Hoek Concludes 2013 Season with Solid Finish in the AMSOIL CUP!

Holland, MI (September 5, 2013) – The Crandon Off-Road World Championships would be the final event for Ross Hoek Motorsports and their Motive Gear, ATD, Toyota PRO-4×4 race truck. The team used the limited 2013 schedule as a season long test session to become more acquainted with the 900 horsepower four-wheel drive hot rod as the summer progressed. When Ross Hoek took the checkered flag in the AMSOIL CUP, the team felt a great sense of accomplishment as their 2013 goals were met with a competitive race!

After installing a brand new 430 CID Goodwin engine at the race track Thursday and two successful Friday test sessions the Saturday morning qualifying session saw the silver Toyota qualify ninth quickest among one of the largest nationally represented PRO-4×4 starting grids of the year.
Later that afternoon the nine lap Round 13 race saw Hoek run a solid race to finish seventh out of the sixteen competitors that took the green flag.  Unfortunately an oil cooler broke during the lineup for Sunday’s race and engine oil began dumping out the back of the race truck. Fortunately a TORC official caught Hoek’s attention and he was able to shut the engine off before any damage could occur. The team did miss Sunday morning’s TORC round of racing, but a quick change of the leaking oil cooler had Ross Hoek ready in plenty of time for the AMSOIL CUP.

The ten lap AMSOIL CUP saw Ross Hoek run the best race of his PRO-4×4 season. The Motive Gear, ATD, Toyota PRO-4×4 was definitely turning the quickest lap times of his PRO 4×4 career.  The added incentive of passing the PRO-2WD trucks made this a great experience for Ross.  There was a great battle between Hoek and Todd LeDuc that saw the two racers pass each more than once. In the end Hoek claimed the position and finished on a flat tire in eight place overall, the fourth place PRO-4×4 in the field.
As Ross Hoek climbed out of his #10 PRO-4×4 race truck for the final time this season, you could see a smile on his face. Looking back at his “rookie” PRO-4×4 season of competition, Hoek met his expectations and is looking forward to a very competitive 2014 season for his team.

“I bought this chassis from Johnny Greaves and I didn’t know what to expect,” explains Ross Hoek. “ I knew the PRO4x4’s are fast, I knew they were expensive, I realized you have to drive them differently than a PRO-2WD, but until you get behind the wheel in race conditions you really don’t realize what a different “animal” a PRO-4×4 can be. Basically everyone in the PRO-4×4 class came over to help us this season with set-ups, driving advice, parts, and every kind of help imaginable. We made sure we took one more step forward at every race, and by the time we came to Crandon for the second time, everything began to click.”