LAKE FOREST, CA (January 10, 2006) After what feels like the shortest off-season ever, Team Renezeder is back at it this weekend for the SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge, looking for the first win of the season in the SCORE Trophy Truck division. A record truck count of 32 assures fans that it will be a toughly contested round of racing. The competition begins Thursday with the highly popular $26,000 Laughlin Leap Challenge where competitors will hit the infield jump full-throttle, hoping to fly over 130 feet. Friday includes the only available time for course reconnaissance and competition on the 8-mile loop begins Saturday. A random drawing order placed Carl Renezeder in the number 17 starting position and Saturday’s finishing order will determine Sunday’s start.

Last year was the inaugural season for Team Renezeder’s Trophy Truck with some success and tons of education. At the 2005 SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge, a problem with the fuel mapping system caused and early end to Saturday’s contest for Carl, but he came back with a strong second place finish on Sunday.

All the familiar faces return as the crew for 2006:
Mike Seat, navigator, lead fabricator and mechanic
Larry Hawkins, lead mechanic
Brett Repella, mechanic
Mike Karaba, mechanic
Tommy Orduno, mechanic
Mark Rodriguez, fabricator
Shawn Walters, crew member
Travis Hawkins, crew member

With hopes of motor problems that Carl appropriately coined “the plague” at the SCORE Baja 1000 behind him, he’s coming out swinging in 2006, looking for the team’s first desert victory.

The entire season is airing on the Outdoor Life Network (OLN), produced by Aura 360. This race will air Thursday, February 2nd at 6:30pm EST, and re-air Tuesday, February 7the at 3:00pm EST. Check your local listings for confirmation of time and date.

Truck Specs (Chevy Silverado):
Weight: 6000 lbs
Tires: 35” x 12.50” x 17” BFGoodrich
Engine: Chevrolet – 750+hp
Transmission: Turbo 400
Suspension Travel: Unlimited
Lucas Oil lubricants, K&N filters, MSD ignition, Auto Meter gauges, King shocks,
MasterCraft seats and harnesses, Borla exhaust, Embee metal finishing, XRP plumbing, RaceProven alternators, Speed-O-Motive machining, American Axle & Manufacturing differentials and Sparco safety apparel

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LAKE FOREST, CA (January 18, 2006) Carl Renezeder came out of the gate for the 2006 season looking like he had something to prove. The truth is he finally had a truck underneath him that was worthy of his driving style. This past weekend at the SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge, more than 40,000 fans were treated to Carl’s aggressive attack of the course, witnessing how short-course skills translate in the desert.

In the first outing of 2006, Carl won the Chamber of Commerce sponsored Laughlin Leap at an impressive 159’. He then went on to win the first half of the Laughlin Desert Challenge, which was six eight-mile loops of the dusty, unforgiving Nevada terrain. It seemed like fate when the number 17 truck, starting from the 17th position, finished 17 seconds ahead of the field. If luck had stayed on his side, he would have completed the hat trick by winning Sunday. As luck would have it, a flat on lap two put him behind just enough to relegate him to second on the day and second overall by a mere 30 seconds.

“This one is for Jason Baldwin,” explained Carl at the finish line. “I just knew he was pushing me today and we tried everything we could, but that’s all we had. I drove it really hard and the truck stayed together. This old BFGoodrich truck is just awesome. Even though this course was short, it was pretty brutal. For this truck, it is one of our best finishes.”

After being plagued by motor problems last season in both the short course and desert programs, the team was finally able to exhale when the checkered flag flew on Sunday. A podium finish with a truck that drives back on the trailer is a great way to start a new year. Next on the agenda for Team Renezeder is the SCORE San Felipe 250, March 10-12, followed by the start of the CORR short course season May 20-21 in Chula Vista, California.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (March 6, 2006) After a successful start to the 2006 desert season at the SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge, Carl Renezeder is looking forward to tackling the brutal and adventurous trail that makes up this year’s SCORE Tecate San Felipe 250. Rough sections, narrow passes, scenic valleys, and kilos of shrimp are just a few things that will lure the team to the Sea of Cortez coastline in Baja Mexico this Saturday, March 11th.

“It’s basically the same course as last year, which means the all the teams will have an arsenal of notes,” explained Carl, after a recent prerunning trip. “That just means that I’ve really got to study the course, find all the fast lines, hit my marks and be on top of our game plan the entire race. There’s really no margin for error.”

The team goes into San Felipe with some confidence gained at the SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge, after winning the Laughlin Leap, winning the first day and finishing second overall by a mere 30 seconds. “I finally feel like I have a truck underneath me that’s not only a runner, but is reliable,” said Carl. The team has done its due diligence, spending multiple days prerunning and weeks meticulously going through the Lucas Oil Trophy Truck from front to back and top to bottom. The team is anxious for a win, and this weekend holds a lot of promise.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (March 13, 2006) Only six miles into the 250-mile race, a broken transmission ended all hopes of a win for Team Renezeder this past weekend at the SCORE Tecate San Felipe 250. The chase crew was at the truck in minutes, dropped the tranny, put a new one in and sent driver, Carl Renezeder, back on course. Unfortunately, there’s no opportunity in such a short race to make up that much downtime. The goal became to simply finish and salvage some points.

