Racer x Motorsports sponsored athlete Katie Vernola’s race Report from “King of the Hammers”.
02/10/15 El Cajon, CA- “February 4th was the King of the Hammers race presented by Polaris RZR. My stepdad, Chris Chapman or Kiwi as we call him, and I were ready to take on one of the toughest UTV races in the world driving the SuperATV Polaris RZR #1972. Tuesday morning we arrived in Hammer Town. Practice went great; our sponsors hooked us up with a great set up so we didn’t have to make too many changes. 53 UTVs signed up in the pro and sportsman classes. KOH drew starting positions and we got lucky starting on the pole in the Sportsman class. I was co-dawg for this race which means I had to navigate the 125 mile race course and spot through the tougher rock sections winching our way out of giant rock hills. We started the race about 34 out of 53 overall being sent off the starting line side by side every 30 seconds.
When the green flag dropped the #1972 hit some jumps leaving Hammer Town to be quickly stopped at our first hill climb. One UTV was blocking the first trail and we took a higher line which led us around the jam and right up the hill. From race miles 3-6 we hit the dry lake bed going about 70 mph where a helicopter followed just feet above us leading into the first pit stop. In the pits the American Rock Rods’ crew did a quick check of the RZR and sent us back out for the rest of lap 1 (roughly 40 miles).
After a couple rock hills we managed to pass a few UTVs that got stuck behind other cars. Around race mile 40, I called the main pit in Hammer Town letting them know we were coming into the pits; the RZR 1000 felt good and was still in good condition. As we passed through the start/finish line coming into the main pit for gas and a quick check, we quickly realized we were running in the top 10 overall. Keeping a constant speed we hit our next climb called “aftershock” at race mile 63. A loud snap quickly ended our day with a front broken diff. Very bummed on losing 4WD but was very happy for our first King of the Hammers race.”
“One of the best moments of KOH was going 70+ mph over the water bed with a helicopter following us up into a tough rock section. It was also a great feeling seeing other racers having to winch when my driver just charged up the mountain no problem. It could have also been those 30″ Kahuna tires. I would like to specifically thank SuperATV for the toughest after-market parts; we didn’t break one thing out of the 20+ parts we used. I’d also like to thank GMZ race products for hooking us up with awesome tires and bead locks; we didn’t pop a tire or crack a wheel the whole 63 miles we ran. Thank you Racer X Motorsports for all your help installing my navigation and setting up race radios, intercom, and chase vehicle. Thank you ProArmor for helping us out at KOH. And last but not least, a big thank you to Chris Barnett and his friends and family that helped us every step of the way.” Katie added.
Katie V Racing is powered by: SuperAtv.com, nFLOW Motorsports, UTV Underground, GMZ Race Products, MTX Audio, Carr One Fabrication, Bell Racing, PRP Seats, K&N Filters, Yoshimura, Dynojet, Cody Haggerty, Polaris RZR, Awthentik Design Group, Racer X Motorsports, Factory UTV, ProArmor. Katie Vernola is 23 years old and from Victorville, CA. Katie now resides in San Clemente, CA and began racing when she was 20. For the 2015 season Katie will be competing in the KOH, Lucas Oil Regional So Cal, Terracross and WORCS. You can learn more about Katie by visiting her website http://www.katievracing.com/. To keep up to date with her schedule and results follow Katie on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Katievracing, Instagram @KatieVRacing and Twitter MissJune2010.
BLACK RHINO/RACERX MOTORSPORTS
At Black Rhino Inc. and Racer X Motorsports, we have a passion for all forms of motorsports that is unmatched by anyone in our industry. From communications to safety, tear down to prep, providing fuel stations to race support, we meet the racers needs. We offer tons of products for ALL Side X Sides and a full showroom and website for your shopping convenience. We have a full service and installation center, an on-site fabricator, and a sales staff that is ready to help make your dream Side X Side a reality. Visit us today at 9303 Bond Ave. El Cajon, Ca. 92021 or log onto our website at www.blackrhinoperformance.com. You can also visit them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BlackRhinoFanPage.
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