JERETT BROOKS TAKES ON RENO AND OVERCAME CHALLENGES FOR BIG WIN

Sparks, NV

Jerett Brooks came to the outskirts of Reno, Nevada for Rounds 5 & 6 of the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series (LOORRS) as the Pro 2 division points leader. Brooks found himself with a fast truck but legitimately struggling to find a balance of speed versus acceleration in the #77 Rigid Industries / Bilstein / General Tire / KMC Wheels Pro 2. There were tremendous challenges for Jerett and his team to work through, but in the end, Jerett was able to gather two Optima Batteries Fast Lap Awards and a win in Round 6. The win was even more special since it was Brook’s 4 month old baby boy Roxen’s first race attended as well as it being Jerett’s Birthday. It indeed was a “cloud 9” moment for the Brooks family.

The Silver State Showdown hosted at Wild West Motorsports Park delivered intense action for a big crowd and a full house. The areas higher elevation and regions climate wreaked havoc for racers and vehicle setup. Wild weather stormed through Sparks and ultimately forced LOORRS to cancel qualifying on Friday. Race Officials reverted to the point’s championship to stack the starting line grid, which put Brooks on the pole for Friday’s Round 5 event. Jerett and his crew had dialed in the truck to carry more top-end speed and were aware that the truck would be a little slow off the start. Come race time; the team revealed that they might have underestimated just how much the elevation would affect the vehicle on the bottom end speed.

Unfortunately for Brooks, there were several race restarts and not too many green flag racing laps. “The dead stop restarts were killing us!” admitted Jerett. “It just made a lot of work cut out for me. I probably got passed by four trucks right off the start, and I ended up finishing 5th. Although we had a super fast truck and took the Optima Batteries Fast Lap Award, it was a real struggle in my truck tonight. We made the necessary adjustments that we believe will help us on the restarts tomorrow.”

Saturday’s Round 6 saw Brooks starting up in the front again, but this time with improved speed off the green flag. Despite six restarts, including the competition caution, Jerett was able to maintain front track position ahead of the Pro 2s. There was still work to catch up to the three (Pro 2 M) “410” trucks at the very front who started with a 35-second lead. Finally, with some full lap racing, Brooks closed the distance and passed two of the 410 trucks with only Rodrigo Ampudia remaining upfront.

In the remaining laps, another restart poised a green \ white \ checker finished which made it somewhat troublesome for the final race of the weekend. Bradley Morris in the #24 truck was pouring the pressure on and was able to make a move on the restart. Morris advanced to 2nd passing the #77 Rigid Industries truck and then overtook Ampudia for the lead. Jerett on the heels of Bradley also passed Ampudia and moved into 2nd position. The trucks crossed the front stretch, and the white flag came out for the final lap. The track had completely dried out and was becoming very slick. Brooks and Morris were pretty evenly matched, but the #77 was equipped with the General Grabber X3 DOT rated Tires and just hooked up and closed the distance on the hill climb back stretch. In the last turn on the final lap, Jerett made the pass for the lead and secured the race win and also captured a second Optima Batteries Fast Lap Award.

“It was a real struggle this whole weekend,” declared Brooks. “We had a very fast truck, but we were not setup for the restarts. My truck was hooked up tonight thanks to those General Tires. We were catching air off the big “ski jump,” and the Bilstein Shocks just kept it under control. The Rigid Truck looked cool all lit up in blue with the Rigid LED Rock Lights. Bradley finally got me there at the end with two laps to go, but we had an awesome groove on the Grabbers that let me find the traction needed to pull him on the hill. I caught him and made the pass for the win!”

Jerett continued, “It was a big one for us, it was my 4-month old son Roxen’s first race, my Birthday and to top it off with a win is pretty cool. I’m pretty winded, racing those 410 trucks are just tricky. It is like two different races are going on, and we have to win them both. They have a major advantage, and there may be some sandbagging going on. Either way, you have to be at 110% the whole time, and off-road short course racing is pretty extreme, to begin with. I am very thankful and would like to thank all our team members and Rigid Industries, Bilstein, General Tire, KMC Wheels, FK Rod Ends, Black Rhino Performance, FiberwerX, Optima Batteries, Kroyer Racing Engines, CBR Performance, Fortin Racing, Caspers Concrete, Howe Performance, Oakley, Maxima Racing Oils & Synergy Electric that support our program!”

Next up on the schedule, Jerett will travel back to the Midwest for the huge 50th Anniversary race at Crandon International Raceway, August 31st-September 1st where Kid Rock will also be performing Friday night! Your not going to want to miss out on the action!

Photography By: Bink Designs