Amsoil Lovell Racing staged for 2012 TORC opener in Charlotte.

April 17th2012
 By Thom Kingston on 2012-04-17T10:13:35-06:00 | TORC

We have a guest blog post by one of our favorite teams, Lovell Racing. Below, they talk about the upcoming TORC short course season with Brad Lovell and his Spider 9 powered Pro Light. With two seasons under his belt, there’s no surprise all eyes are on Brad this year. One thing that’s worth pointing out from his post, the Crandon, WI race on 6/16 & 17 will also include Ultra4 vehicles. From what we’re hearing, there could be a big turnout for the Ultra4 class so be sure to stay tuned right here for that developing story. So, without further delay, enter Lovell Racing.

AMSOIL LOVELL RACING STAGED FOR 2012 TORC OPENER IN CHARLOTTE

Colorado Springs, CO 4/15/12  –  The Lovell Racing team is proud to announce their return to the Traxxas TORC Series Presented By AMSOIL. 2012 will mark their 3rd year chasing the Pro-Light championship and best shot at accomplishing their mission. The season starts at the Charlotte Motor Speedway and will be aired live on Speed this coming Friday night, April 20th.

“We are here to win the championship,” driver Brad Lovell asserts, “We struggled to gain a foothold in 2010, we proved ourselves in 2011, and now its time to produce. We have the resources of a top tier team, we have the expertise, and we are focussed. No excuses.”

Brad’s confidence stems from assembling a firm foundation of sponsors and dedicated crew. Longtime supporter AMSOIL has committed to a 3-year title sponsor agreement that firmly roots the team in TORC short course racing. Nissan is bolstering support with Lovell joining teammate Chad Hord as a Nissan factory backed driver. The team also welcomes Lincoln Welders to their pit and shop. BFGoodrich Tires, Torchmate CNC Cutting Systems, 4 Wheel Parts, Spidertrax Off-Road, Motive Gear, Fox Racing Shox, TrailReady Wheels, and a host of other loyal supporters rejoins the team for 2012. “Our team is about being the best,” explains Brad, “We’re not about validating second rate products. We use the best, have developed associations, and are proud to represent the premier brands in off-road.” 

Torchmate Ultra 4 racer JT Taylor will return as Lovell’s crew chief along with crew of Kyle Bigford and James Plant. Lovell adds, “Ultra 4 guys are awesome and have given us a nationwide network of volunteers for TORC. We welcome them all back and I am also excited to add continuity between races within our core team.”

TORC made a major announcement only weeks ago that all 18 episodes of “The Off-Road Championship” will be moving to the Speed Channel with both the 4/20 Charlotte and 7/20 Chicago races airing live. The move reaches a much wider audience with what has been hailed as the best coverage the sport has to offer. It kicks off this Friday night with live coverage from Charlotte. 

2012 TRAXXAS TORC SERIES PRESENTED BY AMSOIL
4/20 & 21 – Charlotte, NC      * Live on 4/20
5/26 & 27 – Red Bud, MI
6/16 & 17 – Crandon, WI      * Includes Ultra 4 Racing
7/19 & 20 – Chicago, IL     * Live on 7/20
8/11 & 12 – Bark River, MI
9/1 & 2 – Crandon, WI     * World Championship Racing
9/29 & 30 – San Antonio, TX     * Traxxas Pro-Light Cup

About Lovell Racing
 
25 years ago, Brad Lovell was bouncing around in the back seat of his father’s Bronco in the backwoods of Colorado. The family camping trips turned into a passion for Brad and his brother Roger. After spending a decade tackling the toughest off-road trails in the country the pair entered their first rockcrawl and went on to win 6 consecutive season championships. Since then the brothers have earned multiple wins while racing in nearly every type of off-road discipline – desert, rocks, hill climbs, and short course racing. The team’s focus is winning the TORC Series where Brad pilots the #44 AMSOIL Torchmate Nissan Frontier. The 2012 season holds a variety of races for the team including King of the Hammers, Vegas to Reno, the 90th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, and World Championship racing at Crandon. Follow Brad at  Facebook / Lovell Racing. 
 
