Behind The Scenes - 2019 ROAR Nationals

The sights and sounds of the ROAR Nationals, hosted by EN Hobbies/Sparks RC Raceway.

Check out interviews of many of our drivers like Ryan Maifield, Spencer Rivkin, Ryan Cavalieri and many more as they prep for practice, qualifying and then the mains throughout the weekend.

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Rivkin, Maifield, and Fuller Highlight 2019 ROAR Nationals for JConcepts!!

The most anticipated race of the year is definitely the ROAR 1/10th Off-road Electric Nationals. Ultimately, this year’s race proved to also be one of the most exciting races of the year. The field was stacked full of the best racers from all corners of North America to compete for the individual class National titles and with so much talent in this year’s field, it was going to be an epic show in all classes!!! Some even commented that this was the most competitive nationals field of all time.

The best of both the Stock and Modified drivers were all in attendance to have a crack at a National title that so few in our industry will ever make claim to. In the modified class, you have to beat the best of the best like Ryan Cavalieri, Ryan Maifield, Dakotah Phend, and Ty Tessmann, which obviously isn’t an easy task …….ever. If you want to win a stock title, you have to compete with the elite stock racers that are backed by motor specialists and team support that takes stock racing to the highest level. This race wasn’t for the faint-hearted as it’s an all-out race of driver and equipment.

The JConcepts crew came in full force hoping to provide the team with knowledge, product support, and positivity to give our team drivers the best chance for success. With RC racing being primarily an individual sport, it also incorporates the intricacies of a full-fledged race team and team support. Passing information with tires and tire prep was a huge focus for Jason Ruona and Pual Wynn as the goal was to get the entire team up to speed and working like a well-oiled machine. The results were absolutely stunning.

With the best of the best being on hand, the Nationals is always a great opportunity for the young and talented drivers to make a name for themselves. Stand out with your skills in the stock classes and get noticed by every team manager in the game. Win a National title, then you’re making headlines and earning something that few will ever achieve in their racing career. This year, the young talent really stood out with many blessed with the skills to progress racing locally and on the national level.

This year’s layout was done by Curt Schlichter of The Ohio Factory. For those who are in the know, The Ohio Factory is also host to the world-famous CRCRC race in January. At first, there was a lot of concern since the national’s track was being built by someone who wasn’t accustomed to the dirt and process. However, after a few rounds of practice on the track, the worries and concerns disappeared as the track developed grip very quickly and was never an issue for the rest of the weekend. Overall, the grip was consistent day to day and really, that’s all you could ask for. The tire program was the same each day, which was nice for the racers.

Overall, the layout had one line and that line was narrow. The tricky part was you couldn’t tell when the track grooved up because the surface never changed color like your typical tracks. Despite being one lined, the layout was really fun to run on as many drivers complimented on the track’s natural flow. The jumps worked well and cleverly placed to challenge racers skill, but yet simple enough that you raced your competition and not the track itself. The true key to getting good results on this layout was all about qualifying. Start in the back half of the grid and trying to find your way to the front was nearly impossible. Start at the front and your chances went up dramatically for a podium finish.

Huge thanks to the EN Hobbies crew for putting on a terrific race event. The hard work really showed as this was one of the best-presented ROAR Nats in a long time. Great job and congratulations.