Krystal Jensen smiled as she sat in her idling TTRS Audi waiting for her chance to race on the world-class Miller Motorsports Park East track Wednesday afternoon.
“It’s my first time,” she said. “My dad comes out here all the time. He loves it.”
Krystal’s father Clark Jensen also smiled as he waited in line right behind his daughter in his Audi A4 convertible. “I love coming out here; it’s a blast. I have nine cars and it’s fun to see how they perform out here on the track. Last time I drove my Porsche and hit 110-120 mph on the straightaways,” Clark Jensen said.
For about three hours Wednesday evening, the father-daughter team experienced what it feels like to drive as fast as possible on one of the finest road course race tracks in the world.
They were two of about 100 drivers who participated in July’s Wide Open Wednesday at MMP.
Wide Open Wednesday is a big hit at MMP, according to media manager John Gardner.
“I think of all things we having going on out here, WOW would please Larry H. Miller the most,” Gardner said.
Wide Open Wednesday gives people age 18 and up a chance to drive their street or race-prepared car on the track in a non-competitive environment. The program is offered on the second Wednesday of every month from April to October, from 5 p.m. to about 8 p.m. The event started in 2008.
“The cars go out on the track one at a time,” said Derrick DeGraff who works in the box office at MMP. “A person at the gate sends one car out and waits a while, then sends out the next car. There are usually only three cars on the track at once. Cars are not competing in a race with other cars.”
The program has become so popular that both the East course and West course are used. Each twisting road course covers 2.2 miles.
Drivers can go as fast as possible, but parts of the track are altered with cones to slow down people on the corners.
DeGraff said each month about two-thirds of the drivers are there for the first time, and the rest are repeat drivers.
“That’s how we like it because Wide Open Wednesday is a first-time introductory course to the sport of racing,” DeGraff said. “Then we hope they move on to other racing programs we have here.”
DeGraff said if people just like to stay with WOW that’s OK too. “It’s the cheapest way to get track time,” he said.
“I had to come out to Tooele anyway to see my doctor, and heard about this. I just wanted to go fast, It’s a great way to kill an afternoon, ” said Steve Frederick of Kaysville. “I got up to 100 mph on the West track. Both tracks are challenging and test your driving skills.”
John Walker of Riverton said Wednesday was his second time driving at WOW. “I keep challenging myself to get better each time. Each time out here you get to go on the track about a dozens times. I’ve tried both tracks and enjoy the East track a little more because of the variety of turns,” Walker said.
During WOW, MMP also sets up an autocross course in the parking lot. Autocross is a form of motorsports competition in which a single car and driver navigate a course marked by traffic cones against the clock. It is not a high-speed competition, but it is very challenging, according to the MMP website.
The kart track is also open during WOW.
The next WOW is scheduled for Aug. 14.
The Ultra4 American Rock Sports Challenge returns to MMP this Friday and Saturday, bringing their unique style of off-road racing back to Utah for a third consecutive year.
According to a MMP press release, Ultra4 Racing grew out of a now-legendary off-road race called King of the Hammers, which was the result of a bet six years ago that culminated in a race for bragging rights and a case of beer among 13 friends. The King of the Hammers, held annually in Johnson Valley, Calif., combines two of the most popular forms of off-roading — rock-crawling and high-speed off-road racing. That one epic race has now resulted in the Ultra4 Nitto Tire National Championship Series, an eight-race championship that includes the Ultra4 American Rock Sports Challenge at MMP.
The rule book is very thin: vehicles must be capable of running four-wheel-drive, and everything else is unlimited. They must be capable of extreme rock-crawling, yet able to reach speeds more than 100 mph. The result is an amazing variety of Jeeps, trucks and buggies ranging from 2,800 to 5,000 pounds with horsepower ranging from 150 to more than 600. The winning team will combine innovative engineering, brilliant driving skills and unbridled bravery.
The American Rock Sports Challenge will encompass both the MMP Off Road Short Course and the MMP Rock Crawling Course in one timed race Saturday.
See millermotorsportspark.com or more information about WOW and the Ultra4 American Rock Sports Challenge.
