KORE Racing attacks Baja 1000 in a Cummins

[HoleshotHolset]

Wow. That's really cool.



Matt

 

[Heavy Metal]

Congratulations Kent! Now I really regret not making it down there. I'm looking forward to a full report as soon as you have the time to post one. Also, I will be interested in those control arms when they are ready. Relative to my last couple of e-mails, I think there may be some benefit that I may be able to see from better control arms (bushings). I'll speak to it in more detail when you have time. Once again congratulations to Kent and everyone at KORE.



Bryan

 

[kentkroeker]

Gents,



I'm pleased to announce that the KORE race team beat the longest, gnarliest continuous off-road race on the planet, the notorious trans-penisnular Baja 1000! And we even ended up on the podium , placing a solid third in the SCORE Stock Full class!



Yes, the truck was really, really heavy for this race. Most Stock Full class trucks are completely gutted, have no glass and only carry a minimum of spare parts and tools because they're gas powered and stop every 100 miles or so to take on fuel and make repairs. The mighty Banks/Cummins is so powerful and efficient; we only pitted three times! Without ten or twelve pits waiting for us, the truck had to have a lot of spare parts and tools on board - in fact, it was so loaded down with stuff, we called the rear passenger area the "Parts Department!"



I'll post more details later. Believe me; we have some stories to tell.



We led for much of the race; we even came within a hair's breadth of winning the class. We engaged in quarter-panel nerfing, bumper-bashing death-battles with our competitors that lasted for hundreds of miles - driving 90mph at night in dust and fog, driving IFR on the GPS, had close calls with total disaster, fought brain fade, sickness and body fatigue for over 29 hours of continuous driving, made collossal mistakes, performed heroic, last ditch efforts and unbelievable recoveries.



It was, in a word, heinous...



You will read the whole story in the new Primedia publication, "Diesel Power" as well as "Four Wheeler" and Off-Road.com. Also expect an article in the TDR and, of course, more here on line.



For now I just want to say that I'm really proud of what our team accomplished. Let it be known that long-course Baja racing is a 100% team effort - from preparing the truck to co-driving to pitting, it's not a one-man show. Our First-Class chase team and co-drivers are as responsible for this victory as I am.



I also want to thank Toyo for making tires that even the Baja 1000 could not damage (we had no flats and zero failure with production Open Country MT's!), Gail Banks for "Six Gun" tuning the mighty CTD to perform at "military power" for the entire race (for over 29 hours the motor was never shut down and, even with all the Banks horsepower and torque turning huge rubber at WOT through axle-deep silt beds and mud, the EGT's never showed higher than 1150!) Fox Racing Shox - the best race hydralics on the planet, Southbend Clutch for their excellent friction, Redline oil for their sythetic lubrication, DRC for their work-of-art bumper/light-bar/skid plate/tow point, Baja Designs for the blinding white HID Carrerra Lighting System and DPP for the F. A. S. S. lift pump that provided a comforting non-stop purr of fuel flow for 1016 miles of hell!



Just finishing a trans-peninsular Baja 1000 is a monumental acheivement. A podium finish is the cherry on top. I'm pretty sure this feat is a first for a Cummins-equipped Dodge - and I'm almost positive that our truck was the only truck that was not riding a trailer on its way back to the states.



THE KORE DODGE RAM RETURNED HOME UNDER ITS OWN POWER - ALL THE WAY FROM LA PAZ TO SAN DIEGO WITH THE AIR CONDITIONING AND CD PLAYER TUNED FOR COMFORT - AS IF NOTHING OUT OF THE ORDINARY HAD EVER HAPPENED!



Thanks to all of you for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers!!!



Best Regards,



Kent Kroeker

KORE

 

[Dkuhlman]

Major Contgrats!!!

Congratulations Kent on a truly remarkable achiement!

 

[nickleinonen]

Congratulations Kent on a truly remarkable achiement!

diddo!!!

 

[edgrim]

Super! Super! Super! Thank You for taking time to tell us your results. Can't wait to check out the full story Erwin

 

[GHinton]

Congratulations! That is a supreme acheivement. Just curious, what transmission does that rig have in it?



PS- Do you need a test mule on the east coast?

 

[Fred Swanson]

6 speed with SBC Con OFE clutch.

 

[EarlKann]

Amazing story, congratulations to Kent and the whole team. Glad to hear that the race went so well after all of the problems before/during the Big Bear run. I guess that's what shake down runs are for. I can't believe you drove the whole thing yourself



I haven't even finished my 1st gen conversion and I already want to save up for a new truck just so I can run that suspension. Can't wait to see some more pics (hope there's some good action Oo. )



Donald

 

[RoryTek]

Gee 29 hours of driving, that is rough. I used to do most of the radio communications for the teams and at time we used to do it from an aircraft and other times up Mt Diablo freezing our butts off for than 30+ hours listening to 5+ radios and keeping track of where the cars are. Man that was nutz, but fun.

 

[Lorenz]

Nice!



Nurfer or Nurfee?

 

[TPCDrafting]

This is excellent!! Oo.



Great work and thanks for posting!

 

[JyRO]

Outstanding!

Fellers - That's averaging around 35 mph getting somewhere in the neighborhood of 11. 25 mpg. Talk about being on the throttle!!!



I just drove for 62 hours straight on the weekend of 10/24 (AL - KS - FL - AL). Although I was towing, but the road was a piece of glass compared to Baja. I can't imagine having to be so much more focused and to do it for 29+ hours. Now that's work, fun work, but work. I'd love to try that!

 

[GHinton]

Let's see, 4. 75 tons of racing rig averaging 11. 25 mpg. What did the gassers do, 4 to 5 mpg? Those appear to be the stock rims, is that the case? Also, if those were the 6 ply toyos, sign me up for 4.

 

[Greg Boardman-RIP]

Let's see, 4. 75 tons of racing rig averaging 11. 25 mpg. What did the gassers do, 4 to 5 mpg? Those appear to be the stock rims, is that the case? Also, if those were the 6 ply toyos, sign me up for 4.

Gassers do get better mileage in stock full than the trophy trucks do. But 4 to 5 is what the Trophy and class 1 cars get.



Stock Wheels

Toyo Open Country MT 37/13. 50/17 E rated (10 ply)

Tires are still not available to public.

 

[AfterBurner]

WOOOO HOOOO!

Awesome job Kent and KORE Oo. Oo.

amazing truck :--)

 

[HOBrian]

Kent :--) :--) :--) :--)

 

[Bertram65]

Pretty impressive to finish in a near stock truck, congratulations. Just curious why didn't they use the Weld wheels on the truck for the race?

 

[Diesel Dan]

Bertram,

he needed every advantage he could get. The 37's offer better ground clearance for the diffs and better resistance to pinch flats when hitting big BAJA rocks at speed. I am hoping Toyo makes this tire in a 35/12. 5/17 for my next set.



Best regards



DD

 

[Doubleclutch]

Welds were 18" for starters... and WAY to pretty. I like the IFR on GPS part, Kent. Good job!

Greg