Mesa, AZ (6/28/2018) - R-N-R
Steel Racing’s Robert VanBeekum unveiled his
brand new Polaris RZR XP Turbo S and competed
in a tough and muddy Lucas Oil Off Road Series
UTV Turbo race at Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland,
MO. VanBeekum defied the odds and finished
12th in the event, despite experiencing visibility
issues all race.
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R-N-R
Steel's Robert Vanbeekum was the first
racer to debut the Polaris RZR XP Turbo
S in the LOORRS at Lucas Oil Speedway |
Heavy rain inundated the 1.2-mile track on
Sunday, turning the racing surface to sloppy
mud. Despite calls to cancel the race, officials
ran the Turbo class final first, making for
what turned into a battle for survival more
than a race.
“I can’t believe they put us out there on
that track,” said VanBeekum. “It was bad.
It would have been fine if I could see. I
went through all of my tear-offs on the first
lap. I’ve never been covered with mud so bad
in my life.”
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| Walker
Evans Racing's Robert Vanbeekum was
launching the big tabletop at the Lucas
Oil Speedway |
The new RZR XP Turbo S was just finished
prior to leaving for the event. VanBeekum
worked through teething issues with radiator
placement on Friday and Saturday.
“The car handled great,” said VanBeekum.
“We had overheating issues in practice and
we experienced power steering issues during
Saturday’s race. We relocated the radiator
for Sunday. The car was running absolutely
perfectly, but then we got all of this rain
and that made for a difficult run.”
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| Robert
Vanbeekum relocated his radiator for
Sunday's race, but he still has some
more testing to do before the Reno,
NV race next month |
The track, which featured nine turns, some
nice rhythm sections and a huge tabletop jump,
definitely favored driving skill over horsepower.
VanBeekum appreciated the “driver’s track”
and hopes to return during more favorable
weather conditions.
“This track was definitely good for the Polaris,”
said VanBeekum. “It wasn’t about horsepower,
but more about driving. It was an unbelievably
fun track and there was a huge crowd there,
which was nice.”
VanBeekum is already at the drawing board
working on the cooling system issues. He said
the car will be ready when the series heads
to Nevada in July.
“We’ll go with a larger radiator to increase
the cooling system capacity,” said VanBeekum.
“We’re racing in a Utah regional on July 4th,
and that will be a good test. That should
get us ready for the next event.”
VanBeekum will be back in action as the LOORRS
Series next heads to Wild West Motorsports
Park in Sparks, NV July 21.
Robert VanBeekum’s
2018 Sponsors:
Polaris, Maxxis Tires, Walker Evans, DragonFire,
Method Wheels, R-N-R Steel, LSR Racing, Rugged
Radios, Xtreme Machine & Fabrication,
Muzzy
