1708 Express, Parker 425 ’09 Race Report
Saturday January 31th
The 1708 Express Racing Jeepspeed, sat lonely in the shop. Unprepped and in pieces
from its last DNF showing at the MORE Lucerne race. With no plans whatsoever to
make the opening round of the 2009 Jeepspeed Challenge and the Parker 425. Team
mates Eric Helgeson and Michael Slater, along with better halves, Denise Richards and
Jennifer Slater, reluctantly decided to attend the 2008 Jeepspeed awards banquet.
Although our own 2009 season was in question, we still wanted to help celebrate the
successes of our friends and competitors.
That fateful decision to attend the banquet would be just the beginning of our good
fortune. Little did we know, our own successes would be celebrated in just one week.
For the banquet raffle, Goodyear Tires was giving away a very generous 20 tire
sponsorship program to a lucky Jeepspeed team. What a huge boost that would be to the
team that would win. Could we win it? Could we be that lucky?
Having always raced on BFG, we were secretly hoping our number would be picked. I
wasn’t surprised when someone else shouted out “we won!” What did surprise me was
that it was Patrick Smith, one of Jon Krelwitz co-drivers on the 3797 ATK Engines team.
With their commitment to another tire brand, they showed great sportsmanship, which we
have all come to know, and kindly removed their name from the drawing to allow another
team the opportunity to win. THANK YOU PAT, JON AND CREW !!!
We still had a chance… “WE’RE THE NEW GOODYEAR GUYS” I screamed as I
realized ours was the number just read. The 1708 Express Racing Jeepspeed was now
going to change brands and fly the Goodyear flag.
THANK YOU GOODYEAR TIRES !!!
…but now what? We hadn’t touched the car in months and had no plans or budget to get
the car to Parker. With only 5 days to get ready. The decision was made that night.
LETS GO FOR IT !!! We were on a mission…
Monday February 2nd
A plan was put in motion. We would only make the repairs necessary to get the car
running and complete as much prep as time would allow. All we wanted to do was get
there and try to finish.
Tuesday February 3rd.
Tuesday afternoon was spent gathering parts. Thank you Mike and Tom Barnett of T&J
Performance Center and Barnett Performance Products for all your help with input on the
driveline issues and orchestrating the Goodyear deal. You guys are awesome!!!
Tony Sato would then meet Mike and I at the shop after work to measure for a new driveshaft and evaluate the other front-end issues. Turns out it was not a pretty sight. A missed front end set up the previous prep had caused some fairly major cracking in the engine cage and passenger side shock mounts. In addition, we were only guessing at what was causing our driveline issues and how to remedy them. We were going to have to repair and set up the complete front end. Replace the driveshaft and rear spring packs, then hope and pray, we had our work cut out for us.
Wednesday February 4th Wednesday brought more bad news. Mike Slater, our chief mechanic and co-driver, after dealing with a family tragedy the prior week, had simply run out of gas and was violently ill. After getting the news he was in the hospital on his second IV bag, we new he needed rest and would not be able to help prep the car… we would all press on. Wednesday was one of those long nights in the shop we are all familiar with. I’m not sure how we did it. But almost everything on the repair and prep list was completed. With only a few items left that only Mike could complete. We left the car for the night, hoping he would feel better the next day.
Thursday February 5th With our daily lives getting in the way we were falling behind our very ambitious schedule. Mike, still sick as a dog, stepped up and finished the car. Eric wrapped up all the other prep and logistic issues. Our newly mounted Goodyear tires on the car. We fired her up. Fresh with a new motivation we hadn’t had in some time. She was ready to race.
Friday February 6th 4am. loaded and ready to go. Team Express and the 1708 Jeepspeed left Long Beach on a mission… until the 22nd st exit on highway 10 that is. When suddenly there was a thud. The toy hauler had blown a tire. Over an hour later, changing a trailer tire in pouring rain conditions on the side of the road, we we’re back on our way. With a smile on my face “at least we got the flat tire out of the way”. The gremlins struck again, with only 25 miles left to Parker, in our haste to make up time, we realized we didn’t fuel up in Indio. We were out of fuel on the side of the road, Parker in our sights. Teammate, radio guy, and remote pit captain, Chris “Applegate” Haynes to the rescue. With 10 gallons of fuel on board we were finally going to make it to Parker. Hopefully with all our race gremlins out of the way.
