Never Give Up

Anaheim, Calif. ~ Confidence is a wonderful thing. Just ask Team AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda rider Billy Laninovich. After missing all of the 2004 season because of a knee injury, he is off to a torrid start in the AMA Supercross Series. After winning his first 125cc race two weeks ago in San Francisco, Laninovich found his second straight podium in Anaheim, Calif. last weekend.

Laninovich started the final strong, narrowly missing the holeshot by a matter of inches to Danny Smith. After the initial dust settled, Laninovich settled into second place. He battled race leader Ivan Tedesco for the lead, but ultimately crossed the finish line in second.

"You definitely get a lot more confidence," Laninovich said about his recent success. "But out there I tightened up a little bit and Ivan started pulling away. I guess he made a little mistake and I caught up to him, but I'm glad to get up here again."

The strong back-to-back weekends moved Laninovich up to fifth place in the 125 West Division. His next race will be in San Diego on February 19. He will race some 250cc events in March while the AMA is on its East Coast swing.

Team AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda moves away from the West Coast this weekend. The 125 Eastern Region begins Saturday in Indianapolis at the RCA Dome. Team AMSOIL riders Josh Grant and Joaquim Rodrigues will take part in their first supercross of the season. Laninovich and teammate Tommy Hahn are only running the Western Region and will not be joining their teamates.

In 250cc notes, Team AMSOIL/Chaparral/Honda riders Mike LaRocco and Kevin Windham had mixed results at Anaheim. While LaRocco finished sixth and moved into third overall in the AMA Supercross standings, Windham had a tough spill during the 250 feature. The crash happened on the second lap and Windham had to settle for 20th. It was the second week in a row that K-Dub crashed in the final. He was brought to a local hospital, but was treated and released. His last place finish moves him into fourth in the overall standings, one point behind LaRocco.

The Super Team

Superior, Wis. ~ AMSOIL racing is making a major move in the world off-road racing. This past winter, AMSOIL created a "Super Team" in the C.O.R.R. series by becoming title sponsors for independent drivers Dan "The Flying Dutchman" Vanden Heuvel, Mike Oberg and Steve McCrossan. All three teams have worked with AMSOIL in the past and will compete in different classes within the C.O.R.R. series.

"We are extremely excited and proud to represent AMSOIL at this very professional level," said McCrossan. "We have been using AMSOIL products in our racing family in off-road trucks, motocross and snowcross for over 20 years. It is great to be able to represent a product that we believe in so strongly. There is no doubt AMSOIL synthetic lubricants are the best lubricants in the world."

Currently, the "Super Team" is wrapping up the building process on their trucks and will begin testing in early March. The teams will also unveil a unified AMSOIL look for the 2005 season. Racing begins May 21, 2005 at the I-96 Speedway in Lake Odessa, Mich.

Leaping To Lambeau

Aurora, Minn. ~ After a strong showing at ESPN's Winter X games in Aspen, Colo. last week, Team AMSOIL/Scheuring Speed Sports will be looking to get back in the points race this weekend in Green Bay, Wis.

Team AMSOIL pilots D.J. Eckstrom and Carl Schubitzke were the only two Polaris riders to qualify for the Winter X Games finals. A crash in turn one, however, put Schubitzke's sled over the first berm, and Eckstrom couldn't make up enough ground on the leaders after getting pinched off during the start of the six-lap final.

Now, the black AMSOIL sleds will be leaping over Lambeau Field in Green Bay. It's the second year that the WSA has held an event at the Packers home field. There will be one major difference this year, however, as the races are scheduled for inside the stadium. Last year, a lack of snow and a mid-March date forced the national event to be held on a man-made track in the stadium's parking lot.

The event is being sponsored by Team AMSOIL/Scheuring Speed Sports associate sponsor U.S. Air Force. Racing begins Saturday morning, with the Pro Stock and Pro Open finals coming on Sunday.

Hometown Heroes

Freeport, Minn. ~ Most weekends, competitive racers have to deal with stiff hotel beds, greasy food from a local diner and early morning wake-up calls. They usually long for the comforts of home and when they get the chance, they know they better make the most of it. That's something that AMSOIL/ Wanderscheid Racing took full advantage this past weekend.

