Photo Series: Cole Mamer Tears up The Mud For Utah Round of The Lucas Oil Offroad Series

Hot Challenging Time in Charlotte for Atturo Driver Andrew Carlson

Elk River, Minnesota (July 15, 2015) – The challenge of running with the best racers in professional short track off-road racing reared its ugly head this past weekend as The Off-Road Championship (TORC) series visited Charlotte, North Carolina. Pro-Light rookie Andrew Carlson looked to continue his momentum and rapid learning curve that had already netted him several top-five finishes. Instead a wall of heat, ever-changing track conditions, and hard luck in both finals met him head on.

Racing is a staple in this part of the country that is essentially home to NASCAR, and the TORC race was held at the hallowed grounds of Charlotte Motor Speedway. The Carlson Motorsports team entered the weekend riding a string of strong finishes and growing momentum they looked to continue on the continuous paperclip shaped track.

Crew Chief Keith Stamper, and the rest of the CMS crew had the 151 Atturo Tires, Best Western, AMSOIL Pro-Light truck set-up to near perfection as confirmed by Carlson’s fastest of class practice times. However the track changed quickly under the burning southern sun, quickly transforming the tacky, traction-laden track into a slick as ice, blue-clay groove. The quick transformation forced the crew to make quick changes as they chased the ideal set-up.

They looked to be close as Carlson cranked it up in the first final of the weekend, clawing his way up to 6th place by the mid-point of the race. But then fate struck in the form of a flat tire, forcing Andrew to pull off the track and sacrifice his hard earned points.

“The track changed so much from practice to qualifying,” said Stamper. “We had the perfect set-up early on, but once the blue-groove formed it was all hands on deck to get the truck as close as we could throughout the remainder of the day.”

The team regrouped on Saturday, hoping to parlay the lessons learned Friday into a stronger finish. Fueled by optimism, Carlson rallied from his mid-pack starting position and looked to make a big move in the opening laps. He quickly gained the 6th position but then was promptly punted off the track by an over aggressive driver dropping him to the back of the field.

“I’m disappointed to say the least,” said a clearly miffed Carlson as he climbed from his battle worn truck at the end of the race. “There is such a huge difference in driver experience in this class…we need to get to the front of the pack where the experience level makes for cleaner racing. The back of the pack is more like a demo derby than a truck race…my truck looked like a crushed beer can at the end.”

The team returns to action in three weeks as they head to Sturgis South Dakota for the Battle at the Chip, August 4-5. The break will give them some much needed rest, truck preparation and continued practice on their home track.

Travis Dinsmore Nabs 3rd Place at the TORC Series Showdown in Charlotte

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 13, 2015 Paris, Ontario, Canada

 
After a near perfect weekend at Crandon, Travis Dinsmore and the Sle-Co Race Team, headed to the Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway for some serious short track competition. The tight confines of the red clay coliseum saw mixed results for the Canadian team, as the competition, the track, and Mother Nature all played a role in the success of the team.

When the Sle-Co hauler rolled into Charlotte, the area was in the midst of its mid-summer heat wave as daytime temperatures exceeded 100°F. Then combine it with very high humidity; the weather conditions really tested the team's mental and physical fortitude.

During the day the heat would create dry and hard track conditions, but as the sun began to set, the track held the moisture that was scattered throughout the .8-mile long layout. Needless to say the changing track conditions really made truck set-up a real challenge.

The racetrack was a combination of high-speed straightaways, technical corners, high flying jumps, and a very long whoop section. Friday afternoon qualifying saw the Sle-Co Atturo Tire Aeromotive VP Fuels PRO-Light turn the third quickest time of the session. This put Dinsmore in the second row for the start of Round 9.

The sixteen-lap race had Dinsmore in a close battle with Kyle Hart for the final spot on the podium. The two racers swapped the position several times before Dinsmore took control of the position to stand on the podium for the third time this year.

As mentioned the changing track conditions were a real handful and Travis and the team went to work looking for the perfect track set-up for Saturday's race.

The Round 10 event had Dinsmore lined up in the front row, and took the lead by the end of the opening lap. Early on in the race the track was quite slippery but the Atturo Tires really kept all the Pro-Power horsepower in control as Travis built up an early lead. Then on lap eight Dinsmore seem to lose some top end speed allowing four trucks to get by.

On the restart, the truck seemed to be back up to speed, but then Dinsmore got caught in the middle of a three wide sandwich heading into the infield portion of the track. The contact damaged both right side tires reducing the pace of the truck and preventing a repeat performance of Friday night.