Contingency was fairly uneventful, with the exception of meeting with the Goodyear tire execs Jack and Doug. Thank you again for your support and welcoming us to the “Goodyear” family. We will represent you proudly.
Race Day February 7th Awakened to the threat of a rainy day, Race Day was finally here and we were ready. Although things would be drastically different in the car this time. Mike Slater, still not feeling 100%, gave up his co-driver seat for the good of the team, not wanting to be a liability should things get tough out there. Mike is a huge part of the success of 1708 and team Express. His co-driving skills are unmatched. We would have to make adjustments. Enter Tony Sato of Sato Bros Racing. He would do his best to fill in Mikes shoes and co drive with Eric Helgeson at the wheel. Not a bad replacement since Tony has helped engineer and construct the “Trophy” jeep that is 1708.
At the starting line, scheduled to be last of 20 Jeepspeeds off the line. Our Strategy was simple. To finish first, you must first finish.
With no test time on our un-prepped race car with front end set up changes and repairs, new untested driveshaft and driveline angles as well as a brand new Deaver rear spring packs we were off the line, last of all Jeepspeeds entered.
Before we even got off the pavement I had that special feeling. We were passing the first Jeepspeed in front of us and the car was perfect. No vibrations, we were good to go.
With spectators cheering us on, passing Jeepspeeds and other classes one after the other, RM 18 and the bridge crossing brought us to our senses. This was not the pace we had strategized, and we started to ratchet it back. A funny thing was happening though. As we were diving a comfortable pace, never hurting the car, we were still catching and passing people. Our new Goodyear tires were hooking up perfectly in the loose sand, silt and mud. Areas that in ’08 were killing us with our previous tires. King Shocks, Deaver Springs and Currie Enterprises 9” rear end doing there jobs keeping them on the ground.
We pulled in at Midway pit RM 91 for a quick gas and go. We were the 3rd Jeepspeed through with the 1706, and 1717 cars in front of us. We had passed 17 Jeepspeeds as well as countless other vehicles in the first 91 miles. We were 3rd on course but 1st on corrected time. With the rain now falling, this gave us motivation to step it up. Could we catch and pass all of the Jeepspeeds on the first lap and be the first on course through the gauntlet and main pit. We were on a mission now and we were going to give it everything we had.
The Yellow 1717, Fellow Goodyear driver, Eric Heiden was now in our sights. Putting body and vehicle into overdrive, Goodyear vs. Goodyear, we made the move and put on a clean competitive pass. Watching our rear mirrors for an attempt at getting passed back, we began putting time and distance on the 1717.
One more to go… the 1706 Dust Junkie team with Scott Hartman at the wheel, always fast and hard to pass was still ahead of us. Rain was now a major factor and the mud was getting deeper and deeper. As our lucky day would have it, on a hard packed trail, with no dust due to the rain, there they were. We were able to suck up to their bumper; hitting the horn to let them know we were there… the battle was on. After a mile or so of high speeds trying to get by, we decided to give them a little kiss and some motivation to let us go. We made the pass, only to find ourselves in the next mud bog. As well as the Goodyear tires were performing, our 2-wheel drive was no match for the 1706 and their 4-wheel drive in the mud. We were quickly passed back. The battle continued in the mud for the next few miles until, I’ve been told; they started having electrical issues due to the weather. The final pass was made. (Sorry guys, it would have been great racing you through the gauntlet) We had achieved what we didn’t think was possible; from last starter to first car in main pit. We had passed all of the Jeepspeed cars on the first lap. Now we had a new challenge SURVIVAL!
As we fueled at main pit, knowing we were now first on course. Our new strategy was to run a good steady pace, keep the jeep together and if we saw any other Jeepspeeds, we would let them go, keep them in sight and win on corrected time.
Mother nature now had a curve ball she would throw us. Some of the wettest, muddiest, coldest, nastiest race conditions one could ever imagine. Our little 2wheel drive Jeepspeed, lightest in class at approx 3900lbs handled everything that mother nature had to offer. Our new Goodyear tires performed flawlessly with the power being put to the ground with our King Shocks, Deaver Springs and Currie rear end working overtime. Passing other vehicles, some 4wheel drive and non Goodyear tires through mud bogs 3 feet deep. Never getting stuck once.
