LANDERS, Calif. — The 20th running of the King of the Hammers may have been the most brutal of all, but at the end of the day it was a familiar winner who celebrated in the desert night.
Randy Slawson became the first four-time winner of the event that took more than 13 hours
to complete across the Mojave’s jagged granite and high-speed lakebeds, it was a measured, mistake-free performance that rose above the chaos.
While early leaders set a blistering pace in the open desert, the race ultimately turned in the canyons, where traffic jams, broken driveline parts, and overheated engines reshuffled the order lap after lap.
At least 86 competitors started the race of Kings. By the time the leaders got to Jackhammer, about three hours into the race, it was an all-out battle to blast through the rocks. Loren Healy and second place qualifier Darian Gomez fought for positions in the rocks, with Healy making a pass for the lead.
This year KOH officials threw a most-difficult mystery third lap at the racers on Friday night. There was no opportunity to pre-run or get a sneak peak at the section before running it on course during the race. Tad Dowker had the physical lead going into the third lap.
Dowker rolled on course allowing Healy to recapture the lead. The third lap featured some of the most difficult rock sections, severely slowing down the competitors.
A flat tire would cause Healy to get hung up on a hill allowing top qualifier Paul Wolff to make a pass for the lead. Wolff then went down with steering issues. Healy blew a transmission. Out of the complete darkness, Slawson emerged out of nowhere to win the King of the Hammers. Slawson is now the only driver to secure four wins and has raced all 20 events.
At the finish line, Slawson didn’t have much to say at the finish line and was still in disbelief of his win.
Josh Blyler was the only other driver to finish the race with a second-place finish before the 10 p.m. deadline.
