Team AMSOIL Sets World Speed Record at Salton Sea
Team AMSOIL offshore powerboat racers Bob Teague and Paul Whittier made the journey to the Salton Sea in the Southern California Desert for the POPRA Salton Sea Speed Week Kilo Event held December 4-7. Although not a usual destination for Team AMSOIL, the Salton Sea has hosted many races and kilo runs over the decades.

About a dozen teams came out with high hopes that the unique environment would be the ideal setting for squeezing every last drop of speed out of their boats. The combination of below-sea level air density, extremely high salinity in the water, cool desert air and a perfectly undisturbed body of water made the perfect formula for world record-breaking speeds.

Team AMSOIL utilized Thursday for testing, but unfortunately ran aground near the crane in an area that was not properly dredged, bringing many unexpected challenges in order to have the boat in top shape for its speed runs on Saturday. Most of Friday was spent in the dry pits area repairing the bottom running surface of the race boat. Boats sanctioned under the Southern California Speed Boat Club made kilo runs on Friday, while the course was open for POPRA offshore entries on Saturday and Sunday.

After Teague and Whittier’s first run on Saturday proved to be fast enough to break the previous Cat Lite world speed record of 126.703 mph, the team proceeded to try various propellers and set-ups throughout the day in order to better their speed. On a run towards the end of the day, Team AMSOIL successfully topped their own record with a speed of 131.319 mph. On Sunday, Team AMSOIL made several more runs and once again broke their speed record. The final official POPRA World Kilo Speed Record was set at 131.981 mph, certified by APBA/UIM. This speed is the best average of the team’s north to south pass and consecutive south to north pass. The team made a one-way pass of nearly 133 mph, but ran a little slower on the back-up run due to a minor deviation on the course angle.

Team AMSOIL completed a near-perfect racing season and can now add POPRA World Speed Record Holder to its list of accomplishments in the Cat Lite category. The team also won the UIM/SBI Super Cat World Championship, the OPA Cat Lite High Points Title, the Geico Triple Crown and the Cat Lite Offshore Super Series National Championship and High Points Title.

The next race for the Team AMSOIL offshore team will be March 27-30 at the OSS season opener in Biloxi, Miss.

Eckstrom, Carey Lead AMSOIL Charge in Ironwood
Team AMSOIL/Scheuring Speed Sports semi-pro rookie rider Ryan Carey is off to a great start on the AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series, and his performance at the second round in Ironwood, Mich. vaulted him into the championship mix. Carey, who hails from nearby Channing, Mich., delighted the hometown crowd by finding the podium in the Semi-Pro Super Stock final. Carey had his work cut out for him after he finished seventh in the first round qualifier. Heading into the last chance qualifier, Carey went to work early, leading the field through the finish line for the win. In the final, Carey got off to a great start and battled in the front before finishing third, the first podium of his semi-pro career. The podium finish moved him into seventh in the points race. Carey also competed in the Semi-Pro Open class, finishing sixth, and he currently holds ninth in the points standings.

Carey wasn't the only Team AMSOIL/Scheuring Speed Sports rider to find the podium on Saturday. After taking third in his Pro Super Stock heat race to advance directly to the final, D.J. Eckstrom rode his best race of the year, pushing the leaders to the end for a third place finish and his first podium of the season. Eckstrom is now fourth overall in the Pro Super Stock points standings. He also finished 13th in the Pro Open class and currently holds 10th in the overall standings.

Eckstrom's teammate Shaun Crapo also ran well, finishing sixth in the Pro Super Stock final and ninth in the Pro Open final. He currently holds sixth and eighth respectively in the points standings.

Team AMSOIL/Judnick Motorsports pro rider Ross Martin kept pace in both pro classes, finishing fifth in the Pro Open final to move up to second overall in the championship chase. In Pro Super Stock, Martin finished fifth and currently holds seventh in the overall standings.

Martin’s teammate Matt Judnick finished 10th in each class and currently holds 11th in the Pro Super Stock class and ninth in the Pro Open class.

The next round of the AMSOIL Championship Snocross Series will take place January 9-11 in Shakopee, Minn.

Wanderscheid Earns Second Place Champ 440 Podium in Beausejour, Third Place Pro Open 600 Podium in Rock Rapids

Beausejour, Manitoba
Team AMSOIL ice oval racing star P.J. Wanderscheid found some early season success at the opening round of the 2008-2009 WSA Pro Ice Racing season, held December 6-7 in Beausejour, Manitoba, Canada.

In order to get some testing in, Wanderscheid kicked off the weekend by running his 440 Champ sled against the stronger 600 sleds in Saturday’s Pro Open 600 class heat races, where he earned fifth, third and second place finishes in three of the four heat races and crashed in the fourth. Starting from the back row, Wanderscheid finished the crash-shortened 10-lap final sixth out of the 12-sled field.

Sunday’s action featured Champ 440 class racing, and Wanderscheid earned impressive first, second, sixth and fourth place finishes in his heat races, qualifying for a front row, seventh place starting position in the final. Wanderscheid was in fifth place off the line and down the back stretch, moved into third after a few laps and soon entered a heated battle for second with Nick Van Strydonk. With three laps remaining, Wanderscheid won the battle and claimed the second place podium finish, the best finish of his career at the Beausejour track and his first podium there since 2003.

Rock Rapids, Iowa
The second round of the 2008-2009 WSA Pro Ice Racing season took place December 13-14 in Rock Rapids, Iowa, where warmer temperatures of around 38 degrees made for some sloppy track conditions. Wanderscheid earned third and fifth place finishes in his first two heats of Pro Open 600 qualifying before deteriorating track conditions dictated races be called off for the day.

