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Baja 1000 Protruck Champs Sign Hero Cards at K&N Engineering

Dec 8, 2006

K&N Engineering hosted 2006 Baja 1000 Protruck Champions, Rick L. Johnson and his co-driver Dane Cardone at its Riverside, California headquarters. Johnson and Cardone signed autographs on hero cards adjacent to the winning K&N Baja Protruck for several hours in 80 degree temperatures on December 7th.

Rick L. Johnson (L) and Dane Cardone (R) sign hero cards at K&N

K&N Baja Protruck

“It’s really great to see the winning truck,” said K&N Employee George Wilson. “I expected the Protruck to be really beat up after the 1000 plus mile Baja course, but the K&N wrap looks good.”

Darrin Macgown, also of K&N, said the K&N Baja Protruck is incredible. “I moved to sunny California from Maine about two months ago,” he said. “In Maine racing is huge and everyone there knows the name K&N. It’s awesome to get these autographs from the racers. I’m going to send some hero cards to friends back there.”

Presentation of K&N Filter used in 2006 Baja 1000

Interior of K&N Baja Protruck

The Agave Motorsports Team piloted the K&N Toyota Tundra Baja Protruck through the grueling desert race at the 39th Tecate SCORE Baja 1000. They won the Protruck class in 23 hours, 13 minutes, 10 seconds.

“We faced some of the harshest conditions in the world at the Baja 1000 race,” Johnson said. “Our Protruck went through over 80 water crossings along with silt beds that were incredibly thick. We did not change our K&N Filter or Wrap during the Baja California, Mexico peninsula course. K&N kept the motor clean and running despite the dirt, sand and dust.”

As a tribute to K&N, Agave Motorsports encased the K&N Filter used in the 2006 Baja 1000 win in a Trophy and presented it to K&N CEO Steve Rogers. “This is fantastic,” said Rogers. “We have a winning trophy filter from 1973 when Walker Evens took 2nd overall in the Baja 500. This new 2006 trophy filter connects a long history of association between K&N and the Baja Series.”

Johnson is preparing for the Baja Protruck Cup at Glen Helen Raceway. “With K&N’s great products and help we hope to bring K&N another championship weekend,” he said. "We are going into the race only 10 points behind first place."

Follow Agave Motorsports throughout the racing season at the K&N blog site. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Good First USAC Ford Focus Midget Series for Laura Poorter

Dec 7, 2006

Laura Poorter came to the United States from Holland to compete in the Ford Focus Midget Series for K&N Engineering. The 17-year-old had a good first season, finishing 6th overall.

17 Year Old Racer Laura Poorter

“She went into the final race at Irwindale Speedway in 4th place,” said K&N Sports Marketing Director Charles Maier. “If she would have won the race we probably would have come in 3rd overall. Instead she crashed out in the main event and that pushed us back to 6th place.”

The ½ mile oval at Irwindale features banked paved tracks. “There was no margin for error,” said Maier. “She was coming from the back and had to chase her way to the front. Laura pushed too hard and went into the wall. She was not hurt. The competition was very tight all season.”

From the last race of the 2006 Ford Focus Midgets California (paved) Series to the 65th Turkey Night Grand Prix at Irwindale Speedway it was a short turnaround for Poorter.

Holland Native Laura Poorter at Irwindale

“The car had a lot of repairs and we stripped it down to the frame and reassembled it for Turkey Night,” said Maier. “We did not have a chance to do practices the evening before or leading up to the race because of some mechanical challenges. We pulled it off the trailer onto the track and within 15 minutes Laura was two-tenths off the live record. That was fantastic.”

Poorter then faced another problem on Turkey Night. “We had the tires mounted by a tire manufacturer and they put two left rear tires on the car,” said Maier. “It was a mistake we didn’t catch, nor the manufacturer, nor USAC officials. Laura still went out there and qualified 10th out of the best 32 cars coming out of the gate.”

By the main event, the tires were corrected. “The rules forced Laura to start at the back of the pack,” Maier said. “She drove all the way up to 9th place and on the last lap coming up to the finish line someone pulled directly in front of her. In order to avoid an accident she ended up spinning the car just before the finish. Laura took 14th.”

This season we learned a lot as a team, said Maier. During the 2006 season, more than 150 Ford Focus Midgets competed nationwide in 100 USAC-sanctioned events. In 2007 USAC plans to expand.

Follow Laura Poorter's progress throughout the racing season at the K&N news site. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Audi Q7 Equipped with K&N Filters has Key Role at The 2007 Dakar Rally

Dec 6, 2006

In the past caravans crossed the desert out of necessity, at the 2007 Dakar Rally a different kind of caravan will cross the shifting sands of the Sahara desert, this time for bragging rights.

More than 500 teams from over 40 countries will participate in the toughest motor race in the world. The Dakar Rally covers 5000 miles and begins on January 6th in Portugal, goes through Spain, Morocco, Mauritania, Mali and ends on January 21st in Dakar, the capital of Senegal. The drivers and bikers must cross the Mediterranean Sea by boat.

Audi Q7 will be equipped with K&N Filters at The Dakar

On the other side of the Mediterranean the bikes, cars and trucks race next to the forests and villages of the African continent. The heart of the race is in the middle of the Sahara where temperatures average 130 degrees daily. The Dakar is full of extreme challenges with different stages everyday. Racers have to be great navigators and be on the lookout for the slightest traps.