After the transmission change, the race was flawless for Carl. The rock strewn, brutal course took its toll on many teams, but Carl and co-driver, Mike Seat, had to change only one flat all day down in Matomi wash, enabling them to bring the #17 Lucas Oil/BFGoodrich Trophy Truck home 12th out of 30 entries. “Our guys were awesome today. They gave me a tough truck that withstood some of the harshest conditions we’ve ever seen and worked hard putting a new tranny in it so we could finish the race,” explained Carl. “We had a great truck today. It was just something out of our hands that kept us from the podium. But, we’ll be back, stronger than ever for the 500.”

The 2006 SCORE season resumes with the Tecate Baja 500 the first weekend of June, but Team Renezeder will be back to short course action before then when the Championship Off-Road Racing (CORR) season kicks off with rounds one and two in Chula Vista, California on May 20th and 21st.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (April 18, 2006) The 2006 Championship Off-Road Racing short course season officially kicks off this weekend in Chula Vista, California for the defending Lucas Oil Pro-2 Series Champion, Carl Renezeder. In Nissan’s first full season ever campaigning a Titan, Carl looks to make history by being the first driver to win a race and a championship in a Titan. In 2005, Carl dethroned Scott Taylor, the king of Pro-2, with four wins and many great races, securing the title before the final race of the season. In an unprecedented move, Carl sold his championship truck and built a brand new Nissan Titan to defend his title in 2006.

The Nissan Titan R&D truck debuted at the end of 2005 with a variety of drivers, including road racing stand out, Boris Said, at the Nissan Nationals. With an engine program developed by Menards Engine Development and Nissan Motorsports and ultimately built by Menards, the team goes into 2006 with high expectations for another title. The engine is based upon the VK56 Nissan Titan production power plant with a production cylinder block, and production cylinder heads and ignition coils. At 5.6 liters (approximately 340 cubic inches), the race version of this motor produces an estimated 715 horsepower and 500 ft. lbs. of torque.

“We’re eagerly looking forward to the 2006 CORR season,” said Ron Stukenberg, Senior Manager of Motorsports Marketing and Operations for Nissan. “With Carl Renezeder driving the Nissan Titan in Pro-2, it’s not a matter if we’ll be successful, but rather when. Carl is a proven champion and the Titan Endurance V-8 race engine is more than capable of winning in the CORR series.”

During the off-season, under the leadership of Mike Seat, the crew built the brand new Pro-2 from the ground up.

“I’m so excited about this Nissan program,” explained Carl. “Not only does it lend huge credibility to our program, but it’s a race package that’s going to be ultra competitive. I have total confidence that our Lucas Oil Nissan will back up our ’05 championship season with multiple wins and another championship. I can’t say enough about the support from Ron Stukenberg at Nissan, and Jim Steven’s expertise at Menards. They’re dedicated to this program, and my guys have built an incredible truck. We’re ready to go racing.”

Carl will continue to run in the Pro-4 division as well, where he won a championship in 2003 and the Nissan Nationals in 2005, finishing the season as runner-up in the point’s standings.

This season also marks the debut of Team Renezeder’s partnership with Sobe No Fear Energy Drink. Covering the rear quarter panels on the Pro-4, highlighting the B-post of the Pro-2 and filling the team with the energy necessary to race four times each weekend, the partnership is a refreshing addition to the Team Renezeder arsenal.

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CHULA VISTA, CA (May 21, 2006) The first weekend of the race season always brings with it great apprehension, anticipation, excitement and multiple unknowns. Add to it a brand new truck and power plant and plenty of high expectations and you end up with tension as thick as the clay on the track. But, Carl Renezeder’s team took it all in stride, put in the necessary hours and ingenuity, and came out on top this weekend for rounds one and two of the Championship Off-Road Racing season, bringing home two victories in the Lucas Oil Pro-4 division and a second place in the Lucas Oil Pro-2 division.

After months of R&D, the first ever Nissan Titan race truck rolled out onto the track in its series debut this weekend. Round one brought a few of the new-car unknowns to the surface, ultimately sidelining the truck with a thrown power steering and water pump belt. The tireless crew, led by fabricator, Mike Seat, and assisted by the engineers from Menard Engine Group, stayed up through the night solving all the problems that faced them in round one.

The Lucas Oil Pro-4 showed its muscle in round one, clinching the season opener in the same fashion as the last two seasons with very little practice time and consistency on the track. The truck, and its crew, led by Mike Karaba, did everything it took to get the job done and get another win in the record books.

