PICKERINGTON, Ohio — A dominant AMA Supercross and motocross champion nicknamed “The GOAT” (The Greatest Of All Time), a pair of riders who helped raise tens of millions of dollars in search of the cause of and cure for pediatric brain tumors, and a founder of one of the aftermarket’s most recognizable brands are among the motorcyclists who are on the 2013 ballot for possible elevation to the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame.

Multi-time AMA champion Ricky Carmichael, the Ride for Kids’ Mike and Dianne Traynor, and K&N co-founder Norm McDonald are among the nominees on the 2013 AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame ballot that includes racers, designers, tuners, and ambassadors for motorcycling in consideration of elevation to motorcycling’s highest honor.

Los Angeles, CA – Professional off road truck racer and seven-time AMA Supercross Champion Jeremy McGrath announced today that effective immediately,  he is parting ways with the Stronghold Motorsports off road truck racing team.  McGrath had been a member of the pro team, running a Pro-2, since 2011.  Although McGrath will not race the remainder of the stops on the 2013 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series, he will be working to put together his own race program as a team owner and driver for the 2014 season.  He looks forward to being back on the track in 2014 helming his own race effort.

McGrath had this to say about his departure, “First and foremost, I would like to thank all of the Stronghold team sponsors for the opportunity.  I would also like to thank my sponsors, who continue to support me through all of my race endeavors.  Special thanks to everyone involved in making the Lucas Oil Off Road Racing series possible and to all of the incredible off road racing fans that come out month after month, season after season!”
McGrath added, “My focus has always been success on the track and being part of a program where racing and performance are the main objectives.  That particular mission was not paramount at Stronghold Motorsports these past two years therefore, the reason for my current departure.  I am now taking personal control of my racing future and looking forward to putting together a winning team for the 2014 season.  I love the sport of off road truck racing and am very excited for this next chapter of my racing career.”

WORCS Racing recently announced the promotion of Tim Shelman to director of operations for the series.

“WORCS gains a valuable asset in Tim Shelman. They say timing is everything and the timing could not be better. I have known Tim since 2003 and not a day goes buy that he is not excited about racing,” Sean Reddish Owner/WORCS racing said. ” Tim has worked with me over the past two years and has become an important part of our team. He is a straight shooter and honest to a fault but most of all he is extremely outgoing and fun to be around. Combine this with his experience as a top Pro ATV racer and promoter he is the right guy to take over as the Director of WORCS Racing. Tim is in charge of all WORCS racing programs and will be the point man on race weekends. He will make our team more complete and we look forward to a bright future with Tim at the helm. Having Tim on board will help me develop more of our business and work more directly with our incredible sponsors.”

“I am proud to be taking more of a leadership role in WORCS Racing. Having been a part of WORCS since 2003 as a racer, then the last few years as the announcer, my commitment level to the success of this series has always been unwavering,” Shelman said. “Now taking the position of Director of Operations and working hand and hand with my wife Maria, I believe I can make this great series even better. This is a customer based business, and owning a construction company  for the past 20 years has taught me that regardless of the product, customers need to feel appreciated spending their hard earned cash. Taking the reins of this iconic race series is what was meant to happen on all accounts. Saying that I am excited to be “Point man” for WORCS Racing is an understatement.”

Minneapolis – After placing off the podium at The John Penton, William Yokley was back on top in his Polaris / Coastal / CST / National Guard / Yoshimura / Yokley Racing RZR XP 900 taking the win at The Mountaineer, in Masontown, West Virginia. Yokley’s teammate, Scott Kiger, steered his RZR XP 900 to a third place finish. RZRs finished in the top three spots in the XC1 Modified class.

Yokley and Kiger both started well and tackled the rocky terrain by choosing good lines. Their fast, consistent laps gave them both podium finishes and put Yokley back on top in class points going into the summer break, with Kiger sitting in striking distance in third.

The next GNCC UTV Race is Powerline Park, in St. Clairsville, Ohio, on October 20.

Yokley Racing is sponsored by Polaris Industries, Coastal Racing, CST, Army National Guard, Yoshimura, Holz Racing Products, OMF, Walker Evans, Fluidyne, Beard Seats, Tireballs, SustainU and Big Country Powersports.

El Cajon, CA – After three rounds of racing on the short tracks of Dodge City and Eldora, Scott Douglas was looking forward to racing the new truck at the big free flowing all-natural terrain layout in Bark River, Michigan. The AMSOIL/Borla Exhaust/BFGoodrich Tire Ford F-150 ran well in practice and qualifying, but on the longer race runs, the team saw unexpected changes in the race truck’s handling.

