Team: HB
Neighbours: Tanner Stees (Right)
Charger: Orion Touch Dual
Tools: MIP/110%
Setup Tools: LMR setup board, 110% ride height gauge, bottle spray can for camber.
Car Stand: Muchmore
Transport Bag: OGIO
Features: Pro-Line CA glue, Dialed Rc fluids bag, 110% pit mat, WD40, Dremel, Muchmore fuel bottle, 110% RC tears bottle, ProTek Rc starter box, Muchmore race helper, BOSE wireless speaker.
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Ryan Maifield snatched a last lap eBuggy victory over defending champion Ty Tessmann at the Dirt Nitro Challenge to successfully convert the first of the three TQ starts the TLR driver has secured this weekend at the Fear Farm. Leading the first 3-minutes of the race, a mistake by Maifield at the second step up would hand team-mate Dakotah Phend a lead. Starting 7th on the grid, the 19-year-old would only stay out front for a lap before he crashed coming into the right side triple. Allowing Tessmann to the front the Canadian looked like he would successfully defend his title as Maifield trying to put a pass on his team-mate at the berm caused the two cars to tangle. But with a lap to go the race would come alive as Maifield caught a slowing Tessmann making contact with the HB twice before the World Champion got out of shape allowing Maifield through for the win into the final corner. While further crashes would drop Phend back to 7th, a recovering Ryan Cavalieri who started third would complete the podium for Team Associated.
With the crowd appreciative of the exciting finish, Maifield was ‘stoked’ to add his first DNC eBuggy title saying the track conditions were ‘really crazy’. ‘Super tense’ early on in the race, the Arizona driver said couldn’t find his rhythm adding this was compounded by the electric buggies having ‘so much fricken power’. Describing his error on the left side step as ‘retarded’, he said he was searching all over for the right line through the difficult section and once he started using the far end side his 8ight 4.0 was dialled, as highlighted by his penultimate lap on which he set the fastest lap of the race. Catching Tessmann, who he said drove a good race’, Maifield said ‘While I didn’t set out to get into him it was the last lap and we had a big enough gap over third so I went for it. When we did hit I let him go. Then he cased the step-up and I could get by. Describing the race as ‘intense’ he said his car and electrics where dialled adding he ‘had plenty of battery left’.
Running two short packs in his Orion powered D815, Tessmann said the race was the best his car has been but he knew because of his batteries he had to drive more conservatively than before. However at the end his power started to fade with him having a cut out at the step-up leading to his late error. Declaring himself happy with how he drove he added ‘it just wasn’t to be’ but after his performance he said ‘Truggy will be good’. Commenting on the two incidents with Maifield, he said ‘he bonzai’d me. The first time it back fired and he took out Dakotah but he got me with the second one’.
Getting passed Tessmann on lap 1 before settling into third, Cavalieri said his race started off good until he crashed at the step up. Dropping back to 7th, he said with ‘bobbles from a few guys in front’ helped him make his way back to third and he was able to ‘hold on to it’ until the end. Behind Cavalieri, 2014 Champion David Ronnefalk would finish 4th the HB driver having held a podium placing before a mistake with 2-minutes to go. Tekno’s Joe Bornhorst and Kyosho’s Jared Tebo completed the Top 6.
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Team: Associated
Neighbours: Spencer Rivkin (front), “Dyno” (left)
Charger: Orion Touch
Tools: MIP/Team Associated/Makita drill
Setup Tools: Upgrade RC buggy setup board, Tuning Haus truggy setup board, GHEA ride height gauges
Car Stand: Upgrade RC
Transport Bag: OGIO
Features: AKA mini pump bottle/CA Glue, Kicker wireless speaker, Mx fuel can, Simple Green spay bottle, iPhone6+, LV wallet, Prada sunglasses case, Starbuck’s iced coffee.
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Kody Numedahl opened Day 2 of the Reedy Race of Champions with a thrilling victory over overnight points leader Dustin Evans, the Associated driver snatching the win through the last corner to become the first triple winner at the 22nd running of the race that carries on the legacy of RC pioneer Mike Reedy. Having described his Round 4 performance yesterday as ‘A trademark Reedy Race blowout’, from pole Numedahl would get the holeshot only to throw it away when he caught the piping coming onto the straight for the first time. Dropping to fourth in the well loaded race, which in addition to Evans also had World Champion Spencer Rivkin and Steven Hartson, Numedahl would benefit from errors by long time leader Chad Due and Hartson to move to second behind Evans. Coming on the last lap Numedahl was on the rear wing of the TLR driver’s rear wing and looking to defend his position on the dash to the finish Evans took a tight line but with less traction on the inside Numedahl got the run to take a win that was well appreciated by the OCRC crowd. In the previous two encounters of the penultimate round of 2WD action reigning champion Ryan Maifield would take win No.2 while Jared Tebo finally registered his first win of the event.
