It’s official: motorsports racing phenom Robby Gordon’s 2009 racing season is off to a hell of a good start.

Fresh off his Open class win and third overall finish at the 2009 Dakar Rally, and with the recent news of his switch to Toyota for the 2009 NASCAR Nextel Cup season, Gordon came to the 15th annual SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge and cleaned house to claim his eighth career SCORE Trophy Truck win on Sunday.

Starting 13 seconds behind day one winner Gustavo Vildosola Jr., Gordon put his Monster Energy/Team Gordon Chevrolet into the physical lead and quickly erased the deficit. He cut the fastest lap of the day on the opening lap of Sunday’s half of the race, posting a time of seven minutes, seven seconds, then maintained a consistent string of laps in the seven minute, 20-second range to dominate a field of 18 starters. Gordon’s Sunday time of 59 minutes, nine seconds, combined with his Saturday time of 58:45, netted the win with a total time of 1:57:54 at an average speed of 50.89 mph.

"Yeah, we were [on cruise control],” Gordon said. “We’ve come here for many years, and we’re normally fast here at Laughlin, but we don’t win. So, this year I came with a little different strategy. We’d sit and ride the first race. Laps four, five and six here, I backed off quite a bit. I knew I had a minute and 45 on BJ [Baldwin], and I knew he was up on me by 30 seconds, but I was cool with it because the most important thing for us to do is win with this Monster Chevrolet. It’s always fun to win – it doesn’t matter where it’s at. I’m glad we did it here at Laughlin and we’ll be back next year.”

Typical of the Laughlin Desert Challenge, the attrition rate on the demonically tough 6.25-mile course was high. Only half of the 18 Trophy Truck starters finished the race, some of them bowing out early and in spectacular fashion. Justin Lofton and Robbie Pierce, Saturday’s third- and fourth-place finishers both suffered violent, end-over-end rollovers on separate sections of the course before completing the first lap. Lofton’s happened in one of the treacherous sand washes while he was chasing Pierce, who then met the same fate over a kicker in the stadium section. Neither driver nor his respective co-driver was injured in the incidents.

“I just wasn’t expecting that kicker,” Pierce said of his crash. “We’ve been pinning it over that little jump all day long, and they just changed it on us a little bit, I think. The back end just kicked it over me.”

One thing is certain: Pierce is no longer displaying the tentative driving style that characterized his 2008 campaign. He is on the gas much harder now.

“We spent a couple days testing with it last week, and then getting a full season with it I have finally gotten comfortable with it. I feel like I can do just about anything in it. I guess I just can’t to that, though.” [laughs]

Vildosola also ran into problems and was only able to complete the fourth lap. BJ Baldwin, who was actually chasing down Gordon for the first six laps of the race, also suffered a DNF when he lost all forward gears in his transmission. Refusing to give up, Baldwin jammed his General Tire/Vision X Chevrolet in reverse and completed practically the entire seventh lap by running backwards.

“I heard over the radio that we are the fastest truck to run backwards in the history of Laughlin,” Baldwin joked. “It was just all about persistence. We were really going for it. We wanted to win, and we lost all forward gears, so we just stuck in reverse and went as fast as we could.”

So what was it like to experience a desert race in an 800 horsepower Trophy Truck in reverse?

“It was entertaining,” Baldwin said. “My co-driver was telling me where to go, and I was peeking out this side.

Unfortunately, with another lap yet to run, Baldwin knew could not make it to the finish line under the 80-minute time limit. He was forced to abandon the chase and accept a DNF.

“It’s a disappointing, but I’m not worried about it,” Baldwin said. “I’ll just keep doing the best I can, and either I’ll win or I’ll lose.”

