Author: RockCrawler.com

BFGoodrich presents: Race-Dezert’s Off-Road Destinations: Pre-Running Baja with Bryce Menzies

Pre-Run the 2015 Baja 500 with 3x Champion Bryce Menzies

Jump in with 3x Baja 500 champion Bryce Menzies in his BFGoodrich KO2 equipped trophy truck pre-runner and go explore the untouched beauty of Baja the only way you can, off-road. Meet Bryce’s co-driver Pete Mortenson who plays a critical part in his success as well as BFG teammate Jesse Jones. Tackle some of the toughest terrain in Baja including fast rally roads, rocky trails, parched dry lake beds, and rock beaches all while exploring the stunning beauty and culture of Baja, CA.
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June 7, 2015
BFGoodrich® Tires Looks To Continue Torrid Desert Race Run at SCORE Baja 500

Tire maker has claimed seven consecutive overall SCORE desert race titles

Ensenada, Mexico, June 4, 2015 – After sweeping the SCORE International Desert Racing series last year and helping put champion racers back on the podium, BFGoodrich^® Tires is poised to continue its string of seven consecutive overall SCORE desert race wins at the Bud Light SCORE Baja 500 in Ensenada, Mexico, starting Saturday, June 6.

The outstanding run of successes last year included overall wins at the SCORE Baja 500 and SCORE Baja 1000, and coincided with the introduction of the latest in desert race tire technology with the BFGoodrich Tires Baja T/A^® KR2. The tire has been adopted by race teams in various classes and now has amassed 11 overall desert race wins.

Storylines for the Bud Light SCORE Baja 500:

· Not only has BFGoodrich taken the overall wins in the last seven SCORE Desert races, it has also collected 16 of the last 17 major North American desert races, including the Best In The Desert series.

· In 2015, BFGoodrich has been the tire of choice for every overall winner for these major races – BITD MINT, BITD Parker, BITD Silver State, Bud Light SCORE Baja Sur, and Bud Light SCORE San Felipe 250.

· In the Baja peninsula, BFGoodrich Tires dominates, collecting a total of 83 overall victories.
· Last year, BFGoodrich Tires claimed its 30^th overall SCORE Baja 500 win. Over the past three years, BFGoodrich has been on 23 of the top 30 overall finishers and claimed 23 class titles at this race.

· The BFGoodrich Tires Baja T/A® KR2 race tire has 11 overall desert race wins.
· Taking into account the last two years of races in Baja, BFGoodrich Tires has claimed 74 percent of the overall top finishers (52 of 70) and an astounding 64 class wins. “The Baja peninsula has been an important proving ground for our company,” said Peter Calhoun, BFGoodrich Tires motorsports manager. “Our success here in racing has also translated into us creating the best all-terrain tires for the driving public. We have our teams of the podium again this year.”

Menzies Looks To Make History
BFGoodrich Performance Team member Bryce Menzies captured last year’s SCORE Baja 500 after missing an opportunity to claim three in a row in 2013. Nonetheless, Menzies, who will drive the No. 77 Red Bull Ford F-150, has claimed the overall win in three of the last four years in this race and looks to join an elite group of just five racers who have four overall SCORE Baja 500 wins.
Other racers in this year’s field looking to join that group include Troy Herbst and fellow BFGoodrich Performance Team member Rob MacCachren.

Vildosola Leads Collection of BFGoodrich Tires Racer In SCORE World Desert Championship Points Race
After another dominating performance at the season opening Bud Light SCORE San Felipe 250, Gus Vildosola Jr leads the overall SCORE World Desert Championship points followed closely by Eduardo Laguna, overall winner at the Bud Light SCORE Baja Sur race.Just two races into the five-race 2015 SCORE World Desert Championship, the top five overall points leaders choose BFGoodrich Tires to affix to their race trucks. Following Vildosola and Laguna, stands Lopez Apdaly, last year’s overall champion Steven Eugenio and Rob MacCachren.

BFGoodrich Tires Show Well at the SCORE Baja 500
Last year, BFGoodrich Tires not only took the overall win, but its race tires ran on nine of the top 10 overall finishers and 17 of the top 20, while adding seven class wins at the SCORE Baja 500. In Class 1, four of the top five class finishers, including class 1 winner Cody Parkhouse, who finished 10th overall, ran on BFGoodrich Tires.

It was BFGoodrich Tires 30th overall SCORE Baja 500 win. Over the past three years, BFGoodrich has been on 23 of the top 30 overall finishers and claimed 23 class titles.

