GT2 and Tebo Win National Championship In Race Debut

Famous in the R/C community for the Silver State Nitro Challenge, Boulder City Raceway, located just outside of Las Vegas, NV, was selected to host the 2006 ROAR Gas Truck Nationals. In the previous ten years Team Associated vehicles have won every National Championship in the Gas Truck division, headlined by the Factory Team RC10GT.

Using the information gathered over a decade of dominance, Team Associated engineers developed a new, highly anticipated replacement for the GT: the Factory Team GT2. The ROAR Gas Truck Nationals was chosen as the debut event for the worthy successor of the most highly decorated R/C truck ever made.

Leading up to the race, top team drivers Jared Tebo, Ryan Maifield, and Ryan Cavalieri tested the GT2 in various conditions preparing for the National Championship. With the assistance of the lead project engineer Kurt Wenger, these three drivers were able to establish a starting setup for the team to use at the Nationals. The team strove to achieve a setup that was not only consistent throughout long main events, but also in shorter qualifying sessions. This hard work paid off as Ryan Cavalieri was able to place his GT2 in the #1 qualifying position.

As the main event started, Cavalieri checked out early. An early tangle between teammates Tebo and Maifield shuffled them to the back of the pack. As Cavalieri exited the pits from his second pit stop with a comfortable lead, his truck flamed out and the TQ was forced to retire from the event less than twenty minutes in.

While Cavalieri was in the pits, Associated/Reedy driver Ryan Maifield found his way to the lead position. Ryan had recovered from his poor start and was laying down the fastest laps of the event. Like Cavalieri before him, Maifield checked out from the field establishing at times a 15-second lead. Shortly after refueling for his 4th pit stop, an electrical failure took Maifield out of contention for the win and forced his retirement as well.

With the poise and determination of a 4-time National Champion, Jared Tebo recovered from his last place start to find himself in the lead of the 45-minute main with less than ten minutes to go. As he came in for his last scheduled fueling, his pit crew shouted words of encouragement and split times to second place. A late splash-n-go insured a full fuel tank, and with less than 2 minutes remaining, Tebo cruised around the track buffered by 3/4 of a lap lead on his way to his third straight Gas Truck National Championship and the first for the GT2.

Four GT2s placed in the top ten! Congratulations to all the Team Associated drivers who made the A Main showcasing the new GT2.

You still can't beat an Associated gas truck!