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With the pressure squarely off the team, they were able to run their own race and win their eighth IRA race of the season.
"All three of our IRA Championships are special in their own way," said K&N sponsored B-Squared team owner Bill Balog. "These championships are hard to get and the competitors really make you work for them night in and night out. This year we were able to keep the car right side up and avoid any major accidents, which was nice. Our engines ran very well and we had virtually no part failures. As a matter of fact we ran the same nose wing for over 20 nights!"
With the 2010 IRA title already tucked away for the K&N sponsored Bill Balog, his B-Squared team headed for one more win at the Dick Witt Checkered Classic.
With the 2010 IRA title already securely locked up, Balog and his B-Squared Motorsports team headed to the IRA season finale, the Dick Witt Checkered Classic, held at Dodge County Fairgrounds Speedway in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. The B-Squared team was looking for one more victory to help carry their already abundant momentum into next year.
Balog and his team have now won their third consecutive IRA Championships.
In the feature event, after the final restart with only five laps remaining, Balog proved he had the car to beat, as he opened up a straight away lead on his way to victory. The win was Balog's eighth for 2010, and the 15th of his IRA career. It was also his 23rd consecutive top-five IRA feature finish. The win also put a large exclamation point on the team's third consecutive IRA Championship season.
"This bumper-to-bumper IRA championship was clinched a bit earlier than the other years," said Balog, "So some of the pressure was off the team. We just went out and ran our race. Early in the race it was clear that the team had nailed the setup on the 17b car, and we wound up with our eighth feature win of the season."
"Winning at tracks we haven't won at before this year was neat," added Balog. "We also gave away a few races, and once we figured out what the problems were things really made a turn for the better."
"We couldn't compete at this level without our sponsors. Our sponsors gave us the opportunity to put together a lighter, more powerful car, and that makes the driver's job a bit easier. The engine also breathes fresh, clean air with our K&N filters. Thank you to the crew, Jeff Bonilla, Ryan Buesser and K&N filters. See ya next year."
"Our weekend went way better than I could have ever imagined. I have to give all the credit to The Fab School (California's newest state certified automotive/off-road fabrication school) and to Fox Shox for that, because those new front shocks they sent me set the tone for the rest of the weekend," remarked K&N sponsored John Holmes.
K&N sponsored Holmes Motorsports has won back-to-back Pro-Buggy Lucas Oil Regional Off-Road Series Championships.
"I'm a little surprised that bolting on some new front shocks helped so much – we knocked off almost a full second and a half from my original times. My car and I worked like one moving part, and we were able to set the fast lap in less than four laps on the track."
Off-road short course racing returned to Glen Helen Raceway just a few klicks north of San Bernardino, for round six of the Lucas Oil Regional Off-Road Series. Holmes, the Riverside, California, Pro-Buggy racer won his class convincingly. In the first race Holmes elected to start in the second row, in order to allow himself time to get up to pace with the feel of his new suspension system.
The adjustment period was extremely short though, as Holmes had a comfortable lead within the first couple of laps of the first race, and he extended it all the way to the checkered flag. Then, in the 16-lap main, Holmes started on the front row. Garrett George, driving his Funco built buggy made a run at Holmes toward the middle of the race, and managed to get by him briefly. However, Holmes and his new Fox Shoxs got back around Garrett in time to take the checkered for the second time, taking the overall victory, and securing a cozy series points lead.
"The car just amazed me with all it was capable of, said Holmes. "I owe it all to my family and friends and sponsors, they continued to believe in me. Thanks to our K&N air and oil filters, we were able to keep our Fat Performance Honda engine running clean all season.
Holmes and his team competed in the Lucas Oil Regional Off-Road Series and the Glen Helen Short Course Series for the last two years, winning the Pro-buggy Championship both years.
"This season started pretty good, we were able to capture a few wins and stay consistent," commented Holmes. "Until, I believe it was round four, when I was going for the lead and ended up flipping two times in the air and landed back on all four wheels. The only bad thing was it knocked the wind out of me. I was able to suck it up though, and to finish that race. Looking back now, if we wouldn't have finished that race and all the others, we would have lost the points championship."
"Our goal in 2011 is to compete in as many Lucas Oil Off-Road Short Course Pro Series events as financially possible. We will not enter a race unless we know we have all the tools to have a chance at victory."
RCH Designs does anything automotive including custom builds, photography, video production, graphic design, and consulting. If you need ideas for a show car this may be the place to go.
