2006
W.E. ROCK :: Western U.S. Nationals :: Goldendale, WA
Goldendale, Washington has been the number one venue for the Western U.S. Nationals Pacific Northwest event.
With 5 years worth of events, the town has seen the evolution of the sport first hand, and the W.E.ROCK series
kicked into high gear as this year would be the last year that the national series would stop in this particular
northwest town. With two new arena's being built in Washington, Goldendale will act as one of three stops in the
Pacific Northwest Regional Series that W.E.ROCK plans to launch in 2008. This fact however, didn't detour
fans and teams from celebrating 5 great years with the town.
Cody Waggoner and Jim Waggoner during The Shootout on their way to 1st place ::: Photo Cedit: Josh England
The event saw many crazy things from Shannon and Nick Campbell's run at first place on day one to their
ultimate demise as they blew their engine on the to their courses on day two. As well as World Champion
Dave Cole and new additioned spotter "Bender" take first after day one and the drop of the team on day two
after breaking a rear locker. It would also show some top teams like Tracy Jordan or Jason Paule taking 40's
on courses due to roll-overs.
Brian Errea, Winner of the Pro Modified Class, watching closely as the cone slides by ::: Photo Cedit: Josh England
The Unlimited class would show consistancy pays off as Father/Son team of Cody and Jim Waggoner would show
that family ties and a winning attitude would bring home the 1st. The duo's win and the way the rest of the
event played out makes for some interesting stories based on Series points. Second was Jason Scherer and
King Pirate Lance Clifford. Known as Team Rage 4th, Scherer and Clifford would push hard during the Shootout
only to come up ten fett short of the finish line due to a slipped axle (the axle yoke slipped down the two
piece shaft, making the driver front not rotate under power). Third was Bruce Zeller and George Poston, who
ran a clean Shootout, but would come up short by a few seconds as well. With Team Rage 4th only one point ahead
of Zeller and Poston going into the shootout, Mad Rock Racing took every bonus line possible to wipe Rage 4th
out.
The Pro Modified Class Shootout saw 4 position changes as Brad and Roger Lovell bumping up from 6th to
3rd off one fantastic run. 2nd place Terry Dagen had a strong showing at the last Western U.S. Nationals
in Globe, AZ and pulled the ante up by his second place finish in Goldendale. Meanwhile, Joachim Schweisow
and Brian Errea would take first in thier Twisted Customs Jeep YJ. Having knocked on the Series
Championship door two years ago, they are making a good push after the Lovell's current first place. The
Pro Modified had a record showing of 22 teams registered at the event. The classes growth in less than 6
months has shown the strength that the sport has through vehicle association. Look for this class growing
even more and gaining interest from more out of industry sponsors than RedBull and Monster.
With the third recorded Win in the Modified Stock class, Troy Bailey and Travis Heslington are close to
pulling the same feat that has only been done once in W.E.ROCK History (West and Ritchie), wipe out every
event with a win. The team currently has 3 of the 4 events under their belt with the 4th (Donner) being
right around the corner. The only team this year that is projected to push the duo off podium is Buzzy
Bronsema and Shon Wilson. Dan Patterson and Bob Roggy have been able to win in the past, with several
National Championship wins, but the series is out of reach for the Maxxis Sponsored Team.
Formula Toy has never held an event in the Pacific Northwest, yet this event they had 6 F-toys which made
for a good battle. Hobie Smith would push the vehicle to the limits and come out victorious with his Spotter
Mustard Dog. The team has been a crowd favorite since the first event of the season when Smith and Dog made
some recent announcements that would shake the F-toy World. Since then, their dominance on the rocks would
only grow stronger over the other teams.
So what does this set for the series? Check the bottom stats:
1. The top five teams in the Unlimited Class are no more than 3 points away from each other.
2. Jason Paule currently sits in 1st with 294 points, Bruce Zeller with 293, Tracy Jordan and Cody Waggoner
tie with 292, and Jason Scherer come in with 291. Other notable Monster Sponsored Shannon Campbell sits in
6th with 287 points.
3. Our History shows that the Second Place at the first event of the Pro Modified Class would go on to
win the title, this has kept true as the Lovell Brothers are currently sitting in first in the series.
4. Rookie Tim Florian has made a strong showing and currently sits tied for second place with Brian Errea only
4 points back from 1st.
5. The Energy Drink Battle in the Pro Mod Class is currently being won by RedBull's 4th place Becca
Webster, but don't make bets yet as Monster's Terry Dagen is only one point back. With Terry's recent
push, look for this to be an interesting battle.
It all comes down to the last event, who will take the series? Will Paule win the championships for his
spotter Travis Wadeson who was hospitalized after an accident outside from racing? Can Paule hold off
the most elite in the final seconds of the championship? Will Rookie Tim Florian suprise the world by
winning the Pro Mod Champioship? Florian could beat the builders and former racers of his own car,
which he is also tied for second place currently, the turnout could be crazy. Will the constant rivalry
between Jordan and Scherer be solved at Donner? Last year was nothing short of interesting with the two
heavy hitters and they go into the event only one series point away from each other. And the new rivalry
between California Kid Cody Waggoner and Bruce Zeller (BZ) is one that looks to be long lasting and fierce.
Should be interesting on how the whole show hits at Donner on June 30th and July 1st.
Related Links:
Event Write-up |
Itinerary : Directions : Weather |
Western U.S. Series Points Race |
Pirate4x4.com Coverage |
Scores
|
|