Racing just 10 minutes from their Sauk Rapids, Minn. home, oval ice racers P.J. Wanderscheid and Shaun Beilke enjoyed the soothing effects of being the hometown favorites.

"It was special racing in front of the hometown crowd," said Wanderscheid. "Everyone comes out and lends their cheers and support."

On Saturday, temperatures hit 50 degrees on Uhlenkolts Lake near Freeport, Minn., turning the iced-over lake into a watery mess. In the Pro 600 Open final, Wanderscheid grabbed the holeshot and led through the first two corners before losing ground on the backstretch to eventual winner Jeff Ludwig. The sled ran well the rest of the race with Wanderscheid taking second.

An overnight freeze help dropped Sunday's temperatures into the teens. The lake returned to its wintery state and Wanderscheid returned to the top of the field in the Pro Champ 440 class. After not finishing the first heat race, he came back with heat race wins, securing a spot in the final. He then dominated the main event and won by more than 10 sled lengths.

"The Freeport track was tricky this year and I know a lot of work went into it with the warm temps," said Wanderscheid. "The track crew put a lot of late hours redoing things for this weekend's race. I wanted to thank my crew again for all of their hard work. My brother Brian said, 'It seems like when things really start to become a real challenge to keep the sled on the track is when everyone pulls together and gets it done.' This victory is always special for me in front of the hometown crowds."

Wanderscheid's teammate also continues to improve as the season moves on. Beilke ran out in front all day Saturday in his heat races. In the Semi-Pro Champ 440 final, he ran ahead of the pack and took home the checkered flag. On Sunday, he entered the Pro Champ 440 final and made sure that AMSOIL was represented twice on the podium with his third place finish.

Team AMSOIL/Wanderscheid racing will have to head away from home again this weekend. The team will be in Antigo, Wis. for round six of the U.S.S.A. Pro Star Series.

Good News From The General

Houston, Texas ~ AMSOIL is getting a good return on its investment from Autumn Woods Racing out of Illinois. The team is the managing body for the General Lee, a pro stadium truck racing team driven by Jeff Dedick. The team is running in the U.S.H.R.A. series and has found a podium in each of the first five events.

After winning in front of 70,000 people in Indianapolis the week before, Dedick was looking to move up in the overall points standings in the heart of Texas last weekend. He would dominate in the qualifying heats and won his semi-final round easily. In the final he had a chance to knock off the series leader, Rory Campbell. The General Lee would come up just short in the main event, taking home second place and picking up some much needed points in the overall points race.

Autumn Woods Racing is leaving the South to deal with the snow in the Northeast. The next event will be held in Worcester, Mass. on February 18-20.

The Brothers Zollinger

Montpelier, Ida. ~ The lack of snow meant cancellations to the start of the hill climb season in the western United States. But the colder weather came and the snow fell. That also meant the races were once again on for the Zollinger Brothers of Utah. The Zollingers, or "ZBROZ" Racing, are legends in the sport of hill climb and this year they are proving to be the riders to beat in the Rocky Mountain Snowmobile Hillclimb Association.

ZBROZ headed to Montpelier, Idaho for round two at the Bear Lake Hill Climb. The second annual event featured 690 racers. Among the Friday night qualifiers were Ryan, Anthony and Nate Zollinger in the Modified 700 class. Anthony also qualified in Mod 800 and Ryan in the Open Mod.

Saturday delivered great conditions for riding and ZBROZ Racing took advantage. In the Mod 700 final two AMSOIL sponsored drivers would make the podium. Ryan grabbed the checkered flag and was followed by brother Anthony. The second place finish keeps Anthony on top of the overall standings with 263 points. Nathan Zollinger finished the race in fourth and keeps his second place overall standing with 237. Ryan is fourth overall.

Another podium was secured by Ryan in the Open Mod class. His third place finish keeps him in second in the overall standings. In the Mod 800 class, Anthony finished fifth.

ZBROZ Racing is headed to Afton, Wyom. in two weeks for the Afton Hill Climb on February 18-20.

Pictures Of The Week

Hill City, Minn. ~ The Sundbom brothers of Duluth are doing more than just copying the Team AMSOIL sleds. They were captured flying around the Park X track in Hill City, Minn. last weekend just like the pros.