Making time on our competitors, doing almost 80mph on a graded road in the pouring rain, soaking wet. I looked over at my co driver and said, “This is the most fun I have ever had”… It was at that immediate moment when the Baldwin TT passed with only inches between us at what had to be over 120mph. Apparently BJ was having more fun than me…
Gassing up at midway for the final time, I reminded my team to let me know when the next Jeepspeed came through. We never heard back from them. By the time the 1717 came through we were too far out of radio range.
With approximately 40 miles to go we heard a crackling over the radio. Guys you can back off now, you have a (static) min lead. What did she say? “I think she just said we have a 14 minute lead” “not enough” I told Tony. Tell her we’re gonna keep charging… “No… you have a forty, 4. 0. minute lead on second place now” “Back it off.” The radio said. We knew it was ours, all we had to do was bring it home.
The last 30 miles are hard to explain. Running at only about 75% in some of the nastiest carnage you could imagine. I was physically the most miserable I think I have ever been. Cold, muddy, wet, hands frozen, yet I was having the time of my life. Reflecting on my day, the wet muddy carnage we were conquering, what we had gone through to even make it to the race, and the fact that we were finally going to be on top of the podium. I couldn’t wait to see my friends and family at the finish line to celebrate.
Mission Accomplished !!!
Not only was this our first win in class, but it was also an overall win for all 2 lap classes.
A special accomplishment knowing the hell we had just been through that was the Parker
“Mud Bog” ’09.
Words can’t express the thanks we owe to all who helped make this possible;
Our Family,
Denise and Jennifer, Thank you for loving the dirt as much as us and understanding
those long nights in the shop.
My Girls, Brittney, Megan, Devan and Daylee. Thank you for always being at the finish
line waiting for us, always proud, no matter where we finish.
Our Friends and Crew, Chris Haynes, Chris Nissley, Keith Sato. This is as much your
win as ours and we couldn’t have done it without you.
Tony Sato, Dude… way to fill the shoes, Thanks for hanging in there with me.
Thank you, Ray Griffith and the 1714 crew for letting us pit next to them. It’s a blast
racing against someone you can truly call a friend.
The 1788 Hostyl Motorsports crew, Bryan and Jessie. Thanks for your support. Your
cans were much appreciated.
And our Sponsors.
Please support these companies and their products as they support us !!!
T&J Performance Center, Barnett Performance Products, Currie Enterprises, Deaver
Springs, King Shocks, Twisted Stitch Seats, DSO Eye Wear, Anaheim Gear, O.C.
Driveline, Buna Photo
And
GOODYEAR TIRES !!!
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
February 15th, 2009
Team ATK wins the Parker 425
We had a great race at the 2009 Best In The Desert Blue Water Resorts Parker 425 in Parker, Arizona. Last season we won the Jeepspeed unlimited class championship but ended on a bit of a sour note with a wreck at the final race in Henderson, Nevada. That left us with a busy off season and with much preparation to get the ATK Wrangler back in race trim for this seasons first race in Parker. The team all pulled together with massive efforts put in by Skyler Gambrell, Matt McCallum, and Patrick Smith to get the race truck back in top form; and for good reason, as the Parker race turned out to be one of the more challenging races in recent off-road history.
As always, the Best in the Desert (BITD) technical inspection the day before the race was well organized and professional (BITD always puts on a great event). It looked like Saturday was going to be the perfect day for off-road racing: cool weather, a light breeze, and only a few distant clouds on the horizon. Race morning proved interesting. The team and I were up at 5:30am to get ready and be at the staging area by 6:30am. I got all suited up in my race gear, walked out the door of my hotel room, and to my surprise, the off-road racing legend Ivan “The Ironman” Stewart was standing at the bottom of the stairs. Unable to ignore the steady drizzle or pass up the opportunity to talk to the legend, I said, “Good morning Ivan, any advice for racing in the rain?” His advice was, “Lots of Rain-x, and if it gets really bad, cut a hole in the bottom of a trash bag and put it over your head.” It was practical advice, as the the day would later prove, and luckily my top dog co-driver Skyler Gambrell came prepared as always, rain-x and rain parkas in hand. So with a final, “good luck,” from Ivan, the team and I were off to staging in down town Parker.
