The impressive Can-Am Turbo X3 of Murray Racing, piloted by Jason Murray | When passion and dreams become your reality there’s seemingly nothing you can’t do. Then add perseverance, commitment, and good planning and the sky’s the limit. Throw in some talent and it would seem you’ve become unstoppable. This seems to be the case with K&N race team drivers Derek and Jason Murray and their team at Murray Racing. Murray Racing began in 2009 when the brothers began fabricating their first full build UTV to compete in the Best In The Desert Class 1900 Race Series, where they would go on to earn a 3rd place finish in their first desert race in the series. 
Hard to believe these two winning drivers have only been racing for a little over six years | Since then, Murray Racing has grown, competing with multiple vehicles and having more than 40 consecutive races under their belts to date, with no DNF’s. Remaining a private race team after opening their own fab shop in 2013, when Can-Am came on board providing full factory support. Competing in BITD, SCORE, WORCS, plus King of the Hammers, the brothers are in it to win it! 
Murray Racing won the Milestone award for completing the Baja 1000 2 years in a row, over 2k miles | We caught up with the team at Murray Racing and had a chance to chat about their humble beginnings and where they see Murray Racing in the future. Turns out these two are relatively new to this sport. The brothers own a successful manufacturing company and unlike many racers we’ve spoken to, there’s doesn’t involve anything motorsports. In fact, their introduction to the “dirt” came when they headed to the desert back in 2009 with some friends for a fun off-road adventure weekend. Their buddies had their Rhinos and RZRs out in the sandy playground for all to enjoy and by the time Jason and Derek returned home they were hooked. 
After the heavy rains the course at the Parker 250 was muddy and rough | Jason mentioned that as soon as he could he got his hands on a Rhino. Totally stock, he started hearing about people adding long travel kits, cages, and doors, and figured since he had access to fabrication equipment he would see what he could do. He’d never welded a day in his life, but now was determined to learn. He tore his Rhino apart and made modifications and then put it back together. He’s says looking back he had no idea what he was doing and his vehicle wasn’t the best looking, but it was sure fun. Then he found out about a race that would take place on his birthday in December that same year. So, with no expectations, no experience and the addition of some safety nets, he and his brother headed out to race what would be their first of many Best in the Desert races under the Nevada skies. It was perhaps at that moment when they crossed the finish line that their racing career began and they haven’t stopped having fun! 
Clearly this photo was taken pre-race - so clean! | Fast forward to the start of their 7th race season, 2017, and these brothers have come a seriously long way from that special day in December of 2009. With their intense race schedules they make an extra effort to balance work, family, and their passion for desert racing. Derek is in charge of the day to day of their manufacturing company, while Jason also manages another company along with their two pizza places! Both brothers are married with children, Derek with two and Jason with one and another on the way. For the long term, both young men look forward to the future hoping that their children will take an interest in off road and follow in their tire tracks. For the short term they look to 2017 and reaching for the BITD Championship. Last season they were close with a runner up position in points for the Best in the Desert series along with earning a 1st place in SCORE making them the 2016 points champions. 
A little pre-race photo op of Jason and Derek at the Pahrump Nugget 250 | The 2016 race season didn’t come without challenges. But in the end, Murray Racing once again raised the bar. Starting the year off with a 4th place class finish at the Parker 250, then following that up with a 6th in class, and a 9th Overall with a field of more than 150 competitors who actually crossed the finish line at the Polaris UTV World Championships. They started the year off right. They left the Vegas desert behind to hit the sand and silt of the SCORE International San Felipe 250 and came away with an outstanding 2nd place class finish. From there they turned their attention to the Mint 400 where they would finish a mere 20 minutes behind the leader to yield them another impressive 4th place class finish. 
Out in the Nevada Desert the Murray Brothers show off the X3's incredible travel | May rolled around and Murray Racing headed out to the Desert Classic presented by Method Race Wheels where they would come away with a 5th place finish in their class. After the SCORE International Baja 500, the Murray Racing Team would add a 7th place class finish to their long list of achievements. 
Murray Racing Team in full tuck at the Vegas to Reno Best in the Desert series. Stance is everything | And then came August with the introduction of the all new Can-Am Maverick Turbo X3 piloted by Jason, where he would earn a jaw dropping victory at Vegas to Reno in the new X3’s first official race! Derek would continue to push his Maverick to victory in the Turbo Pro Production class and finish third overall among all UTV classes. The Can-Am/Murray Racing teams outlasted 60-some other entrants and 650 miles of brutal desert terrain to stand atop the podium in two separate classes at the Vegas To Reno race, which BITD calls “the longest off-road race in the United States.” 
This silt is some tough terrain in Baja, California, and always part of the SCORE races | Back to Rosarito Beach in Baja California for the SCORE Desert Challenge and some pre-Baja tuning and Team Murray came away with another great finish, 7th place in class. More testing and tuning and before long it was already November and time for the Baja 1000. The Can-Am/Murray Racing desert racing team of Derek and Jason Murray earned their first SCORE International side-by-side vehicle class championship November 20 in Baja California, Mexico. 
The Can-Am/Murray Racing Team - Your 2016 SCORE International Points Champions | The Murray Racing Team is comprised of brothers Derek and Jason. It includes crew chief Bill Kugel, Lead Tech Shawn Srader, along with Tech’s Andy Kisinger, Eric Shikeora, and Bob Jones also known as B.J.B., and Monty Aldrich, Co-Driver. For this race season the team will compete in a whopping fourteen desert races with the first already under their belts. They started the year with a top ten finish at the GMZ UTV Winter Nationals Parker 250 in their Can-Am/Murray Racing K&N-equipped Turbo X3. There were some challenges during the event, but the brothers can now say they have 47 Best in the Desert finishes on record. 
San Felipe 250 affords drivers some of the most impressive views | To round out the Murray Racing Team’s season they will compete in 4 SCORE International races including the Baja 500 and Baja 1000. Additionally, they will compete in the remaining 13 Best In The Desert races, including Vegas to Reno. The guys learned early on that the key to success in racing was to remember why they started, to never take themselves too seriously, and always remember to have fun. They went into racing with zero expectations and have enjoyed every minute of their wild ride.Congratulations to the Murray Racing Team on your incredible achievements during the 2016 race season. We wish you continued success and are all looking forward to seeing what the 2017 season brings. |
