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UROC SuperCrawl IV Scores
UROC Information:
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2005 Pro Series Standings
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UROC SuperCrawl 2005 Running Order
Update
10:00 AM PST
I can't believe it is that time again. It's time for the coveted SuperCrawl event. This year SuperCrawl IV is in Sin City. That's right; it's Viva Las Vegas for us. With an average of over 37 million people visiting Las Vegas each year, you can bet your last dollar that this will be a great turn out, and why not with it sitting back to back with the SEMA show at the Convention Center. UROC is not holding back and bringing the action where the action lives and we will be there to bring it all to you. Gates open at 4:30 and the event runs from 5:00 PM to Midnight each night.
We arrived at the event site, the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC), and started to take it all in. Perched outside the LVCC on top of the parking log with Las Vegas city lights as the back drop, you can really see how far the sport has come and we are excited to be here to watch it all. There is a reality buzz when you see a buggy perched for inspection then watch of the many trams roll by several feet above all while the sky changes color from the glistening lights. Now this is what Vegas was missing and that is a great rock crawling event like this.
So let’s get started. We started by getting our media badges and almost immediately we started to meet up with drivers, spotter, officials, and everyone else that make this event go. We first ran into Joel Randall in line and he appeared enthusiastic for the event. He will be running his same rig that he ran the last couple years which will be an advantage over people running unfamiliar rigs.
The buzz was abound by the site of Jennifer Little’s newest ride. Her new ~3400 lb. buggy was yet another step up to new wave trend plate. She and Todd took a new approach on a couple things. First to be seen is the mounting method for the front air springs. Instead of your traditional vertical mounting from the axle to the chassis as seen on most buggies, they mounted them from the chassis to cantilever setup. From the cantilever it then mounts to the axle via a short heim ended rod. The setup has about a 1.5:1 bias on the pivot so that the motion isn’t proportional. By moving the mounts up and down on the arm, they can really dial in the motion of their suspension. The second benefit to this is a lower profile. Though very little, this lowers the weight down on the vehicle just a little bit more and we all know every bit of lower center of gravity (CG) advantage is golden on these courses. Yet a third advantage to this setup is survival of the springs. In case she is capable of flipping the rig on to its hood, the longer springs normally used are no longer in a precarious location prone to be damaged. So just on her front end alone, she gained several benefits.
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| Jennifer and Todd's newest creation with a cantilevered front suspension |
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I then walked around back and then thought, “
Jennifer, what are you doing? Your suspension link is only an inch away from your exhaust. How in the world is it not going to hit?” Boy did I feel dumb once I asked her and she pointed out the subtle mounting difference of her motor tranny and t-case. Instead of a chassis mounted drivetrain, it’s all mounted on the top A-link of the suspension. Similar yet very different from what we saw on Curt Hildebrand single pivot rig where his whole front end is solid (axle, motor, chassis, driver’s compartment), Jennifer just left it as the drivetrain only while maintaining traditional linked chassis designs. Jennifer smiled as she only had a few hours of drive time on the new buggy which was non-competition time. She was all smiles because the differences between old and new are night and day. She loves it and can’t wait until the event begins to really put it to the test. Good luck to Jennifer and Todd in their newest addition to the buggy world. Watch out for Bob Standage though, I believe I saw him eyeing parts off of your rig.
Speaking of Bob Standage of the Lucas Oil moon buggy, the flames just got hotter under this ride as Lance Clifford is spotting for him at this event. Lance has been spotting successfully for years with Mike Shaffer and knows how to move a rig around and make a team win. Lance and Bob will make one incredible team as well because Bob really knows how to handle his rig. With multiple events under his belt now on the buggy, Bob should really have it dialed for this weekend.
Now what about Mike Shaffer? Mike looks to be taking a break from competitions to get back to what we all love, the roots of the sport. We are talking trail riding. Many complaints from the drivers and spotters I here are that they never go trail riding anymore or not enough to their liking. So Mike will be taking that much anticipated break from rock racing to get back out amongst the best nature wheeling trails. Mikey will be competing this weekend, but will most likely be taking the spotter’s position on his rig. He will be passing driving duties off to his friend who will be driving in next year’s competition. Mike was still undecided at the time of the tech-in, if he would be driving or not, but he was leaning more towards the spotter position.
