Consistency the decider in Tri Series
Brett Smith has taken out the 2016 Tri Series ahead of Brad Cooper and Russell Cullen. With the Tri Series being decided over the rounds at Perenjori, Carnarvon and Kalgoorlie of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC it was a hard fought battle for the podium positions and prize money.
3rd – Russell Cullen
3rd in class at Perenjori
1st in class at Carnarvon
2nd in class at Kalgoorlie
Average class finish – 2
2nd – Brad Cooper
2nd in class at Perenjori
1st in class at Carnarvon
1st in class at Kalgoorlie
Average class finish – 1.3
1st – Brett Smith
1st in class at Perenjori
1st in class at Carnarvon
1st in class at Kalgoorlie
Average class finish – 1
Keep your eyes peeled for the release of the 2017 calendar and which events will make up the 2017 Tri Series. With big cash prizes on the line, its a great initiative by the organizing clubs and a great way to give back to the competitors
Smith takes out the Kalgoorlie 400
Round 4 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC has been run and won, with Brett Smith taking victory in his #161 Southern Cross Racing Prolite Buggy. With Sundays racing featuring 2 sections each 2 hours in duration for competitors to do the most amount of laps it was going to be a long tough day for the competitors.
Shane Elphinstone was the overnight leader and in section 1 looked to have extended his lead in the early laps. Unfortunately they soon struck trouble, with the vehicle stuck in 5th gear at the end of lap 2. This allowed Darren Agrela into the lead, with Elphinstone getting back on track after losing 10 minutes. Agrela and Smith would continue to battle for the remaining laps with Agrela taking the section finishing 5 laps. Unfortunately that would be the end of the Agrelas race, after finishing the section they discovered brake issues which meant they would not take part in the final section. Peter Doneys event ended after an altercation with a tree, whilst Leigh Cooper would roll his Pajero onto its side however would be repaired and back for the final section. Shane Elphinstones event would go from bad to worse, pushing hard to make a 5th lap, they would be sidelined with engine issues. At the end of the second section Adam Flanagan would lead the Extreme 2wd class, Jeremy Lia lead Super 1650 and Garry Povah put his day 1 woes behind him to charge into the Extreme 4wd class lead. Graeme Bentink continued to lead the Production 4wd class from Ben Armstrong, Chris May and newcomer Steven Baxter whilst Brad Close completed 2 laps and lead the Superlite class.
Heading into the final section Brett Smith held an advantage having completed 1 lap more than the rest of the field. After pushing hard for 4 laps, they came into the pits with throttle issues. Adam Flanagan drove hard and attempted to complete a 5th lap, but would finish 30 seconds outside of the allocated 2 hours which meant it would not count. This meant that Smith would comfortably win the event ahead of Flanagan. Jeremy Lia was looking good for 3rd outright, but had power steering issues which dropped him out of contention. Brad Cooper looked poised to make a 5th lap and force his way onto the podium but also struck issues which left him in 5th outright. In the end it would be Bernard Holt whose consistent run netted him his first podium finish in 3rd outright and 2nd in class. Graeme Bentink had a strong run and despite blowing the front diff and 3rd gear he managed to win Production 4wd and take 4th outright. Garry Povah capped off a strong Sunday by taking the Extreme 4wd class win and 6th outright.
The Western Desert Racers Club would like to thank all the event sponsors, volunteers, property owners and everyone who helped put the event on. Crews now look to the CCR Hoses & Fittings Mogumber 240 as Round 5 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC which will be held in August. For more information see www.waorc.com or www.waorra.com and follow us on facebook at www.facebook.com/westausorc
Elphinstone in charge at Kalgoorlie 400
Shane and Curt Elphinstone are in charge as the sun sets on Day 1 of the Kalgoorlie 400, Round 4 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC. The days racing kicked off in tricky conditions with rain, wind and a greasy track putting the competitors to the test. Normally run in dry and dusty conditions, the weather made for a big change on previous years events. The Western Desert Racers club have pulled out all stops to ensure the event runs smoothly, creating new sections of track, reshaping old tracks and creating an all new pit area and start finish line, with awesome spectator views.