The weekend began earlier than originally scheduled, the one rained out Eldora round of racing was scheduled Friday evening with practice and qualifying only a couple of hours before the drop of the green flag.

The qualifying session saw the #7 AMSOIL Ford stopped the watches with the third quickest time in the field. Even with the solid qualifying time, the team knew there was room for improvement. A couple of minor changes went into the chassis setup and then it was time for ten laps around the 1.75 mile layout.

Redmond, Oregon – After a successful first round of the 2013 season, boasting almost 30 UTVs, plus strong Unlimited Mini Trucks and Full Size Trucks classes, the series looks to carry the momentum.  Round 2 of the Central Oregon Off-Road Race Park season to be held on June 29th will see more berm busting action at the base of the beautiful Cascade mountains famous for it’s pristine lakes, fly fishing on the Deschutes river, and hitting the winter slopes at Mt. Bachelor ski resort.

While the racing is sure to be heated, late June in Central Oregon is probably one of the nicest places to be racing during this time of year. With temperatures likely to be in the 80′s, racers from the southwest should consider a summer roadtrip to capture a glimpse of what Central Oregon off-road short course racing has to offer.

COORP has also announced a new UTV/SxS 800cc or less class for stock and unlimited UTV’s, which should create some intense battles.

Fort Mill, SC – June 18, 2013 – Team GT veteran, Carl Renezeder, has himself a six-pack…of wins that is.  To date, in the 2013 Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series (LOORRS) season, Renezeder has managed to take home all six of the Pro-4 winner trophies.  In fact, he has an eight race Pro-4 winning streak that dates back to the Challenge Cup in 2012.  This weekend at Miller Motorsports Park, Renezeder looks to extend that streak to 10 and add to his list of 111 career wins.

While Renezeder makes winning look easy, the competition in LOORRS is anything but.  To win a LOORRS race a driver needs tenacity, finesse, assertiveness and a good set of General Tire Red Letter Grabbers.  The combination of changing track conditions, truck set-up and the other 15+ drivers around you, make for some dicey situations but Renezeder has the right combination figured out and we sat down with him this week to find out how he makes the on-track magic happen.  Here’s what he had to say:

Chrysler Group LLC and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have resolved their differences with respect to NHTSA’s request to recall 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee and 2002-07 Jeep Liberty vehicles.

As a result of the agreement, Chrysler Group will conduct a voluntary campaign with respect to the vehicles in question that, in addition to a visual inspection of the vehicle will, if necessary, provide an upgrade to the rear structure of the vehicle to better manage crash forces in low-speed impacts.

Chrysler Group’s analysis of the data confirms that these vehicles are not defective and are among the safest in the peer group. Nonetheless, Chrysler Group recognizes that this matter has raised concerns for its customers and wants to take further steps, in coordination with NHTSA, to provide additional measures to supplement the safety of its vehicles.

Chrysler Group regards safety as a paramount concern and does not compromise on the safety of our customers and their families.

PICKERINGTON, Ohio — The National Defense Authorization Act, which includes language to create the Johnson Valley National Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area in California to protect it from a military takeover, has cleared the U.S. House, the American Motorcyclist Association reports.

On June 14, the House approved the authorization bill, H.R. 1960. The measure now goes to the Senate for further consideration.

The legislation includes language written by Rep. Paul Cook (R-Calif.) to protect Johnson Valley from a takeover by the U.S. Navy that would virtually end riding there. The Navy wants to expand the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center at Twentynine Palms into the 189,000-acre Johnson Valley area, which is a long-standing and popular area that is across the San Bernardino Mountains from Los Angeles.

Irvine, CA – All seven 2013 GEICO AMA EnduroCross events, fueled by Monster Energy and presented by Lucas Oil will have full one hour shows on MAVTV for 2013. The first of those shows will air this Thursday, June 20th at 9:00 PM EST. The shows will again be produced by the Lucas Oil Production team with Cameron Steel and Jeremy McGrath providing expert insight in the booth. Terry Boyd will be on the floor for interviews and Erin Bates will fill in for any events that he can’t attend.

MAVTV, America’s fastest-growing independent cable network, recently announced that DIRECTTV added the network to their lineup. This increased the overall universe for MAVTV to more than 26 million American households. With the transition of SPEEDTV to Fox Sports 1, MAVTV is filling the gap in Motorsports coverage.