BRP’s Can-Am Commander SxS, driven by Francisco Lopez and co-pilot Claudio Troncoso, won the Morocco Rally in the UTV category after covering 2,000 kilometres of challenging African terrains. The duo made international headlines last week due to their impressive finish in the Morocco Rally, becoming the only SxS competitor to complete the six gruelling stages of the 2011 edition, in addition to placing 21st within the car category.

Lopez and his Can-Am Nextel Team attributed their victory to the pilots’ experience, the Can-Am Commander SxS’s outstanding performance, and the unwavering support of Jaton Racing, a Spanish company that prepared the side-by-side vehicle for the race, and provided mechanical assistance through its duration.

“Our starting objective for the race was clear: test the Can-Am Commander SxS’s capacity in difficult terrains to ensure a solid performance in the 2012 Dakar. We weren’t aspiring to win,” Lopez commented after the race. “By the last day, we had a new objective: become the first SxS vehicle in the history of the UTV class to finish the Morocco Rally.”

The Can-Am Nextel Team, who drew substantial media attention during its first appearance in the 2011 Dakar, set their sights on the Moroccan desert in early 2011. The purpose was to learn from BRP’s Can-Am Commander SxS’s performance in a rally that would allow them to adapt the unit and ensure a victorious 2012 Dakar appearance in the UTV category.

“BRP’s Can-Am Commander SxS reflects our DNA in its purest tradition,” said Chris Dawson, vice-president and general manager, International division. “This very unique side-by-side has been designed to bring a new level of power, cutting-edge design and meaningful innovations. To finish first in its category in its first test – the only SxS to complete the race – certainly delivers on our promise.”

The Can-Am Nextel Team will take the wheel of a 2011 Can-Am Commander SxS in a quest to secure its second international rally victory in the UTV segment at the 34th edition of the Dakar Rally.

Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP), a privately held company, is a world leader in the design, development, manufacturing, distribution and marketing of motorised recreational vehicles. Its portfolio of brands and products includes: Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobiles, Sea Doo watercraft and boats, Evinrude and Johnson outboard engines, Can-Am all terrain and side-by-side vehicles and roadsters, as well as Rotax engines. BRP products are distributed in more than 100 countries.

www.brp.com

Discuss this race and all things Can-Am Commander over at CommanderForums.org!

ATR Caleb Moore Polaris RZR Backflip Attempt

Caleb Moore along with All Terrain Research team will be attempting the first ever UTV back-flip in a Polaris RZR. The backflip attempt is scheduled for November 2nd at the Lucas Oil Off-Road Xperience set for week of SEMA at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Caleb Moore had approached ATR with the concept of how to backflip a Polaris RZR and the team immediately got to work designing the ramp and custom UTV based on Caleb’s concept.

“We had always thought that a backflip could be done with a UTV, when Caleb came to us with his idea we jumped on board right away and started coming up with design ideas,” said ATR’s owner Jeremy Bratcher.

Over the course of several months Caleb Moore and All Terrain Research collaborated to fabricate a monstrous freestyle ramp and one of the wildest UTVs ever designed. The stage is set for this stunt to be performed in front of thousands of people at the Lucas Oil Off-Road Xperience in Las Vegas, NV November 2nd. It is time to put this Polaris RZR 30 ft in the air and upside down with the ATR Polaris RZR Backflip Project performed by Caleb Moore!

Click here to view the embedded video.

For more information, photos, and video about the Polaris RZR Backflip Project visit RZRForums.net

Well a lot of time, effort and resources were spent over the last couple of months, all of which culminated on June 26th, 2011.

I headed for Colorado Springs with a set of Hoosier tires, my race gear and some tool boxes. The newly finished RZR-X drove through the night from Lake Havasu City and met me just in time for tech inspection on Tuesday June 21st. This was the first time I had seen the RZR-X completed with it’s new cage, doors and top and boy did it look good!

MCX-USA, Makin’ Trax Suspension and myself spent the next three test days on the mountain doing our best to dial everything in. Each day we seemed to make big improvements in the tire set up, tuning and suspension. We even spent the afternoons out at PPIR testing different CVT belt sizes and addressing the cooling system. Even though we never had an overheat issue on any of the practice days or even when hot-lapping the RZR-X for 15 minutes straight, we still wanted to try and cover all of our bases. We cut out all the excess plastic in front of the radiator, hard wired the fan, added an electric fan to the oil cooler and hard wired it as well. Bases covered, ready for race day or at least we thought.

After reviewing our practice times and being just seconds off some of the fastest Super Stock cars, we couldn’t wait for race day and we were excited about our chances!

Race day rolls around and while there was no moisture in sight, it was super windy and hot. It wasn’t just warm it was down right hot! It was creeping up to triple digits at the bottom of the mountain and just about as warm at the start line. I was hoping to run somewhere before noon, but with all the wrecks and stoppages I didn’t get to go off until mid-afternoon.

