David Bouthillier
Ken limping home with a broken front right leaf spring and shock
Words by David Bouthillier
It's expensive. It's countless hours of wrenching in your shop. Long nights. Broken parts and busted knuckles. It's friends telling you that you're crazy - wasting your time! Big tow rigs and long hauls. All for what? Why would anyone want to smash a truck through terrain like that! LOL... how much did you win?? BLAH BLAH BLAH!
It's been said that if you need to ask, you just don't get it! What am I talking about? The TMR Customs Off Road Racing Series and some serious rock buggies!
I was introduced to the racing series by a good friend of ours last season. She was doing media coverage AND racing in a bright pink Jeep (@that.pink.xj) and reached out to me for help with the media coverage while she was racing. Being an avid ATVer and gear-head for most of my life, it was an easy decision for me... I'M IN! As I rolled into Trudeau Park, Tweed, for CRAWLfest late Friday night back in 2018, I can still remember the feeling of excitement seeing the big trucks for the first time. These are the machines you'd play with as a child in your sand box, dreaming of the day you could see one in person and maybe even drive!
Fast forward a year, and here we are again in Tweed for CRAWLfest 2019, cameras in hand and ready for action! A familiar face greets us at the registration booth. Ken, the organizer of the race and a racer himself, talks about his modified Toyota pickup truck and the improvements he's made over the winter. "The only mod I've done over the winter is this steering quickener. It was difficult last year trying to stay on the shifter while steering in the corners - this should help a lot this season." Ken is an easy-going guy and very friendly to talk with, which is a common personality trait for all the racers we encountered throughout the day. Everyone is relaxed, everyone is lending a hand helping their competition with last minute adjustments or trying to fix a broken rig between heats. It's a big family all gathered to enjoy the competition of racing the machines they have built. Ken had a strong start but suffered a broken leaf spring half way through the first lap, but as luck would have it, he still managed to pull off a first-place victory in the Modified class.
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Just a big green turtle on its back
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TMR flexing "Priorities" down the shortcut to the finish line
Pete Hamann is one of those personalities that really make up the heart and soul of the racing community within the series. "I've been wheeling for over 25 years now, ever since I got my license. About 15 years ago I got into Jeeps and I built a Cherokee with removable doors and cut off top. I've been racing in the TMR Off-Road racing series for as long as it's been around now." Pete is a huge advocate for the off-road racing community and has a burning passion to see it flourish and expand here in Canada. Together with his wife, Sharon Sauer, they race as Heinz57Racing (@heinz57racing). Heinz, being Pete's middle name, reached back into his hot-rodding days for the team name, where a "Heinz 57" hot rod was known as a car made from multiple brands. "With Heinz being my middle name and the patch work of parts used for our racing rigs, it was a name that just kind of stuck, so we went with it!" Competing in the unlimited class, Pete is rocking a new TMR Customs Tube Chassis Kit with exterior panels modeled after his old rat-rod Jeep CJ, while Sharon is competing in the Stock class with a Jeep Grand Cherokee. The competition in Unlimited class was fierce, but Pete knocked out two solid heats and landed a second-place overall finish. Sharon was one of the few Stock racers that managed to survive the carnage that claimed many of the other machines, and after knocking 20 seconds off on her second heat, she claimed first place, killing the competition by 4 minutes!
Second year racer Brian Cain was itching to get his red Jeep Cherokee 4 door off the trailer and lay down some practice laps. A noise ban until 4pm was in effect on Friday night due to a wedding on the other side of Trudeau Park. Brian purchased the "Hoist Wagon" from a previous racer in the TMR Off Road Racing Series back in 2018. As you've probably guessed it, the nickname was earned by spending more time up in the air on a hoist being repaired between races than actual time on the ground. This year around, the "Hoist Wagon" was upgraded with Fox shocks and bump stops, new tires, and beefier suspension mounts. Brian and his wife Amy originally started their off-road adventures on ATV's and then five years ago made the jump to a Jeep Cherokee. Recreational riding eventually evolved into racing the "Hoist Wagon", and now there is talk about building a second vehicle so Amy can compete. Brian and Amy placed second in the Modified class and managed to avoid any serious damage in the process. No time on the lift for the "Hoist Wagon" this time.
