Euro Offroad Series

February 10, 2012

Levin & Neumann head practice

At the end of the first timed practice run for the opening round of the Euro Offroad Series it is TLR driver Oskar Levin and Team Durango’s Joern Neumann who head the respective 2WD and 4WD Buggy time sheets in the Czech Republic. Driving his TLR22 Levin was some 6/10ths quicker than Neumann over his fastest three consecutive laps while in 4WD Neumann had an 8/10ths advantage over Durango team-mate Hupo Honigl.

Describing his buggy as ‘perfect’ Swedish 2WD National Champion Levin said the different sections make it hard to put in a clean lap everytime but overall he loves the layout which has been created by event host Michal Bok who himself was ninth fastest in 2WD driving Yokomo’s new B-Max2. 5th fastest in 4WD the teenager said considering the age of the XX-4 he is pretty happy but still trying different things on the buggy he is hopeful of improving on that in the final practice run of the day.

Very happy with his DEX410, Neumann said his DEX210 needs more work with the overall feeling of the 2WD buggy which is not 100% to his liking. Team-mate Honigl was happy with how is 4WD buggy ran he was a little surprised by how much of an advantage Neumann had on him over 3 laps. Although he ran the third fastest time in 2WD Buggy the former multiple European Champion was frustrated by an electric problem which he is having problems trying to find a cure for. Also competing in the 4WD Short Course class, the Durango duo also set the top two times with a considerable gap over Team Losi Racing’s Mike Truhe who was third fastest.

Truhe who is suffering from an upset stomach said driving Short Course on carpet is very alien to him and he needs more time to adapt his driving style to suit. In 2WD Buggy the former US Champion was left frustrated by traffic which hindered him from getting three clean laps leaving him only 15th fastest, but happy with the performance of his Orion powered TLR22 he is confident he has the pace to run at the front. TLR team-mate Miguel Matias faired better setting the 4th fastest time in 2WD. Unlike Truhe the Portuguese driver is competing in the 4WD Buggy class taking his XXX-4 to the sixth fastest time just behind the similar car of Levin.

Third fastest in 4WD Buggy was Otto Ausfelt, although a TLR team driver the Swedish Champion runs a Tamiya TRF511 in 4WD and says his steering servo is getting a good work out as he is on full lock every corner. Setting the 7th fastest time in 2WD he is confident a fresh set of the controlled dBoots tyres will bring him nearer to the pace in the sixth & final practice.

UPDATE

During the final round of practice the area surrounding Hrotovice suffered a major power failure leaving everywhere in darkness forcing race director Scotty Ernst to postpone the completion of the round till the morning. Managing to get through all of 2WD Buggy groups before the loss of electricity Mike Truhe set a new fastest time meaning he will be top seed for tomorrow’s qualifying ahead of Hupo Honigl, Oskar Levin, Miguel Matias and Joern Nuemann.

View our event image gallery here.

February 10, 2012

EOS jumps into life as practice gets underway in Czech Republic

After months of preparation and planning Scotty Ernst & Uwe Rheinard watched their newest race series jump into life this morning in the Czech Republic as drivers from 13 countries took to the indoor carpet track in Hrotovice for Day 1 of the opening round of the exciting new TLR/Spektrum Euro Offroad Series presented by Horizon Hobby. With six round of practice making up today’s schedule the focus of attention is going to be on the head to head battle between the full factory squads of Team Losi Racing and Team Durango.

As title sponsors of the EOS, TLR have flown over American ace Mike Truhe who will also travel to rounds 2 & 3 in Belgium and Germany. While he is one of the worlds top offroad racers, the 2010 US National Champion faces an all new challenge this weekend as he samples offroad racing on carpet for the very first time. Having never seen an offroad carpet track before his arrival in Eastern Europe, Truhe said it was a lot better to drive on than he had expected and he was relishing the chance to learn the ‘European’s Game’ this weekend. Expecting the carpet to offer higher traction he is finding the mixture of surfaces used on the track, with a number of different wood finishes being used in the construction of some of the jumps, is taking the most getting used too but overall he is happy with his early practice pace.

Having returned to TLR for the 2012 season, former European 1:8 Offroad Champion and World finalist Miguel Matias has recently made 1:10 comeback after a 10 year absence. Enjoying success in his native Portuguese Indoor Off-Road Series, he has more experience than his US team-mate on carpet surface and although he is still learning about both his TLR22 and XXX4 he is happy with his opening practice runs this morning. Also in the TLR camp Swedish National Champions Oskar Levin, one of the stars of last year’s EOS Pilot Race, & Otto Ausfelt can be expected to be in the mix over the next three days.

Fresh from becoming the first European to win the Reedy International Race of Champions in California, beating the Americans in their own backyard, Joern Nuemann heads the Team Durango effort and on paper is going to be the man to beat this weekend. The hugely talented German has already notched up two big wins on carpet this year dominating both the Petit Race and the DHI Cup which were both held in January. Describing the track layout as ‘good’ the 4WD Vice-World Champion said the grip is pretty low for carpet and feels pretty close to the clay surface at WCRC where he took his historic Reedy Race win.