Between the heat and the adrenaline I was ready to go! I finally got the green flag and I was off to the races. I smoked the bottom section and managed to shave off 14 seconds off my best practice time. While there was some good blue-groove in sections the dirt was still super loose! It was a handful to keep the RZR-X on the road and moving fast in a straight line. There was even one hairpin that I pushed straight through! Luckily there was room for error and I managed to salvage the turn without loosing too much time. I made it through the dirt section successfully and proceeded to run a solid line through the W’s.

Everything seemed to be going really well and there were no signs of slowing down. Well, that was just before the last turn approaching Devil’s Playground. Just as I come out of the turn the engine flutters and falls on it’s face. I pumped the gas, as if that was going to help and suddenly it picked back up for a few hundred yards. I thought maybe it was just a glitch until it finally stalled down to a complete stop. I couldn’t believe it. I just sat there in shock for several minutes trying to start it with no avail. I was just sick! Things were going so well and I was so close to the finish line. I had my fastest section ahead of me and I could taste the 11′s!

I couldn’t stand the thought of being towed down the mountain so after about an hour I decided to try and start it up. And wallah! It fired right back up like nothing had happened. I was dumbfounded.

I got back down to the bottom and after talking it over with everyone we found some melted split loom on top of the motor. This is when we realized that the motor got hot enough to vaporize the fuel lines and lock the motor up. Since it was uncommonly hot on the mountain and we never were able to make a full run up the mountain until race day, we didn’t show any signs of this beforehand. So unfortunately I had to learn this lesson the hard way.

Even with everything that happened we still made a huge impression on the mountain! Everyday the RZR-X was getting complements and drawing crowds. Most of the people on the practice days were astonished with my practice times and the race officials even moved me from the motorcycles/quad group up to the cars! Fan Fest was also a huge hit and if the RZR-X had one picture taken, it probably had a thousand.

Since I did make it so far up the mountain it gave me a good idea what my time would have been. So from the start line to basically where the RZR vapor locked was 8:45! My practice time from that very section to the finish line was a 3:05 and that was from a standing stop. I honestly believe with those two numbers that I would have run an 11:50 or better!

All and all I knew that we did everything we could and we honestly didn’t leave anything on the table. I guess that’s why they call it racing, otherwise it would probably just be known as winning. I’m also lucky that I didn’t have a diver error or wreck. After seeing all the busted up vehicles and the flight-for-life helicopter carry people out, I realized I had a lot to be grateful for!

Well that’s enough talk for now! Watch the embedded video below or I recommend visiting YouTube through the link so you can watch the run in a larger window and in 1080p!

Click here to view the embedded video.

As if last years PPIHC wasn’t enough, Doug Siddens a.k.a 4Nines is back to make yet another big splash!

This year, with a lot of help from MCX-USA Doug’s 2009 Polaris RZR-S has been chopped, stretched, slammed and stuffed with a 998cc Yamaha Apex motor. All of that AND it’s being force-fed by an MCX intercooled turbo system.

More info on this build can be found here: http://www.rzrforums.net/pits/51297-2011-ppihc-build.html

The video you’re about to see is what 260 all-wheel drive horsepower looks like when shoehorned into a lightweight side by side. The feeling? Well, nothing short of insane. When the boost hits it’s almost like you’re ripping a hole through reality! And the best part, that was just the break-in. Race day plans are to run closer to, if not more than 300 horsepower and crank up the top end speed to 100 mph!

Last years build resulted in 100 all-wheel drive horsepower and laid down a time of 14:03. Very respectable since the top speed last year was at best 75 mph. Needless to say, this year with about 3x the horsepower and more than 20 mph faster top speed, the RZR-X should lay down and impressive time. One that will hopefully put this UTV with fast company!

June 26th, 2011 is race day, so save the date and check back here for more news and info.

Without further adieu, I bring to you the Pikes Peak RZR-X!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Congrats to Keenan Rogerson of Madhouse Motorsports on winning the Valley Off Road Racing Association (VORRA) “UTV 1000 Class” and the overall this past weekend, at Prairie City OHV Park, in Folsom, Calif. The team won all three motos in their RANGER RZR XP 900!

Photo Source: Photo by Jon Crowley, www.UTVGuide.net

The Polaris RANGER RZR models hit the bogs at Highlifter’s Mud Nationals and came away victorious in both the Mud Bog and Mudda Cross RUV classes.

Team SuperATV.com took the Mud Bog RUV class with their RANGER RZR 800 with Team Highlifter Polaris Racing’s Brian Haughton taking third in a RANGER RZR XP 900. The Mud Bog RUV class is a race of durability that takes the racers through 150 ft of very thick mud.

The Mudda Cross RUV race consisted of two laps around a 150-feet oval filled of mud and water which tested durability, power and handling. Team Highlifter Polaris Racing’s Haughton put his RANGER RZR XP 900 through its paces taking top honors.

