SR1 Comments and Concerns

[Ballistic]

Disclaimer:....I did not start this thread....my post was moved to a new thread after my question sparked some debate.

Curious.....does anyone else think that if the SR1's are not consistently faster than the 800cc UTV's that this class will be a disappointment....especially if they are going to race at the same time?

I am building a SR1 Rhino and am looking for constructive ideas to make the SR1 the dominate UTV class.

So far this class is just a old 4wd Race Rhino with a 1000cc motor between the seats.

We all know that the Rhino is not a race car....and only has worked well when raced because of 4wd. The stock Rhino steering set-up/geometry can't be ideal for a 150hp, 2wd, live axle, 80" wheelbase, 1400 lb car with little traction.

Seems like overall traction and forward bite are the main issues......any ideas...bigger...wider tires maybe? Gearing?

Weller has a great concept and I'm sure they are willing to listen to everyone ideas to help the class evolve.....if that means trying new things each race to make this class dominate they should do it.

I am in no way bashing or hating....the SR1's are great and I want to see this class last and dominate.......

I do realize that this is a new class and will have growing pains and that no one really knows how to drive these cars yet...... I also know that if the underpowered Pro-Lites went out and beat the High HP Pro-2's every week that they would not be around long.

Constructive ideas or thoughts????

 

[freeridemxatv]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

Let me be hopefully the first to say good on ya for thinking outside the box. I have been looking into the sr1 swap and would love another perspective. No disrespect to weller as they are doing a great job! But I dont believe for one second that any of the wellers would turn down constructive criticsm. Good ideas and keep them coming.

 

[dnf736]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

Curious.....does anyone else feel that if the SR1's are not faster than the 800cc UTV's that this class will not be around long....especially if they are going to race at the same time?

I am building a SR1 Rhino and am looking for constructive ideas to make the SR1 the dominate UTV class.

So far this class is just a old 4wd Race Rhino with a 1000cc motor between the seats.....and so far on the track the SR1's have not been as fast as the 800cc UTV's.

We all know that the Rhino is not a race car....and only has worked well when raced because of 4wd. The stock Rhino steering set-up/geometry can't be ideal for a 150hp, 2wd, live axle, 80" wheelbase, 1400 lb car with little traction.

Seems like overall traction and forward bite are the main issues......any ideas...bigger...wider tires maybe? Gearing?

Weller has a great concept and will only help themselves by allowing their class to evolve.....if that means trying new things each race to make this class dominate they should do it.

I am in no way bashing....like I said...I am building a SR1 and I want to see this class last and dominate.......

I do realize that this is a new class and will have growing pains and that no one really knows how to drive these cars yet...... I also know that if the underpowered Pro-Lites went out and beat the High HP Pro-2's every week that they would not be around long.

Constructive ideas or thoughts????

LOL One race in and this guy wants to rewrite the rule book.

My thoughts?? Just finish your car and get to Phoenix for rounds 3-4 there will be at least 3 more SR1's on the track by then, the future will evolve from there.

 

[Ballistic]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

LOL One race in and this guy wants to rewrite the rule book.

My thoughts?? Just finish your car and get to Phoenix for rounds 3-4 there will be at least 3 more SR1's on the track by then, the future will evolve from there.

Sorry but I don't want to rewrite the rule book........I was just looking for constructive thoughts and ideas that could possible help all SR1 owners and builders.

 

[JoeyD23]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

Oh man....I would love to see Dan drive his SR1 today.....and you are right if he does we will see the true potential of the SR1......he was crazy fast at Speedworld.

I understand the concept of this class (bring new life to old race Rhino's and keep costs down) but I also understood that this was to be the dominate and premier UTV class.
I would also bet this is what Lucas expects from the SR1.

Double the HP should equal better performance in every class.

I heard a little negative feedback from friends that are in LV and were not impressed with the SR1's......they (like I suspect most average spectators) expected the SR1's with 2x the hp to lead and win the race.

I hope they do well today

Welcome to the Site Tom!! Suggestions and ideas are awesome. I think in my opinion we really need to see tracks that can show the crowds what UTV's are capable of. These big tracks are cool, the trophy kart tracks are too small. We need something inbetween with some big jumps to show the crowd what UTV's can do. More door to door racing would make it exciting as well. As it stands now if the big tracks are where UTV's are going to run then we need larger car count, which will occur as rounds progress.

Sorry but I don't want to rewrite the rule book........I was just looking for constructive thoughts and ideas that could possible help all SR1 owners and builders.

