Best In The Desert Dirt Venture Q3 2021 by bestinthedesertmag

THE OFFICIAL MAGAZINE OF BEST IN THE DESERT RACING ASSOCIATION

Best In The Desert Racing Association Founder Casey Folks Co-Owner / CMO Bryan Folks Co-Owner / CEO Daryl Folks Marketing Manager / Business Development Scot Harden email: marketing@bitd.com phone: 951-491-1819 Operations Manager Jeff Phillips Event Coordinator Megan Phillips Media Directors Donald Fall email: donaldf@fallads.com

Russ Turner email: russt@fallads.com

DirtVenture Magazine Publisher / Advertising Sales Fall Advertising email: donaldf@fallads.com phone: 619-742-9977 Editors Scot Harden Don Fall Creative / Art Direction Russ Turner

On The Cover

Feature photo of Dustin Grabowski by Jason Zindroski, HighRev Photography Ryan Piplic UTV Turbo inset photo by Dirt Nation Justin Lofton Trick Truck inset photo by Dirt Nation

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Rally Ace Ken Block teamed up with Jax Redline in the Trick Truck ranks for his first ever desert race at the 25th Anniversary Vegas to Reno. Photo by Daniel Schenkelberg

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ISSUE Q3 / JULY - OCTOBER 2021

IN THIS ISSUE 6

VIEW FROM THE RIDGE - Bryan Folks

CHASING THE PINK RIBBON - Jeff Phillips

VEGAS TO RENO - Cars, Trucks and UTVs

VEGAS TO RENO - Motorcycles and Quads

V2R LIVE BROADCAST - Behind the Scenes

A CLOSER LOOK - FOX Factory

UTV LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP - A Hot Time in Laughlin

LAUGHLIN DESERT CLASSIC - Intense Action

TRENDING IN THE DUST - BITD Social Media Update

UNDER THE HELMET - Families Who Race Together

108 SAFETY FIRST - Fire! Fire! Fire! 114 IN THE KNOW - The Latest New Products

Background photo: Photos By MMX

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A MESSAGE FROM BRYAN FOLKS

Photo by Jason Zindroski, HighRev Photography

Check out all or part of the incredible Method Race Wheels V2R Time Trials broadcast.

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At the 2018 Vegas to Reno time trials, I was sitting in my truck monitoring the event and checking on our social media and a certain comment caught my eye. It came from a prominent racer and it read, “When will Best In The Desert start livestreaming these events?”. That opened up a discussion between Best In The Desert’s marketing manager, Scot Harden and me. In short order, we determined something would have to be done, but it was more than likely going to be expensive and time consuming with a large commitment. Since that day, we did a ton of research and determined what we wanted a Best In The Desert livestream show to look like. Three years later we produced our very first livestream at the very same event. It was everything that we thought, expensive, time consuming, a huge commitment and something that I didn’t forecast, stressful. However, we pulled it off and we are proud of what we produced and accomplished. Not bad for a first go around and I can honestly say that I personally learned more about the livestream and television broadcast world than I ever wanted to know. That said, where do we go from here? Well, it is pretty obvious that we opened up a box that may be impossible to close. We are well aware that if we are going to play our part in advancing the sport for our racers, race teams, sponsors, advertisers and Best In The Desert alike, we must push forward and continue to make our livestream presence unmistakable. Immediately following the Vegas to Reno event, we went to work mapping out our plans for 2022. I am happy to report that we are hard at it, and once again I am learning more than I ever wanted to know. However, I have also been enlightened at the opportunities that exist and how these opportunities have the potential to truly impact the future of off-road racing in a most positive way. We are still early in the process, but things are looking very good. The one thing I am certain about is that livestream is here to stay and Best In The Desert is working hard with our partners to make sure our events are being covered at the highest level. Please stay tuned for an updated race schedule that will specify which events will be covered by television and livestream. In the meantime, keep the wheels right side down.

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FROM BEST IN THE DESERT OPERATIONS MANAGER JEFF PHILLIPS

Chasing the Pink Ribbon A Year of Smiles September 1, 2020; what a day! Daryl, Bryan and I sat in a meeting where they informed me the previous Operations Manager had quit and they wanted me to take over as the New Race Director! It took me all of 1-2 seconds to say YES in my head, but I knew I better talk it over with my better half, Sue, as this would be one of the biggest decisions of my life! We talked that night and decided what the heck, let’s do this. Little did I know what all “this” would entail. The next day I had the task of telling my Manager Dan of 20 years at Las Vegas Paving that I was leaving a job that paid me very well and had treated me as family. Dan nearly fell out of his chair, but as he would later say, he saw the gleam in my eye and the smile on my face that I had found my “passion job”! I worked my final two weeks and started at BITD on September 14, 2020. Then only one week later I was off to Glen Helen to prepare for the National Desert Cup and an amazing start to my new “passion job”! That first race I saw great things, ok things and not so good things, but what I saw the most was lots of smiles at the finish line! Next our “crazy circus” moved to Parker for the BlueWater Desert Challenge and again the same results with lots of smiles at the finish! As the rest of the year went on, this

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smile thing seemed to be a regular occurrence, every race, same results and lots of smiles. Now, as I reflect on my first full year, I believe I have found my true calling and have a better understanding of what a race promoter actually does; MAKE PEOPLE SMILE! Sure, at every race finish there are those whi aren’t so happy; some from a crash, some from vehicle problems or some with a wild and crazy story about the adventures of the day. But most, about 99%, have a smile a mile wide. Those who don’t have a smile generally tell me a story of their adventures for the day, and by the end of the “wild tale”, we all have smiles and are laughing hysterically about how cool their day getting to race really was! This is why I do this, and this is why you all do this! Racers, support crews, families, volunteers, my amazing staff, my wife Sue and me, “WE ALL DO THIS FOR THE SMILE”! Thank you all for a wonderful and unforgettable year. I have made more new friends than I can count and look forward to meeting all of you who I have not personally met, yet! See you at the races, Jeff (El Jeffe) Phillips

Jeff Phillips greets driver Rick Ness and co-diver Jacob Zuccone at the finish of the 2021 Parker 250. Photo by Scot Harden

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Photos by Dirt Nation Daniel Schenkelberg

2021 MAXXIS Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox:

The Largest, Toughest, Most Competitive V2R Ever!

The 25th Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox was certainly one for the record books. A record turnout and a course that was rated one of the toughest ever all conspired to make this years’ race one of the most memorable of all time. And it could only be described as ﬁtting that the event Casey Folks brought to fruition 25 years ago would be such an epic event on its 25th Anniversary. Course conditions were the ﬁrst

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topic of conversation for each competitor as they crossed the finish line. Recent thunderstorms, the route selected, including the notoriously grueling final section, made this year’s Vegas to Reno course extremely challenging. With points towards Maxxis Triple Crown prize money at stake, Best In The Desert’s normal purse, and the title of Vegas to Reno champion, racers were throttling hard and fast to be first.

Story by Scot Harden Photo by Jason Zindroski, High Rev Photography Special thanks to Race-Dezert.com

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO CARS, TRUCKS & UTVs

Check out the 2021 MAXXIS “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno presented by FOX MAVTV full episode

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Ryan Arciero Trick Truck photo by Jason Zindroski, High Rev Photography

Arciero Takes Takes Hard-Earned Hard-Earned Arciero Trick Truck Truck Class, Class, Trick Weiland First First UTV UTV Weiland DirtVenture 15

FAMER Striving to be faster, stronger, and better, an innovator relentlessly pushes boundaries and limitations. They’re a model for challenging conventional wisdom and aspiring beyond the highest potentials. They represent peak performance, disciplined practice and strength of character. And once at the top, the satisfaction of the achievement is eclipsed only by the excitement and anticipation for the next challenge. John Marking has been our chief race architect for decades.

We congratulate John on his Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame induction, an honor reserved for innovators.

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO CARS, TRUCKS & UTVs

Record Turnout and Close Finishes

Dustin Grabowski - 1st Class 6100 Photo by Daniel Schenkelberg When the dust settled, it was hard-charging Ryan Arciero truly rising like a phoenix from the ashes to claim victory in the premier Trick Truck class. For those who remember, just one year ago at V2R, Ryan’s truck caught fire and burned to the ground. This year, with a brand-new truck, Ryan tackled the 490-mile course at 7:56:49. Arciero’s win did not come easy as two-time defending champion, Bryce Menzies was hungry and leading overall until Pit 11, where a front differential issue caused him to drop out. Best In The Desert’s favorite veteran Trick Truck racer, Steve Olliges put in one of the best races of his career, coming home second in 8:10:10, edging Black Rifle Coffee’s, BJ Baldwin, out by a mere 44 seconds who

finished in third place, respectively. Meanwhile, Brenthel Racing’s Kyle Jergensen was never out of the hunt for the overall, finishing fourth in Trick Trucks. The #1 Concrete Motorsports Thompson/Letner team’s phenomenal streak of overall wins finally came to an end after a rear-start position resulting from a crash in Time Trials put them at a severe disadvantage. However, they still came back to finish seventh in class with a time of 8:32:22, an impressive feat. The 2021 Trick Truck Class was made up of a who’s who of off-road racing, an example of what the sport has become. Class 6100 was another barn-burner of a race with #6172 Dustin Grabowski taking

home the win after years of coming oh-so-close, finally putting everything together to finish in 8:08:06. Grabowski’s time not only earned him the class win, but also an incredible 2nd overall for the cars and trucks behind Arciero. Brent Fox switched his regular Class 1500 ride for a 6100 entry and came home second at 8:22:14. Brenthel Racing’s own Jordan Brenthel rounded out the podium just two minutes back at 8:24:16, just a fantastic 3/10ths of a second separating him from fourth-place finisher #6164 Pierce Herbst defending V2R Class 6100 champ #6153 Ray Griffith in fifth place with a time of 8:24:45. The ever-growing Class 6200 was won by #6201 Nick Carolan in 8:22:42, followed