The 15km prologue threw up many challenges with Steven Knowles the first victim, failing to finish the prologue with steering issues only 300m from the finish line. The #44 Pro Buggy of Shane and Curt Elphinstone would wind up quickest, smashing the rest of the field to take the prologue by nearly 40 seconds. Prolite man Brett Smith was second fastest ahead of Undecided Racings Darren Agrela, with Brad Cooper home in 4th in his Mickey Thompson sponsored BAT Pro Buggy. Adam Flanagan was flying the flag for the trucks, entertaining the crowd on his way to fifth outright and 1st in Extreme 2wd. Super 1650 driver and Kalgoorlie local Jeremy Lia punched his way into 6th outright, with Brad Close taking 1st in class for the superlites and sitting in 8th outright. Russell Cullen lead the Extreme 4wd class in 9th outright, just ahead of Graeme Bentink in his G Turbo sponsored LandCruiser who was leading Production 4wd
Section 1 was to be a 1 hour shootout, with competitors vying to complete the most amount of laps in the allotted time, there was action right from the start. Brad Cooper was the first to drop out of contention, steering issues halting the #968 machine and dropping him out of contention. Darren Agrela was on the move, passing Brett Smith for 2nd outright and setting about trying to reel in early leader Shane Elphinstone. In the class battles Jeremy Lia was pushing many of the much more fancied buggies, slotting himself into first in Super 1650 and 4th outright. Adam Flanagan pushed his Extreme 2wd truck to the limits and was rewarded with the class lead and 5th outright. Brad Close continued to lead Superlite, despite running out of fuel. Graeme Bentink holds a strong lead of just over a minute, whilst Leigh Cooper seized the Extreme 4wd lead from Russell Cullen on his way to 12th outright. At the end of the section only 5 cars successfully completed 2 laps, with Steven Knowles the quickest to only complete 1 lap in his prolite sitting in 6th.
Heading into day 2 the top trio of Elphinstone, Agrela and Smith will be looking to push home the advantage and seal some valuable class points. Sundays racing will see 2 sections, each 2 hours long where competitors again will try and complete the most number of laps of the 35km course. Live results are available at http://my6.raceresult.com/56925/results?lang=en For more information follow www.facebook.com/westausorc or www.waorc.com
Smith In Charge After 3 Rounds
After 3 Rounds of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC, it is Brett Smith in his #161 Pro Lite Buggy who is on top of the points chase. Backing up his series win in 2015, Smith has had an incredidbly consistent run so far this year, bagging a 3rd and 2 x 2nd places. As the Series heads to Kalgoorlie for Round 4, lets take a look at how the title fights are shaping up
In the Outright chase, Smith leads from Cooper and Elphinstone, with the eventual winner looking likely to come from these 3 competitors. Dirk Van Geest was extremely consistent in rounds 1 and 2 to sit 4th just ahead of Mark Cramer, Russell Cullen and Round 3 winner Scott Schiller. With the points for 2016 allowing you to drop your worst round it most certainly isn’t over until the fat lady sings!
Pro Buggy class is lead by Brad Cooper from Shane Elphinstone and Mark Cramer who have been some of the in form competitors in the series so far this year. Sitting in 4th, 5th and 6th are Darren Agrela, Scott Schiller and Troy Schoen who have all shown that they have the pace to make a real impact in the second half of the year
Southern Cross Racing’s Brett Smith is in a class of his own, taking 3 class victories in the first 3 rounds of the series. The consistency shown by Wayne and Bernie Holt has them sitting 2nd and 3rd in their Goose Racing Pro Lite Buggies. Behind the leading trio is a gaggle of competitors who will be hoping to turn the tables on the current points leader
Super 1650 has had a change in leader after the Bencubbin event. Aaron Dark has charged into the lead ahead of Nathaniel Edwards and Dave Cowan. The 3 competitors are very close on points and it is still wide open heading into Round 4 at Kalgoorlie
It may have taken him 3 rounds, but Geraldton’s Greg Pickersgill has finally landed a punch in the 2016 series. After 2 DNF’s and a class win, Pickersgill now holds a slender lead over Carnarvon’s Darryl Hardman and Peter Doney in his Blue #406 machine
Jordan Russell is the sold competitor in the Performance 2wd class and a dogged effort at Bencubbin has seen him hit the ground running leading the class with 3 rounds to go
Production 4wd looks set to be an close one all the way to the finish. Dirk Van Geest leads the class narrowly ahead of Ben Armstrong and Ted Schultz. The trio have built a gap over 4th place man Chris Dawes, with Chris May and Round 3 winner Graeme Bentink lurking ominously currently 6th on points.
