This past weekend the 2023 Georgia Peach State Classic took place in Tiger, GA. There were 14 classes to compete in and this year’s turnout was an impressive 349 entries!
The event actually kicked off Thursday afternoon as drivers started to setup their pits and put down laps on the fresh layout.
Friday morning controlled practice began just past 7am and ran that all the way till around 10pm that night as the racers tried to dial in their setup on the large layout.
Saturday morning there was a brief driver’s meeting before the start of official qualifying for this race. There was three rounds of qualifying in total, but only a driver’s best two runs would be used for qual points.
The top 12 drivers were locked into the A Mains based on qualifying, and three drivers from the B Main would join them as bump spots. That meant each A Main had a total of 15 cars and the nitro classes raced for 30 minutes. The lower nitro mains ran for 20 minutes each, and all of the electric classes ran in a AA format. Each electric A Main ran for 10 minutes each and the driver’s best finish would be used to determine the overall winner. If an electric driver won both A Mains they were declared the winner, but if there was two different winners of each A Main then the tie breaker was the driver’s best finish. We had several team drivers at this event so let’s see how they finished up started with the premiere class, Pro 1/8 Nitro Buggy.
Team driver Tyler Jones put in a TQ run in rounds one and three to start on the pole for the 30 minute A Main! In round 2 fellow JConcepts driver Jonah Wilson ran the fastest and qualified in 2nd place right behind Tyler. Tyler would go on to take the tone to tone win crossing the finish line with nearly a 9 second lead over 2nd place! Tyler would also finish 10th in the Pro 1/8 Electric Buggy class, and joining him on the nitro buggy podium were fellow JConcepts drivers Seth VanDalen (4th) and Julien Oliveras (5th)!
Team products used:
- 3121 – Green compound Reflex 1/8 buggy tire
- 0364 – S15 HB Racing D819 body
- 3357 – Mono 1/8 buggy wheels
- 2998 – Razor 1/8 buggy and truggy wing
- 8141 – RM2 8th Scale Buggy | SCT Insert Bands
Jonah competed in a total of three classes for this event. In the Open 1/8 Nitro Truggy and Pro 1/8 Nitro Buggy classes he finished in 8th place after the 30 minute A Mains. He also raced in the Pro 1/8 Electric Buggy class and was the fastest driver in round 2 of qualifying. For all three rounds a different driver was the fastest so after all the tie breakers were applied Jonah would grab the TQ for the weekend! In A1 he would lead every lap except for one to take the win! In A2 he was running in 2nd place before an electronics gremlin knocked him out of contention. After the tie breaker was applied his A1 run was the fastest thus giving him the victory! Joining him on the e buggy podium were fellow JC teammates Jared Wiggins (2nd), Cole Kasten (4th) and Julien Oliveras (5th)! Speaking of Cole he also finished 10th in Pro 1/8 Nitro Buggy and 4th overall in Open 1/8 Nitro Truggy!
Team products used:
- 3121 – Green and Blue compound Reflex 1/8 buggy tire
- 0477 – S15 RC8B4e body
- 0478 – S15 RC8B4 Body
- 2998 – Razor 1/8 buggy and truggy wing
JConcepts driver Patrick Rossiter Jr. signed up for the Pro4 Short Course Truck and Open 1/8 Electric Truggy classes. When the dust had settled he would end up with a TQ in both classes, and a 2nd place finish in e truggy and the win in Pro4! Joining him on the SCT podium was fellow JC driver Joshua Vicidomini in 2nd place!
Team products used:
- 3061 – Green compound 3Ds SCT tire
- 4006 – Green compound Relapse 1/8 truggy tire
- 0222 – Illuzion Hi-Flow SCT body
- 0463 – F2 1/8 truck body
JConcepts driver Bella Rogers competed in the Intermediate 1/8 Electric Buggy class and finished 14th overall. She also raced in the 15 and under 1/8 Buggy class and locked up 5th place, plus a 7th place finish in the Open 1/8 Electric Truggy class!
Team products used:
- 3173 – Green and Blue compound Teazers 1/8 buggy tire
- 4034 – Green and Blue compound Relapse 1/8 buggy tire
- 3140 – Green and Blue compound Triple Dees 1/8 truggy tire
- 0364 – S15 HB Racing D819 body
- 0463 – F2 1/8 truck body
- 2998 – Razor 1/8 buggy and truggy wing
JC driver Shay Brand also competed in Pro 1/8 Nitro Buggy class, but could only get in three laps before a DNF unfortunately knocked him out of the race. He also signed up for the the Open 1/8 Nitro Truggy class where he finished 7th overall!
Team products used:
- 3125 – Green compound Reflex 1/8 truggy tire
- 4006 – Green compound Relapse 1/8 truggy tire
- 4034 – Green compound Relapse 1/8 buggy tire
- 2998 – Razor 1/8 buggy and truggy wing
Finally, team driver Maddy Long kept busy at this race as she competed in five different classes! When the event had concluded she finished 2nd in the 15 and under 1/8 Buggy class, took 5th place in Open 1/8 Electric Truggy, 13th place after a DNF in the Open 1/8 Nitro Truggy A Main, 11th place in the Intermediate 1/8 Nitro Buggy class and a 3rd place finish in Intermediate 1/8 Electric Buggy! Her father, and chief mechanic, Rusty Mihelich put some laps in too as he finished 14th (DNF) in 40+ 1/8 Nitro Buggy and 4th overall in 40+ 1/8 Electric Buggy!
Team products used:
- 4006 – Green compound Relapse 1/8 truggy tire
- 3121 – Green compound Reflex 1/8 buggy tire
- 3357 – Mono 1/8 buggy wheels
- 3369 – Mono 1/8 truggy wheels
- 2998 – Razor 1/8 buggy and truggy wing
Photo credit: Georgia Peach State Classic