Surprisingly, Cameron Steele finished the weekend second overall. It’s surprising not because Steele did it but rather because Steele was nowhere near Laughlin when it happened. After placing sixth in his Yokohama/Lucas Oil GMC on Saturday, Steele made a hasty exit, driving all night to Aspen, Colorado to fulfill an obligation as part of the broadcast team for the Winter X Games. Fellow Desert Assassin Justin Smith (left) made his Trophy Truck debut for the team on Sunday and put on an impressive display of consistent driving to finish fourth, moving the team to second overall.

“I had a great time out there,” Smith said. “This is my first time ever in a Trophy Truck. Cameron had me qualify for him, and we came out in sixth place and he got sixth place [Saturday] and here we are. I’ve always raced limited buggies and I’ve done my fair share of riding in Trophy Trucks with Cameron and Clyde Stout and those guys. It was pretty nice. Clyde and I did some battling, and he made a little mistake, trying to push too hard. It feels pretty good to beat him to the finish line. I just tried to keep my mind off being nervous and on other things.”

On lap seven, Smith got a taste of just how exciting Trophy Truck racing can be when he was involved in a three-way battle with Stout (13) and Bill McBeath (91) on one of the the infield straightaways (below left). Smith kept his cool and eventually came out ahead of both of them.  

“I came on the inside of Bill McBeath, and I didn’t even know that Clyde was coming,” he said. “I knew he was there, but I didn’t know how close he was. He put some time on me when I slowed up from McBeath, trying to be polite, then Clyde came in and decided that he wanted to go three wide. I let Clyde go out there and get by us and then he bobbled in front of me and blew a corner and I got my chance to get back, so I took it. I was really excited for all my driving. I think I did a pretty good job. You’ve got all the big dogs out here and to come out and battle with all those guys, it’s awesome.”

Stout wound up third overall and third in Trophy Truck via 8-3 finishes over the two days.

“We had a good run,” Stout said. “We finished eighth (Saturday), and our motor is about 620 to 630 horsepower. This one here, Katech built it and Redline tuned it and, man, they’re good guys. But I think we’re about 120 to 150 down in horsepower from these guys, and we rattled them. This is an incredible truck.”

Adam Householder (left) went 9-4 in his Blitzkrieg Motorsports Chevrolet to wind up fourth in Trophy Truck and fifth overall, behind Class 1 winner Danny Anderson.

“There was not one issue,” Householder said. “In testing we broke a motor and went to a small-horsepower backup motor, and there was not one issue. We’re down probably 250-300 horsepower, and it was tough passing people. We just had to carry more momentum than everyone else. I didn’t get passed too much. I let them work for it just like I had to. We saw people ahead of us and they were broke down, and we just picked them off one by one.”

Reigning Baja 1000 Co-champion Larry Roeseler (below left) was not immune to trouble on Sunday, even though he was in a different truck than the one he had driven on Saturday. At the directive of team owner Roger Norman, Roeseler took to the driver’s seat of Norman’s number 8 truck and was running pretty well before power steering issues slowed his charge at the end of the third lap.

“With no power steering, it’s a handful,” Roeseler said. “This race course is extremely hard on equipment. We started off good. We were passing people in the first couple laps, but then I started to feel it kick back through the steering wheel, and we started to get smoke in our face, and we knew something was going on with the power steering. We took the hood off and poured a couple quarts [of power steering fluid] in it, but it never went away, so we just kept stopping every lap and putting two quarts in it.”

At least Roeseler finished, running sixth for the day. Combine with Norman’s 13th-place finish on Saturday, the Crystal Bay Casino/Roger Norman Racing team left Laughlin with a fifth-place overall finish.

“We’ve had rougher days,” Roeseler said. “To get in all eight laps on Saturday and all eight laps on Sunday we’ll probably leave here about fourth or fifth in the points, so we’re not out of the running [for the SCORE Championship]. That’s better than a DNF any day.”

After crashing out of the race on Saturday, Brian Collins (left) and his team made the necessary repairs overnight to have the Collins Motorsports Dodge Ram Trophy Truck up and running on Sunday, and Collins took full advantage of it by finishing second on the day. That, combined with Saturday’s DNF, left Collins 11th overall, but it did show that as long as the Dodge is running, it is a serious threat for the win.