Guess who just pulled in the first OEM manufacturer’s sponsorship? Brad and Roger Lovell have been driving a vintage Ford Ranger body rig and now have the backing from Ford for next season. This is huge. The blue oval will be worn proudly on a new set of skins for the rig when they sport a more modern Ford fiberglass body. They couldn’t have gotten this far though without the support of their main sponsor Alloy. Brad and Roger are a nightmare to other teams. Brad and Roger being brothers seem to have a sixth sense or a brotherly intuition out on the courses that other teams just don’t have. When you watch them in action, you can see their communication is second to none. That is a big reason why the “no spotter strap” rule really shouldn’t hurt their game. Since they rarely got on the rope and relied mostly on communication to get them through the rough, they are poised to be a leader in the points race this weekend.
So did you hear about the “No spotter strap” rule? I only heard of it through the boards on Pirate4x4 and word of mouth in the pits. It appears as though due to insurance concerns, the UROC officials were forced to remove the spotter strap as a viable source of progressing a rig through the courses due to major safety concerns. We have seen in the past many dangers of its use, but does that make it where it shouldn’t be used? That’s a fun debate to have in the forums. Many drivers will tell you though that they will be virtually unphased by this decision, such as the Lovells. If the rule stays in place for this event, then I look forward to seeing which team used the rope as a crutch and which will shine.
Jason Scherer and Aaron Goodrich were on hand with Tiny. Jason and Aaron are an amazing team to not only watch, but get to know. Lucie and I sat down with them at dinner and you can see that they are a great team both on and off the course. They are completely different people, yet a great match in friendship. There isn’t really much anything new on the Tiny rig for this event, but they have a lot more seat time and understanding of the quirks that Tiny exhibits in it’s small crawler package. Jason said, “
You would never think this rig could be competitive with all it’s suspension quirks.” He refers to how the vehicle jacks up and moves around when placed in weird positions or motions. However, these same quirks have become beneficial in many instances. Jason and Aaron have learned the rig to understand what can be done to make the rig move in ways to their advantage such as raising the belly up by loading the suspension just enough to clear an obstacle. The duo feels confident this weekend that they will have a good time and work well on the courses. Good luck to the both of them.
Jason Bunch and Steve Hastings had a good year in the series taking in a 10th place overall in the Pro series. Though they didn’t get the start they wanted and had a couple hard run ins along the way, they were able to still pull a respectable top 10 finish which by today’s standards is very difficult. They spent many hours testing and tuning of the vehicle and are at a point now where they also have enough seat time to be one of the top contenders to take the title home this weekend.
Charlie Melchner was out walking the courses with his wife and new daughter. The proud papa that he is, he had to introduce her early on to his favorite passion of wheeling. Fresh off the Neuroc circuit with a series win for him, he is poised to take on anyone who gets in his way. Armed with his moon buggy with rear steering, Charlie presents a threat that is hard to beat. Low slung and very maneuverable, the #101 rig will be difficult to get past. Charlie wouldn’t be a team without his spotter Pat Guargua. They are excited to be out here and are very tired at the same time. The 3 hour time difference really throws a wrench into things for the East coast boys. After tech and walk down of the courses, Pat Charlie and the family went off to get some important sleep before the event.
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| Charlie and his family roam across the courses |
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Do you know what comes to mind when I think East coast? Last year the Super Crawl trophy flew out to the east coast on the proud back of Randy Torbett and Eric Nixon. I believe their quote after they won was, “
You west coast guys are going to have to come out east to get the trophy back. We'll be waiting.” So does that mean that they will be taking it home again this year since we are still out west? I know Randy and Eric will be fighting to stay on top of that victory hill. Sporting a new paint job, it appears that they are keeping the tried and true formula for victory this year. They will be on our scope to see what tricks they have for us this year.
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| Currently in Randy Torbett's hands, will he hold onto the cherished cup? |
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There is a lot to see this year and we are only just starting. So sit back, relax, and pull down on some of the one arm bandits Las Vegas has to offer. You are bound to get your money's worth whether it be gambling or watching the wild rides of our favorite competitors from around the world as they tackle the man made courses. We will see you when the action begins tonight.