Your thoughts are valid, but lets give the SR1's a few rounds before we formulate too much of an opinion on how the class is run. Double HP and half the traction is what the SR1's have. But you cant discount what Austin, Bobby, Chad, Dan, etc.. have done to get their 800's running the way they do. Those Kawi's and even RJ's RZR can really run!!!

and yes, Weller Racing did build Austins motors. I think you asked that somewhere back....

again welcome to the site, its cool haveing more interested members!! We have the best site in our opinion and like the SR1 it will only get better with time!

 

[Ballistic]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

I don't think anyone expected the sr1 class up be the premier class. With factory support from Kawasaki and bigger sponsorship money this year the pro class is and always will dominate.

Honestly it never occurred to me and I have talked to no one that didn't think a R1 powered Rhino would easily beat a factory sponsored 800cc UTV weighing the same and only (other than the R1) 4wd being the only other difference.

I doesn't matter how much sponsorship money you receive and spend on a 800cc motor the max you can expect is what 80hp? SR1 150hp...it just didn't compute

If you put a 400hp motor in a Pro-4 and a 800hp motor in a Pro-2 with everything else being equal.......the Pro-2 will win even on a slippery track.

I do believe they will get them dialed in and learn how to drive them and will dominate

 

[MAGNUM OFFROAD]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

I love to see that the 800cc UTV's can hang with the SR1's on the track!!!

I'm a big fan of the true UTV, and still can't wrap my mind around a streetbike powered mini buggy with a couple of Rhino frame rails and a Rhino hood. I just don't get it. I definitley appreciate the power, sound, and excitement, and my hats off to Weller for sure! But at that point is it really still a "UTV"???

Just asking...

 

[dnf736]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

But at that point is it really still a "UTV"???

Just asking...

It quit being a "utility" vehicle as soon as you took the bed off.

Also, we are very happy for Gary. Finally, TOP STEP! Way to go GT!

RJ, 2 for 2, congrats as well, that RZR is amazing.

As bummed as I was we couldnt get it together in time for Vegas, with the rain and all I'm kinda glad we didnt make it. Not really but kinda...

Good job to everyone who made the trip. Ill have the car & the boy at Speed World, another SR1 racing to screw things up for the 600 class.. just kidding, we race clean.

 

[07fj]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

congrats gary,

congrats to RJ Anderson on back to back wins.

Don't worry ballistic, if you even think something adverse about the SR1's your automatically a hater. but as time goes on, more people will see they are not as fast as some expected, but still use an old rhino chassis which is better than putting them out to pasture! lol

the SR1's need traction, say cut and grooved 15" tires (DOT type).

and for some, this is not the first race for many of these machines.

the longer the straight aways on the tracks then this will make the SR1 shine, normal tracks, not so much.

I believe John Dempseys Kawasaki set fastest lap time of the weekend on saturday?

 

[side x side tv]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

You hater rog lol jk congrats rj and everyone

 

[Rusty5150]

Hate or Love it the SR1 is here to stay or at least the concept is. After spending the last couple days on the track I can say these machines are awsome. On Saturday the Lucas track officials were complaining about being on the track for the "UTV's". After the 1st practice they were pumped to watch the "UTV's" run. The sound coming out of the SR1 was enough to make you watch the race.

The SR1 is flat out fast. Its going to take some time to get these machines dialed in. Once 15 SR1's are flying around the track its going to be a spectacle.

Dan Kelly showed today that these machines are fast. He made a slight mistake and took himself out of the race. If he would have stayed in the race I believe he would have been the 1st car across the line.

As far as the SR1 being a "UTV" lets get real. How many of us bought a UTV to haul hay or tow a plow. We bought them to completely change them into offroad vehicles. Most race cars consist of just 2 of the factory frame rails and a mostly factory motor case. Other than that they are custom purpose built cars. Custom CNC heads, exhaust, CDI, intake, carb, cam, crank and piston.

The SR1 class was developed to resurrect the 20 to 30 race Rhinos built over the last couple years. Many race Rhinos were built in the last couple years. With the release of the Teryx and the RZR the Rhino power plant was no longer competitive. For $$$ you can get one to run with big dogs (Benchmark and HRT) proved that.

 

[Ballistic]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

I love to see that the 800cc UTV's can hang with the SR1's on the track!!!

I'm a big fan of the true UTV, and still can't wrap my mind around a streetbike powered mini buggy with a couple of Rhino frame rails and a Rhino hood.
I just don't get it. I definitley appreciate the power, sound, and excitement.

But at that point is it really still a "UTV"???

Just asking...

