In order to stay sharp for the 2023 Dakar Rally, Skyler Howes returned to his desert racing roots and overcame everything Mother Nature could dish out (not to mention be chased the entire way by a determined Dalton Shirey) to win his second Vegas To Reno race. However he did it this time on his Husqvarna Factory Racing FR 450 Rally bike, complete with navigational tower!
Starting just outside of Las Vegas and covering nearly 500 miles on its way to the finish near Reno, this year's "desert" race was almost washed out by monsoons. With rain and flooding in the area causing the organisers to alter much of this year’s route as late as race day, riders faced an extra-technical, but shortened race due to detours around some of the worst hit sections of the traditional course.
To add extra interest to this year’s race, organisers included the Open Pro class in Thursday’s time trial qualification. However, the added challenge didn’t work out well for Howes as a crash on the short three-mile loop resulted in the Husqvarna rider starting as the very last pro competitor in Friday’s main race.
Using both his skill and judgement to battle his way through the dust raised by the racers ahead of him, Howes steadily made progress through the course of the event. With his pit crew delivering a faultless and fast service throughout the day, Skyler was able to keep his head down and focus on the task, and riders ahead.
After working his way through the entire Pro pack, Howes finally found himself in clean air in the final 100 miles of the race and was able to push to make up time on his rivals. Ultimately delivering a consistent and near mistake-free ride from start to finish, Howes was able to take the win by just over four minutes ahead of Husky FX 450-mounted Dalton Shirey.
“I’m super-stoked to get the win," exclaimed and elated Howes. "Especially as a solo rider versus the other teams. Best In The Desert did an incredible job of managing the difficult conditions – so many of the dry lake beds were full of water and much of the course was destroyed by flooding.
"Qualifying wasn’t so good, I had a little tip off that cost me a little time, and on such a short course it meant I set off last of all in the Pro Class on race day. The dust out there was incredible, thankfully riding the Rally bike, I was able to carry on for longer without stopping for fuel and so that helped to make up time on the guys ahead. I just rode my own race and ticked off the miles. With a bit more clear air towards the end, I was able to make up those last few minutes I needed.
"Dalton crossed the line first, but on corrected time, I managed to take the win by about four minutes. It’s back to training and testing now – we’re working on the roadbook a lot and I want to be at my absolute best in time for Morocco. It's still a little way off, but I’m feeling good and can’t wait to get back to some world championship racing now.”
Skyler Howes and the Husqvarna Factory Racing team will next be in action at round three of the FIM Rally-Raid World Championship, the Rallye du Maroc, held October 1-6 in Morocco.
Results – 2022 Vegas to Reno
1. Skyler Howes (Husqvarna) 6:33:30.442
2. Dalton Shirey (Husqvarna) 6:37:34.732
3. Joseph Wasson/Zane Roberts (Beta) 6:38:42.025
4. Jeremy Newton/Tuffy Pearson (KTM) 6:49:05.772
5. Hayden Hintz/Trevor Hunter (KTM) 6:58:44.161
6. Russell Tonjum (Honda) 7:08:48.370