Setser Doubles and Vitale took Wins at the 2019 JConcepts Turf Nationals!

Each year, the 1st weekend of September holds one of the best-kept racing secrets in RC…. the JConcepts Turf Nationals. It’s not your ordinary race as it’s a top-level race that’s focused on fun, exciting high-speed racing, and is consistently one of the biggest racing draws in the Northeast.

Playing host to the Turf Nationals each and every year is radical RC Madness in Enfield, Connecticut and what a special RC facility it is. Between the numerous outdoor and indoor tracks, all together there are 11 possible tracks with the single sole purpose of having fun with your RC cars. Chris Marcy has been in the business for over 30 years and has found ways to adapt his business to the ever-changing customer base.

But at the core of it all is a well-stocked hobby shop that has just about everything you need. It’s the lifeblood of Chris’ business that he’s had the luxury of tweaking for 30 plus years now and still going strong. From crawling toys to full-on race vehicles, RC Madness has it all. Rent cars, plan parties, you name it and it’s probably possible at the Madness, which makes this place extra special and one of a kind.

The Turf Nationals always draws in some amazing talent from around the area and this year was no exception. Even with so much talent gathered at one track, the “chill” vibe is what makes Turf Nationals extra unique and one of the most fun races to attend. The friendly, warm atmosphere in the pits makes the time away off the track a whole lot of fun and when the sun is out… it’s just absolutely a show-stopping amazing experience.

The layout this year was awesome! From many drivers that have never been to RC Madness before, commented on how much fun the track was to run on. This year, the jumps were a lot tamer than last year allowing racers to stay closer to each other without making critical jumping mistakes. The flow of the track was brilliant as it exercised every driver’s ability to go blazing fast while remaining in control.

Thanks to Christopher Marcy and his fantastic crew that really made the event a ton of fun and so easy to be a part of. The warmth and kindness from the NE aren’t unexpected, but a bit of an eye-opener upon first contact. The spec tire for the event was the JConcepts Swagger front tires and JConcepts Pin Down rear tires making it easy for everyone to mount and go without the headache of battling endless tire combos.

21.5 Spec 2wd 

Huge thanks go out to our 21.5 Spec 2wd buggy racers that took part in the 2019 NCTS rd 3 – Turf Nationals. The 21.5 Spec 2wd drivers all received a handout spec motor free of charge courtesy of Hobbywing that uses a fixed gearing to minimize and/or eliminate the effects of expensive batteries, motors, and chargers. These motors are all returned after their mains, but allows the new and avid racers a class to develop their skills without the competitive necessities that are included in the modern-day 17.5 Expert 2wd class.

Showing that he has the skills to win, Trevor Goff took the win with impressive driving that we saw earlier at round 1 of the NCTS in Vegas. Sylis McDaniel also displayed tremendous speed for a young driver and was able to put himself in 2nd. Aden Bus started the main strong and finished strong landing himself 3rd on the podium. Unfortunately, most of the 21.5 Spec drivers had to leave before the podium photo.

17.5 2wd Independent Stock Buggy

Going a step up from 21.5 Spec buggy, the more seasoned racers that aren’t sponsored also have a great platform to race in better known as the 17.5 2wd Independent Stock class. Showing the fast way around the track was Nick Berube, who set the TQ and won with a comfortable margin. 2nd place went to Kevin McDaniel and Les Grimmet stood on the final spot on the podium in 3rd.

17.5 2wd Expert Stock Buggy

For the out and out stock drivers, the 17.5 2wd Expert class saw a no holds showdown in 17.5 buggy class. TLR’s Aaron Kothman was in full command much throughout the weekend and was able to win the extended 7-minute A-Final over a very fast Jeff Statkiewicz. Holding down 3rd and defending off a hard-charging Tyler McCormack, Steve Flume held on for 3rd.

13.5 SCT 

Defending home “turf”, JConcepts/Team Scream’s Eric Bresnahan built up his pace through the weekend and was on fire during the main to successfully take home the win. Making his way from Oregon, James Halladey was Eric’s closest competitor and showed great pace to lock up 2nd. Dan Fitzgerald put in a great effort and battled himself up to finish 3rd.

13.5 Stadium Truck

Keen to bring home the 13.5 Stadium Truck overall NCTS title, NW Hobbie’s Casey Vitale also made the trip from the Pacific NW and adapted very quickly from carpet to turf. JConcepts/AE’s Vitale made the most of his TQ start and was able to secure his overall with a fantastic win at Turf Nationals. JConcepts/Team Scream’s Tom Bishop recovered from a potentially disastrous start and moved back to 2nd where he’d finish. On Bishop’s bumper was JConcepts teammate, Eric Bresnahan, who gave it his all searching for a way around Bishop for 2nd, but eventually settled for 3rd.