Sunday dawned with the Titan crew still buttoning up the truck, hoping their changes were enough. Just three practice laps into the day you could practically hear the huge sigh of relief when the temperature gauges showed they were headed in the right direction. For the Pro-4, it was a matter of cleaning off the mud from round one, choosing the right tire grooves for the track, and heading out to staging that afternoon.

The round two starting line-up is contingent upon the round one finish, which meant Saturday’s DNF in the Lucas Oil Nissan relegated it to a back row for the land rush start, surrounded by rookie competitors. Carl’s goal was to stay out of trouble through the first turn, then get to work making his way through the field. And that he did.

“This is exactly why we’re here,” stated Ron Stukenberg, senior motorsports marketing and operations manager of Nissan North America, and genuine fan, as he watched Carl pick them off, one by one, finding quicker lines, showing patience, driven to make history by putting the Titan on the podium.

“We started almost last in a talented field of trucks and raced past everyone except Evan, and I was gaining on him,” explained an elated Renezeder. “I’ve never been more proud of my team and the effort it took them to get us here. It’s never been more evident that this is a team sport and there’s no way we’d be on this podium without their strength. We’re honored to be doing for Nissan, with the help of the brilliant minds at Menards. Jim Stevens, Bill Del’ve, Chris Sumner…those guys have helped elevate us to a level well beyond our expectations. Wow, this has been an incredible weekend.”

As if that weren’t enough, the work horse they call the Pro-4, doubled up, duplicating last season’s domination of the first weekend. An intense battle between Renezeder and renowned desert racer, Troy Herbst, in the closing laps of Sunday’s feature was the icing on the cake. With no power steering or rear brakes, Carl manhandled the truck to an exciting win.

“We brought another one home for Lucas Oil and we’re proud to be the first to deliver wins for Sobe No Fear,” explained Renezeder. “This is another testament to the expertise at Menards as well.”

With rounds one and two successfully in the books, Team Renezeder looks to Crandon with some new found confidence. The apprehension is gone, the anticipation has turned to excitement and the unknowns were uncovered to reveal the competitive package everyone worked hard to create. No one’s expecting a smooth ride from here on out, but it’s game on, and the competition promises to be fierce.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (May 31, 2006) Coming off of a successful start to the short course season and great showings at both the SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge and the Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250, Team Renezeder hopes to bring it all together for a win a the first big endurance test of the season: the Tecate SCORE Baja 500. Starting and finishing in Ensenada, Mexico, its 500 miles consist of everything the unforgiving Baja desert can throw at you. Teams will be tested with tight, rocky climbs, sand washes, forested passes, high speed sections and shock pounding whoops.

“The team that sticks to a good game plan, stays focused, endures the heat and has a little bit of luck will come out on top this year,” explained Carl Renezeder, solo pilot of the #17 Lucas Oil/BFGoodrich Trophy Truck.

Carl and his navigator and lead mechanic, Mike Seat, have been prerunning the course all week, finding the best lines through tough sections, marking hazards on the GPS, and memorizing as much as they can before Saturday’s event. One of the chase team and full time crew members, Shawn Walters, has been doing the same thing on his chase routes. If there’s a problem during the event, it’s pertinent that the crew be able to get to the race truck as quick as possible if needed. “Endless hours of preparation go into a race of this magnitude,” concluded Renezeder. “We want all the obstacles we can control out of the way before we get to the start line. That way it’s up to Baja as to whether or not this is our year.”

The event kicks off Friday with tech inspection and contingency, which resembles a huge street party. Then, racing starts early Saturday morning for the two wheel entries, followed two hours later by the Trophy Truck class. Carl drew the 14th starting position out of a record 43 entries, with each truck leaving the start line individually at thirty-second intervals. The winner is determined by the overall fastest time between the start line and the finish at the baseball stadium, and Team Renezeder hopes to be just that team.

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CHULA VISTA, CA (June 16, 2006) The weekend of June 24th and 25th marks the first of two visits to the unofficial “home” of short-course off-road racing: Crandon International Off-Road Raceway in Crandon, Wisconsin, host of the World Championships and the “Heavy Metal” two-race Challenge. Over the past eight CORR seasons, Carl has earned the nickname “Crandon Carl” with his dominant performances at the nation’s premiere off-road course.

“Our team loves going to Crandon,” commented Carl. “The track combines technical sections, high speed turns, jumps and straightaways and various hairpins that make it a driver’s dream.” Carl will be competing in both his Lucas Oil Nissan Pro-2 and Lucas Oil/SoBe No Fear Pro-4 next weekend, confidently relying on his BFGoodrich Mud Terrains to get him to the front.

“BFGoodrich has done more for the sport of off-road racing than any other company I can think of,” explained Carl, who’s been competing exclusively on BFGs for the past 14 years. “They provide track-side support, have the best engineers constantly monitoring and improving the tires, and have a winning record that speaks to the unmatched quality and performance. This year’s new tire proves their commitment to innovation and desire to win championships. We hope to bring home two more championships for BFG and all of our sponsors this season.”