“Well, we did have to stop on the first lap because we had a brake line come loose, so we had to bleed the brakes,” Collins said. “That cost us about a minute, minute and a half, but after that we got back in the groove and passed a lot of cars today. That was pretty cool, you know, starting 20th, last truck off the line. We finished physically fourth, but I don’t know how we did on adjusted time. We just drove it fast. When this truck runs, it’s a tough truck to beat. It would have been nice to have a better day yesterday. We’ve had DNFs here the last two years – a radiator, a gearset – but that’s Laughlin.”

Collins said he is looking forward to defending his Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 title next. He will not be entering the Best in the Desert series opener at Parker, Arizona, in two weeks.

“Everything is tight this year, you know,” Collins said. “We lost our Mopar sponsorship, which is unfortunate. I just want to focus on one season, spend my money wisely and finish the year.”

CLASS 1: SORRY, HARLEY

After building a 51-second overall lead and taking the win on the first day, it appeared as though the hard-charging Harley Letner had a good chance of claiming the Class 1 win at Laughlin. However, history has shown that fortunes can quickly change at the SCORE season opener, and they often do. They did for Letner.

Letner got off to a rocket-fast start in Sunday’s Class 1 battle, posting a seven-minute, 22-second lap that was more than 30 seconds faster than the second fastest lap, but on lap two things turned ugly for Letner when the right rear tire exploded on his Letner Racing Alpha-Chevrolet (above), forcing him to limp to the pits. His second lap time was 14:08, which effectively put him out of the hunt for the overall victory.

“It didn’t go exactly as I had planned,” Letner said. “We had one flat, one setback. It happened on the beginning of the second lap, about mile 2, and I had to just limp it in the rest of the way and try not to bend the wheel over the caliper. We got it changed,and I tried to make up some time. The car was running real good. I was pushing it down a little further after I got my flat. I was quite upset, but I was just trying to keep it in one piece and make it to the finish line.

Letner’s misfortune paved the way for LVDC Bunderson-Chevrolet driver Danny Anderson (above) to score the win and keep the Laughlin Desert Challenge Class 1 title in the LVDC camp for another year; Anderson was subbing for last year’s overall and Class 1 winner Pat Dean, who could not compete due to an injury suffered on a recreational outing. Anderson peeled off consistent laps in the high-seven to low eight-minute range for all eight laps.

“I’d have to say today old age and treachery overcame youth and skill,” Anderson said. “My plan was to let Harley go. I knew I wasn’t going to beat him by 50 seconds, so I just let him go do his thing. About the third lap we come around and he had a flat tire, and that was pretty much it. We just took it easy on the car, and the car was awesome. Butch Dean and TJ Flores are unbelievable prepping this Bunderson car. That’s two years in a row for these guys as champions.”

Randy Wilson (left) finished third overall in a Jimco-Chevrolet, while teammate Ronny Wilson finished fourth overall, the two running nose to tail around the Laughlin course for practically the entire distance on Sunday, where Ronny finished second on adjusted time while Randy finished fourth behind Brian Parkhouse, whose 13-3 tallies left him eighth overall.

GROUPIES

Competition among some of the other classes was no less fierce, although the outcome of several battles was somewhat predictable.

In Group 1, Adam Pfankuch and Steve Eugenio (left) bested 17 other starters in  Sunday’s Class 1-2/1600 race to capture the day-two and overall class win, getting the 2008 SCORE defending class championship-winning team off to a great start in 2009. Pfankuch’s two-day, 12-lap time was one hour, 44 minutes and 6 seconds, with an average speed of 43.228 mph.

Alonso Angulo was the only starter in Class 5/1600. Angulo claimed the class victory with a two-day time of two hours, 10 minutes and 30 seconds. His average speed was 34.483 mph.

