RockCrawler.com

Tag: King of the Hammers (KOH)

  • Staying on Course at Hammerking Productions Inc

    JOHNSON VALLEY, CA,  MARCH 2, 2011   Hammerking Productions, Inc. will no longer be lead jointly by founders of the company, Jeff Knoll and Dave Cole, effective March 15th, 2011. Jeff has made the decision to explore new adventures and is leaving the organization that both he and Dave took from a concept to one of the most successful off road races in America.

    In Jeff’s own words: “Starting with an idea scratched on a napkin now known as King of the Hammers, and the related qualifier series of Ultra4 events have far exceeded my goals. It has been a pleasure to work with all of the teams and sponsors over the last 5 years. I will leave the wheel and the throttle of Hammerking Productions, Inc. in the capable hands of Dave Cole and his management team as I explore the next adventure in my life.” (more…)

  • Torchmate Racing Team Finds Success at King of the Hammers

    RENO, NV     MARCH 2, 2011   Torchmate Racing debuted its new Ultra4 car at the 2011 Griffin King of the Hammers with JT Taylor and Nick Socha navigating, alongside teammates Jesse Haines, Roger Lovell, Brad Lovell and Rusty Bray.  Roger Lovell finished 17th, Rusty Bray finished 45th and Jesse Haines finished 46th.   JT Taylor’s rear drive shaft along with cooling issues and Brad Lovell’s front differential were the final challenges in their race efforts on Friday February 11, 2011.  “The Torchmate crew attacked and conquered all the challenges of the week, it is an amazing group of people that are strong willed and ready to help each other get to the start line and all the way to the finish line,” said JT Taylor, Torchmate Racing General Manager. (more…)

  • Raceline Wheels Takes Multiple Checkered Flags at King of the Hammers

    Raceline 2nd Annual Show and Shine & Raceline Volunteer Dinner a Success

    GARDEN GROVE, CA    FEBRUARY 24, 2011:  Raceline Wheels spent the week at the 2011 Griffin King of the Hammers supporting all the racers, volunteers and spectators.  Seventeen finishers had Raceline Wheels on their rigs crossing the finish line.

    The wheels proved once again to hold up to the most challenging races in the United States battling huge rocks, desert whoops and sand washes at speed.  There is no doubt that the Monster Wheel could stand to battle and was also seen on quite a few trail rigs loaded with spectators headed out to watch the action.  “Raceline Wheels makes a tough wheel.  We raced almost eight miles on a flat at King of the Hammers this year and the wheel is still totally straight,” said Lucas Murphy #816. (more…)

  • OffRoad Design Stephen Watson Awarded Sportsmanship Award at King of the Hammers Where Brothers Finished 28th

    CARBONDALE, CO     FEBRUARY 23, 2011   Stephen Watson, co-driver for brother Brandon Watson in the #4488 Offroad Design Ultra4 car, was honored with the 2011 Griffin King of the Hammers Sportsmanship Award and finished 28th.  Watson helped four to five vehicles winch up BackDoor.  “I didn’t think anything about it.  It just seemed natural to help, and well, we wanted to get through too,” said Stephen Watson.  “When I heard Greg Mulkey from Raceline Wheels was looking for the guy in the red race suit and white helmet that helped people winch on Backdoor, I thought he had some recovery gear that I had left or something.  I was not expecting this award at all, it was quite a surprise.” (more…)

  • Les Figueora Drags to the Finish Line of the 2011 King of the Hammers

    Figspeed Lucas Oil Ultra4 Car to Be Displayed at NHRA Winternationals Drag Racing Event in Pomona, CA

    HENDERSON, NV     FEBRUARY 22, 2011  – Les Figueroa, driving the Figspeed Lucas Oil Ultra4 car, finished 9th at the 2011 Griffin King of the Hammers, pre-qualifying for the 2012 King of the Hammers.  The very competitive Ultra4 car will be on display at the Lucas Oil Booth at the 51st annual NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, CA Thursday February 24ththrough Sunday February 27th.  “We had a great race, and are really excited to finish 9th and already be qualified for next years race,” said Les Figueroa. “I don’t think we made many videos because I don’t think we did anything too spectacular.  We just went out there and focused like we were prerunning.” (more…)

  • Another Top 10 Finish For Team Trail-Gear

    Trail-Gear arrived on the lakebed almost a week before the big race to make their final tweaks and get the car fully dialed in. A 9th place finish at last year’s King of the Hammers proved that the 4-cylinder, Ecotec powered engine at the heart of the #17 Trail-Gear Godspeed buggy had what it took to be a contender at the toughest off road race in the world.

    “I’ll drive fast enough to put that fire out.” Those were the words of Matt Messer, owner of Trail-Gear, regarding concerns of a potential fire if any race fuel were to spill onto the turbo during refueling in the pits. It was obvious that their only options were to win or break trying. Starting at the middle of the pack in 44th position meant having to reel in a large number of other racers to move into contention. (more…)