WORKING TOGETHER: BLM & RACERS

BITD VT CONSTRUCTION SILVER STATE 300...

On Nov 20, 2020

Quads and UTVs rock Nevada By the staff of Dirt Wheels, Photos by Harlan Foley

Working Together: BLM & Racers

Racers from all over the United States showed up to test themselves against the Nevada desert, and they were not disappointed. By working together the BLM and Racers made it happen.

Holding a 300-mile point-to-point race in the midst of a pandemic took a thorough amount of planning, but add in a wildfire that caused last-minute racecourse re-routes, and the organizers had their work cut out for them.

**Erin Simmons has the number-one plate in Quad Pro, and he earned another win here. Motorcycle and quads beat the wildfire and went the full 270-mile distance.**

With 289 race teams, including 93 UTVs, competing for a title, the VT Construction Silver State 300 Presented by Polaris shattered previous entry records. Everyone attending was respectful and followed COVID-19 protocol, including social distancing and mask guidelines. A wildfire resulted in a course re-route and an updated finish line for cars, trucks, and UTVs.

**This shot of Quad Pro runner-up Travis Damon with the course running off into the distance shows some of Nevada’s beauty that only racers get to see.**

Working Together: BLM & Racers

While some motorcycles and quads were able to go the full race distance due to their early start, the majority of the motorcycles and quads were stopped at Pit 7 for their official finish line. The finish line for cars, trucks, and UTVs were relocated to Pit 6 due to the growing fires. Even with an abbreviated course, cars, trucks, and UTVs still finished 220 miles, while motorcycles and quads got close to 270 miles of tough racing.

**Kaden Wells was second in the Pro Production class. Polaris swept the top five places with the potent XP 1000.**

**Most of the quad and motorcycle classes are allowed a team of riders, but the Quad Ironman class is for solo racers! Matt Horton and his Can-Am 4×4 came from Texas to win.**

UTV TURBO

Can-Am’s Phil Blurton and co-pilot Beau Judge finished with a 4:14:18 elapsed time, just a minute ahead of Dustin Jones. Brandon Sims came in third only two minutes later, with Brandon Schueler just another two minutes behind Sims. A review of the UTV Turbo class shows a mere nine minutes in elapsed time separating the top 10! This was the largest class at the race with 46 entries.

**Robert VanBeekum and his patriotic Polaris won the UTV Unlimited class (UTVs with engine modifications). The two Pro classes require stock engines.**

**Steven Carver and his Honda won the Quad Expert class. His time was roughly 35 minutes slower than the winning pro team.**

**Danny Magdaleno of Acton, California, only made it a bit over an hour into the race, but we love this shot of him hauling through the desert.**

UTV UNLIMITED

This class also saw a tight race, with Robert VanBeekum racing for Polaris and taking the win just one minute ahead of Randy Raschein. Perennial class champion Michael Isom came in just 30 seconds behind Raschein to place third.

“All things considered, we pulled off an unbelievable event when the cards were stacked against us,” said Operations Manager Donald Jackson. “I want to personally thank the Best in the Desert staff, the volunteers who moved locations and jumped in where they saw we needed extra help.”

“Also, Motorsports Safety, for helping with course diversions and getting times for our scoring team, the racers, and the Bureau of Land Management Caliente field office.”

“It would have been easy for the BLM to postpone or cancel the event due to the wildfire, but the BLM worked with us and gave the racers as much mileage as possible. Without all these people involved, the event would have not been a success or possible without everyone working together as a team effort.”

**Phil Blurton’s No Limit Can-Am X3 RR has proven formidable this year. It looks great and moves out. He drives smart and finishes out front.**

RESULTS:

QUAD EXPERT

1. Steven W Carver, HON

2. Irvin Casillas, HON

3. Jorge A. Pompa, HON

4. Kyle Poole, HON

5. Patty Blais, HON

QUAD PRO

1. Erin Simmons, HON

2. Travis Damon, HON

QUAD IRONMAN EXPERT

1. Matt Horton, CAM

2. Michael Sluski, POL

UTV UNLIMITED

1. Robert Vanbeekum, POL

2. Randy Raschein, CAM

3. Michael Isom, CAM

4. Travis Zollinger, CAM

5. Steven Poole, CAM

UTV SPORTSMAN

1. Vanessa Isabel, CAM

2. Jeff Taylor, CAM

3. Craig Macintosh, POL

UTV PRO TURBO

1. Phil Blurton, CAM

2. Dustin Jones, CAM

3. Branden Sims, POL

4. Brandon Schueler, POL

5. Mitch Guthrie Jr., POL

UTV PRO PRODUCTION

1. Seth Quintero, POL

2. Kaden Wells, POL

3. Dominick Gaglione, POL

4. Adrian Orellana, POL

5. Corbin Wells, POL

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