A lot of action took place at the Badlands rock quarry. Here’s an early shot of Jason Shipman, plowing through the boulder field in the heart of the quarry. See Derek West right behind him? Bumper to bumper action was a common site during this race.

Almost all Ultra4 competitions are during the day. As the sun set at the Badlands, racers reminded us of something we had almost forgotten: Ultra4s have lights. Erik Miller kindly reminds us here, from a shot we took on his last lap of the night.

There are a number of things that define a top team. Skill, high quality parts, and course knowledge all play pivotal roles in determining who takes a podium finish. There is one other detail though, and it always catches our attention walking the pits BEFORE the race even begins. There’s a lot to be said about having your things in order, and the pit walkthrough just prior to racing is always a tell sign who is really ready to take a podium spot.

We grabbed this shot of Derek West just an hour before the start of the Badlands race. His rig looked more ready then ever, and wouldn’t you know, he grabbed 3rd place. Here’s the OFFICIAL scores, courtesty of Ultra4Racing.

When Matt Peterson installed his Spidertrax Ultimate Knuckles for the best steering angle possible, we know this much steering wasn’t in his game plan. The perfect timing of a broken shock while simultaneously climbing an obstacle caused the front axle to flip underneath itself. When flipped back, all seemed well with Matt’s rig but not having a spare shock on hand took Matt out of the race.

Instead of packing it in and heading home, Matt stayed on course and helped out drivers winching in the rock quarry, all day long. Not sure if there was an award given for sportsmanship, but if there was Matt has that one sealed.

Erik Miller off the line.

It’s been some time since we wheeled at the Badlands. Just over 12 years ago, we made the trip from New Jersey to Indiana to take part in the very first Zookimelt, a Suzuki Samurai yearly event held right in Badlands Off-Road Park. Fast forward to today, and wouldn’t you know as we pulled into the park the 2012 Zookimelt was just underway. Oh the memories.

The similarities would end there though, as the growth of the park has gone well beyond our expectations from our Zookimelt event from years past. As we pulled in, we weaved through over 3000 people, hundreds of vehicles of all types (dirt bikes, ATVs, Samurais, and of course Ultra4s), and really couldn’t believe what we were seeing. The Badlands Off Road Park has clearly become the staple of its kind, and those enjoying the acres of mixed rocks and desert were truly in the right place.

So that was a bit off topic… let’s get back to Ultra4s. The 2nd Ultra4 event in the East coast circuit, following Rausch Creek, was held at the Badlands last Saturday. The course was approximately 8 miles of desert with a mix of rocks. The goal: race as many laps as possible, as fast as possible, in 2 hours.

When the dust settled, which took some time as it was very dusty, Michael Colville took top honors with Ben Dinkins in 2nd and Derek West in 3rd. It was a great race indeed, and even greater to see how far the park has come. A big thanks to Kyle, owner of the Badlands, for putting on such a great event.

Here’s the UNOFFICIAL top 6. As soon as we get final scores, we’ll be sure to post them on the blog.

1st: Michael Colville #3318
2nd: Ben Dinkins #4403
3rd: Derek West #4420 *
4th: Chicky Barton #144 *
5th: John Sweet #336 *
6th: Erik Miller #4421 *

* Vehicles powered by Spider 9 axles and components.