The South West Tour (SWT) has been running Oval events on the West Coast for many years now.  Novak has been proud to support the series over the years and once again Joe Myers – and the other South West Tour crew members – outdid themselves this year with the 2nd Annual All Start Shootout, which coincided with NASCAR’s All Star weekend. 

Held on the fast-paced high banks of the Encino Velodrome, the All Star Shootout was a one day event that brought together the series’ top 20 drivers for a two segment race. There were lots of prizes and fists full of dollars on the line.

The South West Tour has become an all brushless and Li-Po series, and it is thriving because of it. Many racers at the track have made the switch because of the ease of battery care and motor maintenance. Like any Oval crowd, there were guys there that pushed the envelope; but overall, it was a very relaxed and fun atmosphere.

The SWT has three core classes: a 17.5 NASCAR, a 21.5 NASCAR and a 17.5 NASTRUCK. All of the classes used Novak brushless motors, and the only battery permitted was the Orion 3200 hard-case pack.

Racing started to get underway as the temperatures soared into the 90s. The first group on the track was all of the Shootout competitors for the four lap qualifying runs. These seated the drivers into their Dash Heats. The 15 lap Dash Races seated the inside and outside rows for the starting order of the Shootout, which took place at the end of the day. Simply stated, it was another chance for the drivers to work on their setups and try out any last minute changes.

When the Shootout competitors took a break, the “support drivers” took the track. NASTRUCK 17.5 and Sportsman 21.5 kept the spectators entertained while the big dogs repeaked their packs and tuned their cars.

The first segment of the Shootout was, to say the very least, a mess. On my count, about eight to 10 cars of the 20 car field were off the track very early on. The race was scheduled for 25 laps, but a small oversight by the computer cut the race short at 15 laps. This worked out for Larry Ruby, who took over the lead from Eric Brust on the 14th lap. Erik Steenhoven brought home the third spot.

Ruby walked away with some cold-hard cash and a brand new Novak 17.5-turn motor. For a twist, the first car out of the race or the last place finisher got a brand new Orion 3200 mah Li-Po pack.

The second segment was set for a 35 lap, hopefully cleaner, race. A few drivers decided to bow out before the race, so the field started with 17 cars on the grid. It was a much cleaner race than the previous segment. Brust shot out to the early lead, and Ruby was hot in pursuit and closing fast. Steenhoven was still in the draft, holding down the third spot. Ruby closed in on Brust, who was doing everything he could to hold him back. Brust drove his car right on the bottom of the track, so Ruby would have to take the long way around on the outside line to take the lead. Ruby’s car and his skills were in rare form as he simply motored around the outside of Brust to take the lead. He started to pull away from the pack, only to get caught up in a wreck with about 20 laps to go. Ruby fell back to fourth, nearly half a lap down from the leaders. Ruby made a hard charge through the field, and on the very last lap, was able to catch and pass Brust to take home a hard-earned victory. It was a very exciting end to a great race.

Ruby went home with even more cash and a brand new Novak GTB ESC. It was good day for him, for sure.

For complete details on how the racing action unfolded, please visit: http://allstar-shootout.com/

Thank you to all of the racers of the South West Tour and to Joe Myers and his crew for their support of brushless racing. And thanks again from everyone here at Novak!