For immediate press release…
WHEN THE DUST SETTLED AND THE IRC’s VERIFIED…
California City, CA – June 27, 2013 - The second round of the PURE SIDE-X-SIDE OFF-ROAD DESERT SERIES Presented by SXSPerformance.com concluded Saturday, April 22 with the PURE “300†romp around the 208-square miles of California City.
As the dust settled and the trusty IRC tracking units were checked, Josh and Jim Westling (Polaris XP900) picked up the Overall and the Sportsman Class win. That’s right: Sportsman - Josh, who has been racing with Alta Vista Events for the past four years, proved that he is as fast and steady as anyone. Why is Josh running as a Sportsman and not running in the Pro Division? That’s was his choice at the beginning of the year. His Polaris, although somewhat modified, is basically much like a stock unit and perhaps he felt he could not compete with the high-powered and highly-modified units that would show up to race in the PRO Division. Which goes to show you that in an endurance event, where distances are much more of a challenge than short spurts, and where steady speeds and driving, well put together equipment that may even be on a the mild side, will prove to be a winner almost every time.
Nonetheless, in the first event (the PURE “200â€) Josh finished in the top five overall and won his class, while in this one, the PURE “300†he smoked them all by completing the required eight (8) laps in a time of 8:45:57:620. Did we mention that he was the only racer to complete all eight laps? Everyone else finished with seven laps or less in the allotted eight-hour time limit.
The son and father Team (Jim is his co-dog), just logged consistent laps times for the 300 miles with lap times of: 1:03, 1:04, 1:05, 1:02, 1:05, 1:05, 1:08 and 1:10 hrs.
At the finish, they were spent and they knew they had been in a race, but that’s what the Pure Side-X-Side Off-Road Desert Series is all about.
Second Overall and first in the Production 1000 Pro Class were Aaron Juarez and Derek Murray (CAN-AM Commander), finishing seven (7) laps in a time of 8:08:03.638. They picked up a nice fat check from a $2,000.00 purse in the Class. Third place Overall and second in the Pro Production 1000 Class, went to the team of Branden Sims and Jacob Caver (Polaris XP900). The Production 1000cc Class Pro paid down to fourth place.
Next on tap is the DWT PURE “350†August 2-4, Presented by SXSPerformance.com, when a brand new racecourse will be unveiled by Alta Vista Events (AVE). This time, the course will feature a 39-mile loop around volcanic mountains and solid dirt rails. When compared to the previous two courses (the PURE “200†and the PURE “300â€), the course rating for this one will be on the “fast†side, according to Race Director, Alan Bell. “We’re going to give them a few more hills and climbs but for the most part, it’s going to be fun, fast and really filled with all types of terrain, including silt pockets. The nice thing is that racers will never be more than five miles away from the start/finish area.â€
For the PURE “350†AVE will be give racers 10 hours to complete all 9 laps. However, for this event, the BONE STOCK Classes (Basically showroom equipment with safety mods only) will only have to complete six (6) laps in ten hours.
According to Lou Peralta, race organizer, “We’ve been thinking how to entice the Beginner or the “Newbie†to our sport who perhaps just bought a unit and has been playing with it in the desert. Looking at 200, 300, or 350 miles must be daunting for someone who may have never raced in the desert before. We are reducing the distances for the Bone Stock Class to afford many of these racers the opportunity to learn what this desert racing, off-road and endurance is all about.
For more details and to see particulars of all the AVE events, go to:
www.averacing.com
PHOTO CAPTION #1 - Josh and Jim Westling (#1050) early in the race setting a steady and fast pace.
PHOTO CAPTION #2 -After eight-plus hours and 300 miles (actually 312 miles) later, the Westling Team takes
Checkered flag culminating a great effort against fast competition to nab
Overall and Production 1000cc Sportsman Class top honors.