The coming race weekend hosts rounds three and four of the CORR season, which will be broadcast in its entirety this fall on SPEED Channel, as well as the Forest County Potowatomi Chairman’s Cup. The Cup race is the first of two “Heavy Metal Challenge” races hosted by Crandon, that not only pay big money, but hold even greater prestige. Carl won the FCP Chairman’s Cup in 2004 and put up a great fight in 2005 against the Pro-4s in his Pro-2 truck in one of the most exciting races of the season. This year, Carl looks to earn the Cup back.

Following Crandon, the CORR Lucas Oil Series heads north to Michigan’s upper peninsula for rounds five and six in Bark River.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (June 29, 2006) For many teams, a second place finish in Pro-4 at the premier off-road short course in the country would equal a great weekend. Not so for the perfectionists that make up Team Renezeder. While Carl has podiumed three out of four races this season in CORR’s Lucas Oil Pro-4 division, that accomplishment was quickly overshadowed by a broken transmission on Saturday in the Pro-4, the loss of an accessory belt on Saturday and a broken shock shaft on Sunday in the Pro-2, and Carl riding out a wicked solo Pro-4 wreck in the Chairman’s Cup Sunday afternoon. To say the least, the weekend added up to one that’s better forgotten.

On a good note, Carl’s headache is gone, the truck is being put back together and the accessory belt problem looks to be a thing of the past. The team will shake down the Nissan Lucas Oil Pro-2 at Crandon before heading to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula for rounds five and six at Bark River Raceway, July 8th and 9th.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (June 30, 2006) What started out as a stellar 2006 CORR season for Carl Renezeder was checked up last weekend in rounds three and four at Crandon International Off Road Raceway. With hopes that the “little things” that keep coming up to bite the team are out of the way, Carl heads to Bark River Raceway in upper peninsula Michigan next weekend for what he hopes is a turn around in performance.

“We opened the season with two wins in Pro-4 and a second place finish with our brand new Nissan Pro-2,” explained Carl. “Crandon was rough on us, but we think we have things figured out to get back to our winning ways at Bark River.”

Carl’s optimism is backed by the intense hours of work the crew is putting in to get the Lucas Oil Pro-4 back on its feet. In a roost of dirt during the Chairman’s Cup race, Carl moved the truck to a different line on course that turned out not to exist. What did exist, however, were stout trees and, in the end, a stout headache and a torn up race truck. The wicked ride left Carl with a slight concussion, multiple sore body parts, and more determination than ever to get these trucks back on top of the podium. “We’re committed to running a winning program, so one weekend of bad luck won’t keep us down,” concluded Carl.

Rounds five and six of the Championship Off-Road Racing Lucas Oil Series will be held July 8th and 9th in Bark River, Michigan. The racing will be covered via tape-delayed SPEED Channel telecasts. Check your local listings for dates and times.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (July 13, 2006) Each time Carl Renezeder lines up for a race he knows he has a truck that can win, but for many reasons, the two wins at the UP Off-Road Races in Bark River, Michigan this past weekend meant everything to Carl and his team. For the first time in history, Carl drove a Nissan Titan race truck to victory on Saturday, passing seven competitors on the track to earn the win. Then, after nearly destroying his Lucas Oil/SoBe No Fear Pro-4 in Crandon two weeks earlier during the Chairman’s Cup race, the crew’s long hours spent bringing it back to life were honored with a convincing win on Sunday afternoon.

“This is huge,” commented Carl after the Lucas Oil Nissan Pro-2 win. “We said from the beginning that this package would be competitive, but to earn the first win here today feels like the biggest thing we’ve ever done. I’m so proud of my crew and what they’ve accomplished. I’m just the lucky guy that gets to hold the wheel.”

The Pro-4 looked to be on its way to a podium finish on Saturday as well, but with only half a lap remaining, a broken rear track rod relegated Carl to limping across the line for a sixth place finish. Sunday started with a similar issue in the Pro-2, but this time it was a snapped bolt in the front spindle, collapsing the left front corner of the truck, ending the day only three laps into the race.

“I just couldn’t get out of the roosts and the dust,” explained Carl. “Then just before the downhill jump I hit a tire that marked the outside of the course, which launched me at an awkward angle off the jump and caused the truck to land with all its weight on the left corner. At that point, something had to give, and luckily it’s an easy repair. I’m disappointed that we broke today, but it certainly won’t take anything away from the win yesterday. This Titan is a runner; we’re looking forward to Chula Vista. And with the Pro-4 back on top of its game, it should be a good weekend all the way around.”

