SCORE Journal

SCORE Journal - April 2019

SCORE Journal - The Official Publication of SCORE Off-Road Racing

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The Dynamic Duo Wayne and Kristen Matlock Repeat Last Year’s SCORE San Felipe 250 Win in two classes By Dan Sanchez Photos by Get Some Photo While most summed up the 33rd SCORE San Felipe 250 as the longest in its history, racers summed it up as winning from the back of the pack. This was true for many racers who won their classes in this race, while starting at the back of the pack, it was also true for Wayne Matlock, who started dead last in the Pro UTV FI field of 21 entrants. With the competitiveness of the Pro UTV classes, one might think this was a disadvantage, but for Wayne Matlock, he wanted it that way. “We like to start at the back as it’s easier to see where we are on the course and keep track of everyone behind us,” says Matlock. “The game plan for the SCORE San Felipe 250 was no different than what we always do. We like to see what the pace is and drive at our own pace. Then we get into the zone and get comfortable.” Matlock’s Polaris RZR XP4 Turbo is outfitted with four-wheel drive and while other truck and buggy classes struggled at the summit section, Matlock breezed through it. “The summit was the easiest part for us with all-wheel-drive,” said Matlock. “I prefer technical driving than straight whooped-out roads. They were all torn up from the above average entries ahead of us.” While Matlock made it look easy to roll in for a class and overall win in San Felipe, he did battle against Mike Caffro who also drove a Polaris RZR XP4 Turbo. “I ended up battling with Mike in this race,” said Matlock. “Mike and I had a lot of fun racing on ATVs in the past, and this was just like those days. Mike passed me for the lead around race mile 55 and I just kept pace with him. Then we gained the lead back going up the summit.” Matlock’s Polaris also had some issues, but it didn’t stop him from pushing hard to the finish line. “We lost the front differential and four-wheel drive,” said Matlock. “It was a challenge but our race went pretty smooth. At times we hit speeds of 101 mph and our new Fox shocks that adjust 100-times per second was a definite improvement. We had a fun race and appreciate our team, Polaris, SCORE and SCORE president Jose Grijalva for all his efforts.” Kristen Matlock Wants An Overall Win Within the Pro UTV N/A class, Kristen Matlock took first in class, but she was also hoping for another Overall win. “I guess I have to share that with Wayne sometimes,” said Matlock with a laugh. “He deserved it but I’ll take it back again at the SCORE Baja 500.” Matlock’s race also seemed like an easy victory, but it too was without its difficulties. “Our car lost its power steering before the dry lake bed,” said Matlock. “At the very least, it gave me an opportunity to go straight and learn how to drive without it. When I finally hit the pavement and got to the goat trail section, it was a whole different ballgame. I had to make the decision to pit and have the Polaris engineers diagnose it. We ended up replacing it and took 30-minutes to do so.” That cost Matlock her Overall win, but she still managed to hang on and take the class win to repeat what she and Wayne did at last year’s SCORE San Felipe 250. “Despite the issues, we’re definitely happy with our cars,” said Matlock. “Our Polaris RZR XP4 1000 was freshened up this year and I can catch the turbo cars. I’m not just happy winning my class, I want the overall. With Wayne in the FI class and me in the N/A class, I like being able to have the opportunity to win both classes like we did here again.” SJ

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