Posted: 7/10/09
SoCal had it's first "Regionals" comp recently at Corona Del Mar State Beach. Taking 1st or 2nd at this comp guarantees you an invite to the USRCCA Nationals. If you're not familiar with the USRCCA Nationals, it's the biggest R/C rock crawling comp of the year. Only the top drivers from their specific area get the invites. In year's past the top drivers got invites, then the registration for nationals were opened to anyone wanting to come out and compete with the best. But, with R/C rock crawling gaining in popularity by leaps and bounds over the last few years, the open invites are no longer available because there are so many clubs around the country recognized by the USRCCA. So, "regional comps" are going to probably become mandatory procedure in the near future to get that prestigious invite to nationals.For this first SoCal regionals there were 10 drivers from two different clubs battling it out. The top 5 from the SoCal club's winter series and the top 5 from the San Diego crawler's winter series. Unfortunately, it wasn't the best day for this comp, because of some early morning rain/drizzle. But, the show must go on because of time restraints.
The drivers that made the cut:
Socal Club
1. Jake Wright
2. Dave Hekel
3. Brian Jones
4. Mike Johnson
5. Dale Johnson
SDRCRC Club
1 Dave Hekel
2 Nabil Jamali
3 Kevin D.
4 Charlie Villegas
5 Don Clark
Here's a few highlights from the comp.
Dave Hekel's rig on Course #3.
Jake Wright.
Don Clark's custom tuber.
Mike and Dale Johnson, a father son duo from southern California, are a force to be reckoned with.
Charlie Villegas.
Brian Jones.
Kevin D working Course #4.
Nabil Jamali the 2009 MidWest Challenge Champion on Course #4.
And the lucky winners are........
1. Jake Wright with a score of 71
2. Mike Johnson with a score of 105
Congrats to all the top 10 that got to compete in this shootout. There are a ton of awesome drivers in southern California. Just making it to this comp was tough, let alone having to finish in the top two.