The 29th annual event will host 187 cars, 88 trucks and 250 motorcycles. Michel de Groot, founder of Vicking Race Team is one of the bikers. His technical support truck is an Audi Q7 3.0TDI. De Groot’s team of four will receive what it needs along the route from this vehicle.

“The Q7 which they prepared is a brand new one, and no one thought anyone would use a car like this at The Dakar,” said K&N Engineering Project Development Technician Patrick Jacobs. “This key vehicle is equipped with K&N Filters for the grueling terrain.”
Typically car manufacturers use the rally to test the endurance of their new vehicles. There are more than 200 support vehicles in the caravan.

There is only one rest day in the 2007 race, on January 13, at Atar. The support crews will do everything possible that day to eliminate the problems caused by extreme sand. Out of all the entries only 40 percent of all the racers make it to the finish line. Speed limits of 95 mph will be in force this year for motorcyclists and down to 30 mph for all drivers as they go through villages.

The support vehicles will not be allowed on the leg of the race leading to Tichit and Timbuktu. For 1500 miles the only help available will be between competitors.

Every year people get lost or killed during the Dakar. A total of 46 deaths were recorded since the rally began in 1979. The route changes every year due to war and other political problems. Organizers are doing everything within their power to improve the security of competitors and the public along the course. The final standings will be established after the stage going from Tambacounda to Dakar.

Follow Michel de Groot's progress throughout the racing season at the K&N news site. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

40th Macau Grand Prix is a Challenge for Team Millennium/KWS Suzuki

Dec 5, 2006

The 21 hour flight from Charleston, South Carolina to the 40th Macau GP in China was filled with promise for the Millennium/KWS Suzuki Team. The invitation only group was part of 50 drivers traveling from 17 different countries and three continents.

Millennium/KWS Suzuki at Macau GP
40th Macau GP

wo of the only three Americans invited were Millennium’s John Haner and real roads specialist Mark Miller.

This was Haner’s second trip to Macau; Miller competed in the GP six times and finished on the podium twice.

“Mark’s (Miller) original deal fell through and he contacted Team Owner Kevin Hunt about riding one of his KWS bikes,” said Team Manager Chip Spalding. “Kevin (Hunt) was happy to have a two rider team and the duo was set.”

Haner rode a Pirelli shod Suzuki GSX-R1000 Superbike in the event. “This is real road racing,” said Spalding. “It’s a street circuit with concrete walls and zero run off. One mistake will land you in the hospital.”

Suzuki GSX-R1000 Superbike equipped with K&N

Millennium/KWS Suzuki sponsored by Ron Ayers Motorsports

Team Mechanic Michael Godin took care of the mechanical duties on his second trip to the Macau GP. Godin raced it in 2002. The bikes were equipped with K&N Products. “We ran the K&N Filters,” said Spalding. “K&N makes excellent filters.”

Haner and Miller ran well and qualified well at the onset of the Macau GP. The team was prepared, but the results were not what they hoped for. “John (Haner) broke a sub-frame belt and Mark (Miller) had electrical problems,” said Spalding. “It was just one of those failures that you can’t do anything about. Fortunately, no one was injured.”

The AMA privateer team originally only had the budget for the AMA Series. “When the opportunity presented itself to do the Macau GP, the sponsors helped make it happen,’ said Spalding. “K&N Filters perform great and we are very happy with their results at every race.”

The 40th Macau GP is over but Team Millennium/KWS Suzuki said they have unfinished business in China. We want to go back again next year and show the world what we can do, said Spalding.

Follow Team Millennium/KWS Suzuki throughout the racing season at the K&N news site. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

K&N GoodSport Evo Takes Silver at NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill

Dec 5, 2006

It is the ultimate racing test of car and team where reliability and planning are critical for a win. The NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill Presented by the U.S. Air Force is considered the most extreme and severe endurance race on the planet by the professional teams who come from around the world to participate.

Bongiovanni and Alexander driving duo at The 25

K&N Engineering GoodSport Evo at Thunderhill

Driving the K&N Engineering GoodSport Evo, David Bongiovanni and Ralph Alexander prepared by locking down every nut and bolt on the car. “We paid attention to every detail,” said Bongiovanni. “We also did a lot of physical conditioning. I rode my bike for miles every day before the event.”

The team of two covered a distance of nearly 2,000 miles of twists and turns in the rolling hills of northern California. Bongiovanni and Alexander each drove 12 and-a-half-hours during “The 25.” The two men were up against teams with several drivers. “We drove 3 and-a-half hours at a time,” said Bongiovanni. “We were reaching speeds of around 125 mph. I just get into a rhythm during a race, it’s comparable to dancing. It was so intense I had to go to the hospital at the end of the race to get IV fluids. I was very dehydrated.”

2nd place finish for Bongiovanni and Alexander

Both K&N Air and Oil Filters were used during the race

he adventure ultimately paid off. On December 4th, 48 cars out of 56 starters endured the longest night of Thunderhill and crossed the finish line.

Bongiovanni and Alexander took 2nd place in the highly competitive EO Tuner Class. The K&N Engineering GoodSport Evo is equipped with K&N Oil and Air Filters. “K&N improves the longevity and reliability of the engine,” said Bongiovanni. “Good fuel management and pit strategy allowed us to pass our opponents.” On December 4th, 48 cars out of 56 starters endured the longest night of Thunderhill and crossed the finish line.

Next for Bongiovanni is the AWD Challenge in February.

Follow the K&N Engineering GoodSport Evo' progress throughout the racing season at the K&N news site. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

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