Dune Fest 2001 Winchester Bay, Oregon

Dune Fest? What happened to Sandfest? It's one in the same! This is the third year that this event has been held in Winchester Bay, Oregon, and the name change is due to changes in format and sponsorship of the event.

This years event Officially named Oregon Dune Fest, is presented by the American Sand Drag Association, the Reedsport / Winchester Bay Chamber of Commerce and the Winchester Bay Merchants Association, in cooperation with Salmon Harbor. The Bureau of Land Management, Oregon State Parks, Douglas County Parks, as well as the friendly folks in the community of Winchester Bay also had a big helping hand in putting together the largest organized sand event in the country, Dunefest 2001!

This years event brought some other changes as well, with a few more choices with events geared more to the quad rider and not just the sand dragsters as was more centered on last year. Fun and skill games were held at the drag strip on Friday. Events included the Slalom race, the Team Relay Race, The Banshee Bash, King of the Hill, and The Land Rush.

The Slalom race, which was patterned after the slalom on the ski slopes, required riders to run a snake like course, with time penalties for hitting or missing gates.

The Team Relay Race consisted of a 4-person team , all mounted on ATV's and required each rider to complete 1 leg (about 100 yards) and pass off the baton to the next rider. Computer timed results determined by the time the first rider left to the last rider returned.

The Banshee Bash was a "heads up/no handicap" drag race. There were two classes, Stock and Modified. Stock class allowed pipes and paddles but no other modifications, and the modified class was unlimited. We heard that one racer; in addition to pipes and paddles had a boost bottle. He was made to run the modified class, and run against big bore strokers running on alcohol and NOS! It was an interesting event, but the classes were perhaps a bit too simplified.

The next event, the King of the Hill event, while being held on a flat drag strip, was still one of the more traditional races ATV sand addicts are more familiar with. This was just like the heads up racing that happens in the dunes, with a just a few added rules. Races were separated by number of cylinders, and starts were done with lights. This is another event that some racers felt should have been separated by engine size classes since for example, the winner of the single cylinder class, a 389cc big bore was running against 250cc bikes that were far more tame. Perhaps breaking out classes in cc size next year would make this event a lot more interesting with closer racing action and get more participation.

Speaking of the 389cc big bore, here is a peek at this creation, the winner of the single cylinder King of the Hill race. Owned by DTR Racing in Salem Oregon, ridden by Jeff Marsh, built by MAC Racing and tuned by MP Racing. This bike is FAST!  

The last event, the land rush was popular, using a rubber band start format with 6 bikes per race. There were events for both adults and kids. Other than allowing some kids to ride Banshees against LT80's and TRX90's, a good time was had by all.

After the racing we rode up to the vendor area to see what new and cool goodies there was available. The vendor area was moved closer to the town, which meant a longer ride on asphalt, and more wear to the expensive sand tires everyone runs when at the dunes. There were several vendors including Graves Motorsports, Alloy Specialties, Krazy Kevens, and the Got Sand? folks, Les Schwab Tires, TVI Motorsports, as well as several others including food vendors, flea market type vendors and RV dealers with the latest in Toy trailers and motor homes. Noticeably absent this year was two well known Oregon companies, Cascade Innovations with their widely known seat covers and huge selection of aftermarket billet aluminum parts, and LRD Performance. The Vendors area was very lightly traveled, with only a few people looking around. Two Vendors, Freedom ATV Seat and Fabric Specialists and DTR Racing had their booths at Discovery Point Resort Campground and they said that they were quite busy all weekend.

After checking out Vendors row we went out for a quick ride in search of the famous waterfall in the dunes. On the way out we found what we thought was a trail into the trees but was actually a “Do or die”, a dead-ended trail where the only way out was up, and no run at the bottom. No real trouble, but a challenge nonetheless.

After a quick break we worked our way out towards the waterfall. Once we arrived, Eli and Jim, native Southern California guys and hardcore Glamis riders found it hard to believe there could be a waterfall in the dunes. They were mildly impressed as they posed for pictures. We hopped back on the bikes and headed back to the races to check out the bikes in the pits.

Saturday brought the Pro and Sportsman drag racing at the strip. The Pro dragsters were almost nonexistent this year, and the event had far more quads, rails and jeeps than last year’s event. There was even a snowmobile running in the drags that was beating a LOT of very built quads.

Sunday was the last day of the event. We made sure to get in one last ride with family and friends. We found some nice places to jump, and roost on kid-sized bowls, try the steeper stuff and even take a break overlooking a scenic lake.

Of course we can’t end without thanking our gracious hosts, Discovery Point Resort, located right on the bay with Dune access just outside the park. They have a full service park including a small store, laundry, hot showers, and Dune Country ATV , an ATV Rental and parts and accessories shop.

For those of you who weren’t there, we hope to see you next year and to those who were there, it was a great time and we look forward to seeing you again next year!!