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO CARS, TRUCKS & UTVs

Nick Carolan- 1st Class 6200 Photo by Dirt Nation

by Austin Largent in 9:05:20 and Conner McMullen, who suffered technical issues but still persevered for a finish. For the first time in a while, the Class 6100 winner set fast time against the 6200s. Turnout in Class 1500 was phenomenal, with 11 racers taking the start. The James and Jordan Dean #1575 car was first across the line with a time of 8:10:32, followed by Sam Berri in 8:27:51, his 25th Vegas to Reno. He has unbelievably not missed a race since 1996. Third place went to Morgan Langley in 9:05:58. Class 1000 was fully loaded with 13 top teams and drivers. In the end, Matt Rusich, in the #1045 car, took the class win in a time of 8:48:16. Second, went to Wheeler Morgan, just barely over five minutes behind

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Matt Rusich - 1st Class 1000 Photo by Dirt Nation

Sam Berri - 2nd Class 1500 Photo by RnR Photos

James Dean - 1st Class 1500 Photo by Dirt Nation

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO CARS, TRUCKS & UTVs

Jeff Proctor - 1st Class 7200 Photo by Dirt Nation

at 8:53:56. John Van Hattem rounded out the podium in third place with a time of 9:13:11. Jeff Proctor had his #7209 Honda Ridgeline hitting on all cylinders and finished in a time of 9:06:06 to take Class 7200. The Proctor Racing Team has had a phenomenal year winning wherever they go. Other Car/Truck Class entries of note included Class

7300 won by Sean Berryman in 13:00:11, and of course, it would not be Vegas to Reno without a “Hall” in the winner’s circle with Chad Hall knocking down the Class 1200 win in his painfully stock Chevrolet in 12:58:36. In the Jeepspeed competition, Class 4700 was won by Andrew Hulse and Class 1700 by Tim Martin,

respectively. Craig Christy won Vintage C/T Class 4500 in his ultra-clean Chevy truck at 15:38:41. TrophyLites was a battle between #6012, Greg Bragg, finishing in 11:03:00, #6077 Luke Knupp in 11:29:28, and #6013, John Ferrari, in 11:43:26. A record turnout of 135 UTVs entered the 2021 Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas to

Tim Martin - 1st Class 1700 Photo by Dirt Nation

Greg Bragg- 1st Class 6000 TrophyLite Photo by RnR Photos

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Austin Weiland - 1st UTV Turbo Photo by Dirt Nation

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO CARS, TRUCKS & UTVs Reno Presented by Fox. All four main pro classes, UTV Turbo Production, UTV Unlimited, UTV Open, and UTV Production N/A, were loaded with the best teams the sport offers. A record of 44 UTV Turbo Production entries started the race. Throughout the day, as many as eight different teams had a legitimate shot at the class win. When the dust settled, Can-Am’s Austin Weiland took the hardearned victory with a time of 8:49:43 and 29th. Overall, it was an excellent example of how far UTVs have come since they entered the scene. Dustin Jones in the T978 Can-Am was three minutes behind at

8:52:49, followed by Branden Sims in the T913 Polaris. Four-time defending V2R UTV Turbo Production Class champ Phil Blurton had a tough day suffering a serious illness and mechanical issues. At the same time, the UTV Pro Open Class was won by Can-Am’s Dan Fisher, and the UTV RS1 NA class was won by Polaris racer Jonathan McVay at 11:04:48, followed by Jimmy Rodriguez and Jared Cozzocrea. The UTV Unlimited Class was ultra-competitive with 26 entries, including 2021 Jimco Racing Silver State 300 champion Chris Blais who battled up front for most of

the race with Randy Raschein, Jim Beaver, and Michael Isom. Shortly before Pit 11, the Blais team suffered mechanical issues and DNF leaving CanAm’s Randy Raschein in the lead, which he held to the finish, winning the class in a time of 9:50:54. He was followed by Jim Beaver in his Polaris in 9:52:40 and defending 2020 Best In The Desert UTV Unlimited Series champ Can-Am mounted Michael Isom finished third in 10:10:30. The UTV Production N/A class drew a 40 entry field and was won by Carson Wernimont in his Kawasaki, who kept his class win streak alive, putting

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO CARS, TRUCKS & UTVs in a great race and finishing in 9:49:54. Wernimont had to put in a great race because right on his tail was JD Marsh in his Polaris, just two minutes behind. Polaris racer, Dodge Poelman, came home a very welldeserved third, with Honda’s Elias Hanna in fourth. U927 Jack Olliges, son of Trick Truck legend Steve Olliges, showed he would be a force to be reckoned with by winning the UTV Rally class in 10:34:34. He was followed across the line by Jacob Zuccone in a time of 10:52:19 and UFC Fighter Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone finished in 11:01:44. The UFC legend takes on off-road racing

with the same attitude and grit that made him the most decorated fighter in UFC history. “Without question, the 2021 Maxxis Tires ‘Casey Folks’ Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox lived up to all the hype and delivered as one of the premier motorsports’ events in North America this past weekend,” commented Best In The Desert CMO, Bryan Folks. “From our historic Method Race Wheels Live Broadcast of V2R Time Trials, we set a tone for professionalism and excitement that only off-road racing can provide. Our Race Operations’ team has been working hard for this result, and we are very

pleased that so many racers chose to join us in this great adventure. I am quite sure our father, Casey Folks, is pleased with the final result. I want to thank our staff, volunteers, sponsors, and racers for believing in our mission and helping make this the biggest V2R ever.” “The last week has been one of the most challenging yet rewarding weeks in all my life,” said Best In The Desert Race Operations Director, Jeff Phillips. “We are grateful and honored that so many chose to join us and continue to believe in us. Seeing all the smiling faces at the finish line made all

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Randy Raschein - 1st UTV Unlimited Photo by Dirt Nation

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO CARS, TRUCKS & UTVs

Jack Olliges - 1st UTV Rally Photo by Dirt Nation the long hours, blood, sweat, and tears more than worth it. And while we are quite pleased and gratified by all the positive comments, we are already thinking about things we can do to make next year’s V2R even better. I want to thank my staff, our volunteers, our sponsors, and most especially, all the racers who showed up to take on one of the toughest challenges in off-road racing.” “This year’s V2R not only lived up to its reputation as the largest and longest single-day off-road race in the U.S., but it would also appear it might have been the toughest,” stated Best In The Desert CEO Daryl Folks.

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“I’m pretty sure my dad wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. The Best In The Desert team, our staff, and volunteers put an enormous amount of effort into this race, and it was great to see a record number of racers come out to support the event my father launched some 25 years ago. I want to thank everyone involved. We have been working extremely hard these past two years to keep off-road racing alive and viable during the pandemic, and we are happy to see some light at the end of the tunnel. I am sure things will only get better from here. Thanks to everyone who participated in the race.”

The impact Vegas to Reno has on the Powersports industry is measured in the millions of dollars. BITD’s social media following at this year’s event had its biggest day ever on race day by almost four times over its previous best and developed a loyal and enthusiastic following. There are thousands of stories coming out of V2R. The sport is indeed fortunate iconic races like this still exist. Casey’s vision, foresight, and spirit of adventure were alive and well in the smiles and hearts of every racer who took on the challenge. Most can’t wait till the 2022 event.

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO MOTORCYCLES & QUADS

Argubright, Shirey Untouchable At Vegas-to-Reno Story by CycleNews Magazine / Mark Kariya Editorial contributions by Scot Harden

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After setting fast time in qualifying, Dalton Shirey had nothing but clean air during the race as he and teammate Jacob Argubright sailed away wtith the win. Photo by Jason Zindroski, High Rev Photography

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO MOTORCYCLES & QUADS

Jacob Argubright teamed with Dalton Shirey to capture 1st Open Pro Motorcycle Photo by Jason Zindroski, High Rev Photography

The 25th running of the longest single-day off-road race in the U.S. saw former winner Jacob Argubright team up for the third time with Dalton Shirey on Shirey’s 3 Bros./Hatch Racing Husqvarna. And the third time was the charm at the Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas-to-Reno (V2R), Presented by Fox, round four (for the bikes) of Best in the Desert’s (BITD’s) American Off-Road Racing Series. Denied victory in 2017 when two tire failures allowed Ricky Brabec to collect one of his three V2R wins, it all came together this time. Shirey made his intentions known from the outset with the fastest time in qualifying on an abbreviated five-mile course on Wednesday, so he was first off the line when the green flag waved at 5:45 A.M. on Friday at Bonnie Claire. Relying

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on his ever-improving moto and GP speed, Shirey saw qualifying as a vital component to the entire race: “It was kind of a big deal because [the race itself is] mostly on [dirt] roads, and it’s hard to pass on roads when it’s that dusty. “I put a pretty good sprint in on Wednesday to make sure we had a good Friday.” Running in clean air the entire 485 miles to the finish, Argubright and Shirey avoided trouble all day, finishing in seven hours, 44 minutes, and 10.4 seconds, unofficially, finally bagging that long-sought win at the storied event. “Our average speed was 63 [miles per hour],” Shirey stated. That gave them just under 10 minutes over three-time and defending race champion Ricky Brabec, the Monster Energy Honda Team rally

2021 VEGAS TO RENO MOTORCYCLES & QUADS

Following a long layoff due to a shoulder injury, Jared Schlapia teamed up with Wyatt Brittner and Taylor Stevens to top 399 Pro, ﬁnishing seventh overall motorcycle. Photo by Dirt Nation

star claiming the runner-up spot in a solo ride of 7:53:53.6. (Incidentally, both of them bested the fastest four-wheeled vehicle, the Trick Truck of Ryan Arciero, who was the only other finisher in a record field of 406 teams to break eight hours with his 7:56:49.1. The 120 motorcycle and ATV entries—including three three-wheelers!—made this the second-largest in V2R history behind only 2008. Bikes now lead cars/trucks in the overall win column, 13-12.) Defending series champs Hayden Hintz/ Trevor Hunter rounded out the overall motorcycle and Open Pro podium in 8:08:26.5 aboard their Kilmartin Racing/3 Bros. KTM. Though it was Argubright’s second V2R victory, it was Shirey’s first, and it couldn’t have gone much better. Shirey handed the FMF/ Enduro Engineering/ Rekluse-sponsored FX 450 he also uses for AMA Hare & Hound Nationals to Argubright at pit four ( mile 130.8), Argubright

