Lake Elsinore, CA – The short course track at Lake Elsinore Motorsports Park is known for it’s insanely huge jumps that are even more intimidating when taken in the dark. The only view out the windshield is sky, dark sky. Fortunately for Brandon Arthur, he is accustomed to flying his trucks through the air. His aerial antics in the desert driving both his Pro Traffic Services / Competitive Metals / Rigid Industries Trophy Truck and his 1400 unlimited truck are plastered all over the internet. Brandon’s biggest leap during rounds 3 and 4 of the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series did not happen on the track, it took place in the pits. He finally got his new truck where he wanted it for round 4.
“We qualified well on Friday; 5th in my group,” said Brandon, “On the first lap of the race I spun out. I gathered it up but a few laps later I got caught up with a couple trucks and the steering was messed up. I struggled just to get to the finish.” Brandon held on to finish on the lead lap but back in 13th place. Friday night was spent with the team in the pits getting ready for round 4. For every minute out on the track, hours are spent fabricating, testing and tuning to get the truck ready. The most difficult thing to master is getting the truck to respond to adjustments. When you make a change and the truck performs like you want it to, you are on the right track. It takes time to develop a new truck to that point but Brandon and the crew has made that leap.
Working on the mechanicals is something Brandon really enjoys. He competes in automotive competitions in high school and just recently placed second in nationwide competition. His team travelled to New York City to compete in the finals. They had 10 stations with various repair situations to diagnose then find and fix several bugs on a car. His team fixed all but one bug in the allotted time giving them a second place finish. Brandon’s troubleshooting skills are a real asset to go with his talent behind the wheel.
“After making some set-up changes Friday night, the truck was on rails,” says Brandon, “We went from 16th to 6th; the truck felt really strong.
I have to thank my team for the work they did getting us ready for round 4 and special thanks to all those who support us; Pro Traffic Services, Competitive Metals, Rigid Industries LED Lighting, Toyo Tires, Magnaflow, Aeromotive Fuel Systems, Trailready Beadlocks, FOX Racing Shox, Wirefab, Summers Brothers, ECP Powder Coating, F&L Racing Fuels, Maxima Racing Oils, FiberwerX, graphics by Bink Designs and Mastercraft Safety Equipment, I am excited to get to back on the track in rounds 5 and 6. We will be racing under the lights again.”
The next Lucas Oil short course race will be held May 30 – 31 at Wild West Motorsports Park in Sparks, NV. Brandon will be applying the gains he has achieved to yet another new course for him. The track in Sparks is known for huge elevation changes and scary fast descents into the corners, it’s going to be epic!
Photography By: Brian Binkert