Lovell Racing Team Partners
 
AMSOIL, NISSAN, BFGoodrich Tires, Torchmate CNC Cutting Systems, Lincoln Welders, Spidertrax Off-Road, 4 Wheel Parts, Tailready Wheels, Aeroquip Performance Products, Fox Racing Shox, FK Rod Ends, Motive Gear, Eibach Springs, Robinson Construction, Powertank, Howe Performance Power Steering, Dynotech Driveshafts, and Proformance Unlimited

Spider 9 powered teams dominate Dirt Riot podium.

April 13th2012
 By Thom Kingston on 2012-04-13T09:25:32-06:00 | Dirt Riot

Brad Lovell #232
Brad Lovell grabbing top honors. More photos on Flickr.

Dirt Riot competitions have been gaining in popularity these days, as evidence by not only enthusiasm but by the increased number of vehicles showing up at each event. This style of endurance racing offers something unique for those already owning an Ultra4 vehicle, and with a focus on local based competitions it’s easy to see why Dirt Riot is growing in popularity.

We had the great pleasure of attending our first Dirt Riot competition last weekend in Moab, UT. It was this years 1st competition in the Mountain Series (there are 18 events in all), and with 23 Ultra4 vehicles in class the competition was fierce. While most Dirt Riot events are designed to be a 3 hr lap based endurance race, the tight course in Moab had Big Rich, the race owner & coordinator, changing things up a bit. Instead, this event had teams running 2 heats for a total of 3 hrs of racing and to keep the endurance theme intact, vehicles couldn’t be worked on in-between heats.

In the end, Brad Lovell grabbed top honors with an over 3 minute lead. He was followed by Levi Shirley in 2nd and his father Brian Shirley in 3rd. All three teams were powered by Spider 9 axles, which for us is always nice to see. Finish times provided below, courtesy of W.E.Rock.

So, in summary, Dirt Riot is a great format for both racers and spectators. Be sure to hit up an event this year, and with 18 of them there’s a good chance one is not far from your house. Also, we had a blast taking photos at this last race and posted them up on Flickr. They’re all licensed under Creative Commons so feel free to share with your friends.

Brian Shirley #18
Brian Shirley powering through the start gate. More photos on Flickr.

Kevin Sacalas’ 96 mph crash at the Mint 400.

March 26th2012
 By Thom Kingston on 2012-03-26T13:32:02-06:00 | King of the Hammers

The video above is not meant to glorify high speed crashes, rather remind all of us the importance of safety in vehicle design. Despite the damage shown here, both driver and spotter walked away from this accident with only minor injuries. Unfortunately their rig, The Big Ugly, will likely be out for this Ultra4 season. Having that been said, at least Kevin gets the chance to build another.

Oh man, homework on the weekend?!?!?!

March 23rd2012
 By Thom Kingston on 2012-03-23T12:09:50-06:00 | King of the Hammers

Yes, we hated homework on the weekend too. However, there aren’t many times when one of our fellow Ultra4 racers has a chance to win $50,000 and put Ultra4 racing in the motorsports limelight. As it happens Erik Miller, this year’s King of the Hammer’s champion, is now a top five finalist for the “Search for a Champion” contest.  The contest ends this weekend, the 25th of March, so let’s all give this one solid push to help Erik take home what would be a well deserved prize. Here’s what we need to do:

1) Head over to http://contest.alwaysachampion.com/contests/showentry/1010384 .

2) Click on the “Vote for Me” link located in the black arrow on the right side of the page. Yes, you have to register (we know, that sucks) but it really only takes a minute.

3) Cast your vote today, but also tomorrow and Sunday. They will take one vote each day using the same login you created above.

That’s it. Erik’s win not only means a lot to him, but to our sport in general. Thanks for helping out, and don’t let this homework assignment kill your weekend.

Say hello to the new Ultimate Adventure JK.

March 22nd2012
 By Thom Kingston on 2012-03-22T10:28:50-06:00 | Ultimate Adventure

Fred Williams of Petersen’s 4-Wheel & Off-Road is hanging out at Spidertrax HQ today, showing off his new, yet to be modified, Ultimate Adventure JK. No doubt this is going to be one sweet rig when he’s done with it. Project details are a bit under wraps at the moment, but we’ll be sure to update as the build goes on.