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taking it to pit 8 (mile 299.4), where they executed a rear-wheel change in an estimated 40 seconds. “Me and Laci [Olivas] and Jacob, we all practiced it many times, and when it came to it in the race, everything went smoothly,” Shirey noted. Leaving that pit, Shirey had his closest call when he had to avoid a young calf that decided to stroll onto the course. “I just rode off into the ditch and came back onto the course and kept going,” he reported. From there, he stayed on the bike to the finish in Dayton, adding, “I saw donkeys and horses out there and a whole bunch of spectators. I’d say the last 100 miles, there were loads of spectators, so that made it kind of cool.” As he’s done for several V2Rs now, Brabec used the race as a tune-up for next year’s Dakar, though he wouldn’t need to do any navigating due to the well-marked course. With nearly nine gallons of fuel on board (compared to the

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO MOTORCYCLES & QUADS

Cole Burdick - 1st Open Expert Motorcycle Photo by Dirt Nation

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4.5-gallon IMS tank employed by his rivals), the plan formulated by Johnny Campbell Racing (JCR) Honda was to stop at just three of the 12 pits while doing a full service (fuel and both wheels) at pit seven (mile 246.3). However, this time, he struck trouble early, painfully hitting his foot on a rock which bothered him the rest of the way. “I thought my toes were broken, and I thought that they were bleeding, so I kept looking down at my boot to see if there was blood coming out of my boot or not,” he said. More troublesome was a low side before pit six (mile 219.4) that sliced his arm open substantially and tweaked the front end, something the JCR crew could not remedy. Brabec also broke a hub, adding two unplanned stops to swap wheels, the last one due to a melted mousse which forced him to baby it to the last pit. (Former winner Kendall Norman was officially entered but only as a backup if Brabec could not ride.) “It was an eventful one,” he admitted. “We stopped a little bit too much, I think,” adding, “I thought it was going to be a little bit easier as far as the riding and the terrain, but this year with all the rain, it definitely made the course a lot rockier with a lot more ruts. That kind of put a lot of wear and tear on the body after 500 miles; my hands are pretty beat up, and I think I was expecting it to be a little bit smoother, honestly!” Hintz and Hunter enjoyed a relatively troublefree race aboard the Kenda/Pro Circuit/FXR 450 SX-F. Third, off the start behind the Shirey and Brabec, Hintz found himself unable to match their pace, though he stayed ahead of Beta’s Zane Roberts until he slid out three times in about 10 miles before pit seven due to tire wear. “We did a tire change at pit eight, and I gave the bike to Trevor there, and Roberts got out in front of us then,” Hintz said. “From eight to 10 was about 90 miles, and the Beta 480 RR couldn’t make it on fuel, and Trevor knew that, but our bike could because we had the big [4.5-gallon IMS] tank, so Trevor stayed in Zane’s dust close enough so when he got into pit nine (mile 352.2), Zane pulled in to pit and Trevor went by because we didn’t have to fuel there. He gave me the bike

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO MOTORCYCLES & QUADS

Chris Fry - 1st Over 40 Pro Motorcycle Photo by Dirt Nation

at pit 12 (mile 443.1) with about a four-and-a-halfminute lead.” That sealed their podium finish despite finishing with a misaligned rear wheel, the axle nut had come loose at some point but not falling off completely. Unofficially, with Nic Garvin out due to injuries, the duo moves into the series points lead. Roberts soloed his way to fourth in 8:07:45.7 on his Kenda/ Motul/Klim-backed machine ahead of 3 Bros./DT Racing KTM-mounted Jeremy Newton/ Jeff Trulove’s 8:12:31.9. Roberts’ Beta teammate Joe Wasson had been fifth at one point but reportedly had minor issues drop him to sixth in another solo effort. The Wyatt Brittner/Jared Schlapia/Taylor

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Stevens team claimed the 399cc Pro victory and seventh overall on their Stevens Offroad Racing Husqvarna FX 350. Open Pros Gregory Pheasant/ Russell Tonjum placed eighth overall ahead of Over 30 Pro winners Clint Braun/Danny Cooper/ Ryan Kudla, Open Pros Jim Herrero/Kolton Lynn rounding out the top 10 bikes overall. Other class winners and finishers of note in Motorcycle Classes were the Over-40 Pro Class was won by Chris Fry, while Ironman Pro went to Dustin Ashe-Everest. The highly competitive Women’s Motorcycle Class was won by the Ashlee Gage, Kari Erickson, and Rebecca and Rachel Stout KTM mounted team in 10:12:28. Coming home 2nd was the W1 team of Kimberly Loppnow, Mica Diaz, Felicia Webb, and Allie

2021 VEGAS TO RENO MOTORCYCLES & QUADS

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The highly competitive Women’s Motorcycle Class was won by the Ashlee Gage, Kari Erickson, and Rebecca and Rachel Stout KTM mounted team. Photo by Dirt Nation

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2021 VEGAS TO RENO MOTORCYCLES & QUADS

The Open Amateur class was won by the #353 KTM mounted team of Justin Storey, Jason Storey, Kirt Hulsey, and Wesley Grimshaw. Photo by Dirt Nation

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OFF-ROAD RACING BUSINESS OUTLOOK Jose Roberto Villalobos - 1st Quad Pro Photo by Dirt Nation

Stambaugh in a time of 10:31:07, keeping the pressure on the W15 team all the way to the finish. Faelly Lopez won the Ironman Expert class in a time of 13:33:19 while the highly competitive Open Expert MC class went to the #312 team of Cole Burdick, Aaron Trujillo, and Garret Coleman in 9:06:1. The second-place Open expert entry ridden by Eric Holt, Tyler Harvey, and Damion Bush was just 7 minutes behind in 9:13:09. The Open Amateur class was won by the #353 KTM mounted team of Justin Storey, Jason Storey, Kirt Hulsey, and Wesley Grimshaw in 10:23:06. They were followed home by perhaps the youngest team of the weekend: Steven Wheeler, Maleana McKnight, Anthony Nolen, and Laine Stevens entry out of Ely, NV. Steven and Anthony were just 14 years old, showing the future of the sport is in great hands. In Quad Pro Competition, a field of five entries left the starting line with Jose Roberto Villalobos, Travis Damon, and Beau Baron taking home the

win, followed by Dylan Walraven and Daulton Keyes in second and Humberto Valenzuela in third. The Quad expert class win went to Chuck Bores and Ron Suor, who took home the welldeserved win. Not to be outdone by their fourwheel counterparts, the 2021 Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox boasted three fan-favorite three-wheeler entries with Wrangell Gubler winning the class in 14:34:25. Don’t look now, but it seems the three-wheelers are making a comeback. Altogether, the 2021 Maxxis Tries “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox will be one of the best ever in the history books. It certainly tested riders and their machines to their limits. Hats off to everyone who took on the challenge.

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Behind the Scenes of the Method Race

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Wheels V2R Time Trials Live Broadcast

August 11th, 2021, was a landmark day for Best In The Desert and its ﬂagship event, the Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas To Reno Presented by Fox Off-Road race due to the Live Broadcast of Time Trials which was held that day. Now watched by over 20,000 enthusiasts, the Method Race Wheels V2R Time Trials Live Broadcast was a major production that Best In The Desert had been working towards for quite some time. Story by Scot Harden Photos by Dean Henthorn

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METHOD RACE WHEELS V2R TIME TRIALS LIVE BROADCAST What goes into a Live Broadcast, especially one held in the middle of the desert in a remote location during one of the hottest months of the years? The short answer – a lot! Planning for the Live Broadcast began almost three months earlier and was led by Best In The Desert CMO Bryan Folks. Bryan’s personal view of live broadcasts of off-road events was very specific and was directed towards providing a type of show that was done on a higher level than previous live broadcasts of off-road races. To do this he knew he would need a great production partner to realize his vision and that’s where Turn2 TV came in and Erin Bryant. Erin too had been working towards full scale live streaming broadcasts of off-road races with his own view and perspective as a production company owner and producer of mainstream sporting events. He too wanted

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to show the excitement and skill of what goes into off-road racing and knew that the visual component, camera location and drone work was critical. The final component came in the form of Trevor Hocking. His background and experience producing television off-road race programming and shows for Lucas Oil TV provided essential knowledge and experience in the nuts and bolts of putting it all together. Together Bryan, Erin and Trevor applied their combined passion and expertise to launch Best In The Desert into the Live Broadcast arena. Following is a photo essay that takes you behind the scenes of the effort that was put forth that day by the entire Best In The Desert and the Turn2TV team.

METHOD RACE WHEELS V2R TIME TRIALS LIVE BROADCAST

It all starts with the mega-equipment required to broadcast a show like this from the middle of nowhere. This includes a stateof-the-art production semi-trailer and truck with satellite link, a makeshift studio, miles of ﬁber optic cable directly connected to each camera location and ﬁve of the best drone operators in the business. Factor in the 105+ temperatures that day and the team had their work cut out for them.

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METHOD RACE WHEELS V2R TIME TRIALS LIVE BROADCAST

Inside the belly of the production truck was where all the real magic took place as teams of producers, directors, graphic artists, and techs all came together to produce the show in real time. This is where a lot of the pre-show preparations came together to provide a seamless integration with what was going on live on the track that day with prepared segments to tell the whole story of what was at stake at Time Trials, the machines and the drivers in attendance.

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METHOD RACE WHEELS V2R TIME TRIALS LIVE BROADCAST

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Imagine lugging a 45 pound camera around for 8 hours running up and down the staging line or out in the ﬁeld at one of the remote camera locations. The camera guys busted their butt that day and delivered some of the best action footage seen on any off-road race broadcast.

