Off-RoadWeb Homepage Off-Road
Facebook Newsletter

2011 Jeep JK Wrangler KOH Race - VIN Plate Racing, Part 2

The Hardest 120 Miles of Your Life

By , Photography by Agustin Jimenez, , , Kha Ly, Poison Spyder
2011 Jeep Jk Wrangler Rear Double Throwdown Suspension

Day Before The Race

  • By Contingency (inspection before the race), the Jeep JK was ready to meet race criteria. As per Ultra-4 racing rules, a 2-inch rollcage was installed into the Jeep, as well as window nets and a fuel cell.
    By Contingency (inspection before the race), the Jeep JK was ready to meet race criteria.
  • Poison Spyder outfitted the JK Wrangler with its best body protection, and the EVO suspension allowed the Currie axles to twist through the worst of the trails and still run the fast sections smoothly.
    Poison Spyder outfitted the JK Wrangler with its best body protection, and the EVO suspens
  • Poison Spyder, along with the help of the pit and support crews of Lawrence Equipment and Tribe 4x4, scrambled to make the last minute touches on the vehicle before the race. Even John from sPOD came over to wire in two different units to control the Rigid Industries Edge LED light bar and other auxiliary equipment on the Jeep.
    Poison Spyder, along with the help of the pit and support crews of Lawrence Equipment and

Race Day
The race started early in the morning, with the cars lining up side by side, taking off two at a time from the starting line. The weighted-down race Wrangler was gutless in the high-speed sections, but we were taking the tortoise’s approach of slow and steady. If we could finish the race, it would be a win for us since it would be the first full-bodied vehicle to finish the King of the Hammers.

Everything was going smoothly until we hit some bad traffic on the Outer Limits trail where a buggy had rolled and there was a bottleneck of more than 30 vehicles. Once we were through Outer Limits (the first time), we continued on our way until we came down a waterfall on the Wrecking Ball trail where the Wrangler did a nose stand and started to pivot sideways. I said to Larry, “Man, too bad, we were doing pretty well, too.” I thought it was over (literally). The JK was heading over lid first when gravity decided to be kind and let us touch a rear tire to the side of the waterfall. Larry carefully maneuvered the JK back onto all four wheels (which is much easier to say than was to actually do) and we continued on until we started to lose the power steering box. Larry and I removed the hydraulic-assist ram from the tie rod and plugged the PSC steering box, hoping that would solve the problem. At the next pit, the support crew furiously worked to rip off the box and replace it with a new one in time to get back into the race.

We were back on track, a few miles from starting the final lap, when I decided to start fiddling with the radio and my belts while we were banging through some of the smaller rocks at about 20 mph. Big mistake. I started to get nauseous—and if you’ve ever had that happen before, then you know it’s a feeling that doesn’t go away quickly. Larry heard me starting to yawn over the helmet com (a natural upchuck suppressant) and asked if everything was all right. Of course, I answered, “No worries, everything is great.” About five minutes later, I made the call: With the nausea I might be a real detriment to Larry and the race effort if he needed me for something and I was possibly too sick to perform my duties. I called ahead on the radio and made sure Shad Kennedy was ready to jump in the Wrangler when we passed the next pit.

My race was over, but the Jeep was still running strong. I chased the Jeep with Lawrence Equipment and Tribe 4x4 for the rest of the night, until a fateful call came through at about 10 p.m. The race Wrangler had made it three quarters of the way through the King of the Hammers race, but a final blow came when the rear Dana 60 ring-and-pinion gears broke in Outer Limits during the second pass. It was disappointing after all the effort everyone put in, but that is the way racing often goes.

In my opinion, we definitely proved that a full-bodied vehicle can successfully race the King of the Hammers. Even though ours broke and didn’t finish, it was a common break that happened to many other buggies with the same axles. The rest of the full-bodied Wrangler survived excellently (thanks to Larry McRae’s driving), and I think it was undeniable proof that a full-bodied vehicle will soon finish a King of the Hammers race.

