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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
A view of the Johnson Valley, and “Hammertown.”
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Brady Melville photos
Conquering Hammers
Matt Nieman got his bell rung pretty good. All kidding aside, he’s lucky to be alive.
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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
Steve Duke
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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
Levi Shirley
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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
Karl Nornberg
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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
Brad Lovell was the EMC winner.
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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
Your King of the Hammers – Erick Miller.
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Brady Melville
Conquering Hammers
Eric Brinker is the first Canadian to finish the King of the Hammers.
Story & photos by Brady Melville
Canadian trials and tribulations at the 2016 King of the Hammers
Put King of the Hammers on your bucket list. Do it. You will not regret it, as this week of racing in the middle of the Mojave Desert every February, there really is something for everyone.
The first year of KOH in 2006 awarded cases of beer as prizes, but the event has grown yearly to become the largest off-road event in the world with 420 registered drivers in all classes. This year’s 10th KOH was a must stop on any serious off-roader’s list. While the main race is only a single day, "Hammertown" as it's called, is open for an entire week. By Thursday, it is a proper town; with roughly twenty to thirty thousand people camped in the desert and more arriving for the main event.
One of the best parts of KOH for spectators is the fact that Hammertown and the pits are open to everyone, so fans are welcome to check out racecars and chat with their favourite racers, giving this event a family sort of feel that you don't get at any other large race.
This year Johnson Valley tested everyone's endurance and the week leading up to the race was cold, windy and extremely dusty. Rolling into Hammertown on Monday morning was like rolling into a ghost town due to the dust whipped up by an 80 km/h wind. Fortunately, the wind died down as Hammertown began emptying out when thousands of drivers crossed the lakebed like a scene from Mad Max in preparation for the night’s event, the Chocolate Thunder SRRS vs. Ultra4 Shootout.
At Monday’s Shootout, Canadian driver Nolan Skop drove his infamous GORD F-150 megatruck in the event and was second off the line, putting in a great time until he hit a large boulder near the top, coming to a complete stop. He crossed the line with a time of 48.8 seconds for 11th place with the win going to Scott Goforth in his brand new rock bouncer with a time of 38.3 seconds.
After the event, the hills were shining with lightbars as thousands of spectators made their way back across the lakebed to Hammertown. It's one of those unique events that needs to be experienced. A late night followed around the campfire, with barbeques lit as everyone shared off-road stories - after all, it is a seven-day camping trip in the desert.
Tuesday and Wednesday were dominated by qualifiers for the 4400 Unlimited Class cars. Most racers had secured spots in the main event but needed to determine starting position. A group of thirty ‘Last Chance Qualifiers’ (LCQ) raced for the last ten open positions. There is a KOH qualifying tradition where the fastest racers are stacked in a group for Power Hour. The big names in Ultra4 racing all end up running back to back as the crowd grows into the thousands to watch some of the fastest men on four wheels put on a show.
Matt Nieman in the 4487 car, coming off a recent win at the Punisher4x4 event in Alberta, was up for qualifying. Nieman and co-driver Joey Weber are quick up the rocks and down the main waterfall, shooting sand at the crowd as they passed. Coming down the hill, Matt went over a huge boulder and ended up rolling his car, smashing a rock into the passenger compartment, taking out the dash and wiring. Next up was Steve Duke running a rig he debuted at KOH2015. He was fast on the rocks but came into the soft sand at the bottom of the waterfall too hard and rolled. Both Canadian cars would be starting near the rear of the pack.
Power Hour led to some excitement as Andrew McLaughlin did a full front flip after a brake problem. He landed back on his wheels and powered to the third fastest time of the day. Moments like that are unique to Ultra4 racing, where the car holds up well enough and the driver is skilled enough to completely roll their car, keep their composure and still put in a blistering time. Jason Scherer put down the fastest time and ended up 5 seconds ahead of Loren Healy to start in the pole position.
Another cold night followed, as some teams wrenched for hours getting ready for the Every Man Challenge (EMC) race in morning, while other teams celebrated and visited old friends and made new ones.
Thursday was the EMC race, which is slightly shorter than the Main, bypassing some of the harder rock sections and run by all the limited class cars. The EMC racers staged their cars in the streets of Hammertown at 6:00 am in preparation for an 8:00 am start. Nervous energy and the smell of race fuel wafted from the rows of cars.
Eric Brinker and co-driver Rich Walker were starting 57th in a pack of 111 cars and had their work cut out for them. With a fast car originally built around a big block Cadillac motor for the 4400 class, Brinker stepped down into the Legends 4800 class, which paid off as they passed 52 cars in the desert to be in 5th place as they got into the rocks on lap two. Despite blowing a tire and stopping for a change, and also having the ECU rattle loose and land in the co-driver’s hands for 50 kilometres, the team hit 155 km/h and crossed the finish line.
Brinker and Walker became the first Canadian team to ever finish the EMC at KOH. During his post-race interview, Brinker summed it up perfectly saying, "At KOH any finish is a win." The two other Canadian drivers Karl Nornberg and Alex McNeil were not as lucky and both broke on lap two of their race.
Friday dawned and Hammertown was bursting at the seams. Over 50,000 people were packed onto the lakebed and the excitement was running high. Cars were lined up on the roads of Hammertown warming up for the main event and throngs of spectators walked around the cars getting up close and personal before they headed out onto the lakebed. It is a moment unique to KOH and a great way for fans to interact with the racers.
Matt Nieman and Steve Duke both started near the back of the pack after their rollovers during qualifying. With ground to make up, both teams pushed hard into the first lap trying to get ahead in the open desert. Duke took a chance and ran the most challenging obstacle on his first lap. The infamous climb, “Backdoor”, is a rock ledge 1.5 metres tall and as he launched up, he destroyed a ring-gear ending his race. Nieman passed that challenge, but lost his fuel pump heading into the desert. After unsuccessful troubleshooting, and an 8 kilometre run to the pits for a new fuel pump, their day was over.
Former King Erik Miller won the main event in his solid-axle car. Jason Scherer and Raul Gomez followed in their single-seat IFS cars. Shortly after the end of the race, the exodus began and the crowds headed home. This year, 31 out of 104 cars finished, showing that once again this is the toughest off-road race in the world, but that's not stopping drivers and fans from beginning to plan for KOH 2017.