KR2 Stands Out Once Again
Since being run as a developmental tire in 2013, the BFGoodrich Baja T/A® popularity among desert racers. It has been run on the vehicles that won 7 of nine desert races in 2014 and all four desert races in 2015 — BITD MINT, BITD Parker, BITD Silver State, SCORE Baja Sur and San Felipe.

The KR2 tire, originally designed for the Trophy Truck class, has become so renowned that it now has been developed, with subtle adjustments, for several classes. Racers in Class 1, Class 7 and Class 10, as well as the UTV class, new this year, will be running KR2 tires and joining those in the Trophy Truck and Trophy Truck spec classes.

This tire development has gone even beyond desert racing. The core structure of the KR2 has also been used on the
winning entry of Randy Slawson at this year’s King of The Hammers race in California. The BFGoodrich Baja T/A KR2-S was specially designed to handle the speeds and rock crawling demands of that unique race.

But if desert sand and rock wasn’t enough to prove its mettle, the BFGoodrich Baja T/A KR2 tire was also used as the race tire for the Red Bull Frozen Rush competition over the past two years. This event features trophy trucks racing up snow covered ski slopes, using the specially prepared tire renamed BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A FR2 for the event.

• The historic desert tires–The BFGoodrich® like many off road tires, used the Baja peninsula as a proving ground for its toughness and performance. Radial All-Terrain T/A® Launched nearly 40 years ago, this tire claimed its first victory in 1977 at the Baja 500. Several years later on the next iteration of the tire it claimed it’s first of many overall Baja 1000 wins in 1986 in an entry driven by Mark McMillin and Ralph Paxton. That started a run that witnessed the BFGoodrich Tires company claiming 20 consecutive overall Baja 1000 titles.From there the BFGoodrich Baja TA KR tire became the tire of choice for more race teams in Baja than any other tire. Starting in the early 1990s, the KR tire helped evolving, faster and heavier Trophy Trucks to victory. The BFGoodrich Baja KR and KRT tire has taken home more overall Baja 1000 wins than any other tire combined. And with the new iteration of that tire, the KR2, the success story continues.

2014 Was The Year of BFG; 2015 Sizing up to be the same
BFGoodrich Tires saw considerable success last year and continues to do so this season. With overall victories in races supported by both major desert racing bodies – SCORE International and Best In the Desert, BFGoodrich Tires is leading the way for success in the desert. Overall BFGoodrich Race wins in the last two years.

2014

BITD Parker 425 Jason Voss

SCORE San Felipe 250 Gus Vildosola Jr

BITD Mint 400 Andy McMillin

SCORE Imperial Valley 250 Andy McMillin

BITD Silver State 300 Jason Voss

SCORE Baja 500 Bryce Menzies

BITD Vegas To Reno Jason Voss

SCORE Desert Challenge Steven Eugenio

BITD Henderson 250 Jason Voss

SCORE Baja 1000 Rob MacCachren/Andy McMillin/Jason Voss

2015

BITD Parker 425 Gary Weyhrich

SCORE San Felipe 250 Gus Vildosola Jr

BITD Mint 400 Justin Lofton

SCORE Baja Sur Eduardo Laguna

BITD Silver State 300 Jason Voss

In addition to supplying tires to a number of Bud Light SCORE Baja 500 competitors, BFGoodrich Tires will continue to lend unparalleled pit and communications support to teams through its fleet of off-road motorsports vehicles, and will provide accommodations and supplies at the media center. This immense undertaking involves nearly 100 off-road enthusiasts and volunteers who donate their time in order to help make the race an overwhelming success.Follow along with this year’s SCORE Baja 500 with race stories, images and videos as well as images at www.bfgoodrichracing.com.

About BFGoodrich
Using motorsports as a proving ground for more than 40 years, BFGoodrich® sports car, drag, desert, dirt, short course and extreme rock crawling. BFGoodrich Tires combines technological expertise with vast motorsports experience, delivering a high-performance tire for every type of vehicle. Visit BFGoodrich Motorsports site at
http://www.bfgoodrichracing.com/or BFGoodrich Tires on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/BFGoodrichTires or on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/BFGoodrichTires.

June 5, 2015
King Shocks and Robby Gordon Announce New Engineering and Manufacturing Partnership

Garden Grove, Calif. (June 4, 2015) – King Shocks announced today its new engineering and manufacturing partnership with off-road Imagineer Robby Gordon. Having already chosen King for his Stadium Super Truck platform and Dakar Rally vehicle “The Gordini”, Gordon will now implement his remaining off-road race efforts with King Shocks. (more…)

June 5, 2015
Makita 18V Brushless Impact Driver is More Powerful and More Compact

La Mirada, CA Makita has released the new 18V LXT® Lithium-Ion Brushless Quick-Shift Mode™ 3-Speed Impact Driver, model XDT09M. It is the most powerful and most compact impact driver ever made by Makita.