Update
3:30 PM PST
We are just 30 minutes from the start and things are looking great out here today. The sun is free in the sky with just a few hints of clouds here and there. It is definitely a warm one, but a very beautiful day for a great crawling event.
The courses are looking amazing in the daylight. They haved decorated the courses with desert palm trees to really bring out the desert feel in the middle of town. This is looking to be an incredible event.
Update
6:00 PM PST
Well so much for that half hour to start. The event started about an hour later than planned. There was some last minute rule changes as well. First was the time for the courses. We started out with 6 minute course, but ended up with 7. The second was that instead of the front wheels breaking the plain to finish the course, the rear wheels have to pass the plain to finish the course. A little different, but the courses are shorter.
The courses started off extremely brutal with simultaneous rolls on 5 courses, we are off to a rough start. Team #104 of Walter Thirion and Tammy Hawkins were the first to take a roll on course #8. Not able to roll it over on their own, they were forced to finish the course after only passing through one gate at the top of the hill.
The #004 rig of Matt Deas and Mike Wike also took a roll almost the same time on course #7. They rolled over trying to get up the initial climb and through the first gate. Problems happened quickly as they veered to one side and dumped it on over. A failed attempt at trying to right the vehicle after the flop forced them to end their course short of the 7 minute allotment. The vehicle seemed to survive the roll pretty well and should be back just fine for the next course.
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| Matt Deas attempts to get up # 7 |
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The runs of all runs at UROC events are always the hill climbs. These are the point, shoot, and hang on courses that will either make or break a team if not on it just right. This event has one unlike any other in the past. It appears to be one of those runs that will take out pretty much everyone that isn’t willing to give it the hammer because the wall is just that steep and tricky. We watched Charlie Melchner I the #101 rig get denied while trying to climb and charge the hill. The problem with the hill is that it is tough to get a good roll at it since the rig really hits are at the base. Just before him, Brent Bradshaw took a vertical charge, go seriously airborne, and just missed the peak. He had to slam it back in reverse, but luck was not on his side as he took the rig back on over to flop on the sawdust floor.
The good news though is that it is doable. Randy “The Super Crawl Champion” Torbett, showed why he was the champion last year. Pure balls out adrenalin took him charging up that hill in what appeared to be 20 attempts to make it up and over. He would back up a good distance then charge the hill and be far from making it over. He would then back up even further and make multiple more attempts backing up further and further each run. Finally with it floored and pinned on the direction up the hill, Randy busted up and onto the top of the hill with the crowd cheering hard. He then let it crawl on over the top and came slamming down the bumpy backside of the hill. Randy couldn’t make the reverse climb but became the first to take the Water Fall hill for a ride up and over. Congrats to Randy and Eric for this accomplishment.
They announced a -22 score for Randy, but that is unoffical at this time.
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| Randy charges obstacle #5 and gets wheels up on the Water Fall course |
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Update
6:03 PM PST
Lets call that 2 now that have made it over the top. Jason Paule in the #000 rig just took on the Water Fall and with multiple high speed passes got the Matrix hooded crawler over the hill. Paule is running the Matrix colors out for this event along with Joachim and Brian in the #001 rig on the Modified side.
Update
6:17 PM PST
Course #1 is slowly becoming a driver’s most hated run. Several runs now have kept drivers from making it up the first wall. It’s a very wide wall actually with multiple lines, but not too many fun options to choose. Some drivers have chose to make a far right side line at the hill but that puts you in an off camber one wheel climb position. As you might imagine, this puts them in a horrible position and has sent them crashing down to the dust below. Both Mike Hullfish in the #302 crawler and Brian Cook took the fate of a rollover. Driving right between them though, Jason and Aaron in Tiny took the course with a great starting line up and a great finish to the course. The courses are tight and tire placement is key. With several outcroppings underneath the rig, they create axle grabbing problems which are strewn throughout the courses and like on course #1, are giving a bitter challenge to finishing the runs.
Update
6:42 PM PST
Catching up with Dustin Webster prior to his run on the Water Fall, he had this to say, “I want to name the wall the Bad Bat because that is what struck him about it when he first got up to it. Their approach to the challenge is to build up a mulch ramp to smooth out the initial jump up the hill. This is the first obstacle they have to do today so they are not going to thrash the rig. This is their first obstacle for the day and they are getting close to going. He was positive about the day and the courses. He has good belief that they will do well. He said, “Our rig is built for this type of course with good break over.” With little to no time to practice in the Red Bull rig, they are hurting in team time, but the buggy works well and every inch of clearance they have will put them that much ahead of the rest.
