2018 BITD Vegas-To-Reno | PHOTOS | RESULTS
Can-Am & Textron Win BIG at America’s Longest Off-Road Race

Another Best In The Desert (BITD) Vegas-To-Reno (V2R) has come & gone. This years race was much like others, approximately 530 miles stretching from Beatty, NV to Dayton, NV. 110 UTVs would take on the race this year spread amongst four different classes. As is the case it seems every year, the fastest UTV finishers were separated by a sliver of time proving again that competition and parity in the Turbo class is still at a very high level.

Phil Blurton in his No-Limit Can-Am Maverick X3 backed up his 2017 V2R win by going back-to-back and winning this years 2018 event. While Blurton started second, he didn’t win without his fair share of troubles. Early on he dropped deep in the pack before making a mid-race charge to bring him back to the front. With this win, Blurton maintains his hot streak and continues to prove why he is considered one of the best and fastest racers in the UTV class.

Jacob Carver in his Polaris RZR XP Turbo who started in the tenth spot made quick work of the vehicles in front of him, moving towards the front early before finally taking over the top spot both physically and on time by the mid-way point of the race. He put down a fantastic performance leading the majority of the miles in the class virtually problem free. With the finish line in his sights and only six miles left to go in the race, and with a hard charging Blurton running in his dust, Carver caught up to a slower Class 10 race vehicle. Fearing a Blurton take over, Carver moved in to nerf the buggy but in doing so hit a rock that would take out a wheel & tire forcing him to pull over and repair it. This allowed Blurton to get around. Blurton would have to put about 4 minutes between him and Carver to complete the victory and he was able to do just that by beating Carver out by just over a minute. It was a heart breaking moment for Carver who has been close to victory many times at V2R. Nevertheless, it was a valiant effort and a performance that everyone tracking the race noticed.

Rounding out the Turbo podium was none other that Mr. Dustin Jones in his S3 Powersports Can-Am Maverick X3. Jones charged all the way from the 48th starting position to finish in the third spot. One of the most impressive performances of his career that didn’t end in a win. The face of Can-Am proved why he has earned that role making time and passing a tremendous amount of vehicles in the process. Branden Sims & Ryan Piplic both would bring their RZR XP Turbo’s across the line physically ahead of Jones, but on corrected time he would edge out the fourth place Piplic by just over a minute. This was a huge confidence booster for Jones who has had his fair share of adversity in the desert over the past couple of seasons.

While the bulk of attention in the UTV class was given to the Turbo’s and the continued battle between Can-Am & Polaris, in the Naturally Aspirated (N/A) class a new battle was forming. A total of 38 N/A competitors would arrive in Las Vegas to take on this years V2R, a class that has been heavily dominated by Polaris for the past ten years or so. While that domination from an entry standpoint would continue, a new OEM not named Polaris or Can-Am would take the win.

Starting dead last, racing veteran Ray Bulloch would pilot his Textron Wildcat XX through the field and put at times up to 30 minutes on the next fastest N/A class racer. While Corry Weller in her Weller Racing Yamaha YXZ 1000R and Seth Quintero in his Polaris RZR XP1000 worked feverishly to chase down the checked out Bulloch, it wouldn’t be enough by the time they reached the finish in Beatty, NV. Bulloch would finish over 17 minutes ahead of the next fastest N/A and give Textron their first ever Pro UTV desert racing win. Making it more impressive was that Bulloch claimed at the finish that the machine competed with a stock suspension, motor and cage. Minus the required safety upgrades to make it legal to compete, this machine completed the 530 mile course in spectacular fashion and made a statement about the durability and performance quality of this new platform.

Finishing second in class was the young and talented Seth Quintero in his Polaris RZR XP1000. The 15 year old started in the fourth spot and would maintain his position throughout the race while putting on a late charge to cut down Bulloch’s huge lead almost in half. But it was too little too late as the lead deficit was just too much to overcome. Quintero had a fantastic battle with Corry Weller in her Yamaha YXZ through most of the second half of the race. Weller had a solid performance of her own coming from the thirty-two spot all the way into second at once point. For the first time that we can remember, three different OEMs made up the top running order in the OEM class. Late in the race, Quintero would make his way around Weller and secure his second position both physically and on time.

While Weller looked to have a podium in sights, she too would succumb to a late mechanical with the finish line in sights bumping her from the podium for a 7th place finish. Quintero however would celebrate yet another top podium finish in another major race in his first year of professional desert racing. The RedBull, Polaris RZR, BFGoodrich athlete shows signs of a promising career and continues to knock on the door of his first major pro win.

Rounding out the N/A class podium was Kaden Wells in his Polaris RZR XP4 1000. Wells put down a consistent performance once again, starting the race in third and finishing in third. His consistent driving and speed allowed him to take advantage of the attrition that plagued much of the field in all classes. Wells continues to prove that he is not a name to overlook in the N/A class, competing with both a solid machine and team.

Michael Isom in his Mobbin’ Racing Can-Am Maverick X3 would take home the Unlimited class win and Pam Hall in her Can-Am Maverick X3 would win the Sportsman class. Congrats to both of them as well as those who finished on the podium in their classes.

UTVs will compete next on Thursday October 11th in a night race as part of the Method Race Wheels Laughlin Desert Classic event being held in Laughlin, NV.

As always I want to thank all of the racers, teams and companies who represented UTVUnderground during the V2R race this past weekend. It goes without saying, but we really appreciate all the return support and we can’t thank you enough.

