Crandon, WI - June 27, 2005 ~ Perseverance
describes what Ben Wandahsega and his team went through this weekend
during Rounds Five & Six of the Championship Off-Road Racing
Series at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway.
In practice on Saturday morning the team had a
rearend failure, which put the team under the gun. Repairs where
made to the Forest County Potawatomi/Toyo Tires Chevy and Wandahsega
was able to make it to the starting line. At the start he spun
his tires as his starting position was in the grass, which was
fairly soft. While racing Ben noticed the truck did not have the
snappiness that it normally has. He did however race in the third
position most of the race and finished there.
In the pits after the race as the crew checked
over the truck it was found that another rearend had failed. The
transmission didn’t feel right either so a new transmission
was bolted in. Lastly, metal shavings were found in the oil filter
so a new powerplant had to be installed as well.
Wandahsega’s very capable crew got all the
work done with some extra help from Charlie of ATD Transmissions
who helped to locate and set up the new rearend gears. Even pit
coordinator Anglea Wandahsega had her mechanics gloves on helping
Charlie clean the gears for the new third member. At 2 a.m. the
truck was running and everyone was able to get some much-deserved
rest.
Sunday morning the team had another set of gears
fail on the first lap of practice. Worrying that there may be
more serious problems with the third member another third member
was installed. Ben was still lying underneath the truck a half
hour before the race working on the linkage.
Once again it was a rush to make it to the starting
line but Wandahsega made it. Ben had a great start and even with
his spare motor with clearly less horsepower for this enormous,
almost 2 mile, high-speed track, Ben was still able to uphold,
yet another 3rd place finish. Six rounds and all top 3's including
2 wins. That is pretty impressive. Special thanks should go out
to all the hard work and effort that the crew put forth this weekend.
Thanks Carl, Kevin, Brad, Brent, Brock, and Lucas! Also special
thanks goes out to all our sponsors whom make all this possible.
Sunday afternoon, Forest County Potawatomi hosted
the Governor's Cup which puts the pro-2, pro-4 and sportsman-2
divisions on the track together. Ben finished 2nd in his respected
division just behind Mike Oberg.
Friday morning the Wandahsega team had the "OLN(Outdoor
Life Network) " in the pits filming the 2 Toyo Tires teams
one being Ben with his Forest County Potawatomi/Chevy. They had
the truck stripped down on one side to show all the mechanics
of the truck and interviewing Ben, Carl his crew chief, and his
wife/"Team Coordinator" Angela. At noon on Friday, they
did a meet and greet the drivers at the Forest County Executive
building in Crandon, WI. There were approximately 200 in attendance.
There was a nice lunch and an autographing session. The kids were
able to sit in the trucks and dream a little. We also plan to
put the truck in the upcoming 4th of July Parade in Bark River,
MI.
Lastly, Ben Wandahsega went into Crandon with
comfortable 11 point lead in the Sportsman 2 division of the Championship
Off-Road Racing Series. Two wins by Dan Baudoux and two third
place runs by Wandahsega turned the point standings around. Wandahsega
must now chase Baudoux as he trails by one point. Only at the
half way mark of the 2005 season means it’s anyone’s
title to win. Good luck to all.
The upcoming Topeka, KS event will be a small
tight cornered track like the first two tracks CORR raced on at
the beginning of the year in which saw Ben take wins home. Ben
has done very well at Topeka in the past and is looking forward
to the Kansas event.
To view the latest news, press releases, photos,
etc. on Ben and the Wandahsega Off-Road Racing Team “click” your mouse and web browser to: http://www.benwandahsega.com
