Starting 2008 On The Right Foot
Having finished the 2007 season as the Best in the Desert UTV Champion, the Polaris Ranger RZR is off to a stellar 2008 season by capturing all three podium positions at the BITD Epic Racing Products Parker 250. Mafia Industries took the number position, followed by Team Jagged X and eventually Jerome Vinagro, who grabbed the final spot. All three vehicles finished within five minutes of each other and more than 15 minutes ahead of fourth place.
"The RZR picked up where it left off in 2007," said Craig Scanlon, the product line sales manager for the Polaris sideby- side division. "We thank everyone supporting RZR racing, and if this is any indication of what's ahead, this should be a great year."
Team Moto Works/Can-Am Wins Inaugural WORCS/PIAA 8-Hour Endurance Race
With the sun setting in the Arizona desert, the lights came on and engines roared to life as the WORCS/PIAA 8-Hour Endurance Race kicked off in the evening. At the 4 P.M. start of the race, 40 teams with more than 160 riders began the combined ATV and UTV contest, which consisted of nine classes.
Team Motoworks/Can-Am came out in full force with WORCS ATV Pro Champion Josh Fredrick joining Brandon Smith, who's replacing Jeremy Schell. From start to finish, the two riders set a blazing-fast pace in the Arizona desert to give their team the overall win. Not far behind were the Temecula Motor sports Team of Levi Marana and Mike Cafro and the third-place team headed by WORCS pro Brandon Brown.
In the ATV A class, racing was just as fierce. Running strong from start to finish were Cody Mitchell and his teammate aboard their new KTM 525 XCs. Behind them came Team ATV Rider, headed by Eli Madero, Garrin Fuller, TimGillespie and Barry Bennett. In the last hour and a half, our team clawed its way from fifth to third while hunting down the second-place Team Whitehorse. In the last 15 minutes of the event Bennett led a strong charge and secured the secondplace position for our team.
"I was pleased to see the turnout for this inaugural event. PIAA put a lot of work into this and the light setups for the racers. The overall atmosphere of this event was great," said Sean Reddish of WORCS Racing. "This was the first time WORCS had full-on lighted pits for a racing event. The turnout and presence of endurance racing was awesome."
Canadians Complete Cross-Continent Adventure
Talk about a road trip! More than six months ago the duo of Marc Join ville and France Labont departed from British Columbia, Canada, with one goal in mind: to ride ATVs through North America and down to the sunny beaches of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico.
During a camping trip to Utah in 2000, the couple discovered a trail system that ran lengthwise through the state, and that sparked the idea of going from Canada all the way down into Baja. The adventurous duo contacted Polaris about their dream ride, and without hesitation the company supplied two identical Sportsman 800 X2 ATVs. "When Joinville contacted us about their idea to travel across the continent, there was no doubt they would be riding Polaris ATVs," explained Jeff LeFever, marketing manager for the Polaris ATV division. "Their successful trek on the Sportsman 800 X2s proves Polaris builds the 'world's toughest ATVs.' "
The pair started their trip on July 7, 2007, with their two ATVs and trailer, which took them through Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Arizona and eventually down the Baja peninsula into Cabo. "We've met so many new friends and seen so many incredible places," Joinville said. "We thank Polaris for helping us fulfill our dream and providing us with the experience of a lifetime."