2017 TORC Series Round #1 Chicagoland Slam Joliet, Illinois May 13, 2017

TORC Pro Mod SxS / UTV Podium (left to right) Kyle Chaney (2nd), Rodney VanEperen (1st), Tim Farr (3rd)

More than 90 cars were entered in the UTV portion of the event that was held on the dirt oval and infield at the suburban Chicago facility. The races were scheduled for 16 laps with a mandatory competition caution on lap eight. The track featured a very TT like layout with several whoops sections, a tabletop and jumps. The circuit featured a Joker Lane that allowed racers to short-cut the infield section on one lap after the competition caution.

The track was heavily watered before each event, forcing competitors to find a happy medium in their car setups. Moreover, they had to find the dry spots early to stay in contention and then have the fortitude to drive hard as the track dried.

Defending TORC Pro Mod Champion, Bikeman Performance's Treavis Poynter, was the fastest qualifer & grabbed the pole position with Rodney VanEperen in chase

In the Pro Modified race, Bikeman Racing’s Treavis Poynter was the fastest qualifier in his Polaris RZR, which earned him the pole position and allowed him to take the early lead at the start before the defending Pro Modified champion spun and a mechanical issue took him out of contention. With Poynter having issues, VanEperen took the lead and began checking out. The race was halted with two laps to go for a crash along the frontstretch that resulted in a long delay. VanEperen brake checked Tim Farr’s Can-Am X3 on the restart, but another caution froze the field for the final green-white-checkered restart.

Yamaha's Rodney VanEperen took over the lead when Treavis Poynter spun out

As the green flag waved, VanEperen held the lead with Farr in tow. Farr’s machine began to overheat, allowing Chaney to take second and the race was on. As they went into the infield, Chaney and VanEperen battled nose to tail. Chaney took the inside line on the final turn and VanEperen just won the drag race to the finish, taking the win by just .04 of a second. Tim Farr finished third, in a Can-Am Maverick X3. Zac Zakowski was fourth on a Yamaha, followed by Michael Gilliland II.

Rodney VanEperen edged out Kyle Chaney for the win by nearly a photo finish after a great battle for the lead to end the race

“During the red flag, I started thinking about things too much about making mistakes and that’s when you make mistakes,” said VanEperen , “but that was an awesome finish. We need good competition. It’s going to be exciting racing all year and that’s what is going to bring more people to the sport.”

Yamaha's Rodney VanEperen Wins TORC Pro Mod UTV

VanEperen raced in the Pro 2 truck class last season, finishing fourth in points. He joined the Greaves team this year to help promote his Yamaha dealership in Appleton, WI.

“I have a Yamaha Dealership named Powersports One, and it made more sense for me to be in a UTV,” said VanEperen . “We’re going to go back, work on some things and hopefully repeat tomorrow.”