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METHOD RACE WHEELS V2R TIME TRIALS LIVE BROADCAST Drone cameras were a huge part of the Method Race Wheels V2R Time Trials Live Stream broadcast. These guys really raised the quality of the production to a whole new level with some of the best drone work ever done. Scenes featured vehicles leaving the starting line, to pounding some of the long whooped out sections, to wide angle aerial views that gave the viewer a real feeling of the desert expanse. The drone operators used at the V2R Time Trials were some of the best in the business and elevated the quality of the production signiﬁcantly.

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METHOD RACE WHEELS V2R TIME TRIALS LIVE BROADCAST Best In The Desert was fortunate to have Off Road Motorsport Hall of Famer Bob Bower as part of its reporting team. Bob worked hard all day bringing insightful interviews and up to the minute reports from the racers as they were about to leave the line. Bob added tremendously to not only the information provided in the broadcast but also shared some of the fun of off-road racing as well.

Left to right: Jack Korpela, Bryan Folks and Scot Harden

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The V2R Time Trails announcing team was led by anchor Jack Korpela. Jack did an amazing job keeping the excitement level high and providing interesting insights through his intimate knowledge of desert racing and the Best In The Desert racers. Color commentary was provided by Best In The Desert’s own Bryan Folks who provided expert analysis and background on the racers as only someone who has raced professionally on both two and four wheels can. Between the two the amount of background and insight as to what was going on during the Time Trials was elevated to an all-new level.

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METHOD RACE WHEELS V2R TIME TRIALS LIVE BROADCAST

Bryce Menzies on his way to claiming the top spot for the Trick Trucks at Time Trials. Photo by RnR Photos

So, what does the future hold for Best In The Desert and Live Broadcast of its races? I think it’s safe to say you can count on more in 2022. A lot was learned in this initial broadcast and while the overall result was an outstanding success, we certainly saw room for improvement. We are already working on bigger and better plans for 2022. Erin Bryant of Turn2 TV Productions had this to say following the event, “From day one, our assignment was to produce a live stream show that raised the bar for all of desert racing and we think we accomplished that. Producing a live show like this, in these elements, was certainly a challenge. From running miles of ﬁber optic cable across the desert to keeping $3 million worth of broadcast equipment cool in the Las Vegas desert in August, our entire team worked tirelessly to make it all happen.”

It’s safe to say we will be back. But before moving forward, we want to thank our partners at Turn2 TV productions for making our inaugural foray into live broadcasting such a success. Also, a big shout out to Method Race Wheels for stepping up to be the presenting sponsor of our production. Also Shock Therapy, Rugged Radios and Beta Motorcycles thank you for sponsoring our live broadcast. Last, but not least, thanks to the Best In The Desert Race Operations staff led by Jeff Phillips for putting on such a professional Time Trials. When it was all said and done, we ended within ﬁve minutes of our scheduled end time. Not too bad after 7 hours and 30 minutes of racing!

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A CLOSER LOOK:

FOX FACTORY Tuning Is The Key To A Well-Rounded Shock Package: From Victory to Showroom There are several ways to design and manufacture shock absorbers to meet a price point. Hot on the heels of FOXequipped drivers taking overall victory and sweeping several classes at the desert races in late 2020, we asked FOX Off-Road Applications’ engineers, Mason Powers and Scott LeSage, to walk us through the steps FOX takes to develop shocks strong enough to win races while also providing comfort and control on everyday vehicles you can buy off the dealer lot.

Photos provided by FOX Factory

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A CLOSER LOOK - FOX FACTORY

“The shock architectures are extensively tested and designed to meet a price point and durability standards,” Powers explained. “FOX puts major engineering resources into testing and developing shocks both in the race and Original Equipment (OE) world. Our seal packs and durability standards withstand thousands of miles of heavy/extreme abuse. Ultimately, tuning is the key to a well-rounded shock package.”

According to LeSage, other companies have worked for decades to control the motion of the wheel and chassis in cost effective ways. “My understanding is FOX didn’t take that path; (founder) Bob (Fox) focused on making the best product he could,” he said. “This led to both durability and performance, but as we all know, that isn’t cheap. Strength doesn’t have to be the inverse of comfort. The shafts, shims, seals, and pistons used in OE truck shocks are strong enough to survive thousands of off-road miles. FOX started with race only parts and has

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adapted them into `everyday’ vehicles. Now, we have part sets for each application, and not so much cross over, but sometimes that can come full circle and actually help race products.”

Q: Surely the rigors of racing require a different engineering approach to suspension manufacturing compared to developing OE shocks for Ford, Jeep and Toyota. Or do they? “Once large-scale production is introduced, designs change for material or labor costs, and the manufacturing methods adapt to the needs,” LeSage said. “Interestingly enough, both OE and race products benefit from each other. As process control is improved, and material costs are lowered from OE level volumes, some of that will trickle down to the race products. Unique load cases and design freedom in race and aftermarket shocks can serve as a test bed for our OE developments. “A good example of that is the IFP bump stop, a relatively new aftermarket product that

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A CLOSER LOOK - FOX FACTORY

was tested and released to the public. It made its way onto a Jeep OEM vehicle, which required even further testing and development. The lessons learned and reduced cost of the shared parts was then returned to the aftermarket version increasing the durability of the product for the end user and the profit margins for FOX.”

According to Powers, original equipment shocks are vehicle specific and require much higher fitment and clearance requirements as well as direct development with the OE customer. “Similarly, the OE typically dictates the tune,” he added. “In the OE world, you also have the ability to mass produce parts at high volume which means you can design a shock that can benefit from the use of forgings and high-volume manufacturing processes. “With racing and aftermarket (AM) shocks we like to standardize our part set so that the industry doesn’t have to try hard to make our

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shocks fit vehicles. However, we design our parts to be adaptable to any vehicle which allows us to create part volume because the parts are shared across different vehicles and fitments. That’s why when you buy a FOX aftermarket or race product, they all have the same look and feel.” According to Powers, FOX also develops shocks with racing rules in mind. “Some classes require certain types of shocks and a certain number of shocks which results in trying to develop shock packages that can achieve the maximum performance for those specific rules,” he added. “In the racing space FOX and/or the racer handles the tuning. In the AM space FOX handles the tuning.”

Q: When Jeep, Ford and Toyota come to FOX for suspension solutions for vehicles like the Mojave, Raptor and TRD Pro, how do you factor in performance and durability to handle road and off-road demands on the vehicle without compromising either?

“We offer the customer different technologies such as bump stops, Hydraulic Top Out (HTO), Bottom Out Cup (BOC), or Internal Bypass (IBP),” Powers said. “But in reality, it depends on what can package on the vehicle and what the customer is willing to change to accommodate the package. High-performance shocks require a lot of room on an OE vehicle which results in a space vs. performance trade off. We also have to take into consideration what the vehicle is capable of handling — from a shock force point of view.” “When we pitch and develop a performance package to an OE customer all these things are considered; once an agreed-upon target is achieved we start the process,” he added. “The main thing to take from all this is that the on- and off-road characteristics are dictated by the OE partner and require a lot of testing and development with those customers and their requirements in mind. Once a package is

designed, we put it through extensive protocols with our test department so that we adhere not only to the OE standards, but also our own internal standards for durability.” ght

Editor’s Note: We thank FOX Factory for their industry insight and contribution to this issue of DirtVenture.

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The 2021 All Terrain Concepts UTV Legends Championship concluded the weekend of Sept. 9 - 12, and the action was super-heated in more ways than one. Over 200 UTVs, Motorcycles, and Quads showed up to test their skills on the semi-short, super-tough 17-mile desert course set up near downtown Laughlin, Nevada, along the scenic Colorado River. The big news over the weekend of racing was the high temperatures. It was originally scheduled for back in March, when temps are ideal along the river. The All Terrain Concepts UTV Legends Championship was postponed until September due to Covid concerns back last spring.

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Story by Scot Harden Photos by Dirt Nation

By Scot Harden

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2021 ALL TERRAIN CONCEPTS UTV LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP Despite hot days with temperatures over 115 degrees, racers, fans, and staff had a great time watching the best in the industry go head-tohead for double points to go toward the coveted season-long Best In The Desert Series Class Championship. Since the event was ﬁlmed for an upcoming episode of the 2021 Best In The Desert Series on MAVTV, there was an added air of urgency to race hard to get valuable exposure for sponsors. The action kicked off Thursday afternoon with Time Trials for the UTV Turbo Pro and UTV Pro Open Class. Red Bull’s Mitch Guthrie let everybody know he was ready to race with the fast time of 3:24:828, followed by Bruce Binnquist, Ryan Piplic, and Dustin Jones. Top Pro Open was Mitch Alsup, ﬁnishing in ninth place overall. Racing started Friday afternoon with nearly 50 youth racers competing in the 4 Wheel Parts

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Youth UTV Series races. In Race 1, Chase Mankin took home the UTV Y 250 Modified class win over Kendall Hawks in 41:33:209. The kids put on quite the show! Jacob Williamson finished second overall and first in the UTV Y 170 Modified class in 42:53:654, followed by Wyatt Cotter and Landon Morrow. Cameron Leaming was the top in the UTV Y 170 stock class, followed by Dexter Warren just seven seconds back. Race 2 for the UTV Youth Classes was equally competitive, with Travis Sallee taking home the overall and UTV Y 570 Stock class win in 39:38:111. Travis was followed by Ryder Chapman and Jaxon Leaming in second and third place, respectively. Just two minutes separated the first three racers making for a tight and exciting spectacle. The UTV Y 1000/R Class, the day’s final race, was won by Kendall Hawks in 38:58:982, with Paxton Schendel and Travis Sallee rounding out the podium.