‘That was crazy’ was Numedahl’s reaction to the race, the AE designer adding, ‘that was the closest race so far with so many drivers that close together’. His first front row start, the unassuming racer said, ‘I wanted to get the holeshot so went full throttle. It was a good start but then I got caught on the same pipe that cost a result in Round 4’. Commenting on today’s track conditions he said ‘most drivers don’t look as comfortable today cause the grip is up in a weird way with the cars snapping loose’. Starting his final 2WD encounter from 4th on the grid he hopes to be able to convert that into a result that allows him drop his P4 from the fourth round with him just 1-point of standings leader Evans.
Giving his reaction to the entertaining race, Evans said ‘the last lap I protected my lines but went too tight coming onto the straight and there was no grip’. Having spent a few weeks in California as part of his preparation for the race, the 2011 Champion said ‘I have been racing with Kody since I came out to California and there is no one I am more comfortable racing with. The former US Champion continued, ‘I am still happy with a 2nd and with Top 3 finishes in all my races with only one (2WD) round to go its all good’.
Commenting on his win over an impressive Rob Gillespie, Maifield said, ‘I made changes to my car to try calm it down a little and it was an improvement’. Starting from 7th on the grid, the TLR driver said having got through some ‘carnage’ at the start he drove a patient race. Following behind leader Gillespie, saying ‘Robbie was going really good’, he said with Dakotah Phend behind he didn’t want to risk a mistake that would let his team-mate passed. With Gillespie having a rollover entering the straight this let Maifield through for his second win.
Taking three laps to get to the front ahead of early leader Joseph Quagraine and JP Richards, Tebo said it was a ‘great start’ to Day 2. ‘I drove a little better’ said the Kyosho driver adding ‘my car was good yesterday I just drove bad’. Despite the ‘nervous’ driving the former World Champion goes into the final 2WD with a run of Top 3 finishes. Also in the same race was Ryan Cavalieri. Starting from last on the grid the 3-time Reedy Race Champion would tangle with Cody King on the first lap. Recovering from that to join the battle for second, the Associated driver then made a mistake at the second triple with four laps to go. Dropping to fourth he could only recover to 3rd after a late mistake by Serpent’s Billy Easton.
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Ryan Cavalieri has ended Day 1 of the 22nd running of the Reedy Race of Champions at the top of the 4WD practice time sheets. While times will count for little once the famous heads up racing event gets underway tomorrow with a day of 2WD racing, the 3-time champion would head a Team Associated 1-2-3-4 ahead of Spencer Rivkin, Kody Numedahl and Steven Hartson. Former Associated driver Tanner Denney would open his first event with TLR as the best non AE driver after the 3 rounds of practice taking his 22-4 to the fifth fastest time with Yokomo’s Carson Wernimont completing the Top 6. For reigning champion Ryan Maifield after problems in P1 & 2, the TLR driver would end the day seventh quickest, 6th to 10th separated over 3-consecutive laps by just 0.022 of a second.
‘I didn’t touch anything, just drove it and she is on the shelf now til Saturday’, was a pleased Cavalieri’s reaction to topping 4WD practice. Winning his third Reedy Race when OCRC first hosted the event in 2014, he said the only adjustment he made over the day was to his Orion speedo profile. For P3 he went with less turbo which he said ‘kept the speed right for the jumps’. With the handout Pro-Line tyres now working good he said ‘everything is ready to go racing’.
‘Really consistent’ was how Rivkin described his P3 performance. 0.177 off Cavalieri, the 17-year-old said a chat with team-manage Brent Thielke after P2 about cleaning up his driving helped. With his B44.3 ‘easy to drive’, which he added is ‘really good for racing’, he said he drove with more discipline and kept to his lines and that approach ‘paid off well’.
Numedahl described his car as ‘awesome’, adding this was the ‘most comfortable the car can get’. Making a small ride height adjustment for P3, which made it a little safer to drive’, he said the key was to be disciplined in a few spots around the track. The AE designer said running big motors for the straight this meant you had to drive safe in the infield. Making the Top 5 in the 2WD times, he said 4WD was ‘not as challenging as ‘the triples are so much easier to make’. Admitting while they don’t run 4WD for a day & half he believes his car will be fine with no set-up changes planned. Fifth fastest, team-mate Hartson was also pleased with his 4WD. The former World Champion said his B44.3 has been ‘pretty good off the bat’ and he didn’t have to touch it over the 3-practice runs.
