Chad Karstens Wins the Novak Offroad Challenge

This past weekend I, Chad Karstens, traveled over to the Hobby Plex in Omaha, Nebraska for the Novak Offroad Challenge. With 190 entries, this race weekend was competitive but still relaxed. I wasn't really sure what the track was going to do over the course of the weekend so I practiced with both the B5 and the B5M on Friday. The Mid was really good in the morning when the track still had moisture but I felt the rear was the better car in the afternoon once the track dried out.
We ran three rounds of qualifying using two out of three with qualifier points. I actually used both cars throughout the day. I ran the Mid during the first round and the rear motor for the last two rounds, winning the last round. I qualified second behind Alex Sturgen. On Sunday they ran two-car bumps with single eight-minute A Mains.
The weather outside was going to be cold and rainy so I decided to switch back to the B5M, thinking the track would hold moisture all day. Alex crashed on the first lap, giving me a decent lead to start the race. I made a mistake at the six-minute mark, allowing another local driver, Derek Wood, to take the lead. We had a great battle for a couple of laps but I was able to make the pass and pull away during the last lap to take the win.