Chase Mankin #207 - 1st UTV Youth 250

Kendall Hawks - 1st UTV Youth 1000/R

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2021 ALL TERRAIN CONCEPTS UTV LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP Racing on Saturday got started very early at 6:30 A.M. and was fast, furious, hot, and dusty. Race one featured the motorcycle and quads and was a barn burner of a race with Jeff Trulove and Jeremy Newton on the N3 taking the Open Pro M/C Class followed by perennial favorites, N1 team Hayden Hintz and Trevor Hunter. The race for the series Open Pro Motorcycle Championship has come down to these two teams. Hayden Hintz/Trevor Hunter led for the first two laps before encountering fuel pump issues, letting the P7 Danny Cooper/Justin Wallis Over 30 Pro Team sneak by to lead briefly. In the end, the Trulove/Newton team ran a flawless race covering the 170 miles in 2:55:14, winning by 2:22 seconds over P7 Cooper/Wallis Over 30 Pro to take the overall win. Hintz/Hunter came back to salvage third place overall and second in the Open Pro Class ensuring the points race for the Open Pro

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Motorcycle Series Championship will go down to the ﬁnal race, the Cal City Desert Challenge near California City, CA, on Nov. 4 -7, 2021. Other class winners include the 399 Pro Class team of Taylor Stevens/Wyatt Brittner, Ironman Pro Class winner Jarret Curley, who ﬁnished a remarkable sixth place overall, and Quad Pro champs Josh Row and Robby Brockman, who came in an impressive seventh overall out of all entries. The Open Expert Class was won by Eric Holt/Damon Bush/Tyler Harvey, who seems to have a lock on this class. The Over 50 Expert team was won by Paul Palmer/Scott Stearns/ Darren Elliot, while Travis Dillon took the Ironman Expert Class in 3:11:44. The Women’s Class was a battle between the #W1 Kimberely Loppnow/ Gina Alvarez team and the #W15 Ashlee Gage/ Kari Erickson/Rebecca Stout team. In the end, Loppnow and Alvarez took home the win in 3:14:07. To round out the excitement, #420 Patti

Jeff Trulove & Jeremy Newton - 1st Open Pro Motorcycle

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2021 ALL TERRAIN CONCEPTS UTV LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP

Josh Row & Robby Brockman - 1st Quad Pro Blais soloed the “Black Betty” Honda quad to win the Quad Expert Class in 03:06:43, quite an accomplishment given the course’s extreme heat and rugged nature. Race two would feature the ultra-competitive UTV Rally Class, UTV Pure Stock, and UTV Sportsman classes. They would go six laps around the 17-mile course, getting rougher by the minute. In the end, #U987 Mikey Kelly came home with the overall and Rally Class win in 1:50:52. Coming home second place in yet another impressive race finish was the young Jack Olliges-led team, including Mike Bollig and Dustin Orth. The final step on the podium would be occupied by UFC Legend Donald Cerrone, who came home third in the Rally Class. The “Cowboy” has been steadily improving, each race quickly becoming a threat for the overall win in his first full season of racing. Ryan and Aaron Edwards won the UTV Pure Stock Class in 1:58:38, with the Daniel Cook-led U918 team taking second place. Honda-mounted Jamie Campbell rounded out the top three in Pure

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Stock. The UTV Sportsman Class was won by the #S944 team of David Payne/Ryan Morrison/ Clayton Winiecki in 1:59:41, which was good enough for fifth overall out of all entries. As the action heated up, so did the temperatures, with the afternoon races running at 118 degrees, creating a real challenge for man and machine. Race three got underway almost precisely on time and featured the UTV Unlimited, UTV Pro NA, and UTV RS1 NA Classes, and they did not disappoint. Defending BITD UTV Unlimited Series Champion, Michael Isom, came out on top of a dogfight for the Unlimited Class win just ahead of Michael McFayden and Chris Blais, barely one minute separating the top three in class. This class is entirely up for grabs for the final round of the 2021 BITD series at the Bluewater Desert Challenge. In Pro NA competition, Kawasaki’s Carson Wernimont and Reid Nordin proved once again why they are the cream of the crop in Pro NA competition taking home the class win over Jimmy Rodriguez and Richard Sain in

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2021 ALL TERRAIN CONCEPTS UTV LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP

a time of 2:30:24. First in the RS1 NA class and first overall in Race 3, went to Brayden Baker in a time of 2:27:32. Brayden was on the gas all day, finishing over seven minutes ahead of second-place RS1 NA finisher Johnathan McVay and three minutes up on Isom in second overall position. The final race of the day proved to be more than worth the wait. A talent-laden field of the fastest UTV Turbo Pro racers in the world lined up to claim bragging rights as UTV Legends Champion. Mitch Guthrie pulled the holeshot and led for the first four laps, but it didn’t come easy. Ryan Piplic, Dustin Jones, and a host of other Turbo Production racers were pressuring Mitch like a freight train. The Brett/Christian Sourapas team got caught up in a first-turn pile-up and had to work from a pretty big deficit, playing catch up all day. As the race entered the final laps,

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Guthrie, unfortunately, blew a shock causing him to fall back. From there, Ryan Piplic took over the lead with a very determined Dustin Jones hanging on to his tailpipe. This would go down to the final two laps until Jones lost his power steering, giving Piplic just enough cushion to sail home with the win. Sourapas, meanwhile, put in an impressive charge to come back to take third overall. Piplic’s winning time for eight laps around the super-tough Legends course was 2:19:35, followed by Jones in 2:20:21, and Sourapas in 2:21:42. Bruce Binnquist put in a great race as well, coming home fourth in 2:22:40. Fifth place overall and first in the Open Pro UTV division went to Mitch Alsup, finishing in 2:25:50. The weekend racing activities finished up with Sunday’s Short Course races which Brayden Baker won in a time of 46:18:928. Brayden took

Michael Isom - 1st UTV Unlimited

Ryan Piplic - 1st UTV Turbo

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Carson Wernimont - 1st UTV Pro N/A

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Photo by Miguel Santana

2021 ALL TERRAIN CONCEPTS UTV LEGENDS CHAMPIONSHIP home the UTV Production 1000 Class and the overall, with Jeremiah Wagner winning the UTV Production Turbo and ﬁnishing second overall. “Cowboy” Donald Cerrone put in another great race taking second place in UTV Production Turbo and third overall, just three minutes off the overall winning time. Ryan Prosser won the UTV Production 900 Class. “We couldn’t have asked for better racing at the All Terrain Concepts UTV Legends Championship,” said Best In The Desert CMO Bryan Folks. “Despite the extreme weather conditions, our racers proved why they are the best at what they do. We had minimum crashes and tip-overs, which speaks to our racers, and once again, we had a huge turnout for yet another Best In The Desert event. Things couldn’t be setting up any better with a number of supertight races for the Best In The Desert Series and Maxxis Triple Crown Championships for the ﬁnal

round for UTVs, Motorcycles, and Quads at the Bluewater Desert Challenge.” “What a great weekend of racing,” commented Best In The Desert Race Director, Jeff Phillips. “Things could not have gone smoother from an operations’ perspective. All our events ran on time, we had no major incidents or problems, and most important of all, everyone seemed to have a perfect time—especially our youth racers, who put on an amazing display of skill and sportsmanship. We look forward to coming back to Laughlin in just two weeks for the King Shocks Laughlin Desert Classic. Hopefully, we got some of the super high temperatures out of the way. Thanks to all my staff and the volunteers at Best In The Desert for working through such tough conditions. They are the true champions of off-road racing.”

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Justin Lofton - 1st Trick Truck Photo by Jason Zindroski, High Rev Photography

Story by Scot Harden The King Shocks Laughlin Desert Classic once again proved why it is one of the favorite events on the off-road racing calendar. Two full days of racing with double points going toward a Best In The Desert Series Class Championship, and an ultra-competitive 17-mile semi-short course, made for an exciting event for racers and spectators alike.

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2021 KING SHOCKS LAUGHLIN DESERT CLASSIC

Lofton, Jergensen, Baldwin Battle for Trick Truck Supremacy, Andrew Myers Takes Hard-Fought Class 6100 Win, McMullen Owns Class 6200, Berri wins 1500

Thursday Sept. 23, 2021, started fast with Time Trials for Trick Trucks and Classes 6100, 6200, 1000, and 1500. The star-studded ﬁelds came down to just a few seconds of separation to determine who would start on the front row come Saturday. In Group A, Conner McMullen took the all-important pole position after ﬁnishing with a 3:19 lap time in his Class 6200 truck over Sam Berri in his Class 1500 car just six seconds behind, Nick Carolan was right on Sam’s tail by a mere two seconds. Group B featured Class 6100

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with Jordan Brenthel setting the fast lap in 3:28 followed by Mavrick Gaunt and Andrew Myers, all separated by a single second giving a preview of how close the race would be on the weekend. The final Time Trials would be Group C featuring the Trick Trucks. Justin Lofton ended up taking the group in 3:18 with Harley Letner 4.8 seconds behind and Kyle Jergensen rounding out the top three finishers. BJ Baldwin, Tracy Graf, Adam Householder, Bill Apgood, and Steve Olliges made up the top eight qualifiers.

TE Motorsports’ Andrew Meyers earned the narrow victory in Class 6100 Photo by Jason Zindroski, High Rev Photography

Friday featured the Best In The Desert Event Expo which brought racers and fans together including a very special young fan named Kimber Johnson. 12-year-old Kimber is ﬁghting cancer and Best In The Desert set up a meet-and-greet with BJ Baldwin who took her on a special lap in his Trick Truck around the inﬁeld section. It was a very special moment for the racers, fans, and Kimber’s friends and family. Each day would feature four main events. Combined times over the two days of racing

would determine overall scores. Sportsman/8100 Class ran first which many teams used as practice for their main event. Patrick Whitt, Jr., in his Fusion-prepared truck finished his three laps in 59:42 to take the win with Preston Brigman and his team finishing second, and Bret Jeffers rounding out the podium. Race 2 featured a mix of classes with the Chris Schweers/Cody Gregory/Trevor Barkley/Jon Schweers team taking the overall finish and Class 5000 win in 1:10:59. Second overall went to Troy and Jack

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Chris Schweers - 1st Class 5000 Photo by Dirt Nation

Grabowski in their Class 5000 Car while third overall and first in Class 4700 went to the Andrew Hulse-led team in 1:16:12. Class 1700 belonged to Steve Palmieri and team, finishing three laps in 1:05:40 while Class 1200 was taken once again by Chad Hall in his Chevrolet Performance ride, proving what can be accomplished with a stock truck. Other class winners from Race 2 included Class 3700 winners, Chris Mortensen and Jerry Simonson, and Class 7300 winner, Melvin Wade who brought his Jeep home in 1:11:29. Many fans and racers were waiting for Race 3 to see what would happen in Class 6100. A field of 25 trucks competed, and, in the end, only 29 seconds separated first and fifth place after four laps of racing. Andrew Myers took the class glory

in 1:04:19 with Mavrick Gaunt, Dustin Grabowski, and Jordan Brenthel finishing second, third, and fourth place, respectively. Fifth place in this class went to new racer, Brent Fox, finishing in 1:04:48 proving the tight competition in this group. Race 4 on Saturday went to Class 6200 star, Conner McMullen in 1:03:52. McMullen led from the start, but Nick Carolan kept him honest finishing only 48 seconds behind in second place. Third place overall and first in Class 1500 went to race-veteran Sam Berri in 1:06:54. Class 1000 was a freight train of a race with vehicles literally battling it out bumper to bumper. Preston Brigman eked out a win over Bret Jeffers by a mere 23 seconds with Peter Hajas coming in third.