We caught up with Jason Paule after finishing his attempt at the Water Fall. He had this to say. “There is no reason for this type of obstacle. Adrenalin yes, wheeling no. Jason made it over the front side pretty well. He inched his way over the top, and did a little tip toe dance on the way down. However, dropping hard over the back side off the last ledge, they lost their radiator hose which stopped them shortly. They weren’t able to make it back up the back side though. Jason said, “This is Vegas, so it might be worth while having a crap shoot, but otherwise it shouldn’t be part of this sport.” As far as man made courses, he thinks this is as tough as it can get. We would agree as they are VERY tight and technical. It can already be seen that this is going to be a weekend of attrition and driver’s skill.
Update
7:15 PM PST
Good news, the first series of competition photos are up. Have a look at them at your leisure. An unfortunate part of the event today is the limited media access that the Convention Center is imposing on UROC. We started off nice and close, but since then have limited the course to just 5 photographers at any one time. We will try to move in Pirate style and get the true pictures that we like to see.
You can see the pictures here:
Day 1 Action Photos can be seen here!!!
Update
7:43 PM PST
Mark Berger is making an exceptional run at these courses today. He is currently holding the lead on course #8 where many have just pulled in 40s. His driving talent and charge today may put him in the lead over everyone. In fact, he just made a charge up the Water Fall to become the third person to make it over the top. He timed out on the back side of the hill, but he will gain progression points to push him ahead of the rest that failed. Grab your ankles though because Shannon Campbell is up next and you know he is one that loves a challenge like this. We will watch as he makes his attempt.
Over on course #2, Peter Wells makes his way across the triple hill challenge. He had a hard time trying to get around on #1 earlier on. He was able to make it up the first wall that so many had flopped on, but on his way around to gate #3, he took a hard hit to the right hand side and laid it over. He was hung up on his rear differential and tried to work the wheel at full throttle to get off. As soon as he got the traction, it lurched out of his control and on over he went. They were not able to push the red buggy back over and took huge point hit of 36 points. Progress points saved him the full 40 load. Pete said, “There’s lots of traction and good fun, just it would be nice to be able to exit courses to have more freedom on line choices like the old days.” There used to be a lot more room to make the turns to line up when switching back and forth, but with the courses so close, it is too tight.
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| Peter Wells on course #1 getting bit by the crackline and on his way to a rollover. |
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Speaking of points, we have our first tally in. Check them out here:
- Score Sheet #1
- Score Sheet #2
Update
7:53 PM PST
This just in, Mark Berger on the Water Fall made the climb well. However, on his descent, he had some mechanical failure. He wound up breaking his ring and pinion on the steep drop off. He raced back to the pits to get it repaired. Hopefully he will get it going again to get back into the mix and keep his great scores coming.
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| The #66 Team MasterCraft rig on course getting it done |
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Update
8:41 PM PST
Jason Scherer and Aaron Goodrich are a charging team tonight. With a score of -7 on course #1, they are off to a commanding lead. He just pulled up to course #2 which is a very technical course. The course is comprised of 3 large mounds with axle grabbers every which way of the course. Jason and Aaron worked in true fashion by mobilizing Tiny to the twists of the course and showing the highlights of Tiny’s skill. It is a very low slung rig and very stable up on the rocks. Despite a low stance, the rig actually pulls over breakovers quite well. The first hill places you up and over the no problem. You descend though down into a wide trench that you have to pop out of by climbing up what looks to be a 3 to 4 foot vert on the tires then up on the wall.