We were number two off the line with a total of four vehicles in our class. First off was young Jeepspeed racer and Parker local, Chase Rather. Third behind us was 2007 Jeepspeed Unlimited champ Mike Barnett in his big V8 powered Jeep J10 followed by Greg Jackson in his V8 powered Cherokee. The morning drizzle subsided for the start and at 8:30 am, with the sun shining down on us, it was looking like it might be a beautiful day for racing. The ATK Wrangler felt pretty good as we passed Chase Rather a couple of miles into the race. Just after we passed Chase, however, we bottomed out the truck and started hearing an occasional knocking in the front end. The truck still felt manageable and we were steadily picking our way through the slower mini trucks that were in front of us, so we decided to keep on going and have it checked out at our scheduled fuel splash pit at Midway (race mile 90). Aside from the front end knock and mildly funky handling, the ATK Wrangler was performing great. The Currie 4WD axles and ATK stroker motor really made it easy in the tough Parker sand washes.
We stopped at our Midway fuel splash pit where Fabtech Motorsports crew Kris Hernandez and Chris Amrein fueled us and looked over the truck. Amrein noticed that a c-clip had popped out of one of our front suspension links which accounted for our front end clunk. The decision was made to re-install the c-clip, which required complete removal of the front link. The Fabtech crew worked quickly and got us fixed and back underway in about 15 minutes. The truck handled considerably better with the front suspension bushing working properly. Not long after we got back underway from our Midway pit, however, the skies opened up and thus began the 6 hours of torrential downpour that turned the Parker 425 into the Parker ‘Mud Bog’ 425. At first it was kind of fun to race in the rain – a different adventure of sorts – but the novelty wore off quickly when things began to get very cold, and visibility became extremely difficult. We had about 50 miles to go from the Midway pit to the start of the infamous Parker Python, a 9 mile infield section filled with jumps, turns, and berms to put on a show for the pit crews and spectators around the main pit area. No one had accounted for this much rain, and the course was quickly turning into a giant mud pit. With our 4WD we got through it without issue, though I can't say the same for many others as I heard some stories of other teams getting stuck or lost in the python for hours. The Fabtech Motorsports Crew pitted us at main with 30 gallons of fuel and installed our new KC HID light bar. Skyler and I were already soaked to the bone at this point, but we decided to put on our rain parkas while the truck was fueled and the light bar installed to try and keep us from getting soaked further.
Lap two proved to be very memorable, with my hands locking up from the cold, and my visor fogging up due to condensation. I drove large portions of the lap with my visor up, hoping to close it in time to avoid the water and mud splashing up through the windshield as we drove though seemingly countless mud puddles. We made a quick stop at pit 1 where crew members Russ Ficker and Jeremy Rice gave us some fresh rags for our visors and a new pair of gloves for me. Midway pit at mile 90 where we stopped to take on fuel looked like the aftermath of a war zone. There were no smiling faces, and people were huddled together in muddy brown clusters under ez-ups in the pouring rain. The faithful Fabtech crew was there to fuel us, look the truck over, and offer some encouraging words to get us to the finish line.
At mile 126 my old racing partner, Jason LaFortune was pulled over on the side of the road in a class 10 (unlimited suspension, limited motor buggy) and waved us over. His cv joints were going out, but he thought they would probably hold up to the finish, and he asked if I would follow behind him in case he didn't make it. Jason was clicking along at a good pace, not holding us up until a half mile from the finish where spectators diverted the course through a nasty mud hole. We came around the turn and Jason was buried in the mud hole. With no other option, I gassed it in an attempt to punt him out of the hole, and we both ended up stuck. Luckily, the best in the desert official was quickly on hand to pull us both out, but due to electrical problems from the water, Jason's buggy wouldn't start. We hooked up the tow rope, but the mud was too deep, breaking the rope, so we turned around and pushed him to the finish using our front bumper. It was a memorable finish to a memorable race. This years parker was one for the history books with an incredibly low 27% finish rate for all race competitors to mark its toughness, by comparison most Baja 1000 finish rates are in the 60-70% range.
Once again a huge thank you to my team and to all my supporters that continue to make TEAM ATK a success.
Jon Krellwitz
TEAM ATK
Sponsors:
ATK Engines - Redlands Auto Center - Currie Enterprises - KC Lights - BFG Tires - JE Reel Drivelines - Advanced Engine Management (AEM) - Howe Steering - King Shocks - Beard Seats - Harmon Racing Cells - Full Traction Suspension - PWR - American Racing Wheels - Borla Exhaust - RDM Offroad
Team ATK:
Jon Krellwitz - Matt McCallum - Skyler Gambrell - Patrick Smith - Adam Butterfield - Kris Hernandez - Russ Ficker - Chris Amrein - Greg Soaper - Christa Blazina - Amanda McCallum - Erin Ficker
