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Exciting racing at the Parker 425
The day started cold but the weather turned warm for the BlueWater Resort & Casino/Best in the Desert Parker 425 off-road race for cars, trucks, and rails held Feb. 5 in Parker.
At the awards ceremony Sunday morning, Best in the Desert Racing Association President Casey Folks said 212 vehicles started the race, and just over half of them, 116, finished it.
Folks said the race was very exciting, with the leads in many classes changing times several times. He said there were several classes, which were so close, they couldn't go by who crossed the finish line first to determine a winner. They found someone who had started later than the first one across the line actually had the better overall time.
He stated there were three accidents during the race. The first was a collision involving three trucks near milepost 100. The others involved rollovers near milepost 1. There were no serious injuries in any of the accidents.
Taking the top spot in the three-lap classes were Jesse Jones of Litchfield Park and Joe Weining of Tucson. They drove No. 76 in the 1400 Pro class, A Ford, to a time of 7:32:41.
Jones and Weining also received the Manny Esquerra Valor Award as the top overall performers in the race. The award was named after Manny Esquerra, who drove the Parker race for many years and won his class several times prior to his death in 2008.
Placing second overall in the three-lap classes was were BJ Baldwin, Bobby Baldwin and Sandy Stewart of Las Vegas and Steve Covey of Henderson, Nev. Driving No. 96, a Chevrolet in the 1400 Pro class, they came in with a time of 7:41:52.
Troy Herbst of Huntington Beach, Calif. and Tim Herbst of Las Vegas placed third overall as they drove No. 49 in the 1400 Pro class, a Ford, to a time of 7:49:11.
Also in the three-lap classes was Trent Beaver in No. 8105. He placed 66th overall and second in the 8100 class with a time of 11:21:14. His co-drivers in his Ford included Brad Makrdichian, Kevin Davis and Jim Beaver.
Parker's Ron Gibbs teamed with Kelly Kraiss of Lake Havasu City and Trevor Gard of Trabuco Canyon, Calif., to place 76th overall and 19th in the 1500 class. They brought their custom rail No. 1579 in at a time of 12:09:35.
Richard and Jim Madison, also of Parker, placed 79th overall and sixth in the 1100 class. They brought their Lothinger in with a time of 12:59:57.
The top performance in the two-lap classes came from Jeff Coan and Jon Krellwitz of San Dimas, Calif. and Skyler Gambrell of Fontana, Calif. They brought No. 1753, a Jeep, in at 7:41:22.
Placing second in the two-class racers were Jayson Strachan, James Burman, and Ryan Upthegrove of Heber City, Utah and Kyle Gervais of Park City, Utah. They brought No. 7132, a Ford, in with a time of 8:08:58.
Blake Henn, Tyler Henn, Freddy Paris and Dave Elliot finished third in the two-lap classes with a time of 8:10:28. They drove No. 7140, a Ford.
The top local finisher in the two-lap classes was the team of John Nelson and Tianna Parker. They placed 13th overall and seventh in the 1700 Pro class in No. 1758, a Jeep. Their time was 9:57:00.
Parker residents Ronald Welch Jr. and Anthony Honadick placed 18th overall in No. 5105, a Volkswagen "Baja Bug." Their time was 13:44:30. They also placed first in the 5100 class as the only Baja Bug in the race.
Folks thanked the event's sponsors, including the BlueWater Resort & Casino, Ford Motor Co., and General Tire.
At the awards ceremony Sunday morning, Best in the Desert Racing Association President Casey Folks said 212 vehicles started the race, and just over half of them, 116, finished it.
Folks said the race was very exciting, with the leads in many classes changing times several times. He said there were several classes, which were so close, they couldn't go by who crossed the finish line first to determine a winner. They found someone who had started later than the first one across the line actually had the better overall time.
He stated there were three accidents during the race. The first was a collision involving three trucks near milepost 100. The others involved rollovers near milepost 1. There were no serious injuries in any of the accidents.
Taking the top spot in the three-lap classes were Jesse Jones of Litchfield Park and Joe Weining of Tucson. They drove No. 76 in the 1400 Pro class, A Ford, to a time of 7:32:41.
Jones and Weining also received the Manny Esquerra Valor Award as the top overall performers in the race. The award was named after Manny Esquerra, who drove the Parker race for many years and won his class several times prior to his death in 2008.
Placing second overall in the three-lap classes was were BJ Baldwin, Bobby Baldwin and Sandy Stewart of Las Vegas and Steve Covey of Henderson, Nev. Driving No. 96, a Chevrolet in the 1400 Pro class, they came in with a time of 7:41:52.
