(Mohe, China – March 19, 2006) Just a few days before the event, Michelin Tire selected the young American Vinay Basavaraja to represent them for one of the most popular races in China, the China North Pole Mohe Ice & Snow Challenge. The race took place at the north most part of China, right next to Russia, on a frozen river between China and Russia to be exact!

The team would use an old Toyota Land Cruiser for the race. It was mostly stock except for the roll cage. With everything being planned last minute, the truck was not in optimum condition to compete for a win. The goal was to get experience this year for an all out attack next year.

One of the most difficult parts of the race was getting to the race! The journey started with a 3-hour plane flight from Shanghai to Harbin, then a 17-19 hour drive from Harbin to Mohe. Some truck troubles delayed drive from Harbin to Mohe forcing the team to miss the first day of the four-day competition.

The second day of competition involved a super stage like circuit, only about a mile long with lots of obstacles like ramps/jumps. Unfortunately gearbox problems prevented the team from finishing.

Day three involved a 152 km race that would take around 3 hours to finish. Vinay and his co-driver had a great start and passed over 5 cars during the first hour. Some time was lost when they stopped to help out the other Michelin Team car, which was stranded on the frozen river. More time was lost the motor stalled hitting an ice mound. The Land Cruiser was slowly falling apart; no rear wheel drive, broken front roll bar, out of alignment and no longer a working starter! Since the previous day, the only way to start it was pulling it with another truck. With all these difficulties, Vinay was still able to bring the Michelin Team truck to a finish in less than 3 hours.

The forth day was a quick race that was half on the river, and the other half in the forest. With only front wheel drive, and a motor loosing power, Vinay was still able to finish the stage seconds away from the leaders.

The cameras from TV stations and other media were focused on Vinay throughout the whole event. It was the first time an American took part in a race like this in China; in fact, he was the only non-Chinese person there out of almost 70 competitors. Everyone was amazed by his performance considering he had never competed in a race like this before. The three major factors for this type of race are the Driver, the Truck and the Tires. The team had a great driver and incredible Ice & Snow Tires from Michelin, but the Truck was lacking due to time constraints.

At the end of the 4-day adventure, everyone was satisfied with the experience gained from the event. Vinay later said, “I can’t thank Michelin Tire enough for selecting me for this extraordinary race. They provided me a truck to race, brand new Michelin Tires and full support through out event. I just can’t thank them enough. I hope to represent them again next year, and this time plan for an all out attack and win!”

Currently Vinay is making plans to race a brand new Formula Renault Championship in China, the International Formula Championship. Stay up to date by visiting http://vinmotorsports.com/.