| Race report by Ty Tessmann |
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The track surface was fairly unique in the fact that it was very rough, rocky and dusty, it is what I would call real off road racing. The track surface was difficult to maneuver and to get a setup for but I enjoyed the challenge and racing on a more old school type surface, it was definitely a challenge for driver and equipment.
Friday was open practice so we were able to adjust the setup of the car from what we would typically run and figure out what tires would work the best. Qualifying was rocket rounds and In truck qualifying went really well for me, I was able to tq all 3 rounds. My truck felt really good, adjusting the setup a bit for the track conditions but with the bigger tires and wider arms it handled the track noticeably better than the buggy.
In buggy the first round of qualifying the track was a bit on the damp side and loamy, I was able to tq the first round. As the track dried for Q2 and Q3, I struggle a little bit with the setup and Dakotah put down a really fast run that would be tough to beat with rocket rounds and I qualified 2nd in round 2. For Q3 I made some more adjustments to the car and being that it was the nats warm up race and to prepare for the nats I ran a different set of tires in this qualifier to see how they would perform, I learned some things for the nats and finished 2nd in this qualifier with Dakotah taking the tq.
Thankfully they left the track open for practice after qualifying was over and I was able to test more tires and changes on the car before the mains on Sunday.
After practice Saturday night I felt pretty good with how the car felt and what my tire choice would be for the main so we spent the rest of the evening rebuilding both cars for the mains on Sunday.
In truck the main went really well for me, I started on pole, Dakotah started right behind me and pushed hard from the start and I had to drive pretty hard to stay ahead of him, but he ended up making a few mistakes given me a bit of a gap before he had issues and pulled off the track and I went on to take the win.
In the buggy main I started 2nd behind Dakotah with Adam Drake starting in 3rd and Tyler Jones in 4th. In the first corner Dakotah went wide into the loose dust which allowed me to take the lead, with myself Dakotah, Adam and Tyler making a bit of a gap on the rest of the pack. Dakotah and I swapped leads many times during the race basically due to mistakes from the other, this was a very difficult track to race on and all mistakes were unforgiving, I don't know how many times we swapped position but throughout the whole race it was a battle. On the 2nd last lap Dakotah was just in front of me and as we crossed the line for our final lap he got into the loose dust just before the rhythm section in front of the drivers stand, this allowed me to take the lead and I went on to take the win.
This was a really intense, clean battle but I had a lot of fun.
Thanks again to the Myers family and everyone that helped them put on a great event, we are looking forward to the nationals.
I want to thank my sponsors for giving me the opportunity to race with amazing products, XRAY, RC America, Proline, OS Engines, Orion, MKS, VP Fuel, A Main Hobbies, Hudy, Lunsford, Avid, Muchmore, StickIt 1, Darkside Designs, 110% Racing, MR33, Live RC, Red RC.
Thanks to my family for all their help and support and I want to thank my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ without him I wouldn't be where I am today.
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| Buggy Podium |
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1. Ty Tessmann â“ XRAY XB8
2. Dakotah Phend
3. Tyler Jones
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| Truggy Podium |
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1. Ty Tessmann â“ XRAY XT8
2. Spencer Heckert
3. Bradley Rippee
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