Troy Herbst of Huntington Beach, Calif. and Tim Herbst of Las Vegas placed third overall as they drove No. 49 in the 1400 Pro class, a Ford, to a time of 7:49:11.
Also in the three-lap classes was Trent Beaver in No. 8105. He placed 66th overall and second in the 8100 class with a time of 11:21:14. His co-drivers in his Ford included Brad Makrdichian, Kevin Davis and Jim Beaver.
Parker's Ron Gibbs teamed with Kelly Kraiss of Lake Havasu City and Trevor Gard of Trabuco Canyon, Calif., to place 76th overall and 19th in the 1500 class. They brought their custom rail No. 1579 in at a time of 12:09:35.
Richard and Jim Madison, also of Parker, placed 79th overall and sixth in the 1100 class. They brought their Lothinger in with a time of 12:59:57.
The top performance in the two-lap classes came from Jeff Coan and Jon Krellwitz of San Dimas, Calif. and Skyler Gambrell of Fontana, Calif. They brought No. 1753, a Jeep, in at 7:41:22.
Placing second in the two-class racers were Jayson Strachan, James Burman, and Ryan Upthegrove of Heber City, Utah and Kyle Gervais of Park City, Utah. They brought No. 7132, a Ford, in with a time of 8:08:58.
Blake Henn, Tyler Henn, Freddy Paris and Dave Elliot finished third in the two-lap classes with a time of 8:10:28. They drove No. 7140, a Ford.
The top local finisher in the two-lap classes was the team of John Nelson and Tianna Parker. They placed 13th overall and seventh in the 1700 Pro class in No. 1758, a Jeep. Their time was 9:57:00.
Parker residents Ronald Welch Jr. and Anthony Honadick placed 18th overall in No. 5105, a Volkswagen "Baja Bug." Their time was 13:44:30. They also placed first in the 5100 class as the only Baja Bug in the race.
Folks thanked the event's sponsors, including the BlueWater Resort & Casino, Ford Motor Co., and General Tire.
OFF-ROAD LIVE! The SUPER Parker 425!!!
Desert Off-Road Race From Parker Arizona
The SUPER PARKER 425 RESULTS REPORTS
As They Come In>>>
A report from Corry Weller, "The new Ford Trophylite (#6029) owned by Mike West (BBQ Island), driven by me, Mike and Richard Cassey took 2nd - not bad for the truck being finished the day before, no track time and no seat time for several of us drivers!"
The SUPER Parker 425 HEADLINES
Yesterday marked the first race of the season for Best In The Desert Racing Association in Parker, AZ. Coined for the first time, the "SUPER" Parker 425, by OFF-ROAD LIVE! staff, the huge event had 212 starters!
The desert was filled with race vehicles pushing the limits to what they are capable of. Today, the desert was filled with hulks of broken desert racing dreams
-Jesse Jones passed a crashed Andy McMillin and a 0 MPH Rob Mac to take the win today. Jones won in a "new" truck, rather, it was his pre-runner for the Baja 1000 from 2010, last year, with the Primm Race winning Dougans engine, under the bonnet.
- Sam Berri performed well, even after losing 3rd and 4th gear halfway through the race.
- BJ Baldwin’s co-driver Jonny had to take over driving duties after BJ came ill.-Chad Ragland finished the race to place second across the finish line for Baldwin Motorsports
- Andy McMillin was tied for first on adjusted time, when he crashed, "put his truck on its side", causing damage that ended his race.
- There were 17 Geiser Trophy Trucks entered. A total of 35 at the start line.
- Sam Berri’s new nickname is now “Qualifying Killer”.
- Robby Gordon reportedly out of race due to a hole in the radiator.
- Camburg Racing lost some time off the start after a Class 1500 car rolled in front of them and they tried to push them off the track, getting stuck. Big babies.
-Yokomama Tires Cameron Steele, quit after the start line due to "old tires".
Crashed Out Of The Race Report>>>
Andy McMillin Runs Out Of Talent:
""
Here's what happened. Tied on time with Rob Mac, at mile 137 on lap 2 I missed a 90 degree right hand turn on a fast road. Instead of trying to make the turn, I drove over the berm and into what I thought was open desert. Instead it was a 15 foot ditch. The Motec in our truck says we went from 93mph to 0 in a quarter of a second. I'm sore but I'll be fine.""
Pictured right: PCI Race Radios Miss Rhiannon Freiley
Business Manager crashes at Laughlin race just weeks ago. Rhiannon signals she's number one!
Business Manager crashes at Laughlin race just weeks ago. Rhiannon signals she's number one!