King of the Hammers is an off-road race that combines

desert racing Desert racing is the act of racing through the desert in a two- or four-wheeled off-road vehicle. Races, which generally consist of two or more loops around a course covering up to , can take the form of Hare and Hound or Hare scramble style even ...

and

rock crawling Rock crawling is an extreme form of off-road driving using specialized vehicles ranging from stock to highly modified to overcome obstacles. In rock crawling, drivers typically drive highly modified four-wheel-drive vehicles such as trucks, Jeeps ...

. This race is held in February on Means Dry Lake at Johnson Valley, California, United States. The race is broadcast live on Ultra 4 Racing's website. King of The Hammers race week has expanded from one race. It is now a series of five races that run throughout the week. The races include a Can AM UTV event on Sunday, the ULTRA4 vs. Rock Bouncer shootout on Monday, the Every Man Challenge Race on Wednesday, and the Toyo Desert Invitational (Unlimited Trophy Trucks) on Thursday.

Hammertown

King of the Hammers take place in Johnson Valley, a

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's ...

(BLM) area near

Yucca Valley Yucca Valley is an incorporated town in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 20,700 as of the 2010 census. Yucca Valley lies west of Twentynine Palms, north of Palm Springs, south of Barstow via State Route ...

. For the nine-day race week, the Means Dry Lake bed turns into a temporary settlement nicknammed ''Hammertown''. Roughly 400 teams and 45,000 spectators may attend the event.

History

The King of the Hammers was founded by Jeff Knoll and Dave Cole in 2007, who organized it in a bar via outlining it on a napkin.Carey, L. (2014, February 1). The Real Story Behind King of the Hammers - DrivingLine. Retrieved April 19, 2015, from http://www.drivingline.com/2014/02/king-of-the-hammers-history-beginnings/ A trial run was conducted with 12 teams nicknamed the OG13. The OG13 are always invited back to race year after year. All past winners, dubbed "Kings", are also invited annually. The first official race was in 2008, though no spectators were present. Approximately 50 drivers took part. Race teams started in 30-second intervals from Means Dry Lake bed and navigated through the desert on a 50–60 mile set race course to their first rock course. In 2013, the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

intended to convert the area into an expanded training facility, as the branch needed the additional land for live-fire training in an area similar to where they would be actually fighting. Opposition from Johnson Valley politicians prevented a total takeover from occurring, and the two parties instead brokered an agreement under the 2014

National Defense Authorization Act The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is the name for each of a series of United States federal laws specifying the annual budget and expenditures of the U.S. Department of Defense. The first NDAA was passed in 1961. The U.S. Congress o ...

(NDAA) that allowed the Marines to receive a large portion of the land, resulting in course adjustments. The compromise between Johnson Valley and the Marines gave roughly 43,000 acres to the former, 79,000 acres to the later, and 53,000 for joint use. The Marines could use their share for two 30-day periods every year, while the rest of the time would be for off-road purposes. However, a petition on the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

website asserted the deal was still unnecessary, arguing that it was fiscally irresponsible and a future burden on taxpayers, especially as the nearby

Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms The Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC), also known as 29 Palms, is the largest United States Marine Corps base. It was a census-designated place (CDP) officially known as Twentynine Palms Base located adjacent to the city of Twentynin ...

is the largest Marine base in the world. The petition gained 29,456 signatures, though it was not enough to prevent the agreement from going through. There are no reports on the numbers by which the bill, known as H.R. 1676 and the "Johnson Valley National Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area Establishment Act", passed or how many revisions the bill had prior to its success. The community surrounding the Johnson Valley off-road area gains around $71 million a year from off-roaders going to and from the area.

Vehicles and rules

The race vehicles used at the King of the Hammers are known as Ultra 4 vehicles, which are capable of speeds over 100 miles per hour for the desert sections, but still contain

gear ratio A gear train is a mechanical system formed by mounting gears on a frame so the teeth of the gears engage. Gear teeth are designed to ensure the Pitch circle diameter (gears), pitch circles of engaging gears roll on each other without slipping, pr ...

s of 100-to-1 or lower for technical

. This ''Ultra4'' class is unlimited 4400, and every vehicle is custom fabricated by each team. Traditional design for the front drive-train is a straight axle design, but

independent front suspension Independent suspension is any automobile suspension system that allows each wheel on the same axle to move vertically (i.e. reacting to a bump on the road) independently of the others. This is contrasted with a beam axle or deDion axle system in ...

is becoming a popular design for the high speeds achieved in the wide open plains of the desert. Most racers use highly modified

engines An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power g ...

that can produce up to 800 horsepower. Forty-inch tires are common, and racers use

beadlock A beadlock or bead lock is a mechanical device that secures the bead of a tire to the wheel of a vehicle. Tires and wheels are designed so that when the tire is inflated, the tire pressure pushes the bead of the tire against the inside of the whee ...

wheels. Competitors start side-by-side, two vehicles every thirty seconds, and must complete the 165-mile course in fewer than 14 hours. Each team must pass through seven checkpoints and at all times while staying within one hundred feet of the centerline of the course. KOH is a no-chase-team race; repairs can only be done on the track by the racers or in the pit area. A last chance qualifier takes place before the race on a two-mile course. 35-50 teams attempt to qualify for the big race.

Winners

*2007: JR Reynolds and Randy Slawson *2008: Shannon Campbell *2009: Jason Scherer and Jason Berger *2010: Loren Healy and Rodney Woody *2011: Shannon Campbell *2012: Erik Miller and Robert Ruggiero *2013: Randy Slawson and Michael Slawson *2014: Loren Healy and Casey Trujillo *2015: Randy Slawson and Michael Slawson *2016: Erik Miller *2017: Shannon Campbell *2018: Jason Scherer *2019: Jason Scherer *2020: Josh Blyler *2021: Randy Slawson *2022: Raul Gomez

References

{{Reflist

External links