TransWest Ford Henderson “250” Decides Several Class Championships

Next off the line at about 9:00 AM were classes 1100, 1800, 2000, 4400, TrophyLite, 7100, 7300 and 8100. Kevin Smith in Class 2000 took first overall and the Class Championship title. Second overall and first in Class 1100 went to Ryan Plowman followed closely by Lee Banning Sr. Banning’s second in class finish earned him the Class 1100 Championship. Jason Papa took the Class 1800 victory. The Class 8100 victory, along with the Class Championship, went to Tim Casey in his Ford Super Duty. Kellon Walch captured the win plus the Championship in Class 7300. Both the Class 6000 victory and TrophyLite Championship went to Louis Chamberland. Terry Henn took first in Class 7100; however, the Championship went to his son, Blake. Although Dave Schneider got a DNF at this race, he still managed to have a good year by winning the Class 4400 Ultra 4 Championship.

Around 12:40 PM the fastest classes took to the 80-mile course in what would turn out to be a championship shootout. Sam Berri, who has become a master of the Time Trials, won the “Team Ford Pole Award” for the fourth time this year. This time he put it all together, starting as the first car off the line and leading all the way to claim first overall and the Class 1500 win. Coming into this race, Chris Appleton and Steve Croll were tied for the Class 1500 points lead, but due to their qualifying positions at the Time Trials, they were stuck mid -pack for the race and weren’t able to make up any significant ground on the rest of the field. That left the Class Championship door open for the other close contenders. Rookie driver Chris Kemp’s third in class finish earned him enough points to claim the Class 1500 Championship. Fellow rookie Travis Chase’s second place finish landed him the 2010 “Rookie of the Year” honors.

The Trick Truck field turned out to be a real dogfight and an unprecedented race for the championship as B.J. Baldwin, Marc Ewing, Steve Sourapas, Rick D. Johnson and Jason Voss all had a crack at the year-end Championship. Andy McMillin, driving the Sourapas truck, was the fifth vehicle off the line, but the first truck. He suffered a flat tire on the first lap, allowing Jason Voss to get around him for the lead. From that point on, Voss never looked back as he took the Trick Truck victory and second overall. The flat tire proving costly, McMillin came in second, about two and a half minutes behind Voss. But on this day, B.J. Baldwin wasn’t going to be denied. Starting in the 37th position, Baldwin drove like a man possessed. He rapidly started picking off cars and trucks as he forged his way to the front. At the end of the day he had passed just about all of them to come in third in Trick Truck and an incredible fourth overall. The hard fought finish brought him the Trick Truck Championship, with a mere two point advantage over Voss and Sourapas in the final tally. B.J. Baldwin’s Championship was also the first Trick Truck Championship for General Tire, Best In The Desert’s “Official Tire” sponsor.

Other notable finishers in the third race included Dr. Macrae Glass who won Class 8000 and scored back-to-back Championships in the process. Brian Potts got top honors in Class 1000, but Todd Elam took home the Class Championship. Troy Vest drove to both the Class 1200 win and Championship. David Caspino was another driver to get both the win and the Championship for class 7200.

The TransWest Ford Henderson “250” wrapped up another outstanding year of racing for Best In The Desert. Now racers have less than two months to relish their championships and get ready for the 2011 season. See you at the BlueWater Resort & Casino Parker “425”, February 4th thru 6th, 2011 in Parker, Arizona as “The Legend Lives On”.

Best In The Desert official sponsors: Ford Motor Company – official truck, General Tire – official tire, VP Racing Fuels – official fuel, KC HiLiTES – official light, Arctic Cat – official UTV, KTM – official motorcycle, FabTech - Official Suspension, Fall Advertising, Prerunner Maniac, McKenzies, PCI Race Radios, and Sportsman Cycle Sales. And we welcome on board Lucas Oil as the Official Oil Sponsor.

The American Off-Road Racing Series…Best In The Desert!
 

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