Extreme 4wd sees the consistent Owen Davies leading the field from Russ Cullen and Leigh Cooper. David Fong has had a few good runs in his #881 machine to sit 4th with Brad Krepp, Garry Povah, Daniel Smith and Scott Bryce rounding out the top 8
Keep an eye out on Round 4 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC, being the longest and toughest event in the series, it could be a decisive one!!!
To see the full points score, click here
Red Dust to fly at the Kalgoorlie 400
The Red dust is set to fly at Round 4 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC. The Western Desert Racers have now released their supplementary regulations and entry for the longest and toughest event in the 2016 series
A new online entry is also being trialled via the My Race Results system, please enter using the link here
Russells persistence pays off
Jordan Russells persistence has paid off, with the Performance 2wd pilot taking out the Intense LED Australia contingency prize for Round 3 of the CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC. The Bullet Racing Lancer was the only entry in the Performance 2wd, but the boys didn’t play it safe, giving it their all in their quest for WAORC glory
Just getting the #513 to the track has been a long time coming with many upgrades and improvements taking place over the past few months. To finish 4 out of the 5 gruelling laps of the Marsue Transport Bencubbin 360 was a massive achievement and well rewarded with one of Intense LED Australias top quality LED light bars
Joyce wins the Oricom Contingency prize at Round 3
Danielle Joyce has won the Oricom UHF CB contingency prize for Round 3 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC.
Danni had a trying run at the Marsue Transport Bencubbin 360 in her #21 Pro Buggy which ended with drive issues. Congratulations to Danielle and her team for taking out the contingency prize thanks to our valued series sponsor Oricom UHF CB
Schiller Charges on Day 2 at Bencubbin
Round 3 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries Western Australian Off Road Racing Championship has been run and won in cold conditions at Bencubbin. The Marsue Transport Bencubbin 360 was expected to be a race of attrition with its Enduro format, but well over half of the competitors managed to greet the checkered flag completing all the laps.
With the start order being set on Day 1 with the prologue and Top 10 shootout the racing was fierce from the get go. Darren Agrela started from pole and looked to have created a good gap at the front. However with Troy Schoen, Brett Smith, Grant Payne and Justin Steadman chasing hard the pressure was on. It was however Scott Schiller in the #971 SS Racetech buggy who charged from 11th on the grid to take the lead after section 1 of the Marsue Transport Bencubbin 360. At the end of Section 1 with only minutes separating the top 10, it was clear that there was going to be fireworks during the 4 enduro laps of the event
In Section 2 Schiller started from pole, blasting away from the field and pulling a big gap after Agrela struck mechanical woes. Schoen, Smith, Payne and Steadman were locked in a titanic battle for the remainder of the podium places. This battle would continue to rage for the full 4 laps, however Payne would drop time making it a 3 horse race for 2nd. After 4 laps Schiller took the outright win by just over 2 and a half minutes. Brett Smith put in another sterling drive to be 2nd outright and 1st in the Prolite class against some much higher powered machines. Troy Schoen continued his dream debut run to take out 3rd outright and 2nd in Pro Buggy class, with Steadman 4th outright followed by Payne and Cooper.
