Lutz & Bornhorst sweep 10th Annual Psycho Nitro Blast
After 10 years, the Psycho Nitro Blast has built itself to become one of the most recognizable racing events in the United States. From its 24hr practice schedule to the massive 900+ entries, make for an event that is profoundly unforgettable and an experience like no other. Known to have one of the craziest layouts hosted in a massive arena, the stories have been legendary and the dedication to participate in such an event is enormous. Not only did the 2017 PNB test the drivers, but also their equipment’s durability as the grueling condition was relentless on all fronts. This past weekend in White Pine, Tennesse, the 10th Annual PNBlast drew in some of the biggest names in the game to compete on a jaw-dropping, massive track featuring perhaps one of the longest jumps in 1/8th off-road racing known as the Dragon’s Tail. This triple was 60ft long from tip to tip and took the lives of many 1/8th scale buggies and truggies along with it.
Perhaps the most challenging section of the course was what was known as the Mugen Seiki Phobia. This section caused havoc to everyone from Joes (Janes) to the Pros as it was a single landing into the slippery 180 concrete turn that went into a blind mini booter double. Line up required precise trigger control and drifting abilities that tested everyone. Adding to the madness, the 2017 PNB layout also had one of the biggest vertical wall rides ever constructed for an RC track that gave racers a new twist known as the The Great Wall. This tricky feature was not easy to master, but getting it right was rewarded by saving a huge amount of time.
The 45 minute, intense 1/8th Pro Nitro Buggy A-main event saw Tekno’s Ryan Lutz take an early lead and space himself from his competitors letting the field battle amongst themselves giving Lutz the luxury of clean air and zero traffic. Team Associated’s Ryan Cavalieri and Kyosho’s Jared Tebo would have a classic battle with the two trading positions numerous times fighting for 2nd place. After a grueling 45 minutes, Cavalieri would make an uncharacteristic last lap error that allowed Tebo through to take 2nd and Cavalieri 3rd.
In 1/8th Pro Nitro Truggy Tekno’s Ryan Lutz was able to set TQ and start from the front of the grid. Lutz would use his position to once again, let his competitors battle while he was able to slip away and take the win in Truggy. While in 2nd place, Team Associated’s Ryan Cavalieri would cross the line for his final lap, but having the unfortunate luck of a receiver coming unplugged from all the harsh landings, was unable to finish his final lap. This would move Mugen’s Cole Ogden from 3rd to take over 2nd on the podium.
Tekno’s Joe Bornhorst and Ryan Lutz would put on a show in the Pro E-Buggy class with the duo finishing 1-2 and only 3 seconds apart after 10 minutes. Unfortunately for Team Associated’s Ryan Cavalieri, who was running 3rd at the time, suffered an electrical issue that forced him to retire with 3 minutes left. This promoted Jared Tebo into 3rd to grab the final podium spot.
In 1/8th Pro E-Truggy once again the Tekno duo of Lutz and Bornhorst would come down to the wire. After 10 minutes, Bornhorst would take the win with Lutz 4.1 seconds back. Serpent’s Justin Fales would finish 3rd and Patrick Rossiter would work his way from 10th on the grid to finish 4th overall. Xray’s Landen Lewis would finish 5th with a great drive to finish in the top 5.
Tekno’s Ryan Lutz was in a league of his own in the 4×4 SC class as Lutz was able to TQ and check himself out in the A-main to take a comfortable win from Geroff Arnold in second while Martin Harrison would land himself on the podium having qualified 7th and finish 3rd.
More results and images can be found here.
Source: JConcepts [jconcepts.net]