MAGNUM...You could say the same thing about Pro-2 & Pro-4....let me show you..

I'm a big fan of the true Trucks, and still can't wrap my mind around a 900hp tube frame truck with a couple of Truck frame rails and a fiberglass truck style body.
I just don't get it. I definitley appreciate the power, sound, and excitement.

But at that point is it really still a "Truck"???

See how silly that sounds

 

[the stripping shop]

i just want to say the sr1 class is as big as the pro utv because they get the same pay out for winning and a point championship so you could say the sr1 one class is actually the "pro sr1 class".I have a question not to change subject since i cant find it anywhere. How many rhinos entered the pro utv class because all i see are teryx and rzr on the list.On changes i agree with everyone else let the season run on these rules.Then let lucas oil do there fine tuning to the rules.

 

[the stripping shop]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

You could say the same thing about Pro-2 & Pro-4....let me show you..

I'm a big fan of the true Trucks, and still can't wrap my mind around a 900hp tube frame truck with a couple of Truck frame rails and a fiberglass truck style body.
I just don't get it. I definitley appreciate the power, sound, and excitement.

But at that point is it really still a "Truck"???

See how silly that sounds

what about nascar nothing about them is a stock car.But according to you it would be safe having a stock utv or stock car or truck running the coarses out there. perfect example of all this look at what yamaha is going through with the law suit.safety first but when you add all that safety,cage,seats,fire stuff,etc etc its not stock. So were do you draw the line, easy answer all the racing sanctions do by regulating it to be safe and put on good show.

 

[Ballistic]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

what about nascar nothing about them is a stock car.But according to you it would be safe having a stock utv or stock car or truck running the coarses out there. perfect example of all this look at what yamaha is going through with the law suit.safety first but when you add all that safety,cage,seats,fire stuff,etc etc its not stock. So were do you draw the line, easy answer all the racing sanctions do by regulating it to be safe and put on good show.

You were talking to Magnum and not me right???

 

[Wild Earp]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

Race trucks/cars are race trucks/cars. They share very little with their street going equivalents. Stock based race vehicles are only fun to watch because they bump into each other a lot. Spectators like fast, loud, exciting racing/race vehicles. Spectators bring in money, making racing less expensive for the racers (either through lower entry fees or sponsorship moneys). These UTVs have not been UTVs for a long, long time. Heck, most of the dune UTVs are far from UTVs. Even the stock Rzr barely meets the description...

I personally think its great that the SR1s are about the same speed as the top Unlimited drivers/cars. That will make for some exciting racing in the future. I dont care to be the fastest class, I just am glad to have something exciting to drive, thats also reliable, I can afford to race, in a class with cars I can compete with, in a car that 6 months ago, I thought was so outdated I would have to give up racing it.

I cant afford to race at the top level in the unlimited class with the factory backed guys, or even the top privateers. Even if I had a teryx or rzr instead of an old rhino, I wouldnt be able to afford the motor program. I can however afford the SR1 program. And thats why I signed on the week they announced them. Its taken me a while to get rolling due to funds and time, but Ill be out there racing soon!!

Thanks to the Wellers for a great idea, and thanks to everyone whos building SR1s and supporting the class. I think by the next race, there will be more SR1s than Unlimiteds, which is amazing since its such a new class. I see good things for this class, and Im stoked to be a part of it.

I dont feel the need for any changes, I just want to get out and race!

 

[450grl]

First of all, I'd like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who came out to the races this weekend, whether you were racing or there to support the series!! We pulled in, saw the Traxxas semi's and the Monster semi's and knew that THIS was going to be an epic weekend!!! Anyone who follows short course racing knows that to have all of these TORC drivers here on the West Coast for the opening round of LOORRS was simply AMAZING!!! Just like the good ol' days!!

Next, I'd like to say thank you once again to LOORRS for allowing us to be a part of the series this year! We are soooo excited to see how this year will play out, and can't wait for everyone to get their SR1's finished and out there to mix it up!

Joey/Rusty - thanks for your support and for being there for all of us! You guys ROCK!

I have to say THANK YOU to Weller Racing, Tilted Kilt, XMF, Walker Evans, Maxxis, Twisted Stitch, Unisteer and all of my sponsors for supporting me this season - I brought home my first LOORRS trophy on Sunday - the first of many, I hope!!

Also, huge thanks to Magna Flow for giving away an exhaust system to the winner of Saturday's SR1 class race!!! Very cool of those guys to come up and offer such an awesome contingency to our new class at the very first round! Tyler Herzog should be sporting a shiny new muffler sometime soon!