Two entries started Sunday’s Sportsman Car class, and only one finished. Rory Ward won the class with a combined total time of one hour, 49 minutes and 32 seconds for an average speed of 41.083 mph.

Group 2’s pickup brigade once again dominated by Greg Adler’s Class 8 Ford (left). Adler won the class with a two-day time of one hour, 45 minutes and 26 seconds with an average speed of 42.681 mph.

Heidi Steele was the sole Class 6 entry, winning the class with a two-day time of two hours, 13 minutes and 18 seconds.

After finishing third Saturday, Dan Chamlee won Class 7 on Sunday to defend his 2008 Laughlin Class 7 title. Chamlee’s combined time was one hour, 51 minutes and eight seconds at an average speed of 39.81 mph.

John Holmes was the sole entry in Class 7SX. Holmes’ two-day time was one hour, 46 minutes and 25 seconds. His average speed was 35.239 mph.

Stock Full and Stock Mini had just one entry each. Stock Full competitor Justin Matney failed to finish after completing only two of the five required laps on Sunday. Stock Mini competitor Gavin Skilton did go the required distance to claim the Stock Full win with a two-day time of one hour, 57 minutes and 36 seconds at an average speed of 31.888 mph.

SCORE Class 3 Champion Donald Moss was the sole entry in the class at Laughlin, completing the entire race distance with a time of one hour 45 minutes and 32 seconds. In doing so, Moss claimed his seventh Laughlin Desert Challenge victory in Class 3, including five straight from 2002-2006 and back-to-back titles in 2008 and 2009.

Sportsman truck featured eight entries and six finishers on Sunday. Gary Messer kept it going in his TROPHYLITE-Chevrolet to claim the class win with a two-day time of one hour 33 minutes and 24 seconds. Messer average 40.150 mph.

Group 3 featured 17 total starters among two limited buggy classes and the unlimited Class 5 VW class. A fourth-place finish on Sunday was good enough to net Robert McBeath the Class 10 title. McBeath took a combined total of two hours, one minute and 21 seconds to go the full race distance. He averaged 43.263 mph. Kevin Carr (left) won both days in Class 5 for the overall win, posting a combined time of 2 hours, seven minutes and 57 seconds at an average speed of 41.032 mph. Only one of the eight entries in SCORE Lite was unable to complete the seven-lap distance on Sundy. Rick St. John won the day and the overall. His two-day combined time was one hour, 58 minutes and 28 seconds. His average speed was 44.316 mph.

The 2009 SCORE Desert Series resumes March 13-15 with the 22nd Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 in San Felipe, Baja California, Mexico.

Results
15th SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge
SCORE Desert Series Round 1 of 5
Laughlin, Nevada
January 24-25, 2009
Total Starters: 103; Total Finishers: 59 (57.3%)