Back thr0ugh the field the action was hot, in Production 4wd Bentink, Van Geest, Dawes and Armstrong were all neck and neck. In the end Bentink would come out the winner in his G Turbo sponsored diesel powered Landcruiser. Super 1650 looked to be heading Nathaniel Edwards way until he struck difficulties allowing Dave Cowan to take a popular class win over Aaron Dark. Jordan Russell and Nathan Russell displayed the never give up spirit of the sport this weekend, being the last car to cross the line, albeit a lap down but nevertheless claiming a well deserved Performance 2wd win. Greg Pickersgill had the Extreme 2wd class sewn up early after Harleigh Uren had a minor fire put out his chance of the class win. Scott Bryce took the lead from the early pacesetter Brad Krepp and looked to have created a race winning gap, but was a DNF with motor issues. This allowed Krepp to come through for the class victory over Daniel Smith and Dave Fong
WAORRA would like to thank major event sponsors for the 4th year in a row, Marsue Transport. Based in South Guildford with teams located in Karratha, Port Hedland, Kwinana, Canning Vale and Bunbury, and with a fleet of over 80 trucks, Marsue Transport have all your transport needs covered
Competitors now turn their sights on the upcoming Kalgoorlie 400, for more information see http://www.waorc.com
Agrela on top after Day 1
Day 1 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries WAORC has been run with Darren Agrela coming out on top at the end of the prologue and Top 10 shootout. Run in cold and overcast conditions with rain threatening the action on track was red hot.
Friday night and Saturday morning would see scrutineering held for the 39 competitors who made the trek to the town of Bencubbin. After Reconnaissance of the 75km course it was time for the prologue which would be a 25km test. Jordan Russell was the first vehicle off the line with his performance 2wd Lancer blasting off into the distance. As more and more competitors took to the track the times quickly tumbled. Darren Agrela looked to have set the quickest time, until Troy Schoen in his debut run of the immaculately presented #19 CCR Hoses & Fittings Pro Buggy stole the top spot with a blistering run. His time, bettering the 2nd place Agrela by 7 seconds, with Steadman in 3rd and Brett Smith the first of the prolites in 4th outright.
Brad Krepp headed the Extreme 4wd, his giant killing run in taking down the Proformance 4wd Trophy Truck of Scott Bryce by 0.1 of a second. Greg Pickersgill had the fastest Extreme 2wd time in 13th outright after Harleigh Uren had a flat tyre and did not finish the prologue. Chris Dawes and Graeme Bentink are set to be locked in an almighty battle for Day 2, with Dawes taking the prologue 0.7 of a second ahead of the G Turbo Diesel sponsored Landcruiser. Nathaniel Edwards stormed to first in Super 1650 class, his time good enough for 21st outright. The #513 of Jordan Russell was the fastest Performance 2wd and locked in at 33rd outright. Some notable DNF’s on prologue were Scott Schiller with a cracked radiator, Peter Barrett with electrical dramas and Daniel Smith who melted a coil pack.
As the Top 10 shootout rolled around, there was drama early as Rob Collings was not able to start. Brad Krepp had brake issues and couldn’t complete his run whilst Scott Bryce was also parked up within sight of the finish line. Mark Cramer slotted into 7th outright, just behind Brad Cooper and Grant Payne. Justin Steadman dropped one position from 3rd to 4th with Brett Smiths big push resulting in 3rd outright. Troy Schoen couldn’t repeat his heroics from his earlier run as Darren Agrela slashed a whopping 28 seconds off his earlier run to storm to pole position for Section 1 of the event
The action wasn’t just limited to the track as some of the women of off road took to the netball court for a game against the Bencubbin locals. After a disastrous start, the off roaders pegged the score back to lose by only a short margin.