Tracy Jordan of the #112 rig was just out on course #3. Tracy is driving the Scrapper rig designed and built by Jon Nelson of Nelson & Nelson racing. Tracy was really excited earlier when talking to him about how well the rig drives. He said it is so stable and moves the way he wants it to. Though he wishes he had rear steer on the rig, it definitely fits his driving. Back to course #3, this has been a point maker for the boys and girls today denying so many drivers. The first part is a bumpy hard climb. It then dumps you down off the hill which you have to be very careful in avoiding the cones. Once at the bottom, a front dig around or 4 wheel steer to line back up to go back up the hill. The climb out is horrid with a wicked twisted that is stopping so many drivers. Tracy was doing well on the course making the first climb look like child’s play. The drop in took a little more finesse, but he was down safely and into his turn around. On his way back up and over, he started to feel the bitterness the course had to dish out. Trying every which way, he struggled to get the Scrapper rig up and over the hill. With only 15 seconds on the clock left, Tracy slapped it up for one final attempt taking a cone out, but dropping back off the other side just in time to finish the course. He was so excited during the run that he wound up losing his glasses in the process. His effort was rewarded with a sinister 19 points. That is the second best score of the day for that course only being beat out by Cody Waggoner with 13 points. Tracy comes off of another great run just prior to it on course # 2 where he pulled a low 14 where most others are handing in scores of 34 and 38. Tracy is dialed this weekend.
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| Tracy Jordan driving Scrapper digs in at the start of the climb. Note the broken off foam chunks from repeated crawler abuse. |
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Update
8:48 PM PST
Meanwhile as we hunt down for some more scores, Ken Blume took on the course of #4 which has an interesting start. You start by going through a crack, but then you have to make a hard left hand turn to make a climb up the narrow bumpy hill. The corner has been eating rigs like crazy. Ken Blume looked to make an interesting line through the crack, but their front end took a dive off to the right putting them on their side. The vehicle became a fish out of water with its tires in the air and unable to run properly. They succumbed to the group rollover which tags him the 40 point DNF.
In case you are wondering, there are only Super Mods tonight. The Modified class will be starting up tomorrow night so don’t get your panties in a bunch for no coverage (just in case you were wimpering). We will get you the pictures and info that you crave for them tomorrow.
Update
8:59 PM PST
We have some new scores for you now. It looks like Jason Scherer and Aaron Goodrich are ruling the courses today. With the only score in the negatives, they are dominating with a -4. Can Team Tiny pull the trophy back? Jason Paule and Mark Berger are behind fighting for 2nd place.
Here are the scores as of just a few minutes ago.
- Score Sheet #1
- Score Sheet #2
Update
9:17 PM PST
Jennifer Little is just amazing. She is loving the day with her new rig. The new crawler in the Little family is also known as the “Ground Zero” named after center of gravity of the rig. Jennifer said they are really pleased with the tight setup. Though they are having some high scores, they are having a good time. Jennifer said, “I wish we had more seat time. We like the event, but the courses worry us about safety. We are so close to the next course which can be dangerous. There really isn’t any room to accelerate out of the exits in case you were short on time.” Jennifer likes having the event here in Las Vegas. It’s huge exposure for our sport. However, she prefers the natural courses over the man made because there are things to work with like rocks to stack. Todd actually prefers the man made courses though. On a side note, Todd is calling out Cody Waggoner for the 2006 season. He said that, “ We are coming after you next year”.
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| Jennifer Little in the #64 crawler takes her new ride for a spin |
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Update
9:54 PM PST
After we saw Jason and Aaron knock out course #2, we just had to talk to them. We pulled them up here in the Maxxis trailer for a little interview.
Pirate4x4: “How are you guys liking the courses today?”
Jason: “They are definitely some of the most challenging I have ever driven.”
Aaron: “They are pretty technical and not point and shoot which is what we like. None of the courses really require spotter straps. There are a lot of breakovers though.”
Pirate4x4: “How’s the rig working?”
Aaron: “It is dialed in. Since Jason hasn’t been in the seat since Vernal, he is doing really well.”
Jason: “I had to remember which shifter was which. I couldn’t remember which shifter was front and which the rear on the Atlas was.”
Pirate4x4: “What’s the benefit or necessity to being a spotter this weekend where there are no rocks to roll and no spotter straps?”
Aaron: “I am really here to keep Jason calm and let him know where all the cones are. With the lights that are out here, Jason can’t see the cones or the holes on the courses.”
Pirate4x4: “You were limping off of #2. What happened?”
Jason: “I got a little aggressive on the second climb and and blew the bead. We are running 39” BFGs and they still worked well. The hardest part about this event is how hard to push the vehicle and keep it together.”