"We had a solid start to the weekend, but Saturday night just wasn't in the cards. Our Atturo Tires

really worked well in the wet as well as the dry conditions. The work the team did in the extreme heat was incredible. It was great to see all the fans in the stands and stopping by to visit our team in the pits. The competition level, is just off the charts in PRO-Light, you have to bring your A-Game to every race, and keep that level all the way to the checkered flag. That's what I love about TORC racing, the competition level is extreme, and practically the whole field is capable of finishing on the podium. It will be interesting at Sturgis, as the quick elevation changes and the huge jumps will take a totally different truck set-up than Charlotte as the track layout will definitely test the nerve of every driver."

STAND BY FOR ACTION!

Wanna get a taste for what it's going to be like this weekend in Charlotte?  Wanna hear the roar of the crowd and the Pro Light Trucks, and smell the gas as the mud sprays everywhere? Wanna see the competition as drivers squeeze past once another, colliding at breakneck speed?

Then check out these photos and video of the Big Brawl in Crandon, WI!  Featuring 1st place winner #43 Travis Dinsmore and Atturo driver #151 Andrew Carlson who finished 4th on Sunday after having to replace his engine! That's how tough this offroad racing can get.

TORC Series Spring Crandon Highlights from Dirt Productions on Vimeo.

Get ready to get pumped for the big SHOWDOWN IN CHARLOTTE this weekend! 


Brought to you by your friends at Atturo Tires! 

CARLSON AT CRANDON!

Some photo highlights of Atturo driver #151 Andrew Carlson competing at the Crandon, WI  Big House Brawl! Be sure to see Andrew at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the upcoming

 Showdown in Charlotte!

Atturo Team Wins Big in Wisconsin!

Atturo Tires Race Team had an INCREDIBLE weekend in Crandon, WI; nabbing 1st Place and 4th Place wins for the team.

#43 Travis Dinsmore finished 2nd Place on Saturday giving Atturo their first podium in the Pro light Truck Class. Travis rebounded on Sunday, snagging a 1st Place win, giving Travis Dinsmore and Atturo their first Prolight win.

 #151 Andrew Carlson was not able to finish because of mechanical failures on Saturday. After a long night of replacing the engine, Andrew came in Sunday from the back of the pack to finish strong with a 4th place finish. Crandon is the "Talladega of tracks" as the teams put it, and drew in over 20,000 people to watch the races over the course of two days.





We had autograph signings with both Atturo drivers, which the fans really enjoyed. AutoGear, a dealer from Rhinelander, WI also had a truck showcasing the Atturo Tire 35x12.5R20 M/T’s in their booth.

 

Here's a recap of the weekend: 

Travis Dinsmore - #43

After leading the final round in Chicago and having a mechanical failure, the team had just 4 days to

prep for Wisconsin. A transmission problem had us installing a new transmission with literally minutes before practice started on Friday. We set the fastest lap by more than a second putting us where we needed to be. We made small changes and came out and qualified 2nd which started us 4th with the 5 truck invert. We know we had the fastest truck and it showed in the first half. I made a mistake off the restart letting #14 Luke Johnson by and I had to make a hard charge to catch back up. We were faster than Luke but couldn't get past him. I made a move the last lap, and we ended up tangled up. We wanted that win but second is great too. I went into Sunday feeling confident we had the fastest truck and pulled the hole-shot off the start.

I drove conservatively to avoid mistakes and maintained my lead. We lost brakes on the last lap making it the longest 1.7 miles I've ever had. I got it across the line, and I am super happy with the outcome of the weekend. We have the best team that supports me like family. We're ready to make our comeback for the points championship.

Andrew Carlson-151

The Carlson Moto Team arrived in Crandon, Wisconsin excited to carry momentum from Chicagoland and put #151 on the Pro Light Podium. I hit the track Saturday afternoon for round 7,

but encountered mechanical issues on the first lap which forced me to pull off the track

(belt failure, engine over-heat=no bueno)

The Carlson Moto crew, led by my Crew Chief Keith Stamper, worked through the night Saturday to swap out the engine and get the 151 Pro Light truck ready for Sunday’s events. I felt good with fresh power under the hood, lined up Sunday afternoon, and as the green flag dropped, I slowly began to weed through the pack from my starting spot deep in the field.  I was able to advance to 5th by the mid-point competition caution flag.

With a bit more confidence, I continued to work my way through the pack. When the checkers flew #151 crossed the line in fourth place, earning our second top five finish of the season. 

 
The high-speed Crandon course was in near perfect condition all weekend as the teams and fans were blessed with sunshine and dry conditions. The slick blue-grooved corners at Crandon are yet another new experience for me competing against a field of Pro Light veterans with hundreds of laps logged at this historic track. This was another excellent experience in my first year in Pro Light in the TORC series.


The TORC Series returns to action in two weeks at The Dirt Track at Charlotte Motor Speedway for the:

 Showdown in Charlotte