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K&N supported Team Faith won its first ever National Championship in the GNCC Lites Limited UTV
Class in Crawfordsville, Indiana.
Yamaha 700 Rhino ready to race in the GNCC Lites Limited UTV Class in Crawfordsville, Indiana, photo by racedaypix.com
Team Faith entered the round, one point away from the series lead. “We worked hard all week to get the Yamaha 700 Rhino ready,” said Brian O’Rourke of Team Faith. “We knew the championship was on the line, but we were ready to race.”
Team Faith noticed the additional horsepower and performance on its Rhino 700 as they raced through deep mud on a flat tire during the race with its K&N air intake kit, photo by racedaypix.com
Team Faith won its first National Championship in the GNCC Lites Limited UTV Class, photo by racedaypix.com
The track was muddy and Team Faith made a last minute decision to run their ITP MudLite tires instead of the Terracross tread. “Both are awesome tires and provide great traction, but the MudLites have more of a tractor tread and work very well in deep mud,” said O’Rourke. “When we arrived at the starting line, we learned the course had been shortened from 5 miles to 4 ½ miles. Race control removed the ½ mile creek section from the event, but I was certain there would be enough mud and that our tires would give us a competitive advantage.”
The Lites Limited class racers started twenty seconds apart. Team Faith drew a 2nd row starting position and managed to get the holeshot for its row. “We only had a clear track for a few moments before we caught up to traffic. Passing was impossible in the woods.”
Team Faith waited for the field sections and started picking off its competition. “We raced to a large, harvested cornfield with a Grand Prix style track,” said O’Rourke. “There were multiple turns and the dirt was tacky. We came through the first lap in 3rd place and were only 8 seconds away from the next competitor.”
Team Faith caught up to one of the leaders, but had problems steering. “I poked my head out and checked the tires and we had a flat,” said O’Rourke. “Our top speed went from 40 mph to 25 mph. It took all the horsepower of the Rhino 700 to turn the wheels.”
Team Faith uses K&N air intake system, part number
63-1121 and K&N oil filter, part number
KN-204. “We really noticed the horsepower we gained with the K&N air intake kit when we had to run the last 2 ½ laps on a flat rear tire,” said O’Rourke. “It took all the power we could get out of the Rhino 700 to make it to the checkered flag and secure our first National Championship win.”
Team Faith has put UTV racing on hold during the winter but will return to Arenacross racing in 2010.
Heavy hitters from all over the sprint car racing scene attended the 16th annual Trophy Cup at the Tulare Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, California. They were in the hunt for the $80,000 two day prize money. It is the largest amount awarded for a 360 race in the country.
K&N supported racer Andy Forsberg had his best finish at the 16th Annual Trophy Cup Race at Thunderbowl Raceway in Tulare, California
The A&A Motorsports Team went after the points in a big way. Driver Andy Forsberg placed 20th out of 72 cars and was twelfth overall. A twelve car inversion for the A main was good news for Forsberg. It put him on the pole. He never looked back and led all 30 laps.
A&A Motorsports Team uses K&N air and oil filters to protect its engines from dirt and track debris at every race
“When all the points were tallied on Saturday night and the heats completed, Andy was sixth,” said Candace Forsberg, Andy’s mother. “He started nineteenth in the completely inverted 50 lap A main.”
In the Trophy Cup Race, a major portion of the purse is in the points fund. The driver with the most gets $10,000. The goal of the two day event is to pass as many cars as possible.
Forsberg passed 10 cars in the 50 lap main event and finished 9th in the A main. “This was a great way to end our 2009 season, with the teams 10th A main event and Andy’s best Trophy Cup points finish,” said Forsberg. “Without our supporters, including K&N, our season would not have been possible. We would never use anything but K&N on our sprint cars. K&N air and oil filters are easy to use and maintain. They also protect our engines from track debris and give us additional power and filtration.”
The USAC Ford Focus California dirt series is winding down for the 2009 season. K&N sponsored racer Cody Swanson went to Ventura Speedway in Ventura, California for the second to last race of the year.
K&N sponsored racer Cody Swanson took first place at Ventura Speedway in the USAC Ford Focus California Dirt Series
“The Ventura track has always been a little tough for me,” said Swanson. “Ventura is where I had my first start on dirt. I have run well there at times but could never seal the deal, until now.”
Cody Swanson is second overall in the USAC Ford Focus California Dirt Series points standings
Swanson started the heat race in fourth position and quickly raced his way up to second place. “As the night progressed the track became very rough,” he said. “Several cars in the midget and sprint car races flipped, adding to the problems on the course.”
Swanson watched the races leading up to the Focus feature and made some last minute tire pressure and shock setting changes. He started off the pole in second position and took over the lead on the first lap coming off turn four.
“The track had a huge rut in the middle of turns three and four,” he said. “If you were off of the line just a few inches you would end up directly in it.” Fortunately this portion of the weekend was caution free.
The rest of the field was fighting for position and Swanson extended his lead to just over a straight away. “I thought that my cousin Jake Swanson would be on my tail,” he said. “I was surprised when I found out how big a lead I had. I was focused on staying smooth and clean. I also made sure I hit the ruts just right.”
Swanson nailed his third win of the year and his second in a row in the GOODWINE Glass, K&N Filters and Lucas Oil No. 71 car. He is currently in second position in the series points standings.
“K&N performed as expected, perfectly,” said Kirk Swanson, Cody’s father. “We use K&N air filters, breather filters and oil filters on our USAC Ford Focus midget. K&N is easy to service and provides long life and protection for our engines. K&N has sponsored and supported us since Cody’s early race days in karts.”
