About Us

At our core, we’re a group of friends that became family through racing.

Our story started in 2018 when Zandy went to his first King of the Hammers. He always had a passion for off-roading, but being on the lakebed took his love of the sport to a new level. Eight months later he was buying a car and Rufus Racing was born. Since then, our team has grown to having multiple cars competing in different classes, friends from all over the country, and a focus on helping bring up the next generation of the sport and seeing it grow.

We lost Zandy in a crash during the Crandon race in 2022. Even though he’s no longer physically with us, we can feel his spirit and presence at every turn. Now we strive to live life the way he did – to the absolute fullest – and carry on his legacy in the sport and beyond.

DONKEY

THE ONE THAT STARTED IT ALL

Just eight months after going to KOH, Zandy bought Doug Jackson’s old car and started Rufus Racing. Fast forward another three months and they were hauling it to the lakebed to compete in our first Hammers. It’s the one car that Chip, Zandy, and Pip have all driven.

The one thing that’s always stood out about Donkey was how much she kicked. When it came time name her, the group consensus was that Donkey seemed like the most fitting choice.

2013 Tribe16 Solid Axle Chassis
800HP+ Gromm Racing LS Engine
Gearworks Transmission
40 Spline Drivetrain with Wilwood Brakes
Holley Engine Management
40” Maxxis Tires & Vision Forged Manx Wheels

IRENE

THE COMPETITION CAR

The newest car in the Rufus Racing fleet, the running joke was that whoever was doing better from race to race should get to drive it. But Chip lucked out because Zandy loved Nightmare and how it drove, so Irene primarily went to him.

To know how Irene’s name came to be, you have to hear the story in Zandy’s words. But the premise is he wanted a name that went with Donkey, and somehow landed on Irene.

2017 Tribe16 IFS Chassis
800HP+ Gromm Racing LS Engine
Gearworks Transmission
40 Spline Drivetrain with Wilwood Brakes
MoTeC Engine Management
40” Maxxis Tires & Vision Forged Manx Wheels

CHEROKEE

THE REC CRAWLER TURNED RACER

What was intended to be a recreational rock crawler ended up being a purchase that sat with the axles stripped out of it for almost 6 years. Then Scott met Zandy & Ang, they soon started Rufus Racing, and he knew he had to be part of the team.

His first KOH experience was in 2020 when he flew to California to tour The Fab School and made a pit stop on the lakebed. That time in Hammertown led to pulling the Cherokee out of the shop and to start cutting it up. Fast forward to January 2022 and the car was done and headed to the lakebed to race.

The first race was rough, but that pushed them spend another year on prep and re-design to turn the “race car” into a true race car. KOH 2023 was another rough one, but in 2024 they crossed the line after the time cut off for what everyone considered a win. Now they’re continuing to build and tweak the car to make it as reliable and consistent at possible.