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2021 KING SHOCKS LAUGHLIN DESERT CLASSIC

Connor McMullen dominated Class 6200 for the weekend victory. Photo by Bink Designs

The fifth and final race of the day came down to the Trick Trucks with Justin Lofton starting on pole position. From the green flag on it was a race between Justin and Kyle Jergensen, Harley Letner, defending-champ Adam Householder, and BJ Baldwin. At the finish, only 22 seconds separated the top three with Lofton in the front with 1:01:20, Jergensen in 1:01:28, Letner in

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1:01:42, and Householder in 1:03:32. Despite their success on Saturday, every class winner knew the battle was only half over and it would take an equal or perhaps even better performance on Sunday to take the overall victory. While Saturday was ﬁlled with high-octane racing, it would be Sunday’s races that would put racers on the podium and the all-important points

that go along with it. Sunday started with the same format of races with the Sportsman/8100 Class ﬁrst. While many racers suffered DNFs, it was Preston Brigman who ended up taking the overall ﬁnish and Class win. Race two started strong with the Schweers team coming out and taking Class 5000 over Troy Grabowski and Zac Palmer. Finishing third

place overall but ﬁrst in the 4700 Class was Andrew Hulse with a time of 1:22:19. Finally, but certainly not least, was Chad Hall who came out on top again in Class 1200 ﬁnishing in 1:23:32. Other class winners of Race two included Melvin Wade repeating his win in Class 7300 and Chris Mortensen and Jerry Simonson who earned the Class 3700 win in 1:16:04.

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2021 KING SHOCKS LAUGHLIN DESERT CLASSIC How about a 100 MPH tandem jump for intense action! Jordan Brenthel and Dustin Grabowski run nose to tail over the Needles Highway road crossing. Photo by Jason Zindroski, High Rev Photography

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2021 KING SHOCKS LAUGHLIN DESERT CLASSIC

Preston Brigman - 1st Class 1000 Photo by Bink Designs

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Race three on Sunday was similar to Saturday’s competition with Andrew Myers going head-to-head with Jordan Brenthel, Dustin Grabowski, and Brent Fox to ultimately take the Class 6100 and overall win in 1:04:53. The final lap of the race saw Brenthel with a 20-second lead on combined time only to suffer from mechanical issues to put him out of the competition. In the end, the overall podium was led by Myers, followed by Grabowski and Fox. Race 4 featured Class 6200 with Connor McMullen again proving he is hard to beat, besting Nick Carolan in 1:02:17. In Class 1000 it was Bret Jeffers who came in first with a time of 1:10:21 beating Preston Brigman and Peter Hajas by seconds on the clock. However, when the combined scores were added, Briugman took home the overall win. Sam Berri took Class 1500 once again in 1:09:26 getting him that much closer to a Series Championship win. Sunday’s Race five was one to watch after Saturday’s heated competition. As the trucks went off the start line, it was Justin Lofton who burst through with the hole shot with Kyle Jergensen right on his tail pipe. Kevin Thompson took the wheel in the #1 Concrete Motorsports truck but unfortunately a roll-over in the infield section caused a defeating delay while his truck was righted. BJ Baldwin started behind Thompson and had to restart as a result but drove hard and fast to ultimately take the Trick Truck Class win in 1:02:33, six seconds ahead of the #AHBEEF Justin Lofton team. In the end, however, the combined scores put Justin Lofton first overall followed by Jergensen in second and Baldwin in third who made up for Saturday’s fifth place finish. Lofton commented, “It’s great to be back racing with Best In The Desert. This race is one of the best races of the year and I wouldn’t miss it. It’s great to bring the #AHBEEF #41 Trick Truck home for the win against such a stellar field.” “We couldn’t have asked for a better weekend of racing,” commented Best In the Desert CMO Bryan Folks. “The drivers loved the track and really enjoyed the racing format. The weather was perfect and the huge spectator turnout was much

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2021 KING SHOCKS LAUGHLIN DESERT CLASSIC

Sam Berri - 1st Class 1500 Photo by Dirt Nation

appreciated. The King Shocks Laughlin Desert Classic lived up to its billing as one of the most exciting races on the yearly calendar.” “There is something very special about racing at Laughlin,” stated Best In The Desert Race Operations Director Jeff Phillips. “The town as backdrop, the beautifully prepared infield section, and the banners and the crowds make for one amazing venue for off-road racing. Most of all our racers really enjoyed the experience. Without

question, every racer was pumped about the experience of racing at Laughlin. It was definitely another highlight of the 2021 race season. We look forward to seeing everyone in November at our all new season-ending Cal City Desert Challenge Brought to you By Fox at the Peralta Ranch in East Kern County, CA near California City.”

BJ Baldwin took the top Trick Truck spot on Sunday but had to settle for 3rd for the weekend on corrected time. Photo by Daniel Nobel

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BUZZ – the Social Media Update

Dean is seen here taking a break between race heats in the heat at the Laughlin Desert Classic

Dean Henthorn is Best In The Desert’s Social Media Manager. Dean hails from Scottsdale, AZ and is an avid off-road and adventure motorcyclist. His primary love without question is visual storytelling and he does a great job of doing just that. Dean’s main task at Best In The Desert is managing our social media platforms to best promote our series, our racers and our sponsors. To that extent he has been extremely focused on greatly expanding our live steam race coverage efforts on Facebook. Dean understands the tight community that surrounds off-road desert racing because it’s in his blood. We hope you enjoy his dedicated work and be sure to say hi to him at the races, or on line.

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After getting several races under our belt live streaming our events on Social media we are more than excited to keep growing this portion of our coverage. While we experimented a little with live stream during the Silver State 300 and had very positive feedback, the Vegas 2 Reno race is what really kicked it into high gear. Together with myself, Scot Harden, Nolan and Ashlee, we were able to find enough cell phone signal to stream from several locations out in the Nevada desert. While I am a bit biased, I think I get to claim the most fun as a core group of followers that dubbed ourselves the “Subaru Watch Party”. Streaming from Pit 7 - these hearty fans bantered back and forth with each other and kept me awake for the 22 hours as we waited for the Illinois Subaru to roll through. These watch partiers had me in stitches the entire event and fed me timing information and more from their computers until nearly 1:45 A.M. Besides the direct interaction I have with fans, the steaming gives people from all over the world the chance to see some of the racing action when they can’t physically be there. From Belgium to Australia and of course Baja Mexico, we have/had them all! So, a big shout out to all those BITD race fans who feed me facts and info during the races and contribute to the ever growing tribe of friends. Best In The Desert will definitely continue to live stream whenever possible, and as

TRENDING IN THE DUST

technology allows, in more and more locations. So, if for some reason you can’t make it to the next race, be sure to tune in on Facebook. You can also follow me on Instagram #deanhenthorn or on Facebook @deanhenthorn for still photography from the events.

Dean also keeps busy posting great up to the minute photos of the races on Facebook and Instagram

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Families Who Race Together at Best In The Desert Story by Mateja Lane Photos provided by Dirt Nation

The old adage is true that families who do an activity together, stay together. But families who race off-road together, often against one another, bring a new level of familial connection, collaboration, and enrichment. Best In The Desert is an off-road racing organization that was officially established in 1984 with the World Championship Hare and Hound and the Las Vegas 300 by renowned off-road competitor, Casey Folks. As participation grew over the years, racers started to include their families which led to an even closerknit atmosphere. By adding more events, expanding the vehicle classes able to compete, and a youth series, Best In The Desert became a place for the whole family and their vehicle of choice. After Casey Folk’s passing in 2017, his sons Bryan and Daryl Folks took the reins, further solidifying the commitment to family for both the organization and racers. Since 1984 there have been plenty of generations racing in different Best In The Desert events. From the O’Hara family to the Olliges’ to the Alsups to the Aguileras, these families have been great Best In The Desert supporters and continue to make the organization what it is today by bringing the whole clan to races. We caught up with some top names in their respective classes and talked about their families and who they compete with and often against!