We had almost half of the UTV field this weekend - 5 SR1's on Saturday, and 6 on Sunday.....a number of SR1 guys were not able to make the deadline for this weekend, but we know that these numbers will grow throughout the season, and are really looking forward to watching it happen!

As for the racing action - wow!! It's a whole different ballgame this season, but I love it! The track at Vegas was tight and technical, with a ton of turns and some off-camber tricky stuff! The big jumps were SO fun, and the SR1's put on a clinic on how to clear the biggest jumps out there!

The tab on my shift linkage broke off on Saturday's main on lap 2 - leaving me in neutral! I was towed to the hotpits, where Jason asked me what gear I wanted to race in. I chose 2nd - I would rather clutch it through the corners than hit the rev limiter on the straights! So I finished Saturday's race in 2nd gear....coming in 4th in my class.

Sunday's race was much better - even though I had to start near the back due to having to start in the order we finished on Sat, I wanted to be up front and on that podium! They mixed the field of 600 and 800's, so it made for some really good racing, but it also made it trickier to get up through the pack!

Once the green flag dropped, all I remember thinking is "holy SH*t this field is FAST!!" Roost flying, UTv's all over the place - the start was crazy and it just stayed that way pretty much until the end - but the racing was SO fun!! I remember the days of being out by myself in the field in 4th place or so....everyone stretched out....just trying to get closer to the front. NOT ANYMORE! This time it was bar to bar and wheel to wheel until the finish line!! Me, Tyler W, Bobby V, and Gary T battled for a long time, with Gary finishing just in front of me for 1st place in the SR1 class, and just behind RJ for 2nd overall!

Doug Mittag was out there in Bobby's SR1 and driving his butt off - great job! Dan brought his SR1 out for day two since something happened to his Teryx on Sat, and was flying until he flatlanded somewhere - hope you are feeling better, Dan!.....Tyler H. won on Saturday, and Josh S. did great in his new build, just had to work out some suspension bugs still.

These first two rounds proved that this will be an exciting year for both classes - no one has this thing locked in, and it will be fun to watch the season play out! Congrats to Austin Kimbrell for doing a great job this weekend.....how he managed to drive so fast with one hand on the throttle lever after his cable broke is beyond me!! Skillz!! RJ did awesome - put that little RZR on the podium twice! It was fun hanging out with everyone, and Kimbrell's new Monster canopy is just SICK!!!

As for the SR1 class comments, what can I say? There is obviously a lot of mis-information out there.....no one ever said this was the Premier UTV class. It was never meant to be.....it was simply meant to ADD numbers to a dwindling UTV count. I consider the 600 class to still be the premier class - with factory support, etc......the SR1 class is an economy class, more than anything. It's a way to go faster in a bone stock motor than Rhinos could ever do before, and still have a motor last all season! It was never meant to pull anything away from the 600 class......it was also never meant to compete with the 600 class. The SR1 is a totally different animal.....6-speed, two wheel drive makes for a completely different driving/racing experience. It's much closer to what it's like to race a truck, and will actually be a great platform for jumping into a truck class!

The SR1 class is in LOORRS because they felt it would be a good addition to the series. Lucas has seen these cars run before - they had seen them run before ever adding them to the series - so they knew what to expect when they brought us on board, and from all of the feedback I have received, this class is delivering!

I had a number of track workers, big truck team members, announcers, spectators and now future SR1 racers talk to me this weekend about the class - they liked what they saw, and wanted to know more about it!

As far as wanting to change the class, and do different things already, I agree with what others have said. If you are really interested in this class, then get behind the wheel, get some seat time in.....race a season.......let this BRAND NEW class do it's thing for a bit. The rules are right there......the ones building these cars to race them are doing so because they like what they see, and they like how the class is set up. It's not because they don't like it and want to change it. Let's just go have some FUN!!

 

[MAGNUM OFFROAD]

Re: LOORRS 2010 RD1 Las Vegas - Pics, Results, Stories, Links -

MAGNUM...You could say the same thing about Pro-2 & Pro-4....let me show you..

I'm a big fan of the true Trucks, and still can't wrap my mind around a 900hp tube frame truck with a couple of Truck frame rails and a fiberglass truck style body.
I just don't get it. I definitley appreciate the power, sound, and excitement.

But at that point is it really still a "Truck"???

See how silly that sounds

I'm glad you cleared it up for me Tom. Thanks! LOL!!!

 

[Wild Earp]

Congrats on the podium Corry!

 

[450grl]

Thanks Ben!!!