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Adam Bullock blasting up the hill climb
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Sharon Sauer searching for traction
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Dale Racing struggling to make it home
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The "Hoist Wagon" running strong in Modified class
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Pete Hamann giving the crowd a big high-five
Women in off-road racing is gaining popularity, and Amanda Bracket is as enthusiastic about racing as her Jeep XJ is bright. She caught the attention of Heinz57Racing and soon found herself as part of the team. "They were looking for a new female driver and I was lucky enough to be given the opportunity. It's an adrenaline rush you'll never get sick of and it's so much more than just racing. The great times, great people and a whole new community you become apart of to make amazing memories." Lady Luck was not on her side at CRAWLfest. During her first lap the pink XJ suffered a broken steering tab failure on the right knuckle.
For some people, off-road racing offers a freedom that cannot be found behind the wheel on our public roads. "The only reason I'm in off-road racing is because the penalty for doing anything 'fun' is too much these days." Adam Bullock gets his adrenaline fix tearing up the track in his Unlimited class rig. "Now that I have a family, this is a cheap hobby the family can enjoy." Cheap is not something you'd normally expect to hear roll off the tongue from someone racing a heavily modified vehicle, but if you're willing to put in the hours and turn a few wrenches, you can find yourself behind the wheel of a sweet rock buggy at a reasonable price. Adam and his heavily modified Toyota truck (that now looks like a Jeep CJ) placed 8th overall in the Unlimited class, and while he didn't find himself on the podium, Adam certainly wins the "best tow rig" award in his vintage 1977 GMC Fleury RV!
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The Dale Racing team
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Pete Hamann from Heinz57Racing with his custom tube chassis buggy
Chris Dale is still patiently waiting to get behind the wheel of his Jeep Grand Cherokee and experience the thrill of racing. Until that day comes, his kids have been doing a fine job the last three years piloting the Jeep for him. Dale Racing is a family affair, with racing roots that go all the way back to England where Chris raced in the British Off-Road Championships. Being exposed to racing at an early age, it was just natural that his children Jack, Rebecca, and Georgia would eventually follow in his footsteps. During pre-running, the front right axle shaft let go, but thanks to great support from the family and the Baja Jeep Club, a team of people had the shaft pulled out and a spare installed just in time for the morning races. A tire blow-out during the first heat caused them to limp to the finish line with an 11 min 13 sec time, but they picked up the pace in the afternoon and managed to secure a fourth-place finish in the Stock class.
TMR Customs is a name well known in the off-road racing world. Tim and Mike Rogers have been instrumental in supporting the racing community by stepping up as the primary sponsor for the TMR Customs Off Road Racing Series. Not ones to sit on the sidelines, Tim and Mike each take a turn piloting the TMR "Priorities" tube chassis race buggy. 4wheeling for the brothers goes all the way back to their youth when they would drive around in an old Jeep CJ that their father had received from their uncle. Tim recalls, "I remember asking my Dad, what's that on the floor? Well it turned out there wasn't a floor and I was seeing the ground rushing past!" The TMR "Priorities" rig is a fierce racing machine - crate GM 6.2L LS3, Reid Racing Turbo 400 transmission, SCS Transfer case, and Ford 350/450 axles holding up massive 42" BFGoodrich tires. It's no surprise they secured 1st place in the Unlimited class and by a margin of just 1 second, laid down the fastest lap time of the day at 3 min 55 sec.
CRAWLfest was blood bath of vehicle carnage - 11 DNF's, a front axle housing completely snapped in half, a vehicle rollover, numerous snapped axles and u-joints, blown tires, busted leaf springs... the list goes on and on. So why on earth would anyone be interested in destroying a machine that cost so much money and time? Maybe your friends are right - maybe you are a bit crazy. Everyone has a different story. For some it's about getting that adrenaline rush, others want to be part of a community, while some are just following the path they began walking down with their parents.
Best of luck to all the racers in the 2019 season! YouTube video of event.
About the Author:
David Bouthillier is a motorsports enthusiast, metal fabricator, and software developer for a hi-tech company in Kanata. Together with his wife Ange, they have created GLASSGLOWZ Media, a company that focuses on motorsports photography and videography. When he's not behind the camera, David can usually be found in the garage working on his 74 Dodge Challenger, or out for a rip on the ATV's with his wife and kids. You can follow him on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or www.glassglowzmedia.com