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UNDER THE HELMET - FAMILIES WHO RACE TOGETHER

#T974 Randy Romo

THE ROMOS Randy Romo and his daughter Sierra have been racing in the UTV Pro Turbo Class in the Best In The Desert series for years now, against each other! The Romos have an ongoing joke that no matter what their starting positions are, they somehow always end up close in standing. At the 2021 Tensor Tire Parker 250 both started in the 30th positions, and yet Randy Romo ended in seventh place with Sierra right on his tail in eighth place, a mere 11 seconds behind. Even on the race course, they stay close. “It’s one of the best experiences of my life, to race against my daughter,” said Randy Romo. “Sierra is such a talented driver, especially in such a male-dominated field. To compete with her at such high levels is a privilege and truly a bonding experience. She’ll be 21 in September, and instead of going out with friends, she often wants to work on the vehicles with me!” Randy’s wife, Claudia, used to race as well but now watches her family rip around the desert while sharing a radio which comes with its own competition challenges. Randy will never forget

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the time at one of the Laughlin Desert Races when Sierra was ahead of him hitting some big whoops and getting some major air. Randy got on the radio to tell Sierra that she’d better slow down or her mom was going to kill her. Sierra complied only to see her dad’s #T974 red Polaris RZR fly by to finish ahead. She tends not to take her dad’s advice on the racecourse through the radio anymore. And while the competition is mostly fun and games, it is often nerve-wracking to see a family member push the limits. Sierra recalls being behind Randy at the Parker 250 and seeing him get a little out of control over the whoops and flying off the course. Sierra stopped and ran down the hill to see her dad being pulled from the UTV unconscious. But as soon as he came to, he yelled at Sierra to finish her race, and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. “It’s definitely tough to see my dad race as hard as he does sometimes,” said Sierra Romo. “I’m super protective of my parents so when my mom was racing with us it was extra hard, a blessing and a curse. I’m always wanting to help when my dad is having mechanical issues or

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UNDER THE HELMET - FAMILIES WHO RACE TOGETHER

#T991 Sierra Romo

gets in a crash. But I know I shouldn’t stop either because we are competing against one another!” When this article was written, the Romos were busy preparing for the 2021 Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox. Randy and Sierra had been testing the vehicles, pushing them to their max in the heat of the day and feeling more prepared than ever. When the race was finally held, both Sierra and Randy ran the entire distance on their own, which was an incredible feat! And when the dust settled it was Sierra besting dear old dad finishing 16th overall in 10:27:28 while dad finished 18th in class in 10:37:04. Just ten minutes apart after over 10 hours of racing goes to show just how competitive the Romo family is. Unfortunately, Sierra’s bragging rights as fastest UTV Turbo Pro racer in the Romo family didn’t last long as Randy came back to beat Sierra at the next Best In The Desert race, the All Terrain Concepts UTV Legends Championships finishing 6th in class compared to Sierra’s 18th place finish. One thing for sure you can bet Sierra is already gunning for Pops at the season ending race, The BlueWater Desert Challenge.

THE STOUTS

Rachel Stout on the podium after winning the Women M/C class at the 2021 World Hare and Hound. Photo by Scot Harden

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UNDER THE HELMET - FAMILIES WHO RACE TOGETHER

#W14 Rachel Stout Rebecca and Rachel Stout are two female motorcycle competitors relatively new to the off-roading scene and already making quite the splash. Rachel went pro at 17 years old and was the first female to win the prestigious 2021 World Hare and Hound Championship on May 21-23, 2021. The two sisters raced again on the same team again at the 2021 Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox with fellow female riders Ashlee Gage and Kari Erikson. Both Rebecca and Rachel had been riding their mountain bikes to prepare and learned a lot from last year’s race. “I was really nervous before last year’s Vegas to Reno. There was so much hype and everyone was just trying to prepare us. It actually wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be!” said Rebecca Stout. “I raced a bike I have never ridden before, a 150 four-stroke so that took a little getting used to.” “Last year’s V2R was super fun,” says Rachel Stout. “There were some super-fast sections and even though it was really long, it was really

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rewarding once you completed it. I’m excited to know the course a little better this year which will help us put our riders on the sections they’ll excel on.” The Stout sisters grew up riding dirt bikes with their family in the Utah mountains, spending their summers camping out and building trails. Their brother was the one who first decided to try his hand at racing and the sisters soon followed. The rest is history, and now everyone tries their best to balance work, play, and competitions! Even though Rebecca and Rachel rode on the same team at the 2021 Maxxis Tires “Casey Folks” Vegas to Reno Presented by Fox, and won their class in 10:12:28, they still compete by comparing times and mileage on their Strava apps. Rebecca won’t let Rachel forget she had a faster average speed at the Parker 250. With three years between the sisters, the competition is fierce and comes with a healthy amount of trash-talking before events. But in the end, they love racing with and against each other and hope to take their team to the podium come August 11, 2021.

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Bob Lofton’s Class 1500

THE LOFTONS Justin Lofton is a household name in the powersports community. Competing in nearly

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every type of driving competition from NASCAR Trucks to ARCA to the Baja 1000 to winning a slew of Best In The Desert events, Justin has done it all and has done it well. But he learned it

UNDER THE HELMET - FAMILIES WHO RACE TOGETHER

from somewhere! Justin’s father, Bob Lofton started racing in 1986 with his brother who owned an auto body shop in Brawley, California. The Lofton family grew up ripping around Placer City, a popular OHV area in Southern California; the Bud Light Dash races back in the day are fond memories. Justin learned a lot from his dad and his wealth of racing experience. He quickly caught on to how races play out, surpassing a steep learning curve around off-road racing. Justin won Best In The Desert’s 2020 Bluewater Desert Challenge and tends to prefer the two-day races. He also gets nostalgic remembering the old Henderson 250 which Best In The Desert last ran in 2015. The Lofton team

won that race three years in a row in their 1500 car. Racing with his family, even if it’s against his brother-in-law Wheeler Morgan, is something he loves. “Racing with, and against family is really fun,” says Justin. “You tend to hear a lot of people question why we do this, and spend so much time and money, but at the end of the day, it’s about sharing a passion and being supportive. It’s like, when you’re having a bad day you can cheer one another on and help out if needed.” The Loftons are taking a break from Best In The Desert events after racing hard all last year. They recently picked up a new All Wheel Drive Mason Truck and are building it out which is keeping the #AHBEEF team plenty busy.

Justin Lofton’s Trick Truck

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UNDER THE HELMET - FAMILIES WHO RACE TOGETHER

THE LEAMINGS The Leamings are a true off-roading family. Chris and Becky Leaming own XTC Power Products, an industry-leading manufacturer of accessory harnesses, turn signal systems, and power control systems for UTVs and other offroad vehicles. To say they live the lifestyle is an understatement. The Leaming family is out in the Arizona desert testing products and training with their children nearly every weekend. And their kids need to train to keep their racing momentum going! The youngest Leaming, Cameron, is 10 years old

4WheelParts Youth Series Event finishing 3rd in the 570Y class in fine style. This puts Jaxon in great shape heading into the final round at the BlueWater Desert Challenge in November. Of all the Leamings, however, all eyes are on 14-year-old Alexia. She’s currently in the running

#18Y Cameron Leaming

#66Y Jaxon Leaming

and on track to take the Best In The Desert 170Y Class Overall after only racing for a year. Jaxon Leaming is competing in the 570Y Class and though he DNF-ed at the Parker 250, he made up for it at the 2021 All Terrain Concepts UTV Legends Championship in the

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to take the 570Y Overall, won third overall in the 2020 youth series, and is consistently proving her merit as a competitive and super-tough racer. At the Parker 250 she went off the starting line in spectacular fashion, skimming sideways and rolling at least four times only to land upright and slam on the gas to finish the race. She’s hoping to go full desert in Class 1000 moving forward. Chris Leaming started racing BITD in 2017 and would bring his family to his events. Alexia, being his first-born, was always his sidekick, his co-driver. But once all his kids were old enough, they all started to compete themselves. Being

a motor-minded family like they are, everyone knows their vehicles inside and out. There are no plug-and-play operations in the Leaming household. “All my kids have their own toolboxes. They put in the hours and know that winning starts in the garage; they build their own cars, work on their cars, wash their cars, and take care of their cars. Cameron can pull out a transmission and he’s only 10 years old. Off-road racing definitely helps with their self-confidence and selfsufficiency. It’s really such a valuable experience for each of them and keeps us close as a family.”

There are plenty of families who have stayed loyal to Best In The Desert over the years. They know the Folks family and the Folks family has watched racers and their families progress and get closer to one another over the years. It’s a tight-knit community and a long and storied history runs through every BITD racers’ blood. Each race solidifies the bonds between competitors and the next generation. To welcome newcomers and their own families is always a joy for Best In The Desert staff and racing veterans.

#666Y Alexia Leaming

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FIRE! FIRE! FIRE! By David Nehrbass

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One of the most challenging hazards that can occur anytime in Off Road Racing is the threat of Fire. Fire can damage vehicles, damage the terrain we race in and above all, injure racers, crew members, and bystanders. It will never be eliminated; however, how each and everyone of us responds to it, can decide if it is a quick incident or a catastrophic event. The simple act of pulling over to change a tire can result in a fire from dried brush and exposure to hot vehicle parts. Recently in Laughlin, a racer lost a tire and was forced to pull over. Within seconds, a fire started from the dried brush. Flames quickly spread and were inside the race vehicle from underneath. Fortunately, quick recognition, and responsive actions put a small fire out quickly. In off-road motorsports, racers and crew are exposed to many different types of fire hazards. The most obvious is high octane race fuels. Fuel in the vehicle, drums and jugs to fill them with, and even the method of fuel delivery for fueling vehicles are just some of the hazards. A simple spark can take a normal race day and turn it into a burned car and trip to the hospital. In pit areas, every team at every pit even when not fueling a race car, should have someone devoted to fire safety during pit stops. If you don’t have the extra bodies, talk to those next to you and ask them to watch you and help protect you. While everyone is a competitor in the

SAFETY FIRST

desert, the camaraderie within off road should include be looking out for one another in the close confines of a designated pit. Fire Extinguishers should always be out, in good condition and ready to go. they should not be in a truck and certainly not in a box so they can be returned to the store after the race! While out on the course, fires can be even more threatening due to lack of resources, response times, and time to attack. When you are alone or with just a co-driver, proper use of your limited extinguishers can be critical. The most common extinguisher used in off road in the Dry Chemical extinguisher. Some teams also have Foam as well as CO2 extinguishers available. While all are effective on all fires experienced in off road, all can be ineffective if not used properly when a fire happens. Fighting every fire should always follow the

P.A.S.S. method. P – Pull the pin from the fire extinguisher. This may seem like a given but our teams have found many extinguishers with bent handles with the pins in place at fire scenes. Panic can cause someone to squeeze the handle and not activate the extinguisher. A – Aim the extinguisher. Point the nozzle at the base of the fire. A flame could be 10 feet in the air but the base is what is burning and needs to be extinguished. S – Squeeze the Handle. S – Sweep from side to side. This is where you make the difference. Sweep the base of the fire side to side making sure it is out before you stop discharging the agent onto the fire. 5lb fire extinguishers on most race vehicles have an effective range of around 15 feet for less than 14 seconds. The 2.5 extinguishers operate

SAFETY FIRST

for less than 10 seconds for about eight feet of effective use. Under BITD Rules, many fuel pits are required to carry and have ready 20lb fire extinguishers. These bigger units will discharge large quantities of agent in 20 seconds within 20 feet of a fire and have significant more fire knockdown capability. It should be noted that in all fire situations, regardless if it is in the pits or the open desert, the occupants of the vehicle should always be the first priority in any fire. Get them out and get them safe! Do not ever resume any normal pit duties until the fire and imminent threat have been eliminated. Fire protection and response has made substantial improvements in our sport the last several years. Together with better prevention, better protection and better response when something happens, we can make a difference in our sport.