It’s another short turn around and a long drive back to the west coast for the next CORR race in Chula Vista, California on July 22nd and 23rd, which will mark the end of the first half of the season. Carl left Bark River leading the Pro-4 points and 6th in the Pro-2 division.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (July 18, 2006) The second of four events in Chula Vista, California on the 2006 Championship Off-Road Racing schedule will also mark the end of the first half of the points chase for the Lucas Oil Pro Series this weekend, July 22nd and 23rd. Carl Renezeder hopes that the successes at Bark River carry their momentum into the Southern California event, and the race trucks roll back on the trailer ready to race.

“Our season has had plenty of ups and downs so far. We’re hoping to build on the success from Bark River and that the early season bugs are finally gone,” explained Carl. “It would be great to stretch out more of a points lead in Pro-4 and gain on the leaders in Pro-2. With the scoring system allowing us to throw out a bad weekend this season, we’re hoping that our worst is behind us and plenty of podium finishes ahead.”

Still focused on two championships, Carl enters the Nissan Off Road Rumble at the Ranch event leading the Pro-4 points by two and trailing the Pro-2 leader by 18 points in eighth place. For more details on current scoring visit www.corracing.com.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (July 24, 2006) Carl Renezeder sparked excitement and controversy as the Championship Off-Road Racing season closed the door on the first half of the 2006 season this past weekend in Chula Vista, California. Proving that the new Nissan is a now a rock-solid force in contention to win every race, Carl won rounds seven and eight by more than a straight-away both days against a full field of talent and great equipment.

Throughout the weekend, fans commented on Carl’s smart driving style and natural ability to stay out trouble and find fast lines. With the Menard Engine Group Nissan Titan powerplant under the hood and a hot shoe in the driver’s seat, Team Renezeder has delivered three wins in four races to the great folks at Nissan that had the foresight to believe in the program. The Lucas Oil Nissan Titan is officially on the map as a serious runner.

And now enter the Lucas Oil Pro-4. Power’s no problem with Bill Schlieper’s Pro-Power big cubic inch beast under the hood. Reliability isn’t an issue with Mike Karaba in control of the reins. And the talent portion is covered with Carl Renezeder holding the wheel. However, the best race of the CORR season was marred by a controversial call by officials to hold results after the checkered flag was thrown and Carl was handed the hardware. Fans loved the close racing and the daring outside/inside move that Carl used in the chicane on the final lap. Cheering outweighed the jeering in the stands and in the end the officials (the same ones that throw a mandatory yellow with six laps to go to bunch up the field for close finishes) felt a 10-point deduction was in order for Carl’s side-by-side contact with Scott Douglas. Douglas’ retaliation punt was disregarded as a non-issue.

“I felt that Douglas missed his line and opened the door for me to capitalize,” commented Carl after four hours of official deliberation. “There was incidental side-by-side contact, I hit the brakes, dove inside, made the pass, was tagged in the rear and then throttled up through the final corner for the win. Hard-fought battles on the track make this sport fun for the drivers and the fans. I’m proud of my guys for the truck they gave me and feel bad for them that there was even an issue. We’re glad to put this behind us and look forward to Bark River and Crandon.”

The series takes a two-weekend break before revving back up in Bark River, Michigan for rounds nine and ten on August 11th and 12th.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (August 15, 2006) After winning four out of the last six races in the Pro-2 division of CORR’s Lucas Oil Racing Series, Carl Renezeder sits only five points behind the leader after rounds nine and ten in Bark River, Michigan this past weekend. With two fourth place finishes in the Pro-4 at the UP100 Off Road Races, Carl also sits in second in the four-wheel drive division by just 12 points.

Saturday played host to round nine of the 16-race series. The Pro-2 race got off to a great start for Team Renezeder’s Lucas Oil Nissan Titan. Carl reached the end of the land rush start without a scratch on the truck, crossing the start/finish line in fourth place to start lap one. He made short work of two trucks on the first lap and completely closed the gap on the leader by lap seven of the ten-lap race. With a plan of waiting for the leader to make a mistake over the next couple laps, Carl was definitely the faster truck and positioned for another win. Unfortunately, a broken accessory belt driveline ended Carl’s day two laps from the finish, relegating him to a 13th place finish.

The start of the Pro-4 race on Saturday could be likened to a pinball game with Carl’s Lucas Oil/SoBe No Fear truck as the ball. While he got a good jump on the field, another driver behind him decided to stay on the throttle, turning another truck into Carl, bouncing him off of a third truck. Then, to add insult to injury, he was tagged again on the switchback before the start/finish line and launched into the air when he hooked rear wheels with Josh Baldwin. When he finally got going, he was in eighth place and well behind the field. In the end, Carl got around four trucks and salvaged some points with a hard fought fourth place finish.

Sunday was a much better day for the Lucas Oil Nissan Pro-2. An equally successful land rush start put Carl in second at the start of the first lap and by lap two he had passed Travis Coyne for the lead and never looked back. Carl put win number four in the history books for Nissan and their popular Titan brand and put himself back in the second place position in points, only five points behind Jerry Welchel.

