OFF-ROAD WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS : Whelchel Seeks Record-Setting Victories
When it comes to racing on the desert terrain, off-road driver Jerry Whelchel of Mission Viejo has a simple slogan: “I’ll race whenever, wherever or whatever it takes to win. This is how I make my living and I want to win them all.”
Whelchel, 29, will have an opportunity to win more races than any driver in the 17-year history of the SCORE Off-Road World Championships today when he competes on a man-made, 1.1-mile course at the Phoenix International Raceway.
Whelchel qualified for four events--unlimited single-seat dune buggies, limited 1650cc single-seat dune buggies, 1600cc Baja Bug and stock four-wheel drive trucks--on Saturday before a crowd of 2,000.
Roger Mears of Bakersfield and Frank Arciero of Laguna Niguel have each won three events. Mears accomplished the feat twice, in 1978 and 1982, and has won more world titles (20) than any other driver. Arciero won three events in 1987.
However, both have elected to skip the championships.
Thus, Whelchel’s top competition figures to be Robby Gordon, 21, of Orange, who became the top qualifier in the two-wheel drive truck and 1650cc single-seat dune buggy classes with his first-place finishes Saturday.
Gordon later announced that he would enter his 1650cc buggy in the unlimited class, setting up a showdown with Whelchel for honors as the fastest driver on the course, which is half pavement and half dirt. Whelchel seemingly never left the track Saturday, jumping out of one vehicle for Lloyd Sukut’s Sage Council Racing team and into another for an eight-lap race. The only events he failed to enter were the motorcycle and All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) classes.
When asked why he wasn’t riding a motorcycle, Whelchel said, “The last time I rode a bike competitively, I broke my arm, so I gave up riding bikes.
“I’ll tell you, I loved every second I was out there today. I got a flat tire in my first qualifying race (unlimited single-seater), or I would have been the top qualifier. I kept driving, but finally burned a hole in my piston and had to pull out.
“The only big transition going from one vehicle to another is getting into the truck. It’s an automatic, so there’s no shifting. You’re driving with half the suspension compared to the buggies, so you have to be a lot more careful in the turns or you’ll flip.”
Gordon, a two-time winner in 1988 who has a contract with Ford, also competes in the IMSA GTO series in a Lincoln-Mercury Cougar. He took time off from his IMSA GTO schedule to renew his racing rivalry with Walker Evans, 51, of Riverside in the two-wheel drive pickup class Saturday.
“The first time I drive a (Toyota) truck at Anaheim Stadium, I won three races that night, and I’d like to do that again for Ford here in Phoenix,” Gordon said. “I think I’ve improved my racing skills 20% over the past six months.
“Since I’ve started on a training program, I notice I haven’t been tired at the end of a race. You’ve got about two minutes between races here and it gets a little hectic, but I wouldn’t be driving in three races if it wasn’t fun.”