- H3 Alpha first production vehicle to finish the
race
- Team extends series championship points lead in all
production classes
- Team driver Emily Miller becomes first Vegas to
Reno “Iron Woman”
DETROIT – Rod Hall Racing’s Team HUMMER
demonstrated its stock class desert racing dominance as the team swept the
production classes at Friday’s 2008 Best in the Desert “TSCO Vegas to Reno.”
Despite the grueling conditions of the 457-mile race, Team
HUMMER owner Rod Hall and sons Josh Hall and Chad Hall finished the race with
three class victories from their production class H3, H2 SUT and H3 Alpha. Team
driver Emily Miller earned a 3 rd place in the full-size SUV stock class H2 and
completed her quest to become the first woman to drive the entire race.
Team HUMMER competes in the stock class, which features
production-based vehicles with stock frames, stock suspension designs and
production-based engines. Vegas to Reno marks the second consecutive Best in the
Desert race in which Team HUMMER has swept the production classes.
“HUMMER production trucks give us a competitive advantage in
desert racing,” said Rod Hall. “Our ability to win each of the production
classes at the past two races demonstrates the durability of these trucks in
long-distance, grueling conditions.”
Repeating his success from the 2008 SCORE Baja 500, Chad Hall
piloted the #4111 H3 Alpha across the finish line as the first production class
vehicle to finish the race and first in the stock full-size SUV class. Hall and
navigator Thad Stump finished the race in 11:11:00 hours, averaging a speed of
40.8 miles per hour. Hall’s win extends his BITD season points lead in the stock
full-size SUV class.
Team HUMMER #8111 H2 SUT pilot Josh Hall and navigator Sam
Cothrun finished first in the stock full-size truck class, despite a broken
track bar bracket early in the race at mile 34. Hall was able to drive the H2
into the pits where the Team HUMMER crew welded the part back into place. Hall
and the H2 proceeded to finish the race in 11:25:30 hours, recording an average
speed of 39.9 mph. Hall’s win extends his lead in the stock full-size truck
class and marks his 5 th consecutive Vegas to Reno class win.
Rod Hall teamed with co-driver Mike Winkel and navigators Rob
Henderson and Rob Winkel to earn the stock mini-SUV class win behind the wheel
of the #3111 H3. The H3 team finished the race in 13:12:30 hours at an average
speed of 34.5 miles per hour. Hall’s win marks his first victory at Vegas to
Reno behind the wheel of the H3 and places him in first place in the stock
mini-SUV class season points championship.
Emily Miller entered Vegas to Reno behind the wheel of #4110 H2
SUV, in her attempt to become the first woman to drive the entire 457-mile trek.
The desert was quick to test the resolve of Miller and navigator
Jake Povey, as a severe impact with a hard surface near mile 80 ripped off the
passenger side front wheel. The Team HUMMER support crew and Povey were able to
rebuild the front end and get Miller back on course with only eight minutes to
spare before pit closing time. Miller and Povey made up time from that point on,
finishing the race in 16:40:30 hours, at an average speed of 27.3 mph.
“Driving the entire race much more arduous than it appears,”
said Miller. “Its grueling enough when things are going well, but when things go
wrong, it becomes even more difficult to stay focused. I could not have finished
this race without the Team HUMMER support crew.”
Team HUMMER’s next race is the SCORE International Terrible’s
Primm 300, September 5-6, 2008.
About HUMMER
HUMMER is a division of General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), the
world’s largest vehicle manufacturer, which employs about 321,000 people
globally. HUMMER is a premium off-road vehicle manufacturer with sales in 37
countries and a product line-up that consists of the H2, H2 SUT, H3, H3x,
award-winning H3 Alpha and all-new H3T. Information on HUMMER products is
available at www.hummer.com.
About Team HUMMER
Team HUMMER was founded by legendary off-road racer Rod Hall in
1993. Since then, Rod and his sons Josh and Chad have compiled 13 class wins at
the SCORE Baja 1000; countless podium finishes in the Best in the Desert (BitD)
Racing Association series; two SCORE class championships; and five BitD class
championships. Team HUMMER competes with the H3, H2 SUT and H3 Alpha in the
stock class, which features production-based vehicles with stock frames, stock
suspension designs and production-based engines. For more information about Team
HUMMER, visit www.rodhallracing
