Mobbin Racing’s Silver State 150 BITD Race Report

Mobbin Racing’s Silver State 150 BITD Race Report

St. George, UT (9/30/2017) – Michael Isom teamed up with Dr. Michael Buffington to race in the Silver State 150. The event was round five of the Best in the Desert Series and was held in the picturesque high desert in Caliente, NV.

Dr. Buffington is one of three “guest” co-drivers that have competed with Isom this season. Buffington previously competed with Isom in the Mint 400. Driving in the UTV Unlimited class in a Can-Am, the duo started out running an extremely competitive pace in the carnage-filled event from the four-wide dead engine start.

“We got the jump on the other cars when we started on the second-to-last row,” said Isom. “We passed 20 UTVs before we got to pit one and four or five of them were broken down or flipped over. Man, was there some carnage. We raced through pit one and got on the powerline road.”

Isom made it through one of the tight canyon sections. Unfortunately, his car slid going into a tight turn and made contact with a tree

“We made a sharp left-hand turn and got on a tight trail,” explained Isom. “It was hard packed with just a little bit of gravel. We slid out, hit a tree and it just ripped out the left front side of the car.”

Though Isom worked hard to try to repair the car, he wasn’t able to fix it in time. Isom, however, carries a deep spiritual attitude in life and on the race track. It’s that lifestyle that he carries into his Wake up Warrior Foundation that empowers men to experience everything they can in life. He used the crash as a teachable moment. That spirit helped him to see the good in the situation.

“We can’t change what happened, but we can change the story around what happened,” said Isom. “We broke, but we choose to see what we can learn from it. As a driver, I was pushing the pace to see how well we could do in a short race. I don’t get to test like a lot of the other guys in the series, so I’m not as familiar at what the car can do. It slid out and didn’t grip up like I thought it would. The lesson is this: Either practice more to see what the car can do. If not, I have to back it off a little bit in the races going forward.”

Isom is also a racing driver. The racer in him isn’t planning on backing down. Instead, his team, led by crew chief and Addict Racing Engines owner Jim Osier, is making repairs so he can test prior to the next race.

“We have parts coming from Lonestar and the car is being repaired right now,” said Isom. “We’re going to test a couple of times before Tonopah. Zach Cooper, who did the World Championship with me, is going to be joining me for that race. We’re going to go for it. We have a good car, a good team and we’ll be well prepared. The car has the new 2018 upgrade that Can-Am sent to us so it’s super fast and handles great.”

Racing is more than just about winning for Isom. Instead, it’s a time for family and friends to come together and have fun.

“Jim brought his son and I rented them a motorhome,” said Isom. “They just had a great weekend. It’s more than just a race. It’s about the family and friends that get brought together and how much fun we have. It’s fun for me to see my daughter Kennedy at the races. She’s there with Corbin Wells’ family. The dead engine start was really emotional to have four of us side by side. The butterflies off the start line were great. When I saw my daughter prior to starting and after, I got to share that emotion with her.”

Isom will return to BITD competition during the Tonopah 250, scheduled for October 19-21 in Tonopah, NV.

Michael Isom’s 2017 Sponsors:

Mobbin Racing, Lone Star Racing, Can-Am, Addict Racing Engines, VisionX, Rugged Radios, Liqui Moly, Tensor Tires, DWTWheels ,Fox, BP Graphics, UTVUnderground, Wake Up Warrior, Vault, AIS