Having only had 3-days with his new TLR cars, when he travelled out to OCRC with Maifield two weeks ago, Denney said his 4WD is running really good’. Running ‘a lot of droop’ he said this is helping him through the jumps but ‘running smooth for (his) driving style’ was a big factor to his performance today. Changing from an aluminium rear 22.4 hub to a 22 hub the 20-year-old said this made the car a little more stable allowing him to carry more corner speed. Happy to have pace he said if he can race without crashes things should be good in 4WD.
Describing his YZ-4 as ‘really good’, Wernimont said with it ‘super easy and comfortable to drive’ he is ‘not pushing’ added this is ‘what this race is all about’. Asked about the track layout, the Californian said ‘its fun but for racing its a bit too much’ adding the two triples are going to be ‘a crash fest on the first lap’. Yokomo team-mate Lee Martin would end up 13th fastest but the European Champion said his RC Concepts powered YZ-4 is ‘fine’, this being his first race with his new electrics sponsor. The British driver said ‘4WD is very close’ and it is ‘going to be anyones’ to win.
Having sorted out the issues that left him struggling in the first two practice rounds, Maifield said he didn’t really put 3-laps together in P3 but the champion was able to show his TLR 22-4 has good pace as he posted the outright fastest lap of the day with a 17.482. Describing the car as ‘still a little stiff’ he said it would be a little nervous to drive if conditions stay like they are now but if the grip comes up the set-up should work well. With a full day of 2WD racing tomorrow and a morning of 2WD action on Saturday he said he would see how the track changes before the first 4WD round of racing on Saturday afternoon and then decide if he needs to adjust his set-up. Behind Maifield, Kyosho’s Jared Tebo was 8th fastest with TLR team-mate Dakotah Phend 9th. As in 2WD Michal Orlowski was again the fastest European driver, his Schumacher completing the Top 10.
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Ronald Volker has taken his tally of wins at the famous DHI Cup to seven. The 16th running of the Danish event, Volker secured what would be his third consecutive win by taking the opening two A-Mains in Odense. Top Qualifier for the race, which marks the first international touring car race of the season, the German took A1 with ease but in A2 Awesomatix driver Viljami Kutvonen. After the strong start however Kutvonen faded a little leaving Volker celebrating the start of the 2016 season with overall victory. In A3 Kutvonen would enjoy a straight forward win over Alexander Hagberg and former winner Adrian Berntsen to secure second overall. Finishing on the same points as his team-mate Bruno Coelho, the tie breaker would leave Hagberg to complete the podium.
‘An awesome way to start the year’, was how Volker summed up his latest DHI win. First winning the event back in 2007, he said ‘In A2 Viljami was strong at the beginning and with my car a little loose in the fast corners I had to keep tight lines so as not to give him any opportunities for a pass’. With his LRP powered BD7 having the edge over the similarly powered A800 on the right side of the track, Volker said this helped him ‘break the pressure’ Kutvonen was able to apply on the left section. Thanking Yokomo and LRP, in particular his engineer Yukijiro Umino and LRP’s Ales Dobnikar, for their ongoing support the reigning ETS Champion said the win was a good boost going into Round 2 of the championship in Germany next month.
‘I’m really happy how the new car is working but today Ronald did the better job’, was Kutvonen’s reaction to finishing 2nd overall, a result he also achieved in 2014. Struggling to match Volker’s early A1 pace, the Finn said a tyre prep change for A2 worked ‘pretty good’ and he was able to run fast laps at the start. Able to pressure Volker he said ‘he didn’t make mistakes’ so I couldn’t find a way passed. Setting the fastest lap of the race, he said towards in the final part of the race his pace dropped off due to what he suspects was his rear tyres overheating. Encouraged by the run of A-Main appearances he has been able to achieve with the new A800 and looking forward to building on those results at the next ETS, he said ‘here we were losing too much time in the slow corners so we need to work on with tight corners but overall I’m really happy things are working and its a good result to start off the 2016 season’.
Having made the podium also last year at the DHI Cup, but second on that occassion, Hagberg said third ‘was the best I could do considering our pace’. The Swede said ‘the car was not brilliant for A3 but I managed to hold off Adrian (Berntsen)’. Enjoying a ‘good clean race’ with the Norwegian, the European Champion said ‘we didn’t have the pace to win this weekend and that is how it is sometimes’. He continued ‘I’m hoping for better at the ETS but I am more confident our car will be competitive on the Volante tyre’. Behind Hagberg, Coelho would mark his DHI Cup debut with 4th thanks to a pair of thirds in the opening A-Mains while Gizmo’s Berntsen would claim 5th for the new Danish company at their home event.
In the Super Stock, Tim Benson would stamp his authority on the event. Taking the TQ, the Kyosho driver drove perfect in the first two Mains to give the TF7 its first international race win. With the German able to sit out A3, last year’s winner Marek Cerny held off Xray team-mate Jan Ratheisky with the pair joining Benson on the podium in that order.
View the complete touring car event results here.
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