13.5 4wd Buggy

The showdown for 13.5 4wd supremacy was intense. Schumacher’s Jeff Statkiewicz was on point and proved to be the driver to beat as he wrapped up TQ during qualifying, but a hard-charging Justin Allen made it a great show in the main. Clawing his way to within 1.3 seconds of Statkiewicz, Allen made a hard charged but Statkiewicz crossed the line to take an exciting win with Allen 2nd. Holding down the 3rd spot on the podium was JConcepts/Team Scream’s, John Cravotta.

Modified SCT

The once upon a time super popular SCT class is actually still quite popular at RC Madness as there was a full class of modified short course drivers all fighting for the win. Taking the crown for the fastest SCT on turf was Randy White, who built up a hefty commanding lead and crossed the checkered flag in 1st. Nick Berube and Joe Villar put up a great fight and in the end finished 2nd and 3rd respectively.

Modified Stadium Truck

The man on a mission in the Modified Truck class was Xray’s Keith Smart. Keith looked great from the very beginning and was able to set the TQ and used the pole spot to his advantage. Carl Smart jumped up a spot from his 3 place qualifying spot to finish 2nd in the main with some clever driving. JConcepts/AE’s Casey Vitale showed great speed and used his track experience to land himself 3rd on the podium.

40+ 2wd Modified

Taking the speed crown for 40+ 2wd Mod was our very own Matt Perault. Despite only racing turf once a year, Matt showcased his speed and put his head down and won the A-main after 7 intense minutes. Going head to head with Matt for the win was JConcepts/Team Scream’s John Cravotta. The two drivers swapped positions for the lead multiple times in 7 minutes, but ultimately John finished 2nd. Making another podium appearance was Nick Berube as he completed a very successful weekend of racing by landing himself on another podium.

2wd Modified

The triple A-mains for 2wd Modified was intense as a somewhat surprise A1 win went to JConcepts/AE’s Ryan Reavis. The young driver from Vancouver, Washington, was keen to make a name for himself and capitalized on an early mistake in A1 by class TQ, JConcepts/AE’s Lee Setser. With the pressure on in A2, Lee defended all attacks from Ryan as the two demonstrated top-level racing for the viewers and finished only .1 second apart. With a clutch performance in A3, Lee crossed the line in 1st and wrapped up the overall win in the highly competitive class. Focused and poised for excellence, JConcepts/AE’s Andrew Bishop put his head down during the triple A-mains and finished out with two 2nd place finishes starting 8th on the grid and landed himself 3rd on the podium making it a JConcepts podium sweep!

4wd Modified

The 4wd Modified class finished out the weekend with a bang. It was an excellent job by one of Florida’s fastest drivers, JConcepts/AE’s Lee Setser, who dominated qualifying and rode the momentum into Sunday’s triple A-Mains. With brilliant drives in A1 and A2, Lee locked up the overall relatively uncontested. Once again, hot on Lee’s heels was Pacific NW native, Ryan Reavis, who’s natural speed increased as the weekend progressed. The JConcepts/AE driver finished 3rd in A1 and 2nd in A3 to finish 2nd overall. Fighting hard all weekend was JConcepts/AE’s Brent Sianez, who put together some great runs during the triple A-Mains that saw last year’s podium finisher still on this year’s podium. Congrats to the 3 JConcepts drivers for another fantastic podium sweep!

– Winning Product Used –

  Lee Setser 2wd Modified 

• JConcepts AE F2 2wd body in lightweight (#0315L)
• 2wd front lower aero wing –  Aero front wing only (#0157)
• 2wd rear wing – High Clearance Wing (#0197)
• 2wd Slim Front Wheels – 2.2” Mono slim Front Wheels (#3376)
• Rear wheels – 2.2” Mono Rear Wheels (#3348)
• B6 Series Fin Titanium Turnbuckles (#2580)
• B6 Series Laydown Motor Plate (#2408)
• B6 Series Servo Bracket (#2567)
• JConcepts Pin Downs rear tires (#3136) 
• JConcepts Swagger front tires (#3137)

  Lee Setser’s 4wd

• JConcepts AE B74 F2 4wd body in lightweight (#0397L)
• JConcepts B74 Front Scoop (#0401)
• 4wd rear wing – High Clearance Wing (#0197)
• 4wd Fronts – 2.2” Mono 4wd Front AE ( #3381)
• Rear wheels – 2.2” Mono Rear Wheels (#3348)
• B64 Fin Titanium turnbuckles B64 (#2585)
• JConcepts Pin Downs rear tires (#3136) 
• JConcepts Swagger front tires (#3137)

  Casey Vitale’s 13.5 Stadium Truck

• JConcepts F2 Truck body for the T6.1 Lightweight (#0355L)
• B6 Series Servo Bracket (#2567)
• B6 Series Aluminum Rear Ballstud Mount (#2409)
• B6 Series Laydown Motor Plate (#2408)
• B6 Titanium Short Standoff (#2599T)
• B6 Titanium Long Standoff (#2600T)
• JConcepts Mono 12mm Hex Truck wheel (#3354)
• JConcepts Swagger front truck tires (#3162)
• JConcepts Pin Down rear truck tires (3163)

Videos from the event

A1 video

A2 video

A3 videos