Fiambala, Argentina (January 4, 2010) – Unfortunate circumstances plagued Team
HUMMER this afternoon in the dune sections of Stage 3. The team had first
thought that the these set of dunes would be a good stage for the HUMMERs but
due to a smaller restrictor cutting the horsepower down, the HUMMERs couldn’t
carry the momentum needed to get through the heavy sand that was featured during
Stage 3. Robby Gordon said his HUMMER won’t run the dunes in 2nd gear and for
that reason he got stuck and lost valuable time to the leaders.

Robby Gordon talked about his performance during Stage 3, “I feel we are at a major
disadvantage when it comes to restrictors. My top speed is about 165mph and the
Volkswagens’ are going 190mph. Plus my Monster Energy / Toyo Tires HUMMER needs
to carry extra weight because of the fuel mileage we get. The sand dunes in
this stage needed the car to have forward momentum to get through them. I would
run up and try to come down and get stuck. For tomorrow we’ll move on and drive
again.”

Robby Gordon would end up in 12th place in his Monster Energy / Toyo Tires
HUMMER for the stage and now 1 hour and 4 minutes down to the overall leader in
9th place. That’s not the only disappointment of the day. Around kilometer 57
the Vanguard HUMMER had a transmission failure and was forced to be towed in
along with Carlo De Gavardo having clutch problems 10 kilometers before the
Vanguard HUMMER had its issues. They were both able to make it to the bivouac
after getting a tow from one of Team HUMMERs’ support trucks.

All in all it’s a day that the team would like to soon forget. They will
regroup tonight in Fiambala and try to make the best of tomorrow’s Stage 4.
Stage 4 is set from Fiambala to Copiapo, a liaison for 394 kilometers and a
special that will be 203 kilometers. Another 32 kilometer liaison back to the
bivouac in total distance of 629 kilometers. The first car is set to leave the
bivouac at 6:05 am with the special starting at 12:05 pm local time.

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ya maybe the dunes won't be so big
I agree dunes and sand was his claim to fame, he has known about the restrictor since day one and keeps going the same route. Everybody has the same restrictor problem the VW's have them as well they are not allowed to run unlimited air intake, yes and Gordons restrictor was enlarged over last year.
I thought that the restrictor was supposed to have been modified so it would give the Hummer more speed.. what happened??
too heavy and not enough speed to plow through
Well, Robby had 3 problems yesterday, 1 Equip failure - Tire inflator, 2, Nave issues - got off course (probably 15KM more dune driving), 3. Got stuck - reverse high side, fans help dig him out. All said and done he only lost 54 minutes. I bet the hummer would have been real close to #1 if none of those happend. This is very typical RGM. Robby settles for nothing but victory. Remember when he got caught out under yellow in Sonoma. He was in the lead and had a killer car, but the look on his face told the story. No Victorry = failure. I will bet he can win a stage if he has no problems.

Robby says it like it is. It bubbles through this press release. It is far from over and the H3 will rise again!
so what really happened to BJ and Kellon? How much, and what type of damage?
hmm !restrictors to a V8 maybe a problem, but in stage 1 and 2 they perform ok...! I am agree that maybe is a problem of orientation in dunes...or so. I hope in stage 4th the hummer can perform better, looks like it will be a short stage but very competitive.
that's ok, rg isn't no quitter, he'll persevere and continue on. oh, by the way, hummers suck, if rg was in a ford he'd be kicking some arse, go rg.
now danny, the hummer is just a body on a specific chassis. you can change the body to a ford explorer or whatever.
Or he could run a toyota 4-runner, whatever! The fact is, he wants to run 2x4 for the chassis advantages and rules advantages. But, as we all know, he is being choked down on power. Whether he runs a nice Roush V-8, or a Triad (Toyota) V-8, chances are they will be tucked into the same chassis he and his team spent so many years developing...Just my .02
The crew got to Bj in the dunes with the H1 that was enter as a press car and change out the trans, just removed the press and add crew members and found him, he just made it in on time
they changed the trans in the dunes?
What? Restrictors? NO!!! Why they´re doing this? Are they afraid of real power? Why don´t they let the cars unlimited? I think they´re slowing progress.

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