As for the Pro-4, it was another “wrong place, wrong time” start for the BFGoodrich-shoed Team Renezeder entry. Scott Douglas was clipped in the back by Johnny Greaves and ended up sideways in front of Carl at the end of the land rush. By the time Carl backed up and got around Douglas, he was second to last. While able to pick off a truck every two laps, Carl simply ran out of time and again rolled across the finish line in fourth place. With a mediocre weekend in the Pro-4, he still sits in second place in the points, 12 points behind leader, Johnny Greaves.

“I want it all,” remarked Carl at the end of the weekend. “I want to celebrate the win in the Nissan today, but I’m disappointed with the rest of the results. As a competitor, it’s tough to separate each race. But, we’re grateful for the one win and glad to still be in the hunt for both championships.”

On Labor Day weekend, Carl heads to the track that has nicknamed him “Crandon Carl” because of his success over the years. He’ll have a chance at another World Championship title on Saturday and will chase the money Sunday afternoon in the second of two “heavy metal” challenge races this season: the coveted BorgWarner Cup race.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (August 25, 2006) In the four consecutive seasons leading up to 2006, Carl Renezeder has walked away from the famous Labor Day event at Crandon International Off-Road Raceway with a Champions’ Ring, three times in Pro-4 and once in Pro-2. He was also the winner of the coveted BorgWarner Cup in 2004. This coming holiday weekend, Carl hopes to add to his collection.

“How can you not love Crandon,” asks 2005 CORR Lucas Oil Pro-2 Series champion, Carl Renezeder. “As a driver it combines the X and Y factors: speed and technical sections, with the z factor: flying through the air. There’s no other rush quite like it.”

Racers require guts, talent and endurance to win at Crandon. The end of the land rush start funnels into a four-wide, off camber, 100-mph, descending apex turn not meant for the faint at heart. If you survive that, the course then requires plenty of talent over the next 1.75 miles with jumps leading into turns that have broken plenty of parts over the past few decades, as well as high-speed and hairpin turns that, when used correctly, provide several places to pass. Do that well for ten laps and you just might go home on Sunday with a shiny new Champions’ Ring, the BorgWarner hardware and plenty of spending money.

So, when thousands of fans descend upon Crandon, and teams roll in the back gate, Team Renezeder is glad to be a small part of why the people come to experience some of the greatest racing this country has to offer.

Carl heads to Wisconsin in second place in both the Pro-4 and Pro-2 CORR Lucas Oil Divisions. It’s his goal to head back to California with awards in hand and the lead in both his Lucas Oil SoBe No Fear Pro-4 and his Lucas Oil Nissan Pro-2.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (September 6, 2006) The 2006 CORR season has been filled with highs and lows for defending Lucas Oil Pro-2 Champion, Carl Renezeder. Fortunately, the highs have outweighed the lows and he finds himself second in the Pro-4 division and leading the Pro-2 points as the team heads home for the final four rounds of the season in Chula Vista, California.

“It’s hard to believe that in its first year of competition, this Lucas Oil Nissan Pro-2 has won five out of 12 events,” commented Renezeder after his win in Crandon, Wisconsin over Labor Day weekend. “We had confidence that this truck would be strong, but to win nearly half of the races so far this year is a huge accomplishment.”

The Lucas Oil/Sobe No Fear Pro-4 has had its ups and downs as well. But with four wins on the season, a new track record at Crandon and second place in the points heading home, the team is in great shape to chase down the Pro-4 title.

“With all the new trucks that have been built over the last two years in the Pro-4 division, we feel pretty fortunate to be in the hunt for the Pro-4 title this season,” explained Renezeder. “This truck is a work horse that never lets me down. We had a run of bad luck throughout different parts of the season that has put us 13 points behind Johnny in the points battle, but anything can happen. We’re going to do everything in our power to be on top by the time the final checkered flag waves in October.”

With a great team behind him and the home town fans to cheer him on, Carl Renezeder is definitely one of the favorites in each of the final four rounds of the CORR season here in Southern California.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (September 12, 2006) The 2006 CORR and SCORE seasons have been filled with highs and lows for defending Lucas Oil Pro-2 Champion, Carl Renezeder. Fortunately, the highs have outweighed the lows as he finds himself second in the Pro-4 division and leading the Pro-2 points as the team heads home for the final four rounds of the season in Chula Vista, California. A third place finish in the desert, after leading most of the day in his Lucas Oil SCORE Trophy Truck at the Las Vegas PRIMM 300, has also added to the team’s confidence and enthusiasm.

“It’s hard to believe that in its first year of competition, this Lucas Oil Nissan Pro-2 has won five out of the last seven races,” commented Renezeder after his win in Crandon, Wisconsin over Labor Day weekend. “We had confidence that this truck would be strong, but to win nearly half of the races so far this year is a huge accomplishment.”

The Lucas Oil/Sobe No Fear Pro-4 has had its ups and downs as well. But with four wins on the season, a new track record at Crandon and second place in the points heading home, the team is in great shape to chase down the Pro-4 title.

