March 18, 2015 Post race report Best in the Desert Mint 400
Cook Off Road Racing made the journey to Las Vegas last week to participate in the Best in the Desert Mint 400. The team drew the #23rd starting position and driver Sean Cook knew he would have his hands full trying to make it to the front of the pack as well as trying to keep the almost 40 other competitors in his mirror.
The festivities began on Friday when the team began with tech and registration down on historic Fremont St. Co driver Todd Latronica debut his new clothing line Dirty DNA Clothing. The #1930 SPEED Energy UTV was on display in the Dirty DNA booth for all to see. The team spent the day representing all their sponsors and meeting new and old friends. The day ended with drivers attending the drivers meeting for last minute race day instructions. The team headed by crew Chief Jeff Correia headed back to the main pits and performed some last minute adjustments to the Polaris Rzr.
Race day came early Saturday morning, the team had the #1930 SPEED Energy UTV staged and ready to race by 0500 hrs. With 330 entries set to race the team had to sit for awhile awaiting their turn to take the green flag. 0630 hrs and the team finally took the green flag. Driver Jesus Leon and his co driver Colton Cook where off and running across the Nevada desert. All systems were a go as the Polaris Rzr roared into the dust. It was a rare sight to see Owner / Driver Sean Cook in the pits monitoring the progress of his race machine, but new team member Jesus Leon was very capable of taking on the challenge. The team was busy tracking the vehicle progress through the IRC Tracker, the crew was running hard and steady always maintaining about a one to two mile gap with the leader. At about mile marker 40 Jesus started radioing in that he thought he had a spark plug starting to foul, crew chief Jeff Correia made the decision to remove the fuel controller at the alternate pit and see if the problem cleared up. Jesus got the car to alternate pit B where crew members Steve Medley and Carl Meyers made quick work of the repair, unfortunately this did not clear the problem. Jesus was back on course and maintaining a blistering pace speeds reaching 80mph. The problem persisted but very intermittently.
Jesus and Colton finally arrived at the main pit and the scheduled driver change and the 14 gallon fuel dump was under way. Jesus reported to driver Sean Cook that the throttle pedal was unresponsive below 3/4 throttle but ok wide open. Service was completed and driver Sean Cook along with his tested co driver Todd Latronica were off on lap two. Sean stated it was very evident that there was a throttle issue, he had no low end which made it a challenge entering and exiting the corners. On the open runs full throttle was good. Sean made his way through the infield then transitioned into the open desert, about mm 25 the car experienced an outer rear CV joint failure. Sean pulled the car off the track and Todd sprang into action making the necessary axle change. Once Todd was done the car was off and running again, Sean was able to maintain a good pace throughout the course, but as the vehicle neared mm 100 Sean radioed in they were losing power as if it was running out of fuel. At mm 105 the Polaris Rzr came to a stop. Sean tried relentlesly to re light the race car to no avail. During the process of re igniting the car the team suffered a starter failure. Sean stated that while turning the motor over he heard the starter make a noise and then started coming unwound. As hard as the team had tried they knew their day had come to an end. Sean radioed in to the pits with the news no team wants to hear, he thanked everyone for a job well done but today just was not their day! As Sean and Todd were basking in the sun out at the location of the car, they were treated with some great UTV racing unfold as the leaders made their way into the finish line. The Mad Media helicopter flying overhead signaled the leaders were coming through, Johny Angal came down through the canyon first followed by the rest of the pack, they saw cars coming through in all sorts of condition, one vehicle rolled by on 3 wheels, the co driver was hanging off the side of the car trying to keep the front of the car off the ground. Cognito came by with their right rear wheel horizontal with the ground, it appeared they had done some significant damage to their trailing arm. After about an hour of sunbathing the #1949 appeared like a chariot sent by the gods. Driver Alonso Lopez stopped to say hi and to lend assistance, Sean and Todd hooked a tow strap from the back of the #1949 and attached it to the #1930. We were off on our way back to civilization. Alonso had the two vehicles racing across the desert at nearly 50 mph, the 1930 was a mere 5' off Alonso's bumper, Sean stated it was quite the ride. A decision was made between Alonso and Sean to take the vehicles all the way in and try to salvage points for two laps. As the pair of cars made their way down pit road in the 25 mph no passing zone, they were passed by two fellow racers exceeding the Speed rules. Eventually Alonso piloted the two cars to a finish!
