Fargo, Minn. (January 25, 2011) – In the week leading up to the USCC Red Lake I-500 the Bunke Racing crew tore both its Polaris 600 RUSH Pro-R sleds completely down and went through them, checking every nut and bolt. The sleds were re-assembled and tested before heading the race, a three-day cross-country event that sends its riders over 500 miles of brutal ditches, fields, rivers and woods. It wasn’t just the week leading up to the race that was packed with preparation, the entire season leading up to the race so far has been negotiated with an eye looking toward the I-500. But, as is so often the case in racing, the cruel hand of fate reached in and caused all kinds of problems for Bunke Racing.

Day 1 of the race saw snow, bitter cold and dreaded flat light conditions. With a thick overcast, there was no definition in the terrain and riding down a ditch line at 80mph proved a white-knuckle venture on the 170-mile course. The conditions slowed all but the most daring riders. Gabe Bunke fell victim to bad visibility when he hit a road approach and his sled nosed into the deep snow on the other side causing him to crash. In just a few seconds he went form smooth running to trying to get his sled unstuck in a ditch full of chest-deep snow. He was able to free his sled but lost enough time to drop him back to 17th on the time sheets some 15-minutes out of first place. Bobby Menne IV had a better day than Gabe in the Semi-Pro 600 class as far as crashes go, but he was far down the time sheets too, placing 11th, almost 16 minutes out of first place.

The sun came out for Day 2 of the race, but bitter cold temperatures prevailed. With so much time given up on the first day the team decided to lay back, ride consistent and see what happened. The I-500 is often a race that sees a lot of carnage and past events have seen as much as a 75-percent attrition rate. Gabe had a smooth second day, but Bobby ran into problems on the first leg when he was showered with slush from another rider on the river, causing his goggles to ice up. He stopped to try and scrape it off but it was next to impossible, so he rode blind to the first fuel stop where he was able to switch to a new set of goggles.

“I was coming up to pass a guy when he hit a slushy spot and I got blasted,” said Menne. “I tried to scrape the ice off with my hotel room key but all it did was scratch the lens.”

Day 3 dawned warmer, but high winds and snow had moved into the area dropping visibility to zero in some areas of the course. Facing whiteout conditions, race officials made the decision to cancel the third day of racing for safety reasons.

“It was definitely a big bummer,” said Gabe Bunke. “I was a ways back, but Bobby was in sixth place and he was looking to move up. I know I could have moved up too and maybe got into a paying position.”

Despite disappointing results, the team took many positives from the event.

“This is a race where no matter how prepared you are sometimes things happen that are out of your control and all you can do is watch it slip away,” said Team Coordinator Bob Menne. “But we still think with the Polaris RUSH 600 Pro-R we have a sled that can win this race and Gabe and Bobby definitely have the ability to win. Sometimes its not your year and this year wasn’t our year.”

USCC Red Lake I-500 Results
Pro 600
12. Gabe Bunke

Pro Open
10. Gabe Bunke

Semi-Pro 600
6. Bobby Menne IV

Semi-Pro Improved
5. Bobby Menne IV

Next up for Bunke Racing is the Soo I-500 in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, February 1-5, 2011. For more info on the Soo I-500 visit www.i-500.com. For more information on Bunke Racing please visit www.bunkeracing.com and www.onethirtyoneracing.com.

Photos By: SledRacer.com