Honesdale Freestyle, Rocky Mountain High for SIR
West Valley, Utah-Sudden Impact Racing headed to Rocky Mountain Raceway in Utah to brave the unique figure-8-style racing course and wild freestyle obstacles, coming away with another successful stop on their summer tour. Amsoil Shock Therapy and Amsoil Excaliber battled it out with the rest of the field in a great two-day event.
The first event saw Amsoil Shock Therapy run into some problems in racing after a third-place qualifying effort, but in true Sudden Impact Racing Fashion, make up for it in freestyle. After a solid effort from Amsoil Excaliber, Amsoil Shock Therapy took to the track, and made quick work of all the obstacles on the track.
“We only had a minute to freestyle the first night, so there was no time for messing around, which was fine by me,” driver Jon Zimmer said. “I got to catch some big air after being upset about how racing went, and ended up in second. We love to turn the fans on, and they left happy, so that’s what mattered to me!”
Amsoil Excaliber and Amsoil Shock Therapy would face off in the first round of racing for the second event, with Amsoil Shock Therapy taking the victory.
“We’d rather see both Amsoil trucks in the finals, but if I have to lose to anyone, I’d rather have it be Zimmer,” said Amsoil Excaliber’s Chris Ryan. “Overall, it was a strong weekend, and we both did very well the second night in freestyle.”
Indeed, freestyle was the strong point, as Ryan took to the track and aired Amsoil Excaliber out over many obstacles on track, warming the excited crowd up for Amsoil Shock Therapy’s freestyle. 2010 Monster Jam World Finals competitor Jon Zimmer let loose with a fantastic freestyle that earned him a second-place finish and a great closer to the weekend. Everything that could be done on the track short of tearing the truck up, Zimmer did—incredible air over every obstacle on the track, great slap wheelies, and some high-speed cyclone donuts to cap off the show and let the fans see, feel, and hear the great Holbrook Engine powering Amsoil Shock Therapy!
Next up for team Sudden Impact Racing is a trip to Elko, Minnesota for some more freestyle on August 21.
Honesdale, PA-Sudden Impact Racing pulled into Pennsylvania with the same goal as always—pleasing the fans and sponsors. For that, it was mission accomplished in Honesdale for a freestyle-only, two-night show.
“We were able to show the people at Redcat Racing what the Ground Pounder monster truck and Sudden Impact Racing are all about,” said Redcat Racing Ground Pounder driver Ben Winslow. “We’re pleased to have such great sponsors on the team, and they make us able to give back to the fans.”
The weekend started with Tim Missentzis in Cult Energy Activator, who refused to give up on the truck or the fans, starting things off with some great air over the cars and vans on the track, then experiencing electrical problems that sent the truck to the pits. While Redcat Racing Ground Pounder took its turn in freestyle with some big air of its own over some flattened cars, Cult Energy Activator was being fixed, and came back out for another go at the track, catching some more great air until an engine problem ended the truck’s event.
“Sometimes things aren’t ideal in monster trucks, and Cult Energy Activator’s engine had a valve go through the piston and bounce into the oil pan,” said Winslow. “Tim worked really hard to get the truck back out there, and we made it happen the best we could for Cult and the fans!”
Redcat Racing Ground Pounder made the best of a drier track the next day, catching more big air and making full passes in freestyle to the delight of the Pennsylvania crowd. Another quick turnaround is necessary, as Winslow and the team need to leave for another show soon.
“These long days and nights are hard, but it’s worth it when we look in the stands and see all the kids happy, cheering us on,” said Winslow. “We’ll be ready for the next show!”
No rest for the weary, as the next show was Gaithersburg, Maryland on August 18-19. We’ll keep you posted!