The #1930 SPEED Energy Team would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Alonso Lopez and his team for offering his assistance to us, this was a true expression of great sportsmanship. Recapping the performance of the race vehicle, our GBC Kanati Mongrels were flawless, no flats as a matter of fact they looked as good after 200 miles as they did at the start if the race. The Hellwig sway bar and King shocks were incredible, the team drove the car over stretches of whoops that in past races had slowed them down, but not this time it was full throttle all the way. The Madigan supplied suspension was spot on, the issues experienced in San Felipe are a thing of the past, this kit is bullet proof! The Muzzy exhaust sounded great and performed perfectly as alway. Our Racer X supplied radio system was amazing, we had great comms all around the 116 mile course. I'm sure our Rigid lights performed well just did not really use them much because of the daylight, but their support is greatly appreciated. Our beautifully L & L powder coated chassis held up through the sand blasting known as the Nevada desert. The team was very satisfied with their forward progress on the development of their new race vehicle. The team is very confident that the opportunity to be on the podium is coming soon.
As always the team would like to thank all their family and friends for supporting them and of course to all their generous sponsors who make all this possible: SPEED Energy Drinks, GBC Motor Sports, Hellwig Motor Sports, KING Shocks, Precision Builders, Black Rhino / Racer X, CryoHeat, L & L Powder coating, Twisted Stitch Seats, Torco Oils, Optima Batteries, Madigan Suspensions, OMF Wheels, Ram Mounts, Muzzy Exhausts, Factory UTV, Racer tech, Fabwerxs, Rigid Industries, Wetsounds, Grizzly Coolers, Polaris Industries, one stop CNC, D&D Graphx, Napa Auto Parts, BRE Racing, Red House BBQ, Dirty DNA Clothing, Alba Racing, Hill Media, Driven Steering Wheels, Summers Bros. Dirty Dawg clutches
Cook Off Road Racing made the journey to Las Vegas last week to participate in the Best in the Desert Mint 400. The team drew the #23rd starting position and driver Sean Cook knew he would have his hands full trying to make it to the front of the pack as well as trying to keep the almost 40 other competitors in his mirror.
The festivities began on Friday when the team began with tech and registration down on historic Fremont St. Co driver Todd Latronica debut his new clothing line Dirty DNA Clothing. The #1930 SPEED Energy UTV was on display in the Dirty DNA booth for all to see. The team spent the day representing all their sponsors and meeting new and old friends. The day ended with drivers attending the drivers meeting for last minute race day instructions. The team headed by crew Chief Jeff Correia headed back to the main pits and performed some last minute adjustments to the Polaris Rzr.
Race day came early Saturday morning, the team had the #1930 SPEED Energy UTV staged and ready to race by 0500 hrs. With 330 entries set to race the team had to sit for awhile awaiting their turn to take the green flag. 0630 hrs and the team finally took the green flag. Driver Jesus Leon and his co driver Colton Cook where off and running across the Nevada desert. All systems were a go as the Polaris Rzr roared into the dust. It was a rare sight to see Owner / Driver Sean Cook in the pits monitoring the progress of his race machine, but new team member Jesus Leon was very capable of taking on the challenge. The team was busy tracking the vehicle progress through the IRC Tracker, the crew was running hard and steady always maintaining about a one to two mile gap with the leader. At about mile marker 40 Jesus started radioing in that he thought he had a spark plug starting to foul, crew chief Jeff Correia made the decision to remove the fuel controller at the alternate pit and see if the problem cleared up. Jesus got the car to alternate pit B where crew members Steve Medley and Carl Meyers made quick work of the repair, unfortunately this did not clear the problem. Jesus was back on course and maintaining a blistering pace speeds reaching 80mph. The problem persisted but very intermittently.
