Big Off Road News from the Off Road Impact Expo, Ivan Stewarts ProTruck Series, Scaroni's TrophyLite Series and Scott's PCI Racing announced General Tires support for the 2008 race season. General Tires, now being led by the former Toyo Tires Marketing Chief, has made the big tire splash in Off road racing for 2008, like he did mastering the Robby Gordon deal with Toyo Tires.
In the Wheel Group, Ion Alloy made a big splash with its new line of off-road wheels, that won the 'new product award' at the show.
Off-Road Impact Industry Awards Honors Leaders
Friday night’s Off-Road Impact Industry Awards and Reception. The tacos, flautas, and churros were piping hot, the cocktails were cold, and the spirits ran high as old friends reunited and new ones were made.
Marty Fiolka, Editor at Large for DirtSports Magazine, was Master of Ceremonies, and kept the evening lively with his characteristic story-telling style. Additionally, the Off-Road team provided an impressive audio/visual presentation complete with race footage, interviews and pictures, set to a rockin’ soundtrack.
“For all these awards,” Fiolka said. “There is some stiff competition. All of these individuals have played a vital role in the off-road industry.”
Monsterpiece in Metal Award – an award sponsored by Monster Energy and awarded to one of the Masterpiece in Metal projects in DirtSports – was awarded to Jeff Davis for his Class 7 by Normile Concepts. The Best New Product was given to self-proclaimed “new kid on the block” KORE for their 4x4 Pre-Runner Series Long Travel Suspension system for light-duty ISS pick-ups – try saying that three times fast.
Manufacturer of the Year, an award taken out of Off-Road Business Magazine’s Manufacturer Spotlights, was awarded to AEM.
The Five Most Influential People (to the Off-Road industry) were:
Jim Baldwin, CORR
Nick Baldwin, TrophyKart
Clark Campbell, Volkswagen of America
Fred Wiley, ORBA
Roy Dehban, ProAm Racing
From getting CORR recognized on national television to giving inner-city kids a chance to race for their dreams off-road, each of these individuals have touched the industry in their own unique ways, as shown on the video montage during the presentation.
Driver of the Year was none other than Rob MacCachren, whose impressive SCORE and CORR victories made him the obvious choice, said Fiolka. MacCachren thanked his Baja 1000 co-driver Mark Post for helping him achieve that amazing victory in Mexico as well.
High Riser of the Year went to Lee McGuire. The final award was the Lifetime Achievement Award, given to Roy Denner, of ORBA. Denner has tirelessly fought to keep public lands open for off-road use, which is a never-ending, crucial job, Fiolka said.
Publisher, Baja Racing News.com
