SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/618747
Covey: Well with the way things are going so far, everything has gotten bigger. Larger tires, bigger shocks, and bigger motors. I think it's really headed towards a 42 inch tire from BFGoodrich. That's probably a gradual progression, but I think that's we're headed. SJ: What do you think the future is with the four- wheel drive trucks people are developing? Covey: I'm pretty excited about the four-wheel drive truck. It seems like RPM's truck is still under development. Obviously, they have the funding to develop that truck and make it competitive. I know there's other people that have talked about four-wheel drive trucks. For us, it would be a great handling truck given Steven's driving style. I'd be excited to drive one. SJ: Is SCORE racing something you'd want your kids to get into? Covey: I think that there's a great group of people who come out to the races, and really it's like a family. I spend a couple weekends a month with the majority of these people and I know a lot of great friends that will remain so, even if I stopped racing. So I'd be more than happy to have my family be interested. My kids come to the races now. My son already has his Trophy Truck toys. I've got higher hopes for him to be something other than a mechanic. Hopefully, someday he can race and we can get him racing. My daughter already has a passion for off-road. She's interested in coming to the shop and sitting in the truck and steering it around. She seems to enjoy it. SJ: What do your parents think about this? Covey: They've been behind me the whole time. They have a similar attitude as my wife. They saw I had a passion for it and pushed me. I've been lucky enough to be successful, and that really opened their eyes to what racing really was. SJ: More than just a hobby. Covey: Yes. Everyone thought it was something I did on the weekends. It turned out that we've got big sponsors now and it's a professional deal. It's not just guys going out to play with their trucks anymore. SJ: What's the craziest thing that's ever happened to you out on the course? Covey: In Mexico, the craziest things always happen. We've even had beer bottles thrown at us. At a SCORE Baja 1000, I got hit in the helmet with a full beer bottle outside of Valle de Trinidad. And we've had embers from a fire thrown at the truck before. If you're going to see something crazy, you're going to see it in Mexico. That really doesn't say a whole lot about the Mexican culture. Because every time we go down there, wherever we stop and the further down we get, the nicer the people seem to be. That's one of the things that fuels my passion for off-road is the solitude of Mexico and racing down there. You get to see a lot of things that people don't normally get to. SJ: What was it like when you did the whole run on the peninsula? You didn't get out of the truck unless you had to? Covey: I rode the whole peninsula run. A total of 1275 miles that took us 24 hours and change. It was challenging from about 2am to 5am. After that, we had a pretty good race against Apdaly Lopez. The adrenaline rush kept me going; really! You know I was stretching out in the truck, eating, and staying hydrated. Up to that race, I was training Cross-Fit, and getting ready for the race so that I would be physically and mentally prepared. That's probably the biggest attribute to me being able to do that race. 046 SCORE JOURNAL