Jesus and Colton finally arrived at the main pit and the scheduled driver change and the 14 gallon fuel dump was under way. Jesus reported to driver Sean Cook that the throttle pedal was unresponsive below 3/4 throttle but ok wide open. Service was completed and driver Sean Cook along with his tested co driver Todd Latronica were off on lap two. Sean stated it was very evident that there was a throttle issue, he had no low end which made it a challenge entering and exiting the corners. On the open runs full throttle was good. Sean made his way through the infield then transitioned into the open desert, about mm 25 the car experienced an outer rear CV joint failure. Sean pulled the car off the track and Todd sprang into action making the necessary axle change. Once Todd was done the car was off and running again, Sean was able to maintain a good pace throughout the course, but as the vehicle neared mm 100 Sean radioed in they were losing power as if it was running out of fuel. At mm 105 the Polaris Rzr came to a stop. Sean tried relentlesly to re light the race car to no avail. During the process of re igniting the car the team suffered a starter failure. Sean stated that while turning the motor over he heard the starter make a noise and then started coming unwound. As hard as the team had tried they knew their day had come to an end. Sean radioed in to the pits with the news no team wants to hear, he thanked everyone for a job well done but today just was not their day! As Sean and Todd were basking in the sun out at the location of the car, they were treated with some great UTV racing unfold as the leaders made their way into the finish line. The Mad Media helicopter flying overhead signaled the leaders were coming through, Johny Angal came down through the canyon first followed by the rest of the pack, they saw cars coming through in all sorts of condition, one vehicle rolled by on 3 wheels, the co driver was hanging off the side of the car trying to keep the front of the car off the ground. Cognito came by with their right rear wheel horizontal with the ground, it appeared they had done some significant damage to their trailing arm. After about an hour of sunbathing the #1949 appeared like a chariot sent by the gods. Driver Alonso Lopez stopped to say hi and to lend assistance, Sean and Todd hooked a tow strap from the back of the #1949 and attached it to the #1930. We were off on our way back to civilization. Alonso had the two vehicles racing across the desert at nearly 50 mph, the 1930 was a mere 5' off Alonso's bumper, Sean stated it was quite the ride. A decision was made between Alonso and Sean to take the vehicles all the way in and try to salvage points for two laps. As the pair of cars made their way down pit road in the 25 mph no passing zone, they were passed by two fellow racers exceeding the Speed rules. Eventually Alonso piloted the two cars to a finish!
The #1930 SPEED Energy Team would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Alonso Lopez and his team for offering his assistance to us, this was a true expression of great sportsmanship. Recapping the performance of the race vehicle, our GBC Kanati Mongrels were flawless, no flats as a matter of fact they looked as good after 200 miles as they did at the start if the race. The Hellwig sway bar and King shocks were incredible, the team drove the car over stretches of whoops that in past races had slowed them down, but not this time it was full throttle all the way. The Madigan supplied suspension was spot on, the issues experienced in San Felipe are a thing of the past, this kit is bullet proof! The Muzzy exhaust sounded great and performed perfectly as alway. Our Racer X supplied radio system was amazing, we had great comms all around the 116 mile course. I'm sure our Rigid lights performed well just did not really use them much because of the daylight, but their support is greatly appreciated. Our beautifully L & L powder coated chassis held up through the sand blasting known as the Nevada desert. The team was very satisfied with their forward progress on the development of their new race vehicle. The team is very confident that the opportunity to be on the podium is coming soon.
As always the team would like to thank all their family and friends for supporting them and of course to all their generous sponsors who make all this possible: SPEED Energy Drinks, GBC Motor Sports, Hellwig Motor Sports, KING Shocks, Precision Builders, Black Rhino / Racer X, CryoHeat, L & L Powder coating, Twisted Stitch Seats, Torco Oils, Optima Batteries, Madigan Suspensions, OMF Wheels, Ram Mounts, Muzzy Exhausts, Factory UTV, Racer tech, Fabwerxs, Rigid Industries, Wetsounds, Grizzly Coolers, Polaris Industries, one stop CNC, D&D Graphx, Napa Auto Parts, BRE Racing, Red House BBQ, Dirty DNA Clothing, Alba Racing, Hill Media, Driven Steering Wheels, Summers Bros. Dirty Dawg clutches
