Championship number two for Heidi Steele and a great year for the Desert Assassins

Heidi Steele and team clinch second championship of the year at BITD finale this weekend.

Justin “Bean” Smith and the Eddy Bros add to 2009 Championship total for the Desert Assassins.


In a history-making season Heidi Steele along with her teammates Rene Brugger, Danny Street Jr. and Tim Lawrence clinch both premiere off road racing championships in their Lucas Oil/Yokohama Tire FORD Ranger. Securing the titles in SCORE, which is famous for the Baja 1000 and the Best In the Desert series is a feat rumored to only be accomplished by one other team in history from the research found.

Heidi is the first ever women to win a pro-series truck title in SCORE and won her championship this weekend in Best in the Desert, which is the first year in history that any woman has won a championship title in that series.

Heidi and her team took 3 wins in 2009 making 8 total podium appearances in ten races between both series. The team at West Racing has been prepping the truck for a predominant amount of the season and deserves the most credit with the ability to field a freshly prepped truck at 7 of 10 races. Heidi’s husband Cameron is a 20 plus year Baja veteran and said “I have seen drivers with years of experience melt under the pressure of a single race win let alone a championship. To see my 5’8” 110 lb wife take on two major race series with all the pressure along with the elements and bring home two championships proved to me she is a warrior beyond measure.”

Prior to this weekend the Desert Assassins had also scored championships in the 1600 class with Adam Pfankuch driving his K.I.T. racing/Yokohama sponsored car and DA Kingpin Cameron Steele winning the SNORE Unlimited Truck title for 2008. Rick St. John who is also part of the extended family brought Yokohama Tires one of their four SCORE season titles in 2009 with not one flat tire during the year. Adam is a prior overall SCORE title holder and a former multiple time class champion as well.

This weekend marked the final race in 2009 and along with the 7100 championship (mid size trucks) the Desert Assassins had much to celebrate. Justin “Bean” Smith who has been a DA member since inception locked his 2nd ever class title by winning the race with close friend Sigal Greenberg. Sigal who along with Heidi became the first women to ever win a class title in BITD teamed with Justin for all of 2008 and split driving duties. Sigal and Justin celebrated the championship by winning class 1100 for semi limited buggies, a class known more prominently by the name SCORE Lite. Justin started his racing career as a navigator and has become a top-level driver proving once again that he has developed the skills to be a champion, which he looks to prove again next year in the 1600 class at the SCORE series.

Barstow, CA natives Max and Matt Eddy who have been a part of the Desert Assassins moto team in Baja for the past 3 years brought home the Professional 4-stroke title in the BITD series. Matt and Max are twins that have been making quite the name for themselves as top riders in the desert. The brothers recently finished in the top 5 at the Baja 1000 in the Open Pro bike class and now will run the BITD championship number for 2009.

Also this past weekend DA members Adam and Danny Ashcraft took the class 1000 win at the final race of the season in their Western CNC/Yokohama Tire car. Adam will be contesting his first full year in BITD class 1000 in 2009 so this is a great way to prepare for the future with the same car they will campaign.

Over the three years since the Desert Assassins have become a team the main members and the extended family have worked hard to be more than just racers and champions. The goal for the team is racing domination while promoting a great experience for all racers and crews in the desert.

You can see the DA on TV this week as the SCORE Baja 1000 will air this Sunday on NBC nationally, check your local listings for the time in your hood.

2008 Desert Assassins tale of the tape

SCORE
7sx Champions – Driver of Record Heidi Steele
1600 Champions - Driver of Record Adam Phankuch
8th SCORE Trophy Truck – Driver of Record Cameron Steele

BITD
7100 Champions – Driver of Record Heidi Steele
1100 Champions – Driver of Record Sigal Greenburg
4 Stroke Pro Champions – Rider of Record Max/Matt Eddy

SNORE
Unlimited Truck Champions – Driver of Record Cameron Steele

The Desert Assassins racked up 13 major Race wins in the last year – more to come as Brian Burgess, Darren Hardesty and Aaron Hawley get back in the race game with the rest of the Desert Assassins crew in 2009.

Heidi and her team would like to thank the sponsors who have supported them win two championships this season; Lucas Oil Products/Yokohama Tire/ATX Wheels/FOX Racing Shox/Currie Enterprises/Camburg Engineering/KC HiLiTES/Blue C Advertising/MasterCraft/Deaver Springs/VP Race Fuel/PCI Race Radios, UNI Filters and West Racing.