weekend and we’ll see you again next week.
Spidertrax | Robb Pritchard | CC BY 3.0
Ultra4 Europe Round 2
Maxxis King of Wales
Day 2. 5 laps
I think it was Kahlil Gibran who said we only know the heights of our happiness because of the depths of our sorrow. It’s the same with the Welsh weather. From glorious blue skies yesterday we woke this morning in dismay, if not really surprise, to blanket fog and sheets of drizzle. And the strange whoosing noises from the speeding wind turbines.
Last night was the first ever Ultra4 Night Stage, sponsored by Wilderness Lights, and the forest was lit up with powerful beams cutting through the tress and dust. It was a much better light show than anything I’ve seen in Las Vegas or the pyramids. Jim Marsden, recovering time from his broken ARB problems was fastest, but the stage, similar to the prologue, was too short to gain more than a few seconds back.
This morning it was quite hard to work out the leaderboard because everyone had a different story about who had penalties and how much they might be, although undisputed penalty champion was Jerry Hunt who managed to amass an impressive 3:40 from such varied infringements as pitlane speeding, driving without a helmet and for knocking over Levi. So, a little unsure of the gaps the top guys shot off at top speed instead of driving to a time. Struggling with a very big rock at the top of the steps Marsden’s transfer box decided to find out the tolerance limit for the internals. And exceeded them. Fortunately he was just 100 meters from the pits so winched himself along to his mechanics. It was fixed in about half an hour but half a lap later broke a steering knuckle and unfortunately that proved terminal.
That left Mondator and Butler to fight it out in the lead and their battle developed into one of the most intense fights we’ve ever seen in Europe. They spent a couple of laps with just a few seconds between them, and there’s something special to see in Rob’s driving when he’s pushing it.
Filipe Guimanaes was either in 1st or 3rd depending on who you talked to but had a few problems and dropped a lap… but only to Montador, such was the sheer toughness of the course and the speed of the Frenchman. The Portuguese driver was still in 3rd though, Levi ahead… but there was no sign of Butler. Time began to tick away and a little later so did hope. A problem with the rear diff comprising of more pieces than it should meant that he was crawling around in 2wd winching over all the rocks he’d raced over all weekend. But going so slow made the fuel consumption much higher so he ran out before he got to the pits. The message to the pit crew for a spanner got a little lost in translation as the Portuguese team said that he needed an English Key.
From the moment the rear prop and drive shafts lost contact in Rob’s Euro Fighter the race was Montador’s. He was 3rd in the 2014 Ultra4 Europe Championship thanks to some consistent drives, but it was pure speed and aggression here in Wales that brought him his first win. Behind in 2nd, adding a matching result to Italy gives Portugal’s Guimanaes the championship lead. Classified 4th was Levi Shirley, ahead of a slightly disappointed Rob Butler.
But the drama for the podium wasn’t over until the very last couple of metres. Somehow, against all expectations, especially his, Malta’s Neville Cianter again earned the title of Kingslayer. As others fell by the wayside he kept going… until less than 100 metres from the finish line. He had to stay there helpless until Drew Wright in the diesel powered Euro Fighter came to tow him over the line, an act that won the diesel Euro Fighter driver the Spirit of the Event award. It was an emotional end to a spectacular race.
Edit 2015-08-09T14:43:31-06:00: Final scores, courtesy of Ultra4Europe.com
Spidertrax | Robb Pritchard | CC BY 3.0
The Ultra4 Europe series kicked off in Italy where the rolling hills put me in mind of something like Little House on the Prairie… but the deep forests of Wales is pure Blair Witch Project.
The Walter’s Arena course near Neath, not that far from Nowhere in South Wales, has a man-made section for spectators to watch the cars fly but the rest of the 2km qualifying lap was fast gravel through the unforgiving trees. Speed is what we love Ultra4 for!
With 43 cars in the paddock (‘pits’ in American English) King of Wales is, of course, many times smaller than the mother event in California but with the nervous tension and rumble of V8s the vibe is just the same. Guys with grimy finger nails greeting friends from far flung countries, ready to fight for every inch in the machines they’ve spent months building… the atmosphere here is brilliant.
Before the action started there was a line up of all the trucks running on the Spidertrax axles and the sheer international spread of the series was displayed in the trucks parked side-by-side. Teams from the UK, Malta, Portugal, France, USA and Belgium, all running Spider 9s.
The qualifying course a fast blast around the valley and one by one the cars were flagged off. The UK scene is heavily into winch challenges, dragging Land Rovers with big winches up impossible routes, and these are perfect for the Legends and Modified class, but the big beasts are all in the unlimited Ultra4 class and apart from Italy and Portugal this is the only place you can see them race.
The Welsh weather is famously inclement and we were expecting a mud-fest but the sun was out and we saw the strange sight of clouds of dust hanging above the trees. Jim Marsden in the Gigglepin Land Rover was on maximum attack and got around in 4:42, 8 seconds ahead of France’s Nicolas Montador. In an impressive 3rd, showing that his 2nd place finish in King of Italy was no fluke, was Filipe Guimanaes in the bright orange Big Rocks sponsored Portuguese Euro Fighter.
Rob Tunnah, finally out in his stunning full IFS car, was just ahead of KoI winner Rob Butler but race favourite Levi Shirley was slowed with an electrical issue that meant 12th on just 4 cylinders wasn’t as bad as it could have been. All is fixed now and he’ll be pushing tomorrow.
Talking of which… It’s a 19km lap of all the insane obstacles that Ultra4 courses are famous for, with some huge man-made steps to tackle. Ledges would be a better word and more than a few people’s hope will be broken here. The course opens at 9am, closes at 6 and the one who gets 6 laps done the quickest… will get to go first on the road on Sunday when another day awaits! You will have the exclusive report here! Read more…