SCORE Journal

SCORE-Journal-September-2020

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

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SCORE CELEBRATES THE OFF-ROAD MOTORSPORTS HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2020 INDUCTEES The Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame inducted several individuals who have greatly influenced and promoted the sport of off-road racing as well as SCORE International. This year, Cal Wells III, Jack Johnson, Roger Mears, Bob Bower, Dean Bulloch, Danny Foddrill, and Tom White were inducted as the Class of 2020. These latest inductees will be celebrated at the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame Induction & Awards Ceremony which will be held early 2021 and presented by 4 Wheel Parts. For additional information visit www.ormhof.org. Jack Johnson With a racing career spanning more than 40 years, Johnson began racing motorcycles at a young age and claimed his first victory in Baja winning Class 21 with future brother-in-law, and fellow AMA Hall Of Famer Scot Harden. In 1977 he joined Team Husqvarna as an official team member and won four Overall SCORE Baja 100 races and a SCORE Championship as well as many other races. In 1979 Johnson was the only motorcycle racer ever to win the SCORE Baja 500 overall riding solo, and would later win numerous international competitions. In the 1980s Johnson began racing four-wheel vehicles, and in 1987, became the Driver of Record for Nissan’s factory off-road program. His list of car/truck victories alone put him at a level few other off-road racers can match with 28 class and 14 overall wins in the four-wheel division. Dean Bulloch Racing during the 1970s in motocross, snowmobile drags, and cross country racing, Bulloch opened a powersports dealership in 1987 and his team at D&P Performance earned 184 wins in more than 40-years years of racing, including a National Hot Rod Association drag bike Pro ET win in 1991. In 1998 Bulloch built a rock buggy and earned 80 rock crawling event wins, 16 Pro National titles, and five world rock-crawling championships. After getting into Ultra 4 racing, Bulloch built and raced several vehicles leading to a collaboration with Arctic Cat UTVs in which he used to win many more off-road races. Bulloch retired in 2019 but continues to promote and market the off-road industry. Roger Mears Mears is a four-time SCORE Baja 1000 winner who has a history of also driving stock cars, sprint cars, midgets, and other racing vehicles in various divisions. Roger won a remarkable twenty World Off-Road Championships at the historic Riverside International Raceway and has five Pikes Peak International Hill Climbs, two HDRA/SCORE series titles, and a Mickey Thompson Stadium Series Truck crown. Roger and IndyCar champion brother Rick, became known in motorsports as the Mears Gang, which many years later includes Roger’s son Casey, who also has a successful NASCAR and SCORE racing career. One of the more remarkable Roger Mears stories dates back to 1980 when he flipped a midget car at Ascot Park and broke both arms. Doctors advised him to rest but the Baja 1000 was coming in a few weeks and Roger was battling for the series title. So, the doctors decided on surgery with plates in Roger’s arms. Mears, with help from his dad driving too, drove 70 percent of the race and finished the 1000 miles. He took the SCORE Class 3 series title in the famed Budweiser Jeep Honcho, the same machine which won 12 of 22 races in a three-year period. Danny Foddrill In the late ’60s, Foddrill and his friends enjoyed off-roading and developed a passion for building off-road vehicles. After attending ASU Foddrill worked at “Palmer’s Custom Speed” in 1975 where they built the famous Chaparral Chassis and where he also began racing and developed his popular suspension parts. With a career spanning more than 40-years, Foddrill has worked on many race cars, and as a veteran leader in the off-road community, he continues to mentor aspiring builders and fabricators. Seeing the need for a one-stop-shop for all things off-road in Arizona, Danny expanded with a retail off-road parts store. Danny opened Foddrill Motorsports in 2007 with his business partner Denny Lee. Tom White The American Motorcycle Association Hall of Famer began in flat track racing while fixing motocross bikes in Orange County, California. In 1976, White founded Tom White’s Cycle Specialties, which would later become White Brothers Cycle Specialties, when Tom partnered with his twin brother, Dan. Over the next 25 years, White Brothers would grow into a highly successful company, with sales of $40 million a year and nearly 200 employees. In addition, Tom also created the World Vet MX Championship and the World Four-Stroke Championship. Over the years White collected motorcycles and in 2000, sold White Brothers to rebuild his collection after selling previous motorcycles to provide care for his son Brad, who was seriously injured in an accident. In April 2017, Tom White was diagnosed with terminal cancer. The next month, he was honored by his friend Bud Feldkamp on Glen Helen Raceway’s Walk of Fame, surrounded by his friends and family. Tom passed away in November of 2017. Tom’s motorcycle legacy is a family affair. His daughter Kristin and her husband, John Anderson, founded Dubya USA, a play off the letter “W” found in the family name. Specializing in building motorcycle wheelsets, Dubya also offers custom wheel building, individual wheel components, and even wheel restoration. Bob Bower At a young age, Bob Bower learned about Baja racing and wanted to be a part of it someday. BFGoodrich Tires would later hire Bower in its marketing department, allowing him to be involved in off-road racing working in the BFG pits until he worked his way to the Off-Road Program manager in 1982. Bower would later launch the BFGoodrich Pit Support program, which is arguably the most successful and widely used pit service in Off-Road Desert Racing. Bower would also create detailed course maps that aided chase crews adding a higher degree of safety to races. Cal Wells III Starting as a volunteer in Bill Stroppe’s shop, Wells bought a flood-damaged Ford Bronco and rebuilt it to race the SCORE Baja 500 with his father Cal Wells Jr.. After a traffic accident kept Wells from a racing career, he turned his energy to building race cars and opened a small race shop in 1979, with off-road legend Joe MacPherson as one of his first customers. The small shop transformed into PPI Motorsports, a state-of-the-art complex, and expanded its reach to include winning Toyota’s Indy Car and NASCAR programs, as well as running the Toyota Motorsports garage. In 1986 wells and a GM design team developed a platform for all-wheel-drive trucks that were tested in the SCORE series, producing race victories and extensive data for the GM factory. Under Wells's leadership, PPI also helped SCORE with course marking and in-race safety for all competitors when SCORE allowed them to fly over the race in a helicopter that carried paramedics. They often altered their race plans to give aid to an injured racer or spectator. Wells also served as head of technical development for SCORE International, creating and managing competition rules for many years. Wells also employed some of the sport’s most legendary drivers to pilot the Toyota off-road trucks, a list that includes ORMHOF inductees Ivan Stewart, Robby Gordon, and Frank Arciero Jr., as well as Steve Millen, Rod Millen, Jeff Huber, and Tommy Morris. Through his company LNGA Consulting, Wells recently worked with Andy McMillin’s Red Bull/Toyo Trophy-Truck team to enhance its overall performance and competitiveness. SJ

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