Colder temperatures of around -5 degrees on Sunday made for much better track conditions. Wanderscheid finished second in his first Champ 440 heat race, followed by a third place finish in the third and final round of Pro Open 600 qualifying, earning a seventh place qualifying position for the final.

Following some tuning by the Wanderscheid Racing crew, Wanderscheid won the second heat race of Champ 440 qualifying, followed by a second place finish in the third and final heat race.

In the Pro Open 600 final, Wanderscheid grabbed the holeshot and came out of the second turn with the lead. However, he was eventually overtaken by the more powerful 600 sleds of Matt Schultz and Brandon Johnson and finished in third.

“We are very happy with this finish considering our 440 was running in the 600 open class,” said Wanderscheid. “The 600’s have a distinct advantage, having about 20 more horsepower than our 440 sled. But we use this as a test for the AMSOIL World Championship Derby, where we will all have to run the 440.”

Due to the oncoming snow and cold, the WSA decided to call off the 440 Champ final. The race will be made up at the Forest Lake, Minn. event on the weekend of February 7-8. Wanderscheid qualified second for that race.

Wanderscheid’s next race will be held January 10-11 in Plymouth, Minn., his final tune-up before the AMSOIL Eagle River World Championship Snowmobile Derby on January 15-18.

Scott Douglas Injury Update and Season Recap
It has been two and a half months since Team AMSOIL CORR racer Scott Douglas broke his left leg, knee and ankle in a horrific practice crash in Chula Vista, Calif. The doctor’s prognosis made it sound like his 2008 season was over. While the CORR season ended prematurely with the cancellation of the final two weekends of the season, Douglas stayed focused and worked endlessly at his rehab schedule.

By early November, Douglas made a public appearance at the SEMA show representing Kumho Tire at its trackside display. His rehab was showing progress as his leg and knee had healed well enough for him to drive a street car and walk for limited amounts of time.

Thanksgiving weekend presented another test for his healing leg when, along with wife Jackie, Douglas headed to the dunes with their sand car, where his left leg was strong enough to put the V8-powered buggy through the paces.

In early December, Douglas attended the Performance Racing Industry trade show in Orlando, Fla., where he made the rounds through the massive convention center. His ability to get back to business as usual has amazed his family and friends.

Of course, everyone wants to know if Douglas would have raced in the final CORR race in Chula Vista had it taken place as scheduled. “Definitely without a doubt,” he remarked during a recent interview from his El Cajon home. “The doctors kept me on a tight rehab schedule, Jackie kept my spirits up and suddenly I found myself getting around on my own. I’ve got quite a bit of titanium keeping everything together. I’m not 100% and my ankle is still very stiff, but after driving my sand car, I knew I could go out and compete for the PRO-4 championship. Unfortunately, the CORR season ended prematurely. It’s a shame because Bill Smith and Jason Schampers really worked feverishly to get our primary truck ready to race. The damage the truck sustained was incredible, but the truck was race-ready by mid-October.”

Douglas officially ended the 2008 CORR PRO-4 season with the second-most points in the division, but finished third in the championship standings as Carl Renezeder and Rick Huseman tied for the top spot. Officially, Renezeder was named the PRO-4 champion.

The 2008 race season saw Douglas finish on the podium in eight out of 12 rounds of racing, including two wins, one runner-up finish and five third place finishes. Throughout the entire season, Douglas qualified in the top three in every round of racing he started. The Bill Smith-designed chassis was consistently one of the fastest PRO-4 trucks all year long.

Douglas also made the trip back to Crandon, Wis. for the traditional BorgWarner Labor Day weekend event, taking the victory in the WSORR Round 12 PRO-4 race.

As soon as the 2009 race season is finalized, Douglas and the team will begin making final preparations to win their next championship.

Big Dawg/TailGator Team Receives Six Awards at MTRA Banquet
The 22nd Annual MTRA Awards Banquet was held in St. Louis, Mo. on December 6, where the AMSOIL-sponsored Big Dawg/TailGator Team received six awards. TailGator was voted “2008 Truck of the Year,” and Doug Noelke received the “2008 Driver of the Year” award, “2008 Jr. Associate Driver of the Year” award and “2008 Monster Nationals Racing Champion” award. The Big Dawg/TailGator team received the "Most Improved Team" award for the fourth year since becoming involved in the industry, and Ray “Pops” Novel was voted the “2008 Sportsman of the Year.”

Terry Rinker Promotes AMSOIL at PRI
Recently crowned ChampBoat champion Terry Rinker headed east from his Tampa home to attend the Performance Racing Industry trade show, held December 8-10 in Orlando.

Rinker, who has won four of the past six ChampBoat Series championships, displayed two of his boats on the floor of one of the fastest-growing racing trade shows in the world, where he was joined by his teammate and brother, Randy Rinker, to talk about the growth of ChampBoat and their team’s accomplishments, sign autographs and promote AMSOIL products.

“This is a great opportunity for us to show other racers how we are having success with AMSOIL products,” said Terry. “We just won the 2008 championship, and we had the whole crew here to help us get the word out about the title and the growth of our series. We had tremendous feedback and a lot of people asking about AMSOIL.”

The team was joined in the booth by AMSOIL Regency Direct Jobbers Dave and Eline Haunschild, who have worked the PRI show for several years. Rinker was also introduced and fielded questions at the Dealer meeting held on Thursday night.