Members of the motorsports industry are wondering why the government has adopted a rule virtually eliminating a key constituency – and possibly thousands of jobs – while at the same time developing a nearly trillion-dollar stimulus that supporters say is intended to create and protect employment.
At issue is a new federal regulation of lead that took effect just this month. The policy has virtually shut down the part of the motorsports industry that serves children under 12 who want to ride all-terrain vehicles and motorbikes, because some components of the machines – such as tire valve stems – contain lead.
“You’ve got a lot of kids involved in this,” Don Amador, western representative for the the Blue Ribbon Commission, told WND today. “But ATVs, dirt bikes have batteries  in them, components that use lead inside the valve stems on tires, lead in the electronic wiring, lead on battery terminals.” … More info
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Last summer’s Pikes Peak International Hill Climb weather was hot, dry, and windy and it caused headaches for a chunk of the competitors who battled the 14,115-foot Peak’s challenges.
Not so for David Kern and co-driver Allison Kern of Centennial, Colorado, who rocketed their way to the finish line in a record 11:48.434 to run away with the Time Attack 4WD crown in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX. That broke the old mark (12:49.064 by Nathan Conley, 2007) by more than one minute and beat their closest competitor by nearly 40 seconds.
Their record setting run was also fif5th fastest over all making their Mitsubishi EVO IX the fastest full-framed car to make it to the top…. More info
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Sometimes an idea comes along that’s so awesome, yet so obvious, you just smack yourself on the forehead and ask, “Why didn’t I think of that?” This is one of those times. Get ready for the Sand-X.
The Sand-X ATV, built by a Swiss company of the same name and designed by Platune – the company that penned the monstrous RENNTECH G-Wagen – is the motorized equivalent of a camel, if said camel’s hump hid a rocket pack.
The 0-60mph dash is achieved in just 2.8 seconds. It’s truly all-terrain including sand, snow, pavement and mud…Â More info
One recent Saturday night, when the Santa Ynez Valley YMCA held a father-daughter dance, one of the evening’s party-goers could have easily been excused for being too tired to cut a rug that night.
While Andy Grider of Los Olivos and his daughter Marley may have had fun at the soir/e, Grider’s already had more fun and excitement than some of his neighbors might see in a lifetime.
Grider has returned to the Central Coast after having spent most of January in South America as the navigator for Team Dakar USA in the 5,948-mile Dakar Rally, the world’s longest and most dangerous racing event.
He navigated while riding in a Hummer H3 driven by NASCAR owner-driver Robby Gordon.
It was a fruitful trip for Grider, whose wife Annie accompanied him on the trip for the two-week race (Jan. 3-17) through Argentina and Chile. He and Gordon took third place in the car category — the glamour division of the event — with a finishing time of 45 hours, five minutes and 50 seconds…. More info