Team ATK Wins Back to Back Baja 1000 Victories

Team ATK Skilton/Krellwitz Jeep Wrangler Score Back to Back Baja 1000 Victories


The ATK powered Jeep proved its toughness once again at this year’s 42nd running of the SCORE Baja 1000 when it crossed the finish line in Ensenada, Mexico after 24 hours and 11 minutes of brutal Baja racing, besting all class competitors for a second straight Baja 1000 class 3 victory. The race marked 9 wins in 10 races for the ATK Jeep, including two Baja 1000's and a Baja 500.



Darren Skilton, along with co-driver Skyler Gambrell, piloted the race Jeep for the first 400 miles of the event; charging from the rear start position in Class 3 (short wheel base 4wd) to the front of the pack in the first 15 miles of the course. They went on to tackle the treacherous Sierra de Juarez summit and the rough and rocky San Felipe loop through the Matomi Wash. They handed the car off to Jon Krellwitz and Patrick Smith at the BFG pit just north of San Felipe in Borrego at 11 o'clock pm with a 50 mile lead on the nearest class competitor. Averaging 38 miles per/hour and passing nearly 100 cars in the first 400 miles of the race, Skilton stepped out of the vehicle to comment that, "This ATK Jeep is one tough vehicle, I drove it hard all day and it took the beating with ease."
Krellwitz and Smith had an issue with the transfer case around mile 460 and had to limp the car out to pit at mile 490. Additional time was lost at mile 472 when the Jeep was held up for 2 1/2 hours behind one of Baja's infamous bottle necks as another competitor was unable to negotiate a river crossing. The transfer case was swapped out and Gambrell got back in the passenger seat for the ride up the pacific coast, across the rocky silt hills of Urapan, and on to the finish and the victory. Krellwitz said at the finish, "It was a long but good day for the ATK Jeep, the 4.7 ATK stroker engine pulled hard from start to finish and our BFG tires hooked up good with no flat tires. It was a bummer to have an issue with the t case up in the Mikes loop and get stuck in the bottle neck, but the course was very challenging and made for a great adventure, plus its always good to have a class win in Baja."


Big Thank you to the following crew members who helped make Team ATK a success:

Clive Skilton – Darren Skilton – Jon Krellwitz – Skyler Gambrell – Patrick Smith – Kris Hernandez – Russ Ficker


Also a HUGE thank you for all the products that make this vehicle so tough:

ATK Engines – Currie Enterprises – Crossroads Fabrication – KC Lights - BFGoodrich Tires - JE Reel Drivelines - Advanced Engine Management (AEM) - Howe Steering - King Shocks - Beard Seats - Harmon Racing Cells - Full Traction Suspension - PWR - American Racing ATX Wheels - Borla Exhaust – Torque Converter Specialties (TCS) - Crow Safety Equipement

Team ATK Had A Tough Final Race, But Wins The Currie Cup Championship!

Team ATK Had A Tough Final Race, But Wins The Currie Cup Championship!


Team ATK had a tough final race of the season at the Best in the Desert Henderson Fabtech Desert Classic this past weekend in Henderson, Nevada. In spite of the disappointing Henderson race the overall season performance was enough to net Team ATK a Currie Cup season championship. The Henderson race started off great -- there was an exciting drag race start with competitors Mike Barnett (Jeep J10) and Gale Pike (Dodge Ram Charger) starting in the front row and the Team ATK Wrangler lining up second beside Greg Jackson (Jeep Cherokee). The ATK powered wrangler was the only vehicle in the field without V8 power but no matter, the ATK stroker 6 cyl made short work of the competition and by 3 miles into the first lap the ATK Wrangler with Jon Krellwitz and Pat Smith in the cockpit had passed all class competitors and were running away with the race. After two smooth laps creating a 25 minutes lead on the competition the ATK wrangler pitted to take on 20 gallons of Sunoco Fuel and co-driver change with Pat Smith getting out and Matt McCallum getting in. The third lap was going great until disaster struck just a few miles out from the main pit area. The ATK Wrangler clipped a ridge with the left front tire sending the vehicle over and ending the teams hopes for a finish. The Best in The Desert recovery crew was on the scene in minutes to get the vehicle righted but the damage sustained in the accident prevented the vehicle from continuing on to the finish. Team ATK driver Jon Krellwitz noted after the race, "It is very disappointing to come out to Henderson and not finish but overall we had a great rookie season, the whole team worked really hard, and we are here at the end with three class wins, a Baja 1000 win, and the Currie Cup Championship. That's a pretty great year for a new race car and team."

A tremendous thank you to everybody at Team ATK that made this season a success:

Clive Skilton - Jon Krellwitz - Matt McCallum - Skyler Gambrell - Patrick Smith - Adam Butterfield - Kris Hernandez - Russ Ficker - Kevin Davis - Chad Fryman - Ted Moncure - Nick Moncure - Allen Russell - Mark Sasaki


Also a HUGE thank you to our supporters that continue to made this program a success:

ATK Engines - Redlands Auto Center - Currie Enterprises - KC Lights - BFG Tires - JE Reel Drivelines - Advanced Engine Management (AEM) - Howe Steering - King Shocks - Beard Seats - Harmon Racing Cells - Full Traction Suspension - PWR - American Racing Wheels – Borla Exhaust