- Updated: November 8, 2016
Race Promoter, Lou Peralta, announced the AVE/Baja Promotions racing slate for the 2017 PURE UTV OFF-ROAD DESERT SERIES in California City, CA and more specifically at the Alta Vista Ranch.
In 2017 the racing schedule has been bumped up by one event consisting of a total of seven events in the series, of which the best six (6) finishes will be used to crown Overall and Class Points Champions at the end of the 2017 season.
The season consists of the following seven events: Jan 14, Pure #1/”100” – Mar 18, Pure #2/”150” – Apr 29, Pure #3/”200” – June 24, Pure #4/”100” (early morning race) – Jul 29, Pure #5/”100” (Night race) – Sep 30, Pure #6/”200” – Oct 28, Pure #7/”250” (Double Points).
As is being done in the 2016 season, AVE/BP is awarding points not only to the drivers and co-drivers but beginning in 2016 it began awarding the Navigator/Co-Navigator points so that there will be champion navigators in the various classes as well as Overall. AVE/BP is the only organization that also offers the BONE STOCK Class, which is meant to provide a new buyer the opportunity to take the UTV off the show-room floor and race it in the series, after certain “safety” items are added to the vehicle. This class has proven to be most popular because it affords the opportunity to “test the waters” as they say without having to spend loads of money on aftermarket products. However, Peralta does confess that he has seen most people come into the Bone Stock Class and stay there maybe two or three events and soon, “they are hooked and have to have all the neat aftermarket product that’s available. “It never fails,” he says.
This brings into play the great effort that the navigators have demonstrated during the 2016 season as the entire series was what they call “GPS-Based” meaning the course markings are minimal and the driver has to rely on the sharpness and expertise of his/her Navigator to not only stay on-course but make it to the finish without any penalties. So far, according Lou Peralta, “Our experiment has proven to be better than expected. Most drivers come to me and boast at the fact that they can fully concentrate on their driving and rely entirely on their Navigator to point them in the right direction. For us it has been great because we are making it harder for those rascals who like to change course markers and fool around with our racers and thus making it dangerous for everyone. In addition, we also have mitigated and gotten rid of the look-ie-loos who often line the course and watch the race, sometimes with too many beers in their belly. The big deal for us though has been that we have shed a light on the importance of the Navigator and that roll that he/she plays in the race.”
Peralta also added that their safety record has not suffered as a result of the GPS-based series and the series continues with a near-perfect record of non-incidents or accidents during the event.
In 2017, AVE/BP will return to feature races starting and finishing at the Alta Vista Ranch, Cal-City and more importantly, it will continue to use unmaintained County roads, trails, grandfathered routes that have been available to all for over fifty years. AVE/BP also prides itself of not using the same course in 12 to 18 months.
Their normal schedule is to allow those who have entered the event to receive the full GPS file they can upload and pre-run the race course. There is limited pre-running with only the weekend before the event and also the Friday before the Saturday start. As always, radio relays, paramedic teams and officials monitor the course during the entire event.
This year the series will also be covered by TVS for national television distribution.
For additional information, contact AVE/B at P.O. Box 2141, California City, CA – www.averacing.com – info@averacing.com and of course 661.524.1550.
