King Of The Mountain – The Definition of Rough

Guest Author | September 11, 2009 | 2 Comments

Great mountain top view with unforgiving terrain on the sides.

By Tim Worley

The talk about the Pro Armor King of the Mountain Endurance Challenge started a little over a month ago. It seemed from talking to some of the racers the main thing on our mind was just how rough it was going to be. The press release told us that is was going to “punish the weak, and challenge the strong.” It seemed most of the racers would have their machines set up like it was any other race. I doubted it would be as rough as they claimed. But I prepared for the worst, (I thought). It came.

There were 16 SXS racers that showed up at Brimstone Recreation looking to be crowned King. Some of the fastest XC racers from the south were on hand, including Johnny

Racing thru the pits offers a slight break after the obstacle course and before more punishment that lies ahead.

Ford, Josh Starret, and Justin Fleming. After a good 1st lap, I knew I had misjudged what was “rough”, with “four hours of this?” going through my head. On lap 2, my co-driver/nephew Lucas Smith and I changed the goal from winning to finishing. We had a flat front tire two times, losing the bead both times. But this was mild compared to some other racers problems. There were wild wrecks, broken a-arms, trashed steering racks, complete beds gone, and I even saw the leaders Polaris RZR on fire! Bent, twisted and broke seemed to be the theme for the day. At the end of the day, me and six others finished. But only one would be King. The men in an amazingly close to stock RZR would set a fast pace all day, and somehow keep the machine (sort of) together. Congratulations to Mike Mahan, King of the Mountain, and co-driver Chris Hickey.

A RZR trying to rock crawl.

Thanks to all that made it possible. I hope we get to do it again next year! If you plan on racing, prepare for the toughest 4 hours SXS racing has seen yet.

For More Information on the Race: www.racekotm.com

For More Pictures and Information on the Event go to: UTV Weekly Event Recap.

Official Results from the UTV race are as follows:
Place Racer City, State Nbr Brand CC Laps Elapsed
1 Mike Mahan Sparta, TN 118 POL 16 04:03:02
2 Dirt Trax Tv Editors Cup, TN 113 POL 14 04:18:11
3 Terry Haymaker Parkersburg, WV 121 POL 12 04:14:15
4 Kirk Kuykendal Athens, TN 116 YAM 9 04:12:08
5 Kevin Spangler Shelbyville, IL 111 YAM 9 04:20:23
6 Tim Worley Grove Oak, AL 120 POL 5 04:16:58
7 Chuck Lemaster Mt Juliet, TN 115 POL 5 04:19:24
DNF Dennis Butler Smyrna, TN 104 KAW 3 01:02:07
DNF Joey Duvall Edmonton, KY 119 POL 9 02:18:48
DNF Justin Fleming Chapmanville, WV 117 POL 1 01:20:53
DNF Johnny Ford Houston, MS 106 POL 4 01:03:37
DNF Brent Jones Athens, TN 109 POL 7 02:50:25
DNF Ron Lapointe Advance, NC 114 YAM 7 02:46:48
DNF Joe Marlow Helenwood, TN 122 POL 0 00:00:00
DNF Josh Starrett Alvaton, KY 112 YAM 0 00:00:00
DNF Teddy Wall Murfreesboro, TN 110 POL 2 00:37:48