Hrantz > Hrantz's Blog Posts > TEAM BMW VENTURA TAKES PODIUM IN FIRST RACE EVER

April 12, 2007 23:52

TEAM BMW VENTURA TAKES PODIUM IN FIRST RACE EVER

Howard Rantz storms to 3rd place at USDR Round-Big 6

Newbury Park, CA- When the dust settled at the Red Mountain (Searles Station) track in the Mojave Desert on Sunday, April 8th, it was Team BMW Ventura’s Howard Rantz who found himself in a well-deserved third place. The result of a grueling race between 50 competitors over 48 miles of steep hills, powdery sand and sharp rocks. After completing the 4 challenging 12-mile laps of the course, the smile on Rantz’s face said it all, “That G 650 is a FUN dirt bike!”

Howard and teammate Kyle Satterlee had plenty of explaining to do about the new BMW G 650 X Challenge, both at the start/finish line before the race where competitors had their first real chance to look at the BMWs, and then at the end as the remaining riders came over to pay respects. For many, the Start/Finish would be the last time they would get to see the BMW’s as both riders stormed off the line and came home in 3rd and 19th place respectively. Rantz was able to come home in third due to his stamina and the BMW’s ability to climb hills and power through the sand that challenged all the riders throughout the race. While Satterlee certainly looked to finish higher up in the order, fatigue set in half way through the race and limited his success. However, we know that Kyle is an energetic rider and we look forward to better results throughout the season as he becomes more accustomed to the bike and riding these challenging courses. It was a great first race for the team and our objective of raising awareness and introducing BMW to a traditionally non-BMW environment was also achieved. We offer our congratulations to Howard, Kyle and the new BMW G 650 X Challenge for a job well done!

Howard Rantz Position: 3rd “The conditions were very rough and extremely dusty. The start was real important and I managed to get a pretty good one. The BMW G650 X Challenge was awesome, it never missed a beat. It ran perfect the entire time. The X Challenge was pretty heavy for the course; there were a lot of tight, rocky, up and down hills and a lot of whoops. Just miles and miles of whoops that would just wear you down! It’s just a testimonial to the bike. The G650 X Challenge hung in there and I was able to work up from mid-pack to third and I’m really impressed with the X Challenge. I’d just like to thank all of my sponsors: BMW, Shoei Helmets, Oxtar Boots, Parts Unlimited, Thor, Dunlop and Remus Exhaust. Of course,I’d like to thank all of my boys from BMW Ventura that came out to the race. It feels good to know that you have all of this backing.”

Kyle Saterlee Position: 19th “It was dusty first of all. Other than that, the competition was really good in our class. The BMW G650 X Challenge was awesome. The X Challenge pulled well in every gear whether it was in the rocks or the silt. It handled like a big bike in the sand, but everywhere else it just charges. The bike was just awesome at climbing hills. It has a lot of traction! The air-dampening system works great in the whoops but we need to dial it in for the big hits. I really just want to thank everyone at the BMW Motorcycles of Ventura County who made this happen and all of our sponsors.”

XPLOR – Howard and Kyle are both XPLOR members (www.bmwxplor.com) and BMW Master-Certified Technicians at BMW Motorcycles of Ventura County (www.bmwventura.com)

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