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IN THE KNOW ALL ELECTRIC 2022 FORD F-150 Lightning F-Series, America’s best-selling truck for 44 years, charges into the future with the F-150 Lightning, elevated by all the advantages of electrification and packed with connected technology. F-150 Lightning is a powerhouse that delivers a targeted 563 horsepower and 775 lb.-ft. of torque – the most torque of any F-150 ever – an exhilarating drive, a high-tech frunk, and the ability to power your home if needed. The all-new, all-electric 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning is now available for ordering. It’s the first ever F-Series that’s gas-free and offers more purposeful technology, an elevated driving experience and trusted Built Ford Tough capability. More Information: https://www.Ford.com

FABTECH Leveling Kit for 2021 Ford Bronco Fabtech’s 2021 Ford Bronco 4WD Leveling Kit features CNC machined aluminum front billet spacers that work in conjunction with the factory Coilover shock assemblies. They are designed to bolt in without the disassembly of the factory coilover shocks for a fast installation. Fabtech engineers have established that the design of these billet spacers are at the maximum height without creating ball joint or tie rod bind when the suspension is cycling throughout the entire range of travel. This lift method retains the Bronco’s compliant smooth ride with additional front lift to help level and provide clearance for oversized tires. More Information: FabTechMotorsports.com

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VP UTV/ATV Synthetic 4-Cycle Engine Oil UTV/ATV Synthetic 4-Cycle Engine Oil is formulated to meet the unique demands of UTV/ATV machines. They deliver maximum engine protection and guaranteed performance with an emphasis on controlling engine temperatures and improving anti-corrosion and anti oxidation properties. UTV/ATV Synthetic 4-Cycle Engine Oils also provide outstanding cold-weather performance while delivering optimal engine protection at high operating temperatures. UTV/ATV Synthetic 4-Cycle Engine Oils are specifically engineered for UTV/ATV vehicles used in utility, recreational, agricultural and high-performance applications. Specially formulated for Can-Am® and Polaris® machines More Information: https://vpracingfuels.com

LoadMaster™ Bed Systems For Easy Access LoadMaster™ Bed Systems offer fully engineered cargo management solutions that are designed to provide easy access to stored cargo. With multiple designs for recreational and commercial applications, LoadMaster™ Bed Systems makes your pickup truck more efficient and versatile with a variety of sliding cargo management systems. Crafted from the finest materials, durable LoadMaster™ Bed Systems provide convenience and flexibility. Our products save you time and money by making your vehicle more accessible, safer transport for your tools and possessions, and more efficient. More Information: www.4LoadMaster.com

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IN THE KNOW SUPERWINCH SX10SR The SX10SR winch is engineered to provide users with the ideal combination of power, speed, innovation, and proven performance. Innovative features such as a patented drum light, relocatable die-cast aluminum control box, 3/8in diameter synthetic rope, and a 12ft lighted wired remote come standard. SX Series winches deliver an affordable and stylish design which incorporates many classleading features. Providing 10,000 lbs. of raw pulling power, the new SX10000SR synthetic rope model has a sleek modern look and is built to last. More Information: www.Superwinch.com

UEM DUALOY Diesel Pistons United Engine Machine is one of north America’s largest piston manufacturers. Their extensive line of Dualoy Diesel pistons, made specifically to stand up to the extreme demands of hard working diesel engines, are cast and machined in-house to maintain the highest level of quality and consistency. Made from two alloys, an aluminum casting with an iron top ring carrier bonded to improve strength of the top land and resistance to extreme heat. Many Apps Now Available in .010” DeStroked Compression Height for Decked Blocks. Available for most popular diesel light and mediumduty truck applications, and engine codes, including Cummins, Ford Powerstroke and GM Duramax. More Information: www.UEMpistons.com

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2021 SUMMER LINE IS NOW AVAILABLE! Show your love for the largest off-road racing series in North America. Turn heads with our well-known logo on a t-shirt or hoodie. Tell your friends or shop for a

gift that will be truly appreciated! There’s something for everyone in the Best In The Desert shop.

2021 CONTINGENCY PARTNERS

The Best In The Desert contingency programs are second to none with over $3,500,000 posted in cash awards, products, and gift certiﬁcates. We have a number of exciting, well-paying off-road racing contingency programs from a wide array of the industry’s top manufacturers for racers of all classes to take part in. Advanced Air Cleaner Aim Sports LLC http://aimsports.com Alumi Craft https://alumicraft.info/

F&L Racing Fuel www.racefuel.com

Howe Performance www.howeperformance.com

Figspeed www.figspeed.com

Jamar www.jamarperformance.com

Fluid Flow

KC Hilites www.kchilites.com

AutoMeter Contact Jim Conner Racing

Foddrill Motorsports www.foddrillmotorsports.com

Baja Designs www.bajadesigns.com

Fortin Racing www.fortinracing.com

BF Goodrich www.jacksonmg.com

Fox Racing www.ridefox.com

Bilstein www.bilstein.com/us/en

Fuel Off Road

Black Rhino www.blackrhinoperformance.com Camburg www.camburg.com CST Tires www.csttires.com/us Custom Metal Spinning www.custommetalspinning.com

G1 Products www.G1Products.com GBC Motorsports www.gbcmotorsports.com Geiser Brothers www.geiserbros.com General Tire www.generaltire.com

Dirt Bagz

Harmon Racing Cells www.harmonracingcells.com

Dougans Racing Engines www.dougansracing.com

Hostyle https://hostyleracing.com

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Kevin McMullen Fab www.kevinmcmullenracing.com King Shocks www.kingshocks.com KMC Wheels www.wheelpros.com Lightforce Lighting www.lightforce.com Maxima www.maximausa.com Maxxis Tires www.maxxis.com McKenzie’s Perf Products www.mckenzies.com Method Race Wheels www.methodracewheels.com Monster Seal www.monsterseal.com/

To learn more about speciﬁc requirements, browse our different Best In The Desert contingency programs. https://bitd.com/contingency-programs/ Interested in joining this prestigious list and becoming a Best In The Desert Contingency Sponsor? Email: Contingency@bitd.com MPI www.maxpapisinc.com MRT - MotoRaceTire www.motoracetire.com NEO Synthetic Oil www.neosyntheticoil.com Optima Batteries Contact Jim Conner Racing ORW www.offroadwarehouse.com Patton Racing Engines www.pattonracingengines.com PCI Race Radios www.pciraceradios.com PPM Performance Products www.ppmracingproducts.com Pro Eagle Off Road www.proeagle.com PRP Seats www.prpseats.com PSS www.powersteeringsolution.com R2C Performance Products www.r2cperformance.com Race Ready Products www.racereadyproducts.com

Raceline Wheels www.racelinewheels.com

SUNOCO Race Fuels www.sunocoracefuels.com

RDE Rancho Drivetrain Engine www.ranchodrivetrain.com

TENSOR Tire https://tensortire.com

Responsible Ice (Cell Chiller) https://responsibleice.com

TORCO Race Fuels www.torcoracefuel.net

Rugged Radios www.ruggedradios.com

Total Power Batteries www.totalpowerbatteries.com

Ryno Race wear www.rynoracewear.com

TrailReady products www.trbeadlocks.com

Savage UTV www.savageutv.com

UMP Unique Metal products www.uniquemetalproducts.com

Schampa https://schampa.com

UPR Racing Supply https://upr.com

SDHQ Motorsports.com www.sdhqoffroad.com

VISION Wheel www.visionwheel.com

SeeDevil https://www.seedevil.com

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SignPros www.signpros.com

VP Racing Fuels https://vpracingfuels.com

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WEDDLE Industries www.weddleindustries.com

Stuffsack https://stuffsack.com/

YOKOHOMA Tire www.tracksideperformance.com

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PHOTO CONTRIBUTORS Bink Designs Daniel Nobel Daniel Schenkelberg Dean Henthorn Digital Storm Dirtfocus Dirt Nation Jason Zindroski. HighRev Photography Motorsports Safety Solutions Photos by MMX RnR Photos Scot Harden

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Déjà vu - Bryce Menzies going for it all in his Trick Truck at the 2016 Vegas To Reno “The Long Way”. The two-day race that celebrated the 20th Anniversary of the event. Photo by Dirtfocus

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For info contact: Best In The Desert Racing Association

(702) 457-5775 • Website: www.bitd.com • Email: bitd@bitd.com

Best In The Desert Dirt Venture Q3 2021

Articles inside

IN THE KNOW - The Latest New Products

SAFETY FIRST - Fire! Fire! Fire

UNDER THE HELMET - Families Who Race Together

LAUGHLIN DESERT CLASSIC - Intense Action

VEGAS TO RENO - Motorcycles and Quads

TRENDING IN THE DUST - BITD Social Media Update

V2R LIVE BROADCAST - Behind the Scenes

A CLOSER LOOK - FOX Factory

VEGAS TO RENO - Cars, Trucks and UTVs

VIEW FROM THE RIDGE - Bryan Folks