Day 2 kicks off with 1 lap of the 75km course followed by a a 4 lap enduro section. Keep up to date with the live timing and updates on http://www.facebook.com/westausorc
Pro Buggies ready to tame the Bencubbin course
The Pro Buggy field have once again entered in the masses, making Round 3 of the 2016 CAMS, PGS Industries Western Australian Off Road Racing Championship one not to miss! With 14 entries in the Marsue Transport Bencubbin 360, they make up the largest field of entries in 2016
5 – Gary Howe returns to the track after a while out of the sport. The Howe family will be sharing the driving and navigating duties and there is no doubting that they have some experience and talent behind the wheel. Keep an eye out of the #5 Southern Cross buggy because they have the capacity to spring a major upset!
19 – Troy Schoen is debuting a brand new state of the art SS Racetech Pro Buggy. Whilst Schoen will take some time to get used to the new vehicle, there is no doubting that if the big orange buggy is on song that it will be running up front!
21 – Danielle Joyce has endured a tough start to the 2016 season. Mechanical issues kept her out of Perenjori and Carnarvon, but she managed to return for the Narrogin Short Course only to have issues again. The only female driver in the Bencubbin field, Joyce will have her work cut out to chase down some of her more fancied rivals, but don’t count her out, the Enduro format may well suit her driving style and anything can happen!
22 – Grant Payne returns to the WAORC for the first time this season. A strong run at the recent Narrogin Chase Short Course indicates that the CMM Automotive pilot is primed and ready for a big run at Bencubbin. The #22 buggy has good pace, solid reliability and a real shot at taking this event outright!
28 – Shane Yaxley will be looking for a strong run at the Bencubbin 360. This event is probably most suited to the #28 machine and if Yaxley can have a trouble free run he has the ability to go on a giant killing run. If the little 4L V8 powerplant is screaming step back and watch the CBM Motorsport team put on a show!
39 – Darren Agrela will be hoping for a turn around of his fortunes from the first 2 events in 2016. Leading at both Perenjori and Carnarvon the Undecided Racing Team have succumbed to mechanical issues. There is no doubting that the pace is there and the #39 is due a big result, this is one buggy to keep your eyes on
42 -Peter Barrett has made the trek down all the way from Carnarvon. Another with reliability issues hampering his 2016 season, Barrett will be hoping to bring home his Carnarvon Motel sponsored Buggy with a strong result and as he grows in confidence with the new buggy, there is no doubting that a big result isn’t far away
44 – Shane Elphinstone is one of the red hot favorites to take out the Maruse Transport Bencubbin 360. With blistering pace, this well sorted combo is well suited to the Bencubbin track and capable of pulling out a win this weekend
54 – Keith Rance will be hoping that his reliability woes have been sorted. Another who when running at full pace has the ability to light up the time sheets, the #54 buggy will need a trouble free run to push its way onto the class and outright podiums
58 – Robert Collings proved at Round 2 in Carnarvon that he is certainly no slouch behind the wheel. The Ex Rex West Razorback frame was on the pace until gearbox issues put them out of the event. Watch out for the big blue beast as the roaring V8 surges its way through the race track!
68 – Justin Steadman showed his hand at Perenjori in round 1 as he surged into the lead after 1 lap only to strike a tree and be out of the event. Steadman is one of the quickest peddlers in the field and has had strong runs at Bencubbin in the past. If the #68 Bat sees the finish line with a clean run, Steadman will be looking good for a top 3 finish
932 – Mark Cramer is one of the dark horses in the field. Slowly but surely Cramer has been getting more and more comfortable in his Southern Cross Pro Buggy and since the shift to a 6L V8 has been chipping away at the top class runners. Keep and eye on the #932 buggy because it wont be long before Cramer lands himself on the top step of the podium
968 – Brad Cooper is a 2 time winner of this event and a winner in his last start at Round 2 of the WAORC. With that kind of history and form, there is no doubting that Cooper has all the tools at his disposal to put the pressure on the rest of the field. Look out for the Mickey Thompson Bat Buggy because Cooper always puts on a show
971 – Scott Schiller comes into the Bencubbin event in ripping form. After taking out the Narrogin Chase last month and being a former winner of the Bencubbin event, the SS Racetech Buggy would have to be one of the favorites for outright and class victory
Western Australian Off Road Racing Championship 