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Four Qualify for 2010 King of the Hammers at BITD Vegas To Reno the Long Way Race

JOHNSON VALLEY, CA, AUGUST 23, 2009: Four racers join the 2010 Griffin King of the Hammers qualifying list after successfully starting Day 3 of the Best In The Desert (BITD) Vegas to Reno the Long Way race. An epic race that started on August 20 in Beatty, NV and ended 996 miles later on August 22 in Dayton, NV. The qualifying names added to the list are: Kevin Sacalas, Brandon Watson, Ben Napier, and Dean Bulloch.

Vegas to Reno the Long Way is the longest off-road point-to-point race in the United States. Hammerking Productions attached this event to its widely popular Griffin King of the Hammers series of regional qualifiers after BITD added a new class of vehicles to the rule book known as Ultra4.  “Now that the race is over, we agree that this was a perfect match to test man and machine in order to qualify to race in the King of the Hammers,” says Jeff Knoll of Hammerking Productions.

Eleven Ultra4 rigs crossed the starting line on Day 1.  The attrition rate was high, only two cars finished Day 1: Jeff Knoll and Kevin Sacalas. With teamwork and dedication, all eleven cars once again showed up the starting line on Day 2.  There was more heartbreak for seven of the eleven teams, with only four crossing the finish line: Ben Napier, Brandon Watson, Dean Bulloch, and Kevin Sacalas.  That qualified five drivers to start Day 3: Knoll, Sacalas, Napier, Watson, and Bulloch.  Of those five cars, four finished the race at mile marker 996: 1. Sacalas, 2. Watson, 3. Napier, 4. Bulloch. Only one racer completed all three days: Kevin Sacalas.

“I was proud to be able to race with this quality group of racers.  They put on an amazing show with unbelievable commitment to finishing,” said Hammerking Productions and racer Dave Cole.  After wrapping up a long week, Casey Folks from BITD said, “from our side it was fantastic, we are very proud to have the Ultra4’s with us.”

The final pre-qualifier for 2010 King of the Hammers will be December 12-13 at the Pima Motorsports Park in Tucson, AZ. Competitors will be given a chance to compete at the WERock “Put-Up or Shut-Up Shootout” which has a reputation for being a grueling event even for the most talented rock crawlers.

Hammerking Productions, Inc. created the “King of the Hammers” off-road race in 2007 (www.kingofthehammers.com) and released its first full-length film in 2008. The 2009 running of the King of the Hammers was featured on Spike TV and in the film “Second Crusade.” In 2009, Hammerking expanded race action to include three additional regional qualifiers for the 2010 race. Over 15,000 drivers and fans from around the globe will descend on the desert of Johnson Valley for over a week of off-road related activities in 2010.

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