Durango team-mate Hupo Honigl, who has done a lot of behind the scene work helping make the EOS a reality, is pleased with his early practice runs and says he is looking forward to a weekend of close racing. Joining Nuemann & Honigl is British team driver Adam Skelding who along with racing has made the trip to provide support for dBoots who are the official controlled tyres for the EOS.

Today’s schedule will be made up of six rounds of practice with the fastest 3-consecutive laps from the final P5 & P6 determining a reseed for tomorrow’s five round of qualifying, the best two of which will decide the grid for Sunday’s triple main finals.

View our event image gallery here.

April 3, 2011

Cavalieri takes 4WD Buggy title at EOS

Team Associated’s Ryan Cavalieri has taken the 4WD Buggy crown at the Euro Offroad Series Pilot Event after taking victory over Joern Neumann in the final race of the day here in Tomelilla, Sweden. Three drivers went into the third A-Main with a chance of the title but before the first lap was even completed Top Qualifier Dustin Evans’ challenge was over. At the corner where he passed Cavalieri twice to win the 2WD Buggy title earlier today, the factory Losi driver landed hard over the double at the Kyosho corner, breaking the front right wishbone.

This left Cavalieri and Neumann to go head to head for the win with the former European Champion pushing the former World Champion hard but just as a challenge looked set to take place the German put his Durango in to the pipe. A second mistake on the penultimate lap left Cavalieri to cruise to the win with Neumann, who finished third overall having tied with Evans on points, summing up the race by saying ‘I tried’.

Cavalieri, who gave the EOS concept a big thumbs up and praised how smooth the event ran, said it was a hard third Main but he was able to run more consistent helped by the fact that track conditions made it easier to lead than chase. Despite his retirement, Evans was pleased with second overall in 4WD Buggy saying ‘Cav TQ’d 2WD and I beat him and I TQ’d 4WD and he beat me so we are pretty even’.

Outside the top 3 Lee Martin was the best of the rest finishing fourth overall for Tamiya ahead of Kyosho’s David Ronnefalk who was the best of the young local talents, who made a big impression this weekend.

With the dust now settling on the Euro Offroad Series Pilot event, the experience has been very educational with race organisers Scotty Ernst and Uwe Rheinard already working on plans for a season long EOS Series to begin in November. A full announcement regarding the inaugural 2011/12 Euro Offroad Series will be made shortly. The EOS team would like to thank Associated, Losi TLR, Team Durango, Tamiya, Kyosho and their drivers for getting behind this new concept and making the pilot race a reality. A special thanks also to the Tomelilla Motor Klubb for all their hard work and hospitality over the weekend.

4WD Buggy Overall Result
1.(2) Cavalieri Ryan (US) – Associated B44.1 – 2pts
2.(1) Evans Dustin (US) – Losi TLR XXX4 – 4
3.(3) Neumann Jörn (DE) – Durango DEX410 – 4
4.(4) Martin Lee (GB) – Tamiya TRF511 – 5
5.(7) Ronnefalk David (SE) – Kyosho Lazer ZX5 – 8
6.(10)Wilck Viktor (SE) – Tamiya TRF511 – 10
7.(8) Levin Oskar (SE) – Tamiya TRF511 – 11
8.(6) Rheinard Marc (DE) – Tamiya TRF511 – 12
9.(5) Ausfelt Otto (SE) – Tamiya TRF511 – 14
10.(9)Hönigl Hupo (AT) – Durango DEX410 – 16

Full results can be found here.

View the event image gallery here.

April 3, 2011

Cavalieri wins Leg 2 of 4WD Buggy

Team Associated’s Ryan Cavalieri has won the second leg of the 4WD Buggy A-Main from a hard charging Joern Neumann and leg 1 winner Dustin Evans. Cavalieri, who put in a performance in the opening final he would prefer to forget, hit the front when Evans got out of shape and held off a late challenge from Neumann to finish 2/10th ahead of the Durango. Having dominated the opening leg Evans said he was forced to push much harder this time and running the same set of tyres found they weren’t up to the job. Cavalieri who had fresh rubber on his B44.1 said he ran a conservative race wanting to put the many mistakes made in Leg 1 behind him and that paid off.

Once again Neumann was the only one to be able to mix it with the Americans as he reduced a 2 second gap to sniffing distance of the lead car in the latter half of the race setting another fastest lap in the process. The German was pleased with his performance against Cavalieri who he said was the ‘World’s best driver’. In contention for the overall win along with the two professional US drivers who started ahead of him on the grid, the former European Champion said unless they make mistakes it would be near impossible to find a way through.

Kyosho’s David Ronnefalk had a good run from 7th on the grid to finish fourth ahead of fellow Swede Oscar Levin. After his stunning drive to third in the first encounter Viktor Wilck pulled up just before the half way distance after a series of crashes.

Full results can be found here.

View the event image gallery here.

