Team AMSOIL off-road truck drivers Dan Vanden Heuvel and Scott Douglas are quickly getting in the mix of Championship Off-Road Racing’s season point’s race. The third weekend of racing brought two more rounds of action to southern California, this time at the new Chula Vista Raceway, just south of San Diego.In the Pro-4 class, Scott Douglas was looking to regain the speed
and handling in his four-wheeled driver, Ford F-150 that made him a World Champion and series point’s contender in 2006. Douglas pushed his AMSOIL/Kumho truck into an early lead at the start of round five and was nearly unstoppable for much of the race. He battled with Adrian Cenni for the lead and Douglas fell back to second before the mandatory yellow-flag bunched the field up. After the restart, Douglas regained the lead for two more laps before Cenni and eventual race winner Carl Renezeder got by. Douglas finished with a podium finish of third.
On Sunday, Douglas again looked like the truck to beat in round six of the CORR series. Douglas found a narrow hole early in the race and pushed his Ford to the front of the pack. After a safety caution slowed the field, Douglas returned to the lead once the green flag came out on ten. Douglas got a flat tire that eventually slowed him down enough allowing Renezeder to take first with two laps to go. On the final lap Douglas lost one more spot to Travis Coyne in turn seven. Despite the flat tire, Douglas held on for his second third of the weekend.It was a short race for Douglas in the NBC televised Jason Baldwin Memorial Cup qualifier. Douglas crashed coming out of the first turn on lap four. His truck caught on fire taking him out of the race.
“A rock came up and got lodged in the air filter,” said Douglas. “The whole cab of the truck was engulfed in flames. Let’s just say that I wanted to get out of there in a hurry. We had some wiring damage, but for the most part the truck is fine and we have it ready to go for Crandon.”
In the Pro-2 Baldwin Cup qualifier, Dan Vanden Heuvel was looking for another pair of podium finishes after his two second place finishes in Pomona, Calif. Vanden Heuvel started on the pole for Saturday’s race and came out of the first turn in second. The Flying Dutchman would get pushed back to fourth after he slowed to avoid danger after another truck crashed on lap three, eventually getting passed. CORR deemed the pass legal and Vanden Heuvel had to try and get his spot back. Vanden Heuvel battled for third the rest of the race, eventually coming across the finish line in fourth.In Round five of the Pro-2 point’s battle, Vanden Heuvel again started on the pole. He came out of turn one with the lead. He held the position until the second lap when he hit a rut. He never fell below fourth until the mandatory yellow came out at the half-way mark of the race. Vanden Heuvel was making a bid for third over one of the big jumps when he almost landed on the third place truck. Slamming on his breaks, Vanden Heuvel slid sideways, allowing the fifth place truck to get by him. He was pushed into pit lane and had to rejoin the field by driving through the pit area. Vanden Heuvel would eventually have to return to pit lane after CORR penalized him for speeding the first time through. When he was able to rejoin the race, Vanden Heuvel finished tenth.
In Sunday’s round six race Vanden Heuvel started deep in the field and began working through traffic. On the second lap, a rookie driver rammed Vanden Heuvel’s tuck heading into the second turn. The hard hit broke a trailing arm, both rear shocks and caused major damage to the axle house. The damage forced Vanden Heuvel out of the race.
For the season, Douglas sits third overall in the Pro-4 class with 55 points. Vanden Heuvel is seventh overall in the Pro-2 class with 46 points.
Douglas and Vanden Heuvel will be joined by their Super Team member, Mike Oberg, for the first time on June 23-24 as all three drivers will take part in the World Series of Off-Road Racing at the famed Crandon International Raceway.
Until then, we'll see you at the races,
Jeremy Meyer
AMSOIL Racing Coordinator
