Round 4 of the WORCS series was held at a new Venue – Sand Hollow State Park in Hurricane , Utah. This course would be quite different than any other track of the season. The course was several more miles long so we would have less laps and would prove to be one of the toughest tracks for the ATV’s we all have ever raced. Track consisted of mainly deep fine red sand with a lot of sharp rock, wide open lines to choose from also.

We had no practice this round since there was no MX section, so on Friday we just done our Unclassified race and got a feel of the terrain. After ¾ of the first lap, I realized my quad was running strange, so I pulled over and noticed the deep sand had made me burn my fuel up MUCH quicker than I would at a typical WORCS course. So I rushed to the pits to top off my tank so I could get one final lap of Unclassified in. Temps would remain fairly warm with temps in the 50’s. I felt good about this course, as it reminded me a lot of my local riding areas back in my old home state of Idaho ….

Photo by Qj’s Imaging

This round we had a lot of class schedule changes, normally I would have a few hours gap (last season I had one on Sat. and one first thing on Sunday) this Round I only had ONE HOUR gap in between races, so we had to get a groove on it and make sure everything was prepped and ready for my second race.

In my morning Open C class race, I was into the first corner first, but leading up to a sand hill another rider caught me to the top of the hill. With several lines to chose from I chose probably the worst line after watching the leader’s choice in lines, but for about 2 miles we battled but I couldn’t pass him. The track was one of the most whooped out tracks I have EVER rode on my life – especially after having the dirt bikes race right before us . Despite working on passing the leader, and successfully passing him, he once again chose a better line that wasn’t as deep of sand and pulled away. My Precision stabilizer would prove to be such an important asset to my race as well as my Flexx Bars so that I could keep up a steady and fast speed. My Exit Shocks were absolutely AMAZING!

Photo by Qj’s Imaging

They helped me also keep my momentum and in the rocky terrain .Overall, I felt great. I was actually not too tired, but I had horrible thumb pump from having to stay on the gas for so long in the deep red sand and rocky terrain. I was battling for third position in my morning race with my friend who also ran in Open C class. We had a really good battle with a little bit of some tire rubbing! After accidentally bumping him into a corner, my foot slipped and shifted up a gear going at a slight uphill angle. I got caught back up quickly and we battled once again. I hit a rock and it jerked the bars and made myself lose my grip on my bars and allowed me to lose third position. I ended up settling for 4th place finish in Open C class.

In my Afternoon Sport 15-29 C class it was a struggle for everyone. We had a VERY large combined class with many more riders and lots of traffic on the course early into the race allowing holes hot riders to pull away faster. It was a challenge to navigate through the traffic but I managed to get a decent start with 3rd position. Shortly after I got caught in heavy traffic that gave my two competitors in front of me that much more time to pull ahead. About mid race, 4th place and I had a battle for quite some time. He took a faster line through the rock section and pulled away, so I decided to ride smart and stay consistent and in the end it paid off. I caught back up to the rider a quarter of the way through the final lap-battling for most of that time. Both of us were completely exhausted and rode to our limits and I found the right line in the duning section. He decided to roll the jumps off the dunes and I decided to air out to get more speed and passed him into the straight stretch .After that I led for the rest of the lap and took my second podium finish of 2013!! I was elated as this keeps me in the points chase in both of my classes.

Photo by Qj’s Imaging.

I am currently tied for 1st place in the Open C class and I’m 1 point away from 2nd place in the 15-29 C class. I was so excited to win this round because it proves to myself that I do have what it takes to get a podium finish and considering the terrain we had to overcome I felt good about my finishes this Round. This track claimed a lot of machines and my Honda ran flawless. It was extra special to me because this is the first race of 2013 that my Dad was able to come home from working in the Oil fields and would be my good luck charm this Round.
I would like to thank ALL my Sponsors for all they do for me. I hope to become a winner this season and prove to all my sponsors that I DO have what it takes to win a Championship.
I’ve attached my Go Pro video link on Vimeo to share with everyone, so enjoy and thanks again!

Next Round will be in Taft, Ca May 10-12. We will then take a short summer break and resume racing in Aug.

WORCS racer # 52
Brandon Lugan