PHOTO CREDIT: Credit Jon Crowley, www.UTVGuide.net

I was chatting with an old wheeling buddy recently about racing UTVs out west, and he mentioned that ECORS: http://www.ecors.com was starting a UTV class and it was close to home, so I decided I’d go check it out. Today was the first race of the season located at “The Flats” in Marion, NC, and we were excited to see how many UTVs would show up and race the same courses that the Class A & B trucks run. Needless to say, we didn’t know what to expect of the turnout, let alone the course. We arrived a little before 8am, got through the check-in gate, grabbed our sexy yellow media vests, and parked the truck. We cruised over to the driver’s meeting to see some old friends and catch up with Brit from Octane Media in his new RZR XP. Having only spent about 5 minutes of time in the new RZR XP, I wanted to see how it would fair against two highly modified RZR S’s that were there too. But, before the race even began, I learned from Brit that while out pre-running the course the day before, he smacked a tree and broke his passenger side front a-arm. So, in to town yesterday afternoon him and his friends went to see if they could do some quick fab work to make it drivable. And, they did, but unfortunately after only a lap and a half, the only material they could put their hands on in town wasn’t strong enough to hold up to the task. Here’s a short video of all the action between the brand new RZR XP 900 and the two modified RZRs:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here’s a video of Brit’s short-lived race out front the entire time, I might add:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Once Brit was out, we continued filming Tim Wyatt and Jim in their RZR’s. Unfortunately for Tim, he lost 4wd and popped a tire about 9-10 laps through the race, leaving only Jim left to race the 2 hour time limit. Jim successfully finished with no damage, but the same can’t be said for Brit and Tim. After getting back down the hill, I went over to Tim’s trailer and asked him if he had a bent tie rod or something broke in his front end, and he didn’t think so. But, after looking at it further, he bent the front rear portion of the lower a-arm mount on the frame up and in, which is why you’ll notice in a couple of the pictures his tires are pointing in way too much. Needless to say, he’ll have a little bit of work cut out for him before the next Rally Raid race in Durhamtown, but we expect to see him there.

It’s also important to note that thanks to Brit Mansell from Octane Media, Dragon Fire Racing is sponsoring this year’s ECORS series with the following contingency program:

1st Place – $100 Gift Certificate
2nd Place – $50 Gift Certificate
3rd Place – $50 Gift Certificate for Hard Luck Award ($200 minimum purchase)

These awards will continue all season, so let’s get some folks out and race!

Overall, the racing was a blast to watch, and I hope the turnout continues to increase over time. Jim ending up taking the win about 5 minutes under the 2-hour cutoff time completing 15 laps in the same amount of time some of the trucks only completed 10 laps. Please help spread the word, and we’ll see you on April 30th in Auburn, AL at The Great American Park.

Written by Chris from UTVReport.com

The first GNCC Side-by-Side race of the year saw reigning Side-by-Side champ, William Yokley, take the checkered flag in the “Open Modified” class with his new Polaris National Guard RANGER RZR XP 900. Polaris Racing’s Daryl Rath finished third also aboard a RANGER RZR XP 900.

“What a great way to start the 2011 GNCC Side-by-Side season,” said Donna Beadle, Polaris Racing Team Manager. “The teams have worked very hard prepping the new car for its inaugural GNCC race and their work has definitely paid off.”

Yokley currently holds the points lead in both the GNCC and WORCS series with his RANGER RZR XP 900 and will be back in action this weekend, at the WORCS race, in Arizona. Rath will race his Sportsman XP 850, at the Steele Creek GNCC race, March 26. He currently sits in third place in the 4×4 Open Class.

In other racing news, a RANGER RZR 4 800 piloted by Bill Morris of Bakersfield, California won the SCORE “San Felipe 250” and was the only car to finish out of the four starters. Morris had the lone RANGER RZR in the brutal race.

Well another successful TeryxForums.net Presidents Day Dune Ride is in the books! This year had an even better turnout than the last, more prizes and awesome t-shirts for all those that attended!

A big thanks to all those who participated and to the following people who helped make it happen:

• Jim – bummer about your ride, but you always have a smile on your face and keep everyone in great spirits. Your rig won’t be down long. You’re the wizard behind these events! Thanks!
• Chad – It takes a lot of work to get those raffle prizes, you are the man (or monkey…OMFG!!!)
• Schannon – The shirts were awesome and the carne is the best! Always good seeing you…bring your rig up to Phx and I’ll take you riding.
• The ride leaders – My first driving trip to Glamis and you gave me both a great time sprinkled with some pucker moments!
• Everyone who shows up (in both body and spirit), without the support of the members, we couldn’t put these events together.

Click here to view the embedded video.

For more pictures, info and videos from the event, please visit the following URL: http://www.teryxforums.net/rides-events/12281-2011-dune-ride-photos-post-up-your-photos.html

Video and images coming into today from the Arctic Cat media event that took place yesterday. While most of us thought they were just releasing their new 2010 snowmobiles, Arctic Cat decided to slide under the rader a possible all new UTV/SXS!

Here’s what we know so far:

“Uses the 1000 motor as the current prowler 1000, but in an HO version. It’s an all tube chassis just like a sand rail. Power steering. In the words of the arctic cat guy who built it ‘by far, the most travel in the industry’. It is so bad azz, you have see it to believe it. Pretty much a two seat, long travel short sand car. Oh, and the is price under $15,000.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

Come on over to ProwlerForums.net or ArcticChat.com to discuss this exciting news!