Until next time….

Joey D.


UTV Turbo Results
1 944 Phil Blurton Loomis, CA CAM 1 10:24:25.983
2 936 Jacob Carver Prescott Valley, AZ POL 1 10:25:51.057
3 978 Dustin Jones Bossier City, LA CAM 1 10:42:30.926
4 925 Ryan Piplic Las Vegas, NV POL 1 10:45:12.228
5 913 Branden Sims Prescott Valley, AZPOL 1 10:46:33.494
6 919 Brandon Schueler Phoenix, AZ POL 1 10:49:20.877
7 985 Russell Griffin Houston, MS POL 1 10:56:35.982
8 964 Ryan Holz Lynden, WA POL 1 11:01:51.439
9 954 Austin Weiland El Cajon, CA CAM 1 11:06:01.722
10 965 Keenan Rogerson Bakersfield, CA CAM 1 11:12:20.620
11 989 Jesse Combs Yucaipa, CA CAM 1 11:28:44.104
*12 979 Mike Sieg Fort St. John, BC POL 1 11:29:33.466
13 920 Pete Libby Bethel, ME CAM 1 11:37:12.920
14 905 Marc Burnett Jamul, CA CAM 1 11:38:27.195
15 931 Craig Scanlon Compton, CA POL 1 11:48:25.673
16 904 Cory Sappington Peoria, AZ CAM 1 11:51:23.158
17 997 Corbin Wells St George, UT POL 1 12:01:49.189
18 951 Mitch Guthrie Jr. Glendora, CA POL 1 12:02:04.095
19 975 Michael Cafro Fallbrook, CA POL 1 12:11:57.436
20 939 Jason La Fortune Upland, CA CAM 1 12:31:44.503
21 950 Rick Doetsch El Cajon, CA CAM 1 12:47:55.960
22 972 Katie Vernola San Clemente, CA POL 1 12:54:23.057
23 943 Michael R. Taylor Homeland, CA POL 1 13:29:29.281
24 969 Logan Gastel Highland, CA CAM 1 13:51:50.897
25 918 Justin Lambert Bakersfield, CA POL 1 13:52:32.888
26 921 Tony Riggs Newhall, CA POL 1 14:15:43.673
27 911 Josh Meister California City, CA CAM 1 14:28:24.223
28 910 Dan Fisher Gilbert, AZ CAM 1 14:30:46.573
29 912 John Melvin Jr Queen Creek, AZ POL 1 14:46:52.876
30 929 Lars Leckie Truckee, CA CAM 1 15:09:47.223
31 967 Gabriel Henderson River Falls, WI CTM 1 15:24:36.927
32 907 William Long Palmer, AK CAM 1 15:25:51.362
33 986 John Brannon Los Alamitos, CA CAM 1 15:46:18.475
*34 994 Jason Merrell Santa Ana, CA POL 1 16:04:36.655
*35 981 Rodney Pyburn Mesa, AZ POL 1 16:15:58.924
36 922 Bernie Gomez Huntsville, AL POL 1 17:03:09.431
37 961 Nate Hale Draper, UT POL 1 18:01:42.825
38 974 Randy Romo Henderson, NV POL 1 18:45:33.882
DNF 992 Mark Atteberry Palm Desert, CA CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 915 Jim Beaver Parker, AZ POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 924 Lacrecia Beurrier Lake Havasu City, AZ POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 948 Matt Burroughs Norco, CA CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 909 Ashley Burton Sandy, UT POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 996 Sven Ellstrom Woodway, WA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 980 Jacob Fielding Corona, CA CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 962 Christine G.z. Villa Verde, ES CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 970 Bryce Lamont Okotoks, AB CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 958 Michael . Mamelli JrCosta Mesa, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 923 David Martinez Highland, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 971 Wayne Matlock Alpine, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 917 Jason Murray Santa Ana, CA CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 937 Alex Nicholas Hihland Village, TX POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 987 Jonmark RichardsonGlendale, AZ CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 968 Hubert Rowland Lascassas, TN POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 914 Tyler Walker Happy Valley, OR POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 935 Bill Zemak Waxhaw, NC POL 0 00:00:00.000


UTV N/A Results
1 1835 Ray Bulloch Cedar City, UT TEX 1 11:26:39.241
2 1903 Seth Quintero San Marcos, CA POL 1 11:44:36.717
3 1895 Kaden Wells Saint George, UT POL 1 11:50:52.125
4 1929 Sam Chournos St George, UT POL 1 12:13:25.669
5 1907 Mike Deley Meifee, CA POL 1 12:19:56.835
6 1871 Josh Blalock Colorado Springs, CO POL 1 12:39:42.802
7 1848 Corry Weller Chandler, AZ YAM 1 12:46:40.943
8 1947 Dean Wheeler Jr Phoenix, AZ POL 1 12:53:30.986
9 1983 Nick Hooey Glendale, AZ POL 1 12:55:06.524
10 1952 Jonathan Mcvay San Tan Valley, AZ POL 1 12:56:58.251
11 1824 Kirk Harkey Perris, CA POL 1 13:01:54.542
*12 1808 Madeline WedekingTemecula, CA POL 1 13:02:16.398
13 1896 Oscar Gonzalez Carson, CA POL 1 13:54:21.106
14 1991 Dominick Gaglione Henderson, NV POL 1 14:58:31.520
15 1941 Broc Smith East Rochester, OH POL 1 15:15:42.535
16 