“With all the new, lighter trucks that have been built over the last two years in the Pro-4 division, we feel pretty fortunate to be in the hunt for the Pro-4 title this season,” explained Renezeder. “This truck is a work horse that never lets me down. We’ve had a run of bad luck throughout different parts of the season that has put us 13 points behind Johnny in the points battle, but anything can happen. We’re going to do everything in our power to be on top by the time the final checkered flag waves in October.”

As if running two trucks in the CORR series isn’t enough, the team stopped in Nevada on its way back from Crandon to carve out 300 miles in the desert, looking for the team’s first win in two very short seasons.

“It felt great to be in contention all day,” smiled Carl. “Like Laughlin in January, I felt like we were the team to beat on Saturday. But, we ran out of luck on the last lap when an o-ring in the fuel injection system failed us. It’s crazy that such a small part can have such a huge impact, but when you’re running against guys like Bob Shepherd (the 2005 SCORE Series Champion), you have to be flawless. On a positive note, we salvaged a third place finish and feel a lot more confident in our entire desert program.”

With sponsors that believe in him, a great team behind him and the home town fans to cheer him on, Carl Renezeder is definitely one of the favorites in each of the final four rounds of the CORR season here in Southern California.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (September 26, 2006) In one of the closest points battles of CORR history, Carl Renezeder still sits atop the leader board in the Lucas Oil Pro-2 division, but only by one point. Two ninth place finishes could have been disastrous if the other drivers in the top five didn’t also have problems. Unlucky and lucky could have easily described Carl’s weekend in his Lucas Oil Nissan Pro-2 and Lucas Oil/SoBe No Fear Pro-4. Two second places finishes in the four-wheel drive class eased some of the pain, but Carl desperately wanted a couple wins in that division as well, as Johnny Greaves extended his points lead by eight more markers.

“What a crazy weekend,” commented Carl. “On Saturday in the Pro-2 we broke a five dollar fitting on an oil line. Our Lucas 20/50 racing oil is awesome, but it has to be in the motor to work.”

He further lamented, “And then in the Pro-4 race on Sunday, I was looking forward to battling for a win when part of Huseman’s front bumper came through the driver’s side door and switched off the ignition. What are the odds of that happening?”

In Saturday’s Pro-4 race, Curt LeDuc’s front bumper partially tore off Carl’s rear bumper, forcing him to pit during the mandatory yellow to remove it fully for safety reasons. He exited the pits after the field took the green on the restart and then gave the crowd a good show as he made up that distance and worked his way to second in five short laps.

Sunday’s Pro-2 race was equally as disappointing as Saturday’s event when he was spun out on the first lap while running fourth. Not to be denied, he worked his way back into the top three, only to have something break in the motor, leaving him to limp to a ninth place finish.

The weekend could have dashed all hopes of a championship, but Carl still finds himself as the guy to beat in Pro-2, albeit with a minuscule margin for error. The 2006 season concludes with the final two rounds of racing back at Chula Vista International Raceway, just outside San Diego, California the weekend of October 21st and 22nd.

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LAKE FOREST, CA (October 17, 2006) What do you say in times like these? Carl Renezeder is just one point ahead of the competition as defending champion of the CORR Lucas Oil Pro-2 division, and 21 points behind the defending CORR Lucas Oil Pro-4 division champion as he heads to the final weekend of the 2006 season. Do you offer up the cliché “may the best man win”? While that’s certainly the sportsman-like thing to do, it just doesn’t seem like enough.

“I want it to be decided on the track, that’s for sure,” commented Carl. “I want this championship to be about beating the best drivers on their best days. I’ve got total confidence in the engine program that Menards delivers and in the truck my crew gives me. It’ll be in my hands from this point forward, and I don’t want to let anyone down. Anything less than the championship is unacceptable for our program.”

Carl has proven over the years that he works best under pressure. He has passed and held off the best of them. Even with a brand new truck and motor program, Carl finds himself with nine wins between the Pro-2 and Pro-4 divisions this season and 43 wins and two championships in eight short seasons. He’d like to add four wins and two championships to that tally this weekend.

“An outsider may look at our season and call it a success regardless of how this weekend turns out,” continues Carl. “But as the guy that climbs into these trucks every weekend, I want to win every time we take the green. I’ve got a group of guys that sacrifice a lot of hours and sweat building and prepping flawless trucks and a group of sponsors that support us unfailingly; to come in second place is not an adequate way to pay back that loyalty.”

If ever there were a weekend to come out and watch short course racing at its finest, this would be it. October 21st and 22nd will host the finale of the closest points battle in CORR history and will put a punctuation mark of some sort on Carl Renezeder’s season. Fingers are crossed in hopes of it being a positive one, period.

