With the state championship race set to be held in Wayne on Saturday, May 6, the Wayne Blue Devil Power Drive team headed to Motorsports Park Hastings on April 29 to compete on a one mile road course for a 60 minute rally.
Along with competing against teams from Nebraska and Kansas, mother nature provided strong winds to be contested with.
Car S107 (driven by Nina Hammer and Braden Adams), coming off of a win last week, started the race on the pole position. S107 remained toward the front of the Standard class in second place, until it passed for the lead at the 20 minute mark. Once in the lead, it never looked back, putting more and more distance on the competition. A quick mandated pit stop at 35 minutes for a driver change did not slow down the Blue Devils, and the S107 was back on the track maintaining its lead. S107 finished the race in 1st place completing 30 laps, leading the standard class by 10 miles. This makes back to back wins for the newly built car.
Cars E22 (driven by Brett Johnson) and E39 (driven by Matthew Kufner-Rodriguez) were also in competition. Both cars were in the front pack of the race where first place to fourth was separated by less than five seconds. The front four cars traded positions back and forth many times throughout the race but never gained distance on one another.
"Unfortunately with the strong winds present, both Wayne cars started losing energy with five minutes left in the race. Car 39 finished the race in third place completing 32 laps, and car E22 finished in fourth place completing 32 laps," said Advisor Tony Cantrell.
Next up for the Blue Devils is the 2023 EVERON Power Drive state championships in Wayne on Saturday, May 6.
Details for the race include:
Location - First National Bank Center, located at 1100 East 10th Street;
8:30 a.m: Check-in and Inspections;
9 a.m.: Design Judging Event;
9:30 a.m.: Braking and Maneuverability (either order);
11 a.m.: Driver/Team Meeting;
12:30 p.m: First Heat 90 minutes - All Cars;
2:45 p.m.: Awards
Notes:
The Awards Ceremony will include recognition for:
Braking - (Novice/Standard, and Advanced Classes);
Maneuverability - (Novice/Standard, and Advanced Classes);
Documentation - (Novice/Standard, and Advanced Classes);
Design / Construction - (Novice/Standard, and Advanced Classes);
Endurance - (All Classes);
Overall - (Novice/Standard, and Advanced Classes);
Best Pit Crew - (All Classes);
Best Paint Job - (All Classes); and
Highest Mileage of the Season - All Classes).