RCH Designs' 2010 Chevy Camaro SS
This year SEMA boasted an array of Camaros and Jeeps with aftermarket parts but, none were as appealing as the Dynomax Camaro and the RCH Wrangler. The list of aftermarket parts on these two vehicles is endless but, more performance comes from the K&N intake systems under the hood of each vehicle.
RCH's Ryan Hagel had an opportunity to work on these project cars himself with the help of many others. Hagel says he has, "been using K&N products on my project vehicles for over 12 years. Each and every vehicle I install a K&N kit or filter replacement on gives me great piece of mind that the filter is not only protecting debris from getting into my engine, but also allowing maximum flow and increased horsepower." These intake systems are direct bolt on parts and look great even on show vehicles.
RCH Designs' 2010 Chevy Camaro SS at SEMA
The display was one of a kind for the Dynamax Camaro and displayed the exhaust very well as the rear end of the sat about 3 ft up in the air with the front bumper touching the floor. In the scheme of things, all of SEMA was quite impressive.
RCH Designs' 2007 Jeep Wrangler at SEMA
The Camaro had custom designed wheels developed by RCH themselves and a sweet flat black paint job to match. As for the Wrangler…. "It is very clean looking, while at the same time all bolt on products that anyone can buy. Nothing really unique, just ‘Clean'." Any Jeep enthusiast would appreciate a machine like the RCH Wrangler in their garage. Each vehicle took about 4 weeks to complete.
Aftermarket Parts List:
Camaro:
Paint: "The Shop" did the paint work, which is called Hot Rod Black
Wheels: Custom built and designed by RCH Designs
Tires: Falken
Suspension: Hotchkis
Interior: Mastercraft Safety Leather Seats, Coverking custom floor mats with Dynomax logo
Exterior: Window tint by "The Tint Pros", Vinyl graphics from Visual Imaging
Under the Hood: K&N Air Intake System 69-4519TP, Odyssey battery
Jeep:
Tires: Falken
Suspension: Rancho Short Arm
Other: Rancho full line of Rock Gear products (tubular doors, side steps, front and rear bumpers)
Warn Winch, Warrior Products rear corners, Drake Billet Accessories
Interior: Mastercraft Seats front and rear
Exterior: Huskyliner, Warn Aux lights, AEV Hood, Bestop Top and roll bar padding, Truck-Lite head lights
Under the hood: Odyssey Battery, K&N Air Intake System 57-1553
Drive train: upgrades by Off Road Evolution, JE Reel / Reel Driveline drive shafts
Four-time Arenacross Champion Josh Demuth won both Pro classes, and received the "Wyman Priddy Father of Texas Motocross" award.
The 3rd Annual Buffalo Creek Shock Sox $10,000 Easy Money AMA Pro-Am, contested in east Texas, once again blew-up exponentially this year. Pro racers nationwide converged at Buffalo Creek Motocross Park, located in Canton, Texas, for the ten-grand pro purse, or for the AMA advancement point being offered to amateurs.
Josh Demuth (YAM) and Tevin Tapia (KTM) provided fireworks for the fans in attendance.
This year four-time Arenacross Champion Josh "The Sheriff" Demuth won all four pro-motos and clinched both pro class titles. For his herculean efforts Demuth received the "Wyman Priddy Father of Texas Motocross" award.
"I am very pleased to have K&N Filters continued support for this yearly Pro-Am motocross race," remarked the event co-promoter Shand Garcia. Garcia is the assistant editor of Holeshot Magazine, and it's his company that manufacturers Shock Soxs - the ten second removable fork seal protector. He refers to his Shock Sox as a helmet for your fork seals - you put them on when you ride and take them off when done.
K&N sponsored Aaron Smith finished ninth overall in a stacked 450cc Pro class.
"The K&N Company has been excellent to work with, and has gone above and beyond what we ever expected," continued Garcia. "We strive to provide a great race for the racers that support our event, and it all starts with product sponsorships from companies like K&N. For the third year now, we have been able to put K&N's products directly into the racers/consumers hands... enabling them to get familiar with the great oil and air filters that K&N produces."
Kerry Moore runs it hard into a Buffalo Creek corner. He also grabbed $50 for a BSM Holeshot award.
"The race was brainstormed between me and the Buffalo Creek MX Park owner, Russell Hobbs," explains Garcia. "Russell and I both have a great passion for watching Pro motocross racers, especially the local talent that need to earn an extra paycheck. Our Inaugural race was held in 2008, and it has seen increased growth at both the racer and spectator turnouts."