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CHULA VISTA, CA (October 23, 2006) To say tension was high this weekend in the Team Renezeder camp would be an understatement. Carl Renezeder entered the weekend only one point ahead in the CORR Lucas Oil Pro-2 division and 21 points behind in the Lucas Oil Pro-4 division. The four-wheel drive class championship was decided early in Saturday’s race when Johnny Greaves ran over the front end of Carl’s Lucas Oil Sobe No Fear machine, taking him out of the race and the championship hunt. But, in the two-wheel drive class you could throw a blanket over the top five in points, making a win in the final two rounds almost mandatory to bring the hardware home. On Saturday, Carl did just that by passing 11 fierce competitors in just 15 nail-biting laps.

“Ideally, we’d have had a better start and I wouldn’t have had to work around so many trucks,” explained Carl. “But, that was the hand dealt to me and I had my mind set on the win. It felt great to race our way to the front. The win on Saturday gave us a small amount of breathing room, but it didn’t lessen the pressure to perform in Sunday’s race. The tension kept growing and the team rose to the occasion all weekend.”

Prior to Saturday’s race, lead mechanic, Brett Repella, found a leaking water pump, and the team was able to resolve an issue that could have been catastrophic to the championship chase. And on Sunday, Carl was delivered another flawless Lucas Oil Nissan by his crew that he had to bring home fifth or better to secure the title. If only it were that easy.

Conservative. That was the goal. Keep Mike Oberg in sight and bring the truck home in one piece. But, three of the four drivers of the Amsoil Super Team had another goal in mind. At the time of the restart after the mandatory yellow, Carl found himself where he thought he wanted to be, just behind Oberg which, if the race ended that way, would lock the title for Carl. But, Dan Vandenhuevel and Scott Douglas worked hard to keep Carl from the championship, hoping to team up to help their own win the title. Try as they might, Carl took five laps of beatings and still came out of the melee with his second CORR Lucas Oil Pro-2 titles in as many years.

“This is unbelievable,” beamed Carl. “We started out this season with a brand new truck, thinking that if we could win one race with this new program we’d consider the season a success. We far exceeded our own expectations and are so fortunate that guys like Ron Stukenberg at Nissan and Mark Simo at No Fear were willing to take a chance on us, and folks like Forrest Lucas, Bob Patison, Tom Fredrickson and Jamie Devney at Lucas Oil and Todd Steen, Frank DeAngelo and Dennis Weaver at BFGoodrich still believe in us eight years into this team’s short course career. To deliver another championship to Lucas Oil and BFG and give the first championship to Nissan and SoBe No Fear is truly a privilege.”

In a perfect world the team would have been in the hunt for the Lucas Oil Pro-4 title as well on Sunday, but it just wasn’t in the cards. Carl headed out to the starting line for both the final points race of the Pro-4 season and the inaugural Jason Baldwin Memorial Cup hoping for a good race and another win to cap off the season. The racing started out great in both but a front flat in the points race and something broken in the drivetrain in the Cup race relegated Carl to a fourth place finish and a DNF respectively. He finished the season second in the Pro-4 chase.

In a season where the extreme highs and lows swapped places as often as the Pro-2 championship contenders, and on the same weekends Carl would find himself winning a race by 30 truck lengths and then follow it up with a disappointing part failure, it’s difficult to sum up what the championship really means. More than anything else, the title is confirmation of the dedication the entire team has to accepting nothing short of winning. From the guys that put the trucks on the track to the sponsors that believe in the team, and from the guy that holds the wheel and slams the pedal to the floor to the fans that scream his name, they all won a championship that doesn’t seem like nearly enough payment for their commitment and enthusiasm. But, when all is said and done, the trophy is what the racing world uses to define success, so with humility and graciousness, the team will put it in the trophy case as a token of their hard work and starting thinking about how it can be even better in 2007.

Quick stats on Carl:
Birth date: April 16, 1964
Residence: Laguna Beach, CA
Family: Wife: Kelley; 4 Children
Education: UCLA graduate, 1987; All-American Water Polo player
Hobbies: XTERRA triathlon, swimming, cycling, skiing, snowboarding, surfing

44 Career CORR Wins
2006: CORR Pro-2 Champion; 4 CORR Pro-4 wins; 6 CORR Pro-2 wins; Won SCORE Laughlin Leap
(159’), Won Day 1, 2nd overall at the SCORE Laughlin Desert Challenge; 3rd in SCORE Las Vegas PRIMM 300
2005: CORR Pro-2 Champion; 9 CORR wins, including the Nissan Nationals in Pro-4; 2nd in CORR Pro-4 points
2004: 8 CORR wins; Governor’s Cup Champion; 2nd in CORR Pro-4 points; 3rd in CORR Pro-2 points
2003: CORR Pro-4 Champion; 8 CORR wins; Borg Warner World Champion; 2nd in CORR Pro-2 points
1994-2002: 9 CORR wins and multiple podiums in CORR; Won SCORE Baja 1000 (Class 1 – 1994); 2 podium finishes in SCORE Baja 500

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