Hollister friends take up Baja racing
– and place in first event
John Webster’s first love is racing motorcycles, but he’s not
doing too badly with his second.
When a motorcycle accident left the Hollister resident with a
broken neck and leg, Webster decided to try a safer sport. Sort
of.
He brought a Ford pickup took up off-track desert racing.
Hollister friends take up Baja racing – and place in first event
John Webster’s first love is racing motorcycles, but he’s not doing too badly with his second.
When a motorcycle accident left the Hollister resident with a broken neck and leg, Webster decided to try a safer sport. Sort of.
He brought a Ford pickup took up off-track desert racing.
Last weekend in his first desert truck race, the Las Vegas 200 Best in Desert, Webster and co-driver Eric Tapley, a Gilroy body shop owner who lives in Hollister, placed second in the grueling 6½-hour, 232-mile race across the Nevada desert.
“It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to do Baha racing,” said Webster, 31. “It feels really good to finally do it. For our first outing this is a really good accomplishment.”
Placing second in the LV 200 the first time out of the gate is no small feat. The trucks and the drivers of them have to drive a 78-mile loop three times while trying to keep the vehicle intact.
During the race Webster said seeing teams stranded on the side of the course feverishly working on their trucks was a regular occurrence. Often there are blown tires, shot engines and overheated radiators.
“We had one flat tire and the suspension bushings broke,” said Webster. “Keeping the truck together is a big issue.”
That and sitting in a cramped truck for over six hours with no bathroom breaks.
“That’s another issue that came up,” said Webster, who raced in the stock mini-truck class. “When you’re sitting in a truck and being bounced around, your bladder starts to feel it.”
As second-place finishers Webster and Tapley earned $5,285.00 and tour points for the next race, which will take place in Parker, Ariz., on Feb. 8.
“We’re already in,” said Webster.
On Jan. 4 Webster and Tapley will travel to Arizona for a one-lap practice run allowed a month before the race.
Webster and Tapley used the Las Vegas pre-run to their advantage. Once done with the pre-run Webster, owner of Johnny’s Custom Auto Body in Gilroy, and Tapley, owner of Harry’s Auto signs in Hollister, tweaked their vehicle to perfection.
“When we brought the truck we revamped it,” said Webster.
They rebuilt the suspension, tuned up the motor and repainted the exterior. After the pre-run the men only had to do a little bit more race preparation.
During the race Webster and Tapley were a bit surprised when they found themselves only 12 minutes behind the leader. Normally during desert races the driver and co-driver swap places to keep things fresh. Being so close to winning, however, Webster and Tapley scrapped the idea.
Tapley continued to navigate and monitor the gauges while Webster concentrated on driving.
“The terrain was really rough,” Webster said. You want to drive fast enough to do good but at the same time you don’t want to break the truck. You have to find a happy medium.”