Top Overall Finishers

Rank, Driver(s), Manufacturer, Class, 16-lap, 100-mile time (miles per hour)
1. Robby Gordon, Charlotte, N.C., Chevy CK1500, SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK, 1 hour, 57 minutes, 54 seconds (50.891)
2. Cameron Steele/Justin Smith, San Clemente, Calif., Chevy Silverado, SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK, 2:02:07 (49.133)
3. Ed Stout, Santa Ana, Calif./Trigger Gumm, Mission Viejo, Calif., Chevy Silverado, SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK, 2:03:11 (48.708)
4. Danny Anderson, Las Vegas, Bunderson-Chevy, Class 1, 2:07:05 (47.213)
5. Adam Householder, Orange, Calif., Chevy Silverado, SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK, 2:08:32 (46.680)
6. Harley Letner, Orange, Calif., Alpha-Chevy, Class 1, 2:09:54 (46.189)
7. Randy Wilson, Lakewood, Calif./Rick Wilson, Long Beach, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, Class 1, 2:10:32 (45.965)
8. Ronny Wilson/Rick Wilson, Long Beach, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, Class 1, 2:10:53 (45.842)
9. Enrique Bujanda, El Paso, Texas, Porter-Chevy, Class 1, 2:12:53 (45.152)
10. Roger Norman, Reno, Nev., Ford F-150, SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK, 2:13:31 (44.938)
11. Greg Nunley, Tulare, Calif., Chevy Silverado, SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK, 2:14:16 (44.687)
12. Julio Herrera, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, Jefferies-Chevy, Class 1, 2:17:20 (43.689)
13. Richard Boyle, Ridgecrest, Calif./Ron Brant, Oak Hills, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, Class 1, 2:19:14 (43.093)
14. Brian Parkhouse, Bell Gardens, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, Class 1, 2:19:33 (42.995)
15. Rick Romans/Jerry Bennett, Big Bear Lake, Calif., Jefferies-Chevy, Class 1, 2:24:28 (41.532)
16. Dale Lenk/Brett Lenk/Grant Lenk, Costa Mesa, Calif., Penhall-Chevy, Class 1, 2:25:41 (41.185)
17. Mark Post, Laguna Beach, Calif./Rob MacCachren, Las Vegas, Ford F-150, SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK, 2:25:50 (41.743)

OFFICIAL FINISHERS

SCORE TROPHY-TRUCK (Unlimited Production Trucks, 16 laps, 100.0 miles) - 1. Robby Gordon, Charlotte, N.C., Chevy CK1500, 1 hour, 57 minutes, 54 seconds, 50.891 miles per hour; 2. Cameron Steele/Justin Smith, San Clemente, Calif., Chevy Silverado, 2:02:07, 49.133 mph; 3. Ed Stout, Santa Ana, Calif./Trigger Gumm, Mission Viejo, Calif., Chevy Silverado, 2:03:11, 48.708 mph; 4. Adam Householder, Orange, Calif., Chevy Silverado, 2:08:32, 46.680 mph; 5. Roger Norman, Reno, Nev., Ford F-150, 2:13:31, 44.938 mph; 6. Greg Nunley, Tulare, Calif., Chevy Silverado, 2:14:16, 44.687 mph; 7. Mark Post, Laguna Beach, Calif./Rob MacCachren, Las Vegas, Ford F-150, 2:25:50, 41.743 mph  (22 entries, 19 starters, 7 finishers).

CLASS 1 (Unlimited single or two-seaters, 16 laps, 100.0 miles) -1. Danny Anderson, Las Vegas, Bunderson-Chevy, 2 hours, 7 minutes, 5 seconds (47.213 miles per hour; 2. Harley Letner, Orange, Calif., Alpha-Chevy, 2:09:54, 46.189 mph; 3. Randy Wilson, Lakewood, Calif./Rick Wilson, Long Beach, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, 2:10:32, 45.965; 4. Ronny Wilson/Rick Wilson, Long Beach, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, 2:10:53, 45.842; 5. Enrique Bujanda, El Paso, Texas, Porter-Chevy, 2:12:53, 45.152; 6. Julio Herrera, Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, Jefferies-Chevy, 2:17:20, 43.689; 7. Richard Boyle, Ridgecrest, Calif./Ron Brant, Oak Hills, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, 2:19:14, 43.093; 8. Brian Parkhouse, Bell Gardens, Calif., Jimco-Chevy, 2:19:33, 42.995; 9. Rick Romans/Jerry Bennett, Big Bear Lake, Calif., Jefferies-Chevy, 2:24:28, 41.532; 10. Dale Lenk/Brett Lenk/Grant Lenk, Costa Mesa, Calif., Penhall-Chevy, 2:25:41, 41.185 (21 entries, 19 starters, 10 finishers).

