Menasha, WI (10/13/2011)
- The podium was stacked full of “Z’s”
this weekend at the 12th round of GNCC
racing at Powerline Park in St. Clairsville,
Ohio, as Zakowski Motorsports riders had
the weekend of all weekends. ZMS riders
took the top spots in 4x4 Open and 4x4
Lites, filled the utility overall podium
with a 1st and 3rd, and turned the heads
of many in their strong performance in
UTV Open Mod.
Zac Zakowski proved this weekend that
he is ready to rock, as he lit the track
on fire, putting his ZMS/Ron Woods racing
machine into contention and taking the
coveted 4x4 Open class win. Zac didn’t
stop there, determined to show that there
is more in his reserves, he took the utility
overall win and was the only utility to
stand on the morning overall podium with
a 2nd place.
Determined to try new tactics, Zac would
give up his holeshot dominance, heading
into the woods 3rd. Knocking on the door
of first place, Zac held his ground before
his Kenda Bear Claw tires successfully
propelled him up the hill climb and through
the mud hole, overtaking the lead on lap
2. Now in the position of control, Zac
wasted no time laying down the hammer,
putting over a minute on the closest competitor.
Big news is out, as it is official that
Kevin Trantham has locked in the 4x4 Lites
Championship for 2011, making it his second
Championship in a row. After bad luck
the past 2 rounds, Kevin proved he is
not budging as he took the win and for
the first time ever, was able to celebrate
alongside his teammate on the utility
overall podium in 3rd. “This has
been our goal all year and it couldn’t
have happened in a better way. It was
so much fun that I don’t think we
plan on leaving,” stated Trantham.
While everyone was ecstatic about the
Atv results, they were too busy suiting
up for the UTV race with one thing in
mind, the UTV Open Mod class win. Struggling
with set-up and test time all year, it
was time to show that this team is capable
of competing in multiple realms.
With Zakowski at the wheel and Trantham
navigating, they took the holeshot and
never looked back. “We really didn’t
know what to expect here, we have had
relatively zero practice and prep for
these races. Zac is completely capable
of winning and after rolling it in a practice
this week all he said was that now he
really knows how fast he can go. So we
knew we were all in for something good,”
Paul Zakowski said after the race.
With the power of Ron-Woods Racing, the
ZMS car came around the first lap in 1st,
passing cars left and right. Over the
next 3 laps they were able to stay consistent
and fight in the top three. With two laps
to go, Zac and Kevin encountered an upside
down car and with nowhere to go, the ZMS
UTV stalled out on the decline. After
trying to get it re-fired, a dead battery
would leave them stranded where they sat.
Even though their race leading charge
came to an early halt, the race was still
a huge success. The amount of attention
brought to the team, who seemed to come
from nowhere to leading a race, was enough
to make people turn their heads and see
what is possible.
“This entire weekend was just epic
for us. I finally got myself back to where
I should be and fully intend on staying
here. Getting Kevin and I on the podium
was a dream come true, not to mention
our outstanding performance in the UTV
race. I can’t wait to get to ironman!
Hopefully you will see us out front!”
Zac had to say.
Make sure to watch as ZMS heads to the
season biggest race of the year at the
Ironman in Crawfordsville, Indian. Zac
and Kevin will be giving it their all
to get back on the podium along with finishing
where they left off in the UTV!