It’s part of Makita’s expanding 18V Lithium-Ion series, the world’s largest cordless tool line-up powered by an 18V Lithium-Ion slide-style battery. Makita 18V Lithium-Ion batteries have the fastest charge times in their categories, so they spend more time working and less time sitting on the charger. (more…)

June 4, 2015

ARB 4×4 Accessories Celebrates 40 Years!

Introducing Our First Off Road Icon

We asked you to help us choose four of the most iconic 4WDs from the last four decades as part of our Off Road Icons project. We couldn’t be more pleased to announce the first Off Road Icons vehicle – the Toyota Land Cruiser 40 Series.

The Toyota Land Cruiser 40 Series was Toyota’s best selling vehicle in the 60’s and maintained a healthy 24-year lifespan on the market. More than one million were sold around the world with 121,000 sold in Australia. The reason for its popularity was clear; it was the first four wheel drive designed with the everyday family in mind. Its durability stands the test of time with many seen on the roads today. In a testament to its popularity, in 2006 Toyota developed the FJ Cruiser, a modern interpretation of its old counterpart.

The Toyota Land Cruiser 40 Series, Australia’s first standard family wagon, known for its versatility and reliability, it’s no wonder it was voted in as one of Australia’s most iconic 4WDs.

Key Stats:

* 24 years in production, from 1960 – 1984

* The most versatile vehicle of its era

* One million sold around the world (121,000 in Australia)

* Short (FJ40), middle (FJ43) and long (FJ45) wheelbase variants

* Used by farmers, rural drivers and everyday families

Unique Features:

* Removable doors, roof, and windshield

* Folding jump seats allowed for two more passengers and maximum cargo space

* Compatible with GM’s small block engines

Toyota Land Cruiser 40 Series Video

OFF ROAD ICONS

In celebration of our 40th anniversary, we are selecting four of the most iconic 4WDs of the last four decades, restoring them to their former glory and pitting them up against one of Australia’s most iconic 4WD destinations… the Simpson Desert.

VISIT THE OFF ROAD ICONS SITE

June 3, 2015

NecksGen HNR

We all know how important safety is these days in off-road racing with the vehicles getting bigger, heavier, faster and needing to stop that much quicker. Neck restraints have not been made mandatory yet across the board but even BITD has a section in their rules about them…

SCR4: NECK RESTRAINT
Best In The Desert Racing Association strongly recommends that any and all persons driving or riding in any class race vehicle wear a neck restraint designed for racing.

On any given weekend there are thousands of racers across the United States racing in things from trick trucks, sprint cars, to touring cars, and every racer wants to spend time concentrating on one thing: Going fast. Nobody wants to be worried about their shoulder belts slipping off, or the sore spots wearing on their collarbones or chest from their head and neck restraint. They just want to drive.

After just one race with the NecksGen REV, most people agree it was the last thing on their mind, and they forgot it was even there. Racers are typically very picky about how things are set up in their car, and they like everything to be a certain way, so to be told, “Yeah, it felt like I wasn’t wearing anything at all” is a big compliment.

Of course comfort isn’t the only feature that the REV offers. It has improved side impact protection, quick release helmet hardware that mounts to industry standard locations, belt guides to keep your shoulder harnesses in place, Kevlar tethers with stainless steel buckles, and is made from an ultra strong carbon composite material right here in the USA. The NecksGen REV can be found at dealers across the country, or at www.NecksGen.com.

At NecksGen, the number one question asked is, “Why should I choose your device over any of the others?”. The primary answer is a simple one. Comfort. You see, all SFI 38.1 head and neck restraints conform to the same strict testing standards, so while the REV is a big step in improving driver safety, the primary reason most people prefer the REV over any other device is that it is just more comfortable to wear.

NecksGen REV is available in three different sizes and will accommodate 2” and 3” belts on the bigger sizes.

About Race-Dezert.com
Race-Dezert.com was created by off-road enthusiasts, giving off-roaders a place online to share information about the sport and culture of off-road racing. Based in Southern California, Race-Dezert.com highlights the off-road disciplines of desert racing, short course off-road, stadium truck racing, rally raid, rally racing and rock crawling.

Our goal is to connect the world of off-road racing globally, bringing people together through the common denominator of off-road culture. Whether you are a racer, a promoter, a chase team member, a casual fan, or just interested in learning about off-road, Race-Dezert.com is a place where you can learn about the sport and culture of off-road racing.

June 3, 2015