Jason and Aaron are running a tight first day. If they can keep up the momentum and team work, they are looking to finish really well this weekend.
Jason traveled out here to Las Vegas with his family. He said, “I am excited that my new wife Dana and her parents came out here to support me. I have never had my family out here at an event before, so it really nice to see them here.”
Aaron also wanted to give a shot out, “I want to thank Jason for buying me a nice steak dinner last night. It’s giving me the energy to get through the day. I also really want to thank my mom and sister for being supportive of me when I travel out of town. They help take care of my dog LuAnn (Lu Lu). Aaron Out!!”
Update
9:59 PM PST
We caught up with Nate Williams and Josh Ayres for a few words after course #1. The Mount Logan team is sporting a new vehicle which has the traditional buggy lines and is awesome to watch work out on the course. They just completed course #1 when we pulled them to the side. When asked how they are liking the courses and how they are doing this weekend, Josh said, “ All these courses are really good. They are hard. They are technical. We are doing ok, but I think everyone out here is going to struggle. None of the courses are “gimmes”.” Although they aren’t gimme’s, they made course #1 look easy with a -6 score off the back end.
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| This is the crack hole that is eating up so many teams. Nate and Josh get through it though. |
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| Nate and Josh happy after a difficult course |
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Update
10:04 PM PST
Some new photos were just added to the gallery. Check them out. Unfortunately the lighting is killing our shots. Hopefully tomorrow we will figure a way to make them much better given the light conditions here at the Vegas Center.
Click here for more photos from the event.
Update
10:09 PM PST
Brad Styles just took the Water Fall!!! He made a miraculous save on one of his attempts which put him over on 2 wheels but he was able to burn out of it. On the next attempt he busted over the crest of the hill to the roaring cheer of the crowd. On his way over though, he wound up cartwheeling down the other side. He landed on his lid, but was one of the lucky few to drive over the top. Brad said, "That was fun" when he popped out of the car. Those guys from South Carolina have a wicked sense of fun.
Update
10:15 PM PST
We just ran and pulled some scores:
- Score Sheet #1
- Score Sheet #2
Tracy Jordan is finished and looks to have an awesome end to the day with a tough to catch, 28 points. There is more action to come with.
Update
10:34 PM PST
Team Shaffer was over on course #4 when we saw them. They haven’t had the best run today, but are hanging in there. Mike said this, “ We are trying to go fast enough through the courses, but without hitting any of the cones. This was the funnest course so far.” Mike was referring to course #4 where they wiggled the Diablo2 through the crack course with an impressive 7 points for the course which is one of the better scores for the day. They are currently sitting at 77 points.
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| Team Shaffer heading up course #5 amongst the damaged foam |
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One of our sponsors today is PolyPerformance located out of San Luis Obispo in central coast California where they supply pretty much anything you can think of to build a rock crawler. Dave, the owner, sat down with us for a moment to take in the nightlife rock crawling competition atop the Maxxis trailer. PolyPerformance is out here supporting Twisted Customs and Jason Scherer make it through their events. If there is ever a part you could need, I bet Dave and Drew will have it ready for you. They have been in business for over 4 years supplying parts and have now started up PolyPerformance fabrication for any custom needs you might have. Check them out at www.PolyPerformance.com
Update
11:41 PM PST
The night has settled down to only a few drivers on the course. Extractions are a bit slower than earlier as the night wears on, but we are down to the final runners.
The leader at this point is on the A side of the course, also known as courses 1 through 4. They are team #13, Jason Scherer and Aaron Goodrich, and they are going through the final steps on their last course of the day. He is spanking the hill. He just summited over the top of the hill and is burning in the flats to make his trip back over the top. People were struggling all day on those sections and Jason just made it look like he designed the course for his rig. Coming up on over the top again, they are almost to the finish and he percariously sits with one tire in the air. Smoothly and in control, Jason walked it down to finish in one of the smoothest runs all day with only one cone taken out. They finished the course with only 3 points and score of 12 for the day.
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| Team #13 leading the pack with Las Vegas in site. |
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The rest of the field is at a stand still with fixes and cleanups. We are pretty much done for the night and will be back tomorrow with more action from Sin City.
Here are the scores up to this point minus a few scores from other competitors.
- Score Sheet #1
- Score Sheet #2