April 3, 2011

Evans dominates first 4WD Buggy encounter

Fresh from being crowned the 2WD Buggy champion here in Sweden, Dustin Evans has dominated the first leg of the 4WD Buggy A-Mains at the EOS winning from Lee Martin by over 7 seconds. A stunning drive from last on the grid saw Viktor Wilck finish a very impressive 3rd. Starting from pole, Evans took total control of the race out front leaving Ryan Cavalieri, Joern Neumann, Otto Ausfelt and Martin to take turns at running second. Setting the fastest lap of the race Neumann looked like the only driver who might be able to do anything about the Losi driver but like Cavalieri he made a mistake and dropped back into the pack.

Full results can be found here.

View the event image gallery here.

April 3, 2011

Evans crowned 2WD Buggy Champion at EOS

Dustin Evans is the 2WD Buggy champion at the Euro Offroad Series pilot event after a great battle with fellow American Ryan Cavalieri which the Team Losi Racing driver described as one of the best 2WD battles he has every had. The third leg of the final was the deciding round with Evans and Top Qualifier Cavalieri having taken a win each. Applying pressure on the Associated driver throughout the race the Reedy Race of Champions winner made his move when the 2 time World Champion got it wrong at the Kyosho double, a near carbon copy of the deciding moment of Leg 1.

Evans’ first race outside the United States, he said it doesn’t get much better than this and the victory was all the more sweet as it was the first big European win for Losi’s all new TLR22 chassis. In this World Championship year the 25-year-old from Colorado said his hard work is now paying off and he hopes he can carry the momentum through to his next European visit when he will compete at the Worlds Warm-up race in Finland next month.

Cavalieri said he was pushing hard when he had his moment and once Evans got passed the low grip meant it was really hard to fight back and pull off a clean pass. Finishing second overall he said 2nd overall was still a good result and he now looking forward to the 4WD Buggy finals.

Completing the podium at the first EOS event was Team Durango’s Hupo Honigl who said third was as good as winning as the Top 2 where in a league of their own all weekend. The Austrian described his day as ‘Maximum good’ as he also took second overall in 4WD Short Course Truck behind team-mate Joern Neumann who completed the perfect result with another win in the third leg of the A-Main. Talking about the truck race Honigl said it felt weird to be able to race against Cavalieri and be on the same pace. A thrilling three way battle for the second spot in the final main saw Evans get it followed by Honigl and Cavalieri who tied on points but the multiple European Champion had the faster race time securing the perfect result for the DESC410.

A stunning drive to finish third in the final 2WD Buggy race saw Martin Bayer finish a very impressive fifth overall on his electric offroad debut. The Czech 1:8 nitro racer was clearly delighted with his debut performance and says he will be planning to do more electric racing. Finishing in front of Bayer in the overall result was promising local talent Oskar Levin who got the biggest applause when he went up to collect his trophy. The 16-year-old really impressed this weekend at the controls of his TLR22 and receiving a lot of encouragement from factory drivers to get more international experience he is certainly going to be one to watch for the future.

2WD Buggy Overall Result
1. Evans Dustin (US) – Losi TLR22 – 2pts
2. Cavalieri Ryan (US) – Associated B4.1 – 3
3. Hönigl Hupo (AT) – Durango DEX210 – 7
4. Levin Oskar (SE ) – Losi TLR22 – 8
5. Bayer Martin (CZ) – Losi TLR22 – 8
6. Ausfelt Otto (SE) – Losi TLR22 – 11
7. Ronnefalk David (SE) – Kyosho Ultima – 11
8. Neumann Jörn (DE) – Durango DEX210 – 13
9. Johansson Mikael (SE) – Kyosho Ultima – 14
10.Martin Lee (GB) – Tamiya TRF201X – 16

4WD SCT Overall Result
1. Neumann Jörn (DE) – Durango DESC410R – 2pts
2. Hönigl Hupo (AT) – Durango DESC410R – 5
3. Cavalieri Ryan (US) – Associated SC10 4×4 – 5
4. Evans Dustin (US) – Losi Ten SCTE – 6
5. Wilck Viktor (SE) – Losi Ten SCTE – 9
6. Nilsson Henrik (SE) – Losi Ten SCTE – 11
7. Hassel David (SE) – Hobao Hyper 10SC – 14
8. Nicklasson Christoffer (SE) – HongNor SCRT10 – 14
9. Cederberg Fredrick (SE) – HongNor SCRT10 – 16
10.Olsson Roger (SE) – Durango DESC410R – 19

2WD SCT Overall Result
1. Evans Dustin (US) – Losi XXX-SCT – 2pts
2. Bayer Martin (CZ) – Losi XXX-SCT – 3
3. Spashett David (GB) – Losi XXX-SCT – 5
4. Ernst Sarah (US) – Associated SC10 – 6
5. Hansson Kristofer (SE) – Kyosho Ultima SC – 9

Full results can be found here.

View the event image gallery here.

Like Euro Offroad Series on Facebook