| Race report by Gene Hickerson |
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| After just finishing racing round 4 of the RC Pro Series in SC, I decided to drive straight up to Charlotte, NC for the Summer Nitro Fest. The race attracted drivers from all over the USA with some 20+ factory drivers. The track is the largest I have seen in the USA, about 200x200 feet. With the rain on Monday and Tuesday night, the track was muddy and loose for practice on Wednesday. Thursday was truck qalifying, and Friday was buggy qualifying. |
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| Round 1 on Friday morning saw Jared Tebo take the early TQ with a fast 8 lap run. I managed an 8th with 1 crash. The track was very dusty now and everyone was using different tires, as none seemed to hook up perfectly. In round 2, Jeremy Kortz took the TQ spot. I had another 8 lap run going until I flamed out with 10 seconds left to go. In round 3, Tebo took another TQ. I had problems with back markers and only managed a 12th. Josh Wheeler and Chris Crews both had good runs and moved into the top 10. In round 4, I continued to have bad luck as my car stalled after the start. |
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Tebo held on to TQ followed by Taylor James and Chad Bradley. I held on to the #13th bubble spot. 2 cars would bump for a 15 car A-main on the large track.
Qual order:
1. Jared Tebo
2. Taylor James
3. Chad Bradley
4. Adam Drake
5. Bob Tillman
6. Josh Wheeler XRAY XB8
7. Jason Ashton
8. Richard Saxton
9. Jeremy Kortz
10. Daniel Aycoth
11. Chris Crews XRAY XB8
12. Scott Hughes
13. Gene Hickerson XRAY XB8 |
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The buggy mains were run on Sunday. In the B-main, Justin Wheeler checked out and had about a 25 second lead over 3rd place half way through. But a cut fuel line took him out of the race. That gave track owner Lance Norick the win, followed by Matt Gosch. Many factory drivers did not bump such as Jay Halsey, Dean Sexton, Paul Lemieux, Tyler Vik, and Andrew Smolnik.
In the A-main, Tebo took the early lead. Drake, Bradley, and Saxton stayed close. The humidity changes rapidly here in NC, and the sun was going in and out of the clouds. Everyone seemed to start having engine problems. Wheeler had his engine richen up and he dropped off the pace. Kortz ran out of fuel. I had the same problem. I was up to 6th place from 13th when my engine went rich. |
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So I decided to have my pit man lean it out on the next pit stop. But I did not make it back to pit lane. I flamed out 10 seconds before pit lane and lost 3 laps. Tebo held on to the lead and went on to take the win. Drake was the only other driver on the lead lap, and took 2nd. Saxton held on to take 3rd. After a few problems, Crews managed to move up to 6th place. The track was great and very challenging. It is a must see if you like 1/8th scale buggy racing.
1-Jared Tebo (TQ)
2-Adam Drake
3-Richard Saxton
4-Chad Bradley
5-Jason Ashton
6-Chris Crews XRAY XB8
7-Jeremy Kortz
8-Taylor James
9-Daniel Aycoth
10-Scott Hughes
11-Gene Hickerson XRAY XB8
12-Josh Wheeler XRAY XB8
13-Lance Norick
14-Matt Gosch
15-Bob Tillman |
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