Menzies #07 Trophy Truck Earns TOP FIVE in Unlimited Truck Debut at MINT 400
Debuting the gorgeous fire engine red Geiser-built Trophy Truck for the fans in their hometown was something special this past weekend, as the Menzies Motorsports ‘Big Red Machine” rolled out the new Unlimited Production Trophy Truck for the historic SNORE MINT 400.
It was in 1968 that the Mint Hotel public relations director, Norm Johnson, created the first ever Del Web MINT 400 Desert Rally. Some 42 years later, the historic race has reached new heights as the SNORE Series has put new life into a race that has seen the likes of Indianapolis 500 Champions, Bobby and Al Unser, not to mention Hollywood adventure seekers James Garner and Lee Majors who both raced for the checkers.
This year the marquee stars were B.J. Baldwin, Larry Roeseler, Cameron Steele, Roger Norman and Bryce Menzies, all driving state-of-the-art Trophy Trucks hoping to claim the top spot in the most difficult race of the year held in the United States.
The 2010 Geiser-built Menzies Motorsports Trophy Truck driven by Bryce Menzies charged off the starting line in search of clean air but that was hard to find. Nearly 30 Trophy Trucks, along with 23 Unlimited Class 1 cars, plowed through the massive silt holes that the Southern Nevada desert is well known for. The #07 raced hard towards the front of the pack as the competition began to thin, Bryce Menzies caught an unlucky break when he tangled up with a big rock that flattened a tire.
Co-driver, Pete Mortenson commented, Its tough to see everything out there. That first lap was brutal. We had the one flat, but other than that, the truck ran solid all day long. Bryce really did a good job behind the wheel of this new Geiser truck. I felt comfortable with the pace we were running, we just couldnt catch Roeseler/Norman once they got out in front. Well be back very soon.
The Menzies Motorsports Main Pit was buzzing all day long as calculators and timing gurus checked and rechecked the lap times each time the bright red machine passed through. We had a really good day today, said Menzies Motorsports kingpin, Steve Menzies.
All of our crew and chase teams performed flawlessly. Bryce was running consistent lap times right around 2 hours and 14 minutes for three of the four laps. We couldnt catch the leaders early due to the heavy dust and the fact that the race course was littered with broken race cars and trucks at every corner. It was tough to get around out there. Im really proud of our entire team, as well as my son Bryce. These guys did a great job today, explained the smiling team owner.
Battling not only world-class talent in the other Trophy Trucks, but also facing some of the most harsh conditions in the Nevada desert, Bryce Menzies iron-manned the 412-mile race with his co-driver, Pete Mortenson.
Climbing from the truck and out of his MasterCraft Safety Trophy Truck office chair Bryce grinned and said, It was tough out there all day long. Lots of dust and more rocks than you could ever imagine. We had a good race, we just never had the chance to chase down the leaders. Im not happy with 4th place, but its our first race in this truck and were already planning our next race.
The #07 Menzies Motorsports Trophy Truck took the checkered flag of the 2010 SNORE MINT 400 after racing for a solid 9 hours, 0 minutes and 33 seconds officially earning the fourth position among the Trophy Trucks. Bryce Menzies maintained a solid pace all day long over each 103-mile lap.
Lap 1 02:14:35.859
Lap 2 02:17:25.469
Lap 3 02:14:16.140
Lap 4 02:14:15.782
Menzies Motorsports will next race their #07 Trophy Truck at the historic SCORE Baja 500 on June 4-6, 2010 in Ensenada, Baja California.
Menzies Motorsports desert racing program is supported by the best companies in the off road racing industry including BFGoodrich Tires, METHOD Wheels, Bully Dog, FOX Racing Shox, MasterCraft Safety and DIRTnewz.com
Please visit www.menziesmotorsports.com
Bryce Menziez at the MINT 400