Sources
Power Tank
2214 Babson Dr.
Elk Grove
CA  95758
209-366-2163
www.powertank.com
EVO MFG.
N/A
AK
714-870-5515
www.evomfg.com
PRP Seats
41543 Cherry Street
Murrieta
CA  1-951-894-
http://www.prpseats.com/
Warn
12900 S.E. Capps Road
Clackamas
OR  97015
800-543-9276
www.warn.com
Sure Click
PO Box 95603 #82774
Washington DC  20090
1-202-349-9620
http://www.sureclick.com/
Currie Enterprises
1480 North Tustin Avenue
Anaheim
CA  92807
714-367-2685
www.currieenterprises.com
Griffin Thermal Products
100 Hurricane Creek Rd.
Piedmont
SC  29611
864-845-5000
Raceline Wheels
12300 Edison Way
Garden Grove
CA  92841
714-893-4160
www.racelinewheels.com
Desert Concepts
P O Box 1182
Twin Peaks
CA  92391
909-366-8066
www.kingofthehammers.com
Poison Spyder Customs
47275 Twin Pines Rd.
Banning
CA  92220
951-849-5911
www.poisonspyder.com
Avenger Superchargers
4712 Austin Bluffs Parkway
Colorado Springs
CO  80918
http://www.avengersuperchargers.
com/
Alltech Motorsports
CA
1-951-970-3399
http://www.alltechmotorsports.co
m/
sPOD
661-755-8139
www.4x4s-pod.com
Rugged Radios
3621 Sacramento Drive #1
San Luis Obispo
CA  93401
1-888-541-7223
http://www.ruggedradios.com/
Lawrence Equipment
2034 North Peck Road
South El. Monte
CA  91733
1-800-423-4500
http://www.lawrenceequipment.com
/
Roark Fab Works
187 Country Oaks Ln
Olive Hill
KY
1-606-286-0681
http://www.roarkfabrication.com/
X-Graphix
10431 Commerce Street
Suite B
Redlands
CA  92374
1-888-472-7449
http://www.xgraphix.net/
Dominion Performance
P.O. Box 418
2537-D Pacific Coast Hwy
Torrance
CA  90505
818-709-4794
Dynomax
Monroe
MI
734-384-7806
www.dynomax.com
First Place Powder Coating
1177 West Lincoln St. #300
Banning
CA  92220
951-849-1279
www.firstplacepowdercoating.com
BFGoodrich Tires
P.O. Box 19001
Greenville
SC  29602
877-788-8899
www.bfgoodrichtires.com
High Angle Driveline
7245 Clark Road
Paradise
CA  95969
1-530-877-2875
http://www.highangledriveline.co
m/
King Shocks
12842 Joy Street
Garden Grove
CA  92840
714-530-8701
www.kingshocks.com
Tribe 4x4
502 Alvord Ave
Fort Worth
TX  76111
1-817-343-4551
http://www.tribe4x4.com/
ARB USA
720 SW 34th Street
Renton
WA  98057
866-293-9078
www.arbusa.com
Patton's Metal Working Solutions
1095 E. California St.
P.O. Box 273
Ontario
CA  91761
800-792-9762
www.pattonscorp.com
P.C.I Race Radios
2888 Gundry Ave
Signal Hill
CA  90755
1-800-869-5636
http://www.pciraceradios.com/
G&J Aircraft
1115 S. Sultana Ave.
Ontario
CA  91761
909-986-6543
www.gandjaircraft.net
PSC Motorsports
11468 FM 730 South
Azle
TX  76020
817-270-0102
www.pscmotorsports.com
Rigid Industries
2630 N Ogden Road
Suite 101
Mesa
AZ  85215
480-655-0100
www.rigidindustries.com
Enjoyed this Post? Subscribe to our RSS Feed, or use your favorite social media to recommend us to friends and colleagues!

*Please enter your username

*Please enter your password

*Please enter your comments
Comments:
Not Registered?Signup Here
(1024 character limit)
Off-Road