Hummer Guy Hummer News and Opinion from an experienced off-road instructor
Team HUMMER is preparing for what they hope is another record-setting run at the longest off-road race in the United States, BITD’s Vegas to Reno race. Emily Miller, Team HUMMER’s newest driver, will attempt to be the first woman to pilot the entire 457-mile race. Typically teams break up driving duties due to the race’s intense terrain and excessive heat – given that the race routinely takes over 12 hours to complete.
Miller will be joining the Hall family of racers, with Team HUMMER patriarch Rod Hall piloting the #3111 H3, and his two sons Josh and Chad racing the #8111 SUT and #4111 H3 Alpha, respectively. The green flag goes up Friday morning, so stay tuned to Team HUMMER’s website and the Live Race Blog for continuous race-day updates.
Complete release below.
DETROIT – Rod Hall Racing’s Team HUMMER, recognized as the most successful stock class desert racing program, attempts to enter the record books again this weekend as team driver Emily Miller, embarks on a quest to become the first woman to drive the entire 457-mile Best in the Desert (BITD) “TSCO Vegas to Reno” race. Racers take the green flag on Friday, August 22, 2008.
Miller, 41, will race the #4110 stock class HUMMER H2 with navigator Jake Povey in her journey to become the first woman to drive the entire race. In long distance desert races, most teams use multiple drivers per vehicle, given the rough terrain, brutal heat and race duration that routinely exceed 12 hours in length. Drivers who pilot vehicles for the entire race earn the designation of “Ironman.”
As a long-time adventure sports enthusiast, Miller began off-road racing under the training direction of off-road racing legend Rod Hall. Her racing career began with Team HUMMER at the 2006 Baja 1000, where she drove a significant section of the race with Hall. Miller debuted as a team driver of record at the 2008 BITD Terribles 250, where she earned a second place finish in the Safari Class
“Fortunately, I’ve had the chance to train with the Halls, who I consider to be among best drivers in off-road racing today,” said Miller. “While the desert is unforgiving, the combination of the H2’s durability and the Team HUMMER support provide an excellent opportunity to achieve my goal and finish for the team.”
In addition to Miller’s H2, Team HUMMER will field three other stock class race trucks as drivers Rod, Josh and Chad Hall continue to battle for championship titles in the mini, full-size SUV and full-size truck stock classes.
Rod Hall, 70, Team HUMMER owner and pilot of the mini-stock class #3111 H3 is a living legend in the off-road racing world. Hall, enters the 2008 race currently tied in the mini-stock class in season points with a class wins at the Terribles 250.
“With 12 years of experience racing stock-class Hummers, I believe that they are the most capable off-road vehicles straight from the factory,” said Rod Hall. “In fact, the H3 Alpha and H3 were the first stock-class vehicles to finish the 2007 Baja 1000 and 2008 Baja 500.”
Chad and Josh Halls’ stock-class H3 Alpha and H2 SUT will also make their Vegas to Reno debut this year, entering the race as class points leaders.
Team HUMMER #4111 H3 Alpha driver, Chad Hall enters the 2008 race as points leader in the full-size SUV stock class. Hall most recently finished the 2008 SCORE Baja 500 as the first stock class vehicle to finish the race. He won first in class at the 2007 Vegas to Reno behind the wheel of his stock class H1 Alpha.
Team HUMMER #8111 H2 SUT pilot Josh Hall enters the race as current full-size truck stock class points leader and looks to extend his three-year Vegas to Reno winning streak.
Follow the team’s progress live by visiting Team HUMMER (www.rodhallracing.com) on August 22, 2008.
About HUMMER
HUMMER is a division of General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM), the world’s largest vehicle manufacturer, which employs about 321,000 people globally. HUMMER is a premium off-road vehicle manufacturer with sales in 37 countries and a product line-up that consists of the H2, H2 SUT, H3, H3x, award-winning H3 Alpha and all-new H3T. Information on HUMMER products is available at www.hummer.com.
About Team HUMMER
Team HUMMER was founded by legendary off-road racer Rod Hall in 1993. Since then, Rod and his sons Josh and Chad have compiled 13 class wins at the SCORE Baja 1000; countless podium finishes in the Best in the Desert (BitD) Racing Association series; two SCORE class championships; and five BitD class championships. Team HUMMER competes with the H3, H2 SUT and H3 Alpha in the stock class, which features production-based vehicles with stock frames, stock suspension designs and production-based engines. For more information about Team HUMMER, visit www.rodhallracing.