CLASS 1-2/1600 (VW-powered, single or two-seaters to 1600cc, 12 laps, 75.0 miles) - 1. Adam Pfankuch, Carlsbad, Calif./Steven Eugenio, El Centro, Calif., Mirage, 1 hour, 44 minutes, 6 seconds, 43.228 miles per hour; 2. Brian Burgess, Riverside, Calif./Aaron Hawley, Las Vegas, Seagrove, 1:44:36, 43.021 mph; 3. Cody Robinson/Roberto Romo, El Centro, Calif., Curry, 1:46:45, 42.155 mph; 4. Brian Wilson, Long Beach, Calif./Sammy Ehrenberg, Las Vegas, Kreger, 1:47:35, 41.828 mph; 5. Dave Caspino, Woodland Hills, Calif./Mike Malloy, Las Vegas, Lothringer, 1:47:42, 41.783 mph; 6. Mario Gastelum, El Centro, Calif., Curry, 1:47:46, 41.757 mph; 7. Justin Davis, Chino Hills, Calif./Rino Navera, Orange, Calif., Seagrove, 1:47:54, 41.705 mph; 8. Eric Duran/Evan Duran, Tecate, Calif., Neth, 1:48:36, 41.436 mph; 9. Justin Smith, Capistrano Beach, Calif./Cameron Steele, San Clemente, Calif., Fraley, 1:50:16, 40.810 mph; 10. Rick Boyer/Cory Boyer, Bakersfield, Calif., Lothringer, 1:50:22, 40.773 mph; 11. Hiram Duran/Evan Duran, Tecate, Calif., Neth, 1:51:10, 40.480 mph; 12. Mike Simpson, Kingman, Ariz., Bear, 1:54:53, 39.170 mph; 13. Joe Sheble, Fort Mohave, Ariz., Fraley, 1:54:55, 39.159 mph; 14. Samuel Araiza, La Paz, Mexico, Fraley, 1:57:38, 38.254 mph; 15. Brad Wilson, Long Beach, Calif., Penhall, 2:06:17, 35.634 (19 entries, 18 starters, 15 finishers).
CLASS 3 (Short Wheelbase 4X4, 10 laps, 62.5 miles) - 1. Donald Moss, Sacramento, Calif./Ken Moss, Marysville, Calif., Ford Bronco, 1 hour, 45 minutes, 32 seconds, 35.534 miles per hour (1 entry, 1 starter, 1 finisher).

CLASS 5 (Unlimited VW Baja Bugs, 14 laps, 87.5 miles) - 1. Kevin Carr, San Diego, 2 hour, 7 minutes, 57 seconds, 41.032 miles per hour; 2. Carlos Albanez, Calexico, Calif./Luivan Voelker, Mexicali, Mexico, 2:16:51, 38.363 mph (3 entries, 3 starters, 2 finishers).

CLASS 5/1600 (1600cc VW Baja Bugs, 12 laps, 75.0 miles) - 1. Alonso Angulo/Roberto Escobedo, Ensenada, Mexico, 2 hours,10 minutes, 30 seconds, 34.483 miles per hour (2 entries, 2 starters, 1 finisher).

CLASS 6 (Unlimited, production mini trucks, 12 laps, 75.0 miles) - 1. Heidi Steele, San Clemente, Calif./Ross Savage, Huntington Beach, Calif., Ford Ranger, 2 hour, 13 minutes, 18 seconds, 33.758 miles per hour (1 entry, 1 starter, 1 finisher).

CLASS 7 (Open, production mini trucks, 12 laps, 75.0 miles) - 1. . Dan Chamlee/Tom Chamlee, Carpenteria, Calif., Ford Ranger, 1 hour, 51 minutes, 1 second, 40.534 miles per hour, 2. Jose Canchola Jr., Mexicali, Mexico, Ford Ranger, 1:57:27, 38.314 mph; 3. Heidi Steele/Rene Brugger, San Clemente, Calif., Ford Ranger, 2:14:29, 33.461 mph (7 entries, 6 starters, 3 finishers).

CLASS 7SX (Modified, open mini trucks, 10 laps, 62.5 miles) - 1. John Holmes, Olivenhain, Calif./Mark Landersman, Temecula, Calif., Ford Ranger, 1 hour, 46 minutes, 25 seconds, 35.239 miles per hour (1 entry, 1 starter, 1 finisher).

CLASS 8 (Full-sized two-wheel drive trucks, 12 laps, 75.0 miles) - 1. Greg Adler, Manhattan Beach, Calif., Ford F-150, 1 hour, 45 minutes, 26 seconds, 42.681 miles per hour; 2. Clyde Stacy, Bristol, Va./Justin Matney, Bristol, Tenn., Chevy Silverado, 2:08:36, 34.9992 mph (2 entries, 2 starters, 2 finishers).

CLASS 10 (Single or two-seaters to 1650cc, 14 laps, 87.5 miles) - 1. Robert McBeath/Jessica McBeath, Las Vegas, Jimco-Honda, 2 hours, 1 minute, 21 seconds, 43.263 miles per hour; 2. Mikey Lawrence, Sunset Beach, Calif., Lothringer-VW, 2:02:25, 42.886 mph 3. Scott Gailey/Patrick Gailey, Norco, Calif., GET-VW, 2:03:41, 42.447 mph (9 entries, 8 starters, 3 finishers).

SCORE LITE (VW-powered, Limited single-1776cc-or two-seaters-1835cc, 14 laps, 87.5 miles) - 1. Rick St. John, Encinitas, Calif./Adam Pfankuch, Carlsbad, Calif., Duvel, 1 hour, 58 minutes 28 seconds, 44.316 miles per hour; 2. Michelle Bruckmann/Vic Bruckmann, Lemon Grove, Calif., Lothringer, 1:59:14, 44.031 mph; 3. Brent Parkhouse, Long Beach, Calif./Chuck Sacks, Canyon Lake, Calif., Moulton, 2:02:41, 42.793 mph; 4. Dan Worley, Encinitas, Calif./Stan Potter, San Marcos, Calif., Jimco, 2:04:30, 42.169 mph; 5. Matthew Kupiec/Kurtis Kupiec, Palos Verdes, Calif., Kreger, 2:05:02, 41.989 mph (8 entries, 8 starters, 5 finishers).

STOCK FULL (Stock, Full-sized trucks, 10 laps, 62.5 miles) - No finishers (1 entry, 1 starter, 0 finishers).

STOCK MINI (Stock, Mini trucks, 10 laps, 62.5 miles) - 1. Gavin Skilton, Anaheim, Calif., Honda Ridgeline, 1 hour, 57 minutes, 36 seconds, 31.888 miles per hour (1 entry, 1 starter, 1 finisher).

SPORTSMAN

SPORTSMAN CAR (12 laps, 75.0 miles) - 1. Rory Ward/Tracy Ward, Mohave Valley, Ariz., Chenowth-Chevy, 1 hour, 49 minutes, 32 seconds, 41.083 miles per hour (4 entries, 3 starters, 1 finisher).

SPORTSMAN TRUCK (10 laps, 62.5 miles) - 1. Gary Messer/Mike Simpson, Kingman, Ariz., Trophy Lite 2008-Chevy, 1 hour, 33 minutes, 24 seconds, 40.150 miles per hour; 2. Rob Anderson, San Clemente, Calif., Ford Ranger, 1:35:47, 39.151 mph; 3. Chris Shive/Dennis Sprong, Ramona, Calif., Ford F-150, 1:40:05, 37.469 mph; 4. Reid Rutherford, Montrose, Colo., 1:48:32, 34.552 mph; 5. Nick Tonelli, Huntington Beach, Calif., Ford Ranger, 1:51:24, 33.662 mph; 6. Joe Aguayo, San Jacinto, Calif., Ford F-150, 1:57:07, 32.038 mph (10 entries, 10 starters, 6 finishers).

Justin Lofton, Adam Pfankuch, Greg Adler, Kevin Carr photos by Matt Kartozian/Durka Durka Photo