| DuneFest 2011 at Winchester Bay, OR
DuneFest takes place at Winchester Bay in theOregon Dunes National Recreation Area. This year’s event took place August 3 – 7, 2011. If you have never been to DuneFest, put it on your calendar. There is so much going on that you could spend your whole time in the vendor area and checking out events and racing without ever getting out into the dunes to ride. Reedsport/Winchester Bay Chamber of Commerce puts on DuneFest, and I have got to say they do a great job keeping everything organized and making it an enjoyable experience. There were four ATV/UTV Manufacturers on location near the main stage. Yamaha, Kawasaki, Arctic Cat and Can-Am were giving demo rides of the Teryx, Commander, Rhino and select ATVs.
For this trip I brought along my2011 Kawasaki Teryx with a new 916cc Muzzys engine and a set of paddle tires from Fullerton Sand Sports. When not out riding in the dunes, it was displayed on Vendor Row in the Got Sand? booth and also at the Kawasaki demo trailer.
This was the first time in the dunes with our 2011 Kawasaki Teryx and I was very impressed. After rock crawling in Moab and on the Rubicon, the dunes are a completely different animal, and it performed well. The extra power from the Muzzys 916cc v-twin added just enough to get me through the dunes at a good pace. With the extra power, I was even more excited about the LoneStar Racing +5″ XTR-F suspension with Fox shocks. Stable, plush, but firm when I needed it. I even went on a night ride and put my Rigid Industries Dually LED lights to the test. They turned night into day. Enough said! I arrived on Tuesday and unloaded quickly as this was my first trip to the dunes with my new 916cc Muzzys engine. I hooked up with friends that all had RZRs and had a blast with the beautiful weather and expansive coastal dunes. We even found a jumping spot and some of the guys aired it out a bit.
Wednesday’s competition included the Tug-of-war. The Tug-of-war replaced last year’s tractor pull and I am not quite sure why this was changed. Tug-of-war just doesn’t work with UTVs. They turn into roto-tillers and bury themselves without making much of any forward movement. Check out the video below and you will see. I hope they switch back to the tractor pull for next year.
Later in the day, I hooked up with Elka Suspension as they installed and tuned a set of Stage 4 shocks on Dave’s Polaris RZR XP. It is very cool when aftermarket manufacturers and vendors are on location to sell, install, tune and answer questions.
Thursday came and I joined up with JC and Shane fromMotorcycleUSA.com for a ride. They had brought out their demo Polaris RZR XP that had some aftermarket dirt tires that really spun up in the sand. Not the greatest choice for performance in the sand, but they threw up a nice roost! After some riding, JC decided it was time to get some air as well.
I joined up with a Bill Lanphier as he went out for a sand car photo shoot, and Dave, Seth and Jay came along. Much to my liking, this group doesn’t like to sit around much. So while Bill was busy shooting photos of the sand car, we played around in the dunes. I jumped out to snap some photos after Seth Fargher from DWT decided to go big on a Suzuki Z400. While that was going on, I tossed my Teryx keys to Dave from Fullerton Sand Sports and he took a quick spin.
Later in the day, it was back to the main event area to check out the UTV Barrel Racing. Three barrels were setup in a standard Western Barrel pattern that looks like a triangle. Riders had to negotiate some very tight corners.
Later in the afternoon, it was time for the Show & Shine. Just a handful of UTVs competed in the event, but there were some nice paint jobs on display.
Friday morning started as usual in the vendor area, but I was over at the American Sand Association booth helping sell raffle tickets for the 2011 Buckshot sand car. This car is being raffled off and will be given away at the 2011 Sand Sports Super Show in September.
After the coastal fog had burned off it was time for a Helicopter Ride over the Winchester Bay dunes! I hooked up with the official DuneFest 2011 photographer and went up withApex Helicopters. Apex is based up in Florence, and run tours of the dunes on a regular basis.
GoPro video of the Winchester Bay Sand Dunes during DuneFest 2011
After the helicopter ride, it was time to head back main stage area for the Last Man Standing UTV Race. This event is on a pretty tight track and has two drivers sent out at a time with a double elimination. Once they’ve lost twice, they are out of the race. The course is real tight and there is not much room to pass so typically whoever got the holeshot, ended up winning the race. A Polaris RZR XP won the race and was also the most popular entry, but there was also a few Yamaha Rhinos a Kawasaki Teryx and a few RZR S.
Saturday, I hooked up with Dave from Fullerton Sand Sports and the guys from K&T Performance to get a closer look at what they have done for turbo kits with the Polaris RZR XP. I got a chance to drive K&T’s white RZR XP that was sporting their pump gas turbo kit. Although they still had some clutch tuning to do, the XP had some crazy power! We cruised the dunes for a while then found a spot where we could get some wheelie shots. Dave drove the white XP and Rayce drove their race XP. The power to weight ratio that these cars put down is very impressive.
Turbo Polaris RZR XP – white on pump gas and black on race gas. In The Dunes
Ovation Award winner of “The Best Sporting Event in Oregon”. This five-day event is filled with exciting fun activities including adult and kid activities, Moto Cross Racing, Sand Drags, Poker Run, Treasure Hunt, Show N Shine, Drive-In Movie Night, Charity Auction, Freestyle Shows, evening entertainment featuring Rock The Dunes Friday and Saturday nights. Vendor Row offers ATVs, clothing, crafts, ATV accessories, and food booths. DuneFest offers A Kids Safe ATV Riding Area, Exciting Activities for all skill and age ranges, Non Ethanol Gasoline, premium fuel 92 octane, available in Salmon Harbor at the fuel dock, and a free shuttle bus service from Winchester Bay. With the help of hundreds of volunteers, DuneFest is the premiere ATV sand event in the country. DuneFest is a family-friendly atmosphere and boasts the slogan: “THE MOST FUN A FAMILY CAN HAVE IN THE SAND” Facilities under Special Use Permit with the Siuslaw National Forest & Douglas County Parks. Visit Vendor Row to find ATV accessories, clothing, and food. Vendor Row will open daily from 9am to 6pm with food vendors staying open later for you to enjoy fresh Dungeness crab or BBQ Ribs for dinner. DuneFest 2011 Schedule of Events: TUESDAY, August 2nd THURSDAY, August 4th THURSDAY DRAGS Oregon Off-Road Drag Association Sand Drag Racing 9:00 am – 1:00 pm Drag Strip Opens Test & Tune. ROCK THE DUNES Music & Dancing FRIDAY DRAGS Oregon Off-Road Drag Association Sand Drag Racing DRAG STRIP SATURDAY, August 6th ROCK THE DUNES Music & Dancing Oregon Off-Road Drag Association Sand Drag Racing DRAG STRIP Free Air Station located at the Pre-Registration Booth location Provided by United Rentals and Mast Bros. Towing Keep The Oregon Dunes Clean by leaving your area pristine Please leave garbage at the dumpsters Drive Safely! Links: |
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