Garcia says that his and Russell's co-promoter relationship works out really well. Russell is the man behind the track, and he provides an excellent facility and course come race day. While Garcia's role is his company's product, Shock Sox, as the title sponsor, and his deft handling of the sponsorships and promotional side of things. Garcia is also literally the voice of the event, as he does a skillful job of announcing the races.
Buffalo Creek MX Park has a combination of red clay and sand, so the Shock Sox product is perfect for riders looking to protect their fork seals. The race is not an invitational, it is open to the public, and is AMA sanctioned, with AMA Pro-Am advancement points awarded for the "A" riders looking to get their Pro license in motocross.
"I have had a relationship with K&N Filters for many years through my assistant editor job at Holeshot Magazine," says Garcia. "Thankfully, K&N has been on board with our efforts, and this race from the first year. As I mentioned, Buffalo Creek has diverse soil, so it's a great track to showcase K&N's air filter lineup too."
"K&N's support allows the racers in attendance to see just how important air filters can be. Same with the K&N oil filters. We ran practice on Saturday, and prized out oil filters to some of the riders that ran Saturday's practice, that way the racers could actually run the oil filters during Sunday's race. K&N's support allows us to put their product in potentially new customer's hands. Russell Hobbs and I are very thankful to the K&N Company!"
Regarding next year's event Garcia says, "As of right now, we have the date set for Sept 24-25, 2011. We have been blessed with great companies such as K&N (and a host of others), and are happy with the way things have gone these past few years. We have appreciated the steady growth, without biting off more that we can chew. So, I can't promise any major changes as of yet, but we have a few things in mind. I would like to once again thank everyone at K&N for their support of our race, as well as everything they do in the Powersports industry!"
The Team Faccinto brothers have now swapped Lemmore Championships, Mitchell won the title last year, and Michael nabbed it from him this year.
"It was a fun hard battle with my brother, if it wasn't mine to win it was his. I'm glad to be standing here, but I could not have done it without the support of my family and sponsors," said the slightly older half of Team Faccinto, from Hanford, California. At just 20 years of age, Mike is two years older than his toughest competition, and younger brother Mitchell. Between the two of them they have already amassed over 20 years of race experience.
Older brother Michael drives the number 1, Gordon Seros Racing Engine powerplant car, Mitchell sticks along side in the number 4 car.
The 2010 championship at Lemoore Raceway was a battle from the start for the Faccinto brothers. Throughout the 15 race schedule, the brothers swapped the top position six times, until with only two races left, they were all tied up.
Michael, driving his number 1, Gordon Seros Racing Engine powerplant, captured his third win of the season, putting him 18 points ahead of younger brother Mitchell going into the last race of the season. Mitchell would qualify in the sixth position with Michael in ninth position, and in the main event, Mitchell did not make things easy on his older sibling. The Faccinto brothers battled throughout the 50-lap race. And when the checkered flag flew, Michael would finish fifth, with Mitchell right behind him in sixth. With that fifth place finish Michael squeezed by his brother, nabbing the championship by the narrowest of margins.
"It was fun all year, there was no talking about the championship with two races left," said Michael. "Although we both knew what needed to happen to win, and things fell right into place for me to secure the championship."
Mitchell's comments were, "It was good to see that the championship stayed within our family. I was able to win it in 2009 and Michael was able to bring it home in in 2010."
With the greatest competition coming from your own brother, we wondered what the track dynamics might amount to.
"There is no blocking for each other, when you're out on the race track, it's every man for himself," stated Michael.
And Mitchell concurred, saying "We're teammates until the green flag falls - then we race each other just as hard as we'd race anyone else."
"The turning point for me this year," says Michael, "Was regaining the points lead with three races left. That gave me the confidence to finish the year off strong."
For Mitchell the season turning point came at Plaza Park Raceway in Visalia, California. "Winning three races in a row in Visalia was definitely a turning point for me," said Mitchell. "Also winning the last race of the season is big, because it helps us both carry momentum into the 2011 season."
"Next year we are upgrading our chassis by switching to PACE Chassis, and I am very excited about that," says Michael. "I feel we should be even better and faster next year."
"We're looking forward to running for two championships next year and running on Thanksgiving weekend," adds Mitchell.
The K&N sponsored Faccinto brothers both say they could not do what they do without the continuing support of their sponsors, and they sincerely thank them all.
