Cavalieri & Maifield Win Big In Vegas
Team Associated are reporting on the 2010 Silver State Nitro Challenge which moved from Boulder City Raceway in Boulder City, NV to down into the valley of Henderson just a short drive from the famous Las Vegas Strip. Also new for 2010 was the race promoter. World-famous track designer and event promoter Joey Christiansen brought his “Dirt” crew to transform the Silver Bowl track into a Supercross-style layout while taking into account the treacherous surface and weather conditions.
As the event progressed from practice through qualifying, the track changed from a watered, loose condition to a hard packed, rutty and dusty surface. This not only challenged the drivers, but their car setup as well. Adding to the experience was the ever-present Las Vegas winds that had gusts in excess of 40 mph. Needless to say, the eventual winners would have prevailed in extreme conditions testing their equipment, determination, and patience.
Throughout qualifying it was obvious that the track was challenging even for the top pros. With no one driver clearly dominating qualifying heading in to the main events it was a craps shoot for who would win. In the Pro Truggy A final Team Associated driver Ryan Cavalieri battled with Jared Tebo a majority of the race, while starting from his sixth place on the grid Ryan Maifield worked his way into a comfortable third position. As the race came to a close Tebo had a receiver battery failure and less than a lap later Cavalieri had a wheel problem. This allowed the patient Maifield to inherit the with less than three minutes remaining in the main event. A fast pace from Maifield allowed him to cruise to the victory by over a lap with his Reedy-powered RC8T CE.
In the Pro Buggy A final the race shaped up to be a similar battle between the RC8B of Cavalieri and Tebo. However, this time there would be no failures between the two. Lapping the field multiple times and trading the lead over a dozen times, the fans were treated to a truly great main event. In the end Cavalieri was able to hold off Tebo for the victory, giving Team Associated a double win at one of the most grueling events of the year.
Source: Associated [rc10.com] / Image: John Cary, RC Car Action
