John Marking Racing Roars the #4 Viejas Casino/FOX Racing Shox Pro-Lite to Top Five Performance at CORR Crandon

For immediate release

El Cajon, California -- (June 27, 2006)

John Marking arrived to the famed Crandon International Off Road Raceway in eastern Wisconsin with his well-prepped #4 Ford Pro-Lite race truck ready to battle with the nation’s top racers. After several months of studying the quirks of Crandon’s famous raceway, the time had come for Marking to set the record straight and get down to business.

The opening rounds of the 2006 CORR Lucas Oil Series were a testament to teamwork that surrounds John Marking Racing. With little testing on the newly-built Ford Pro-Lite truck, Marking got through the season opener finishing in 5th and 6th position placing him in 3rd position in the race for the series championship.

Marking is a seasoned off-road desert racing champion having claimed the 2004 SCORE Class 1 Championship. His 20+ years of off-road desert racing often saw him in the lead while racing against the nation’s off road desert racers. He readily acknowledged, however, that he had a lot to learn coming into rounds three and four of the 2006 season.

“I’m not used to being in this position chasing down the leaders. In all my years of racing, I’m usually in the pack of leaders and this short course racing has a steep learning curve. We’re learning quickly and our experience in Crandon was positive as we put in a good run in round four, but we’ve got to step it up in Bark River, Michigan.” commented John.

Crandon Pro-Lite Race Recap - Saturday - Round 3

As the green flag dropped, the #4 Viejas Casino/FOX Racing Shox Pro-Lite battled side-by-side with 2005 Champion, Jeff Kincaid, and heading into the first turn at 70 miles an hour Kincaid took the inside line as the Viejas Casino/FOX Racing Shox truck took the outside line. Marking battled with Kincaid and LeDuc for a solid five laps and then fell off the pace slightly. Unfamiliar with this type of racing, Marking suffered through an issue with his tear offs on his helmet, as he ran out of tear offs only halfway through the race and had problems seeing through the heavy Crandon mud that coated the outside of his Shoei helmet. Nonetheless, he finished the race in 16th position and vowed to be ready for Sunday’s round four, after a disappointing initial race at Crandon. The upshot was the #4 Viejas Casino/FOX Racing Shox Pro-Lite Ford truck performed as expected and Marking learned more handling characteristics about the truck.

Crandon Pro-Lite Race Recap - Sunday – Round 4

Heavy rain throughout Saturday evening and into the early morning hours of Sunday forced track officials to cancel the morning practice, which for John Marking Racing was a disadvantage, as Marking relished each and every chance to be on the Crandon race track in his #4 Pro-Lite. The inactivity on the track made for perfect track conditions later in the day, as the field of Pro-Lites were scheduled to race at 2:00 p.m. Delays in previous racing pushed the Pro-Lite race back about an hour making for even better track conditions.

John climbed into the #4 Pro-Lite and when the flag dropped, he grabbed the hole shot headed to the first turn racing Randy Eller merely inches apart.

As racing mayhem behind the Viejas Casino/FOX Racing Shox truck entertained the 10,000 fans, Marking continued running hard pitching the truck high onto the Borg-Warner turn two for several laps until Toyota’s Kincaid got around him in turn six at the Toyo Tires chicane. Nissan’s Chad Hord challenged Marking down low as the two fierce competitors raced cleanly before Hord emerged in front. Marking pushed the #4 Pro-Lite hard and settled into a wide-open pace as Kincaid pulled out in front as Hord, Marking and Schmitt battled for the remaining top spots. Crossing the checkered flag on the bumper of Nissan’s Art Schmitt was John Marking scoring a solid fourth place finish, in yet only his fourth ever CORR Pro-Lite race.

The solid performance of John Marking Racing at the CORR Crandon Brush Run places him into fifth place in the series points championship race only one point out of two racers tied in third place.

After the race, a smiling John Marking commented, “Let’s go to Bark River in two weeks and give these guys something to think about. I’m starting to feel more comfortable in this new truck as the season progresses. I’m looking forward to the rest of the season.”

SPEED Channel TV filmed the great racing action at the 2006 CORR Crandon Brush Run and will broadcast their shows in the coming months.

The next race is July 8-9, 2006 at Bark River, Michigan.

Visit www.johnmarkingracing.com and www.corracing.com for additional information regarding the 2006 CORR racing season and the 2006 SCORE Baja 1000.