By Mike Ingalsbee The Best In The Desert series Shock Therapy UTV Legends Championship race in Laughlin, Nevada is unique. It’s part short course, and part desert race. Both sections punish the competitors, and their equipment. The short course section becomes deeply rutted when the sand gets looser, and deeper every lap. When running in the grooves, the UTVs will drag their skid plates. If you pop out of the grooves, you’re in for a rough ride, and will lose critical time. Out in the desert, the rocks are dislodged from all the tires clawing at the dirt. Not only do the loose rocks cause the course to get rougher, but the holes they leave in the ground turn into even more ruts. This year the length of the race for some classes was extended by an additional 2 laps. That doesn’t sound so bad, but the added wear and tear is substantial. Many of the experienced UTV racers know exactly how hard they can push it for 8 laps. Running 10 laps instead put everyone in unknown territory. They would need to find the necessary speed to beat the competition while also finishing in one piece. Another wild card would be the lack of wind on Saturday afternoon. The bikes had some relief in the morning, but the UTVs had to run in blinding dust.
Shirey Tops Blais, Row, A Drivers fight for position at the start of the Pro UTV Turbo Class. Photo by Dirt Nation
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