Swanson has one more USAC Ford Focus series race in 2009 at Ventura Speedway on November 21.
Jason Patison loves racing anything and everything
At the age of 26, Corona, California native Jason Patison regularly showcases a plethora of eclectic interests and enough talent to challenge them all. Patison has a Business Administration degree, yet he's an accomplished artist, specializing in oil paint, charcoal and ink. He works full-time as Chief Editor for Team Lucas (Oil) Magazine, but he's constantly and consistently working towards his big-time aspirations of one day being a full-time driver in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck, Nationwide and/or Sprint Cup series. In '08 he competed full-time with Speed Wong Racing in the NASCAR Camping World West Series, and part time in a Porsche GT3 Cup car, a 360 dirt Sprint Car, and in a Super Late Model.
Jason Patison Racing debuted in the NASCAR Camping World East Series
This year Jason Patison Racing traveled to Greensville, South Carolina, where Jason made his debut in the NASCAR Camping World East Series. Not only was this Patison's first race as a full-time driver in the East Series, it was also his first race as a team owner. He finished one spot out of the top ten that day. In his next two races he overcame a faulty radiator cap at the Tri-County race in North Carolina, and a flat left rear tire at the John Silver 200, still finishing 11th and 12th consecutively.
"I started racing at the age of 15, at Victorville Auto Speedway, my father
and Forrest Lucas (owner of Lucas Oil Products Inc) used to go out there and
race mini-stocks for fun. They brought me out for a practice one day and I
ran pretty well, so they put me in a mini-stock," recalls Patison. "In my first full season I won the Track Championship and Rookie of the Year honors. From then I slowly worked my way up the ranks, from the local dirt tracks to the NASCAR Camping World Series that I run in now."
During day-job as editor of Team Lucas Magazine, Patison says he does pretty much everything, from page design, to article writing, to final page layout. It keeps him busy he says, "but I really enjoy it."
Jason Patison plans to compete in the 2010 NASCAR Camping World East Series
When it comes to racing Patison says he really doesn"t have a favorite series at this point. "I love racing anything and everything," he adds. "I currently use K&N air and oil filters on all my race and personal vehicles. They provide the ultimate performance and protection and I would never use another brand. My relationship with K&N is great. Everyone I've ever talked with is friendly and helpful, and they're just great to work with."
"In 2010 I plan to run the NASCAR Camping World East Series again, along with some Helen Super Late Models at Toyota Speedway (Irwindale, California), and maybe some NASCAR Camping Word Truck races too. My future plans and goals for next year," reflects Patison - "are to make it to the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series."
The precise details are a bit sketchy, but the generally accepted story has it that sometime in the mid to late 70's, a group of Sacramento area racers first came up with the Pro Gas format - word spread south and the So Cal Pro-Gas Association was born.
Pro Gas Racer Gregory Ventura is also the So Cal Pro-Gas Association President
To get a clearer picture of what's happening with the So Cal Pro-Gas series we spoke with Gregory Ventura. Ventura's day job is Material Lifecycle Analyst for K&N - in his spare time, and on weekends, he's Pro-Gas series driver and association president.
"The Southern California Pro-Gas Association was formed in 1978 by a group of racers wanting to hold races on a fixed index, and at the time, that was on a 9.80 index. When the NHRA saw how popular this class was getting, they started a class called Super-Gas. The Super-Gas class competed at the NHRA events, and they had a 9.90 index. So, once this started, the association at some point followed suit," informs Ventura.
Ventura's foremost responsibilities as association president include representing and supporting racers as a collective group. He secures race dates at the various venues and gathers investment partners in the association, such as K&N, to help fund costs. K&N not only provides support for the association they also sponsor one of the racing events during the year.
"I oversee the financial end of the association and look for ways to raise money to help this association to keep growing," he says. "I also have four other board members to assist me. For all intents and purposes this is like running a business, but not getting paid for it. Doing it only for the love of the sport."
The final Southern California Pro-Gas Association event was held at the Auto Club Dragway in Fontana, on the 24th and 25th of October. Many of the racers in the Super-Gas class on the NHRA circuit competed in this final event.
When Ventura puts his association hat down and becomes a racecar driver, he's finally in his element - the place that all his other efforts ultimately lead towards. "I've been around racing all of my life and have actually been racing since 1993. One of the challenges I face while running the association is staying focused. During many Pro-Gas events I'm presented with obstacles that are sometimes distracting, but once I get in the car, put the seatbelts and helmet on, I zone-out, and focus only on the task at hand."
"The smartest thing I've ever done was coming to work for K&N a year and half ago," declares Ventura. "I've always used K&N products, long before I worked here. The products we make are awesome components that make any vehicle run better and more efficiently. Whether it's my Honda Civic that I drive to work everyday, or my Ford Diesel F-350 dually that I tow my racecar with, or my 1100 horsepower racecar. Everything I drive has a K&N air filter and oil filter on it. I don't view my career at K&N as going to work. I'm a gear head and I love being involved in this industry. How many people do you know get up in the morning excited to go to work? I'm definitely one of the lucky ones."
After the race this weekend Ventura heads off for the Las Vegas National - Oct. 29 through Nov. 1. "Then we have the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series in Vegas again the following weekend (Nov. 5-8)," he adds. "Then there's the season ending NHRA AAA finals Nov. 11 through the 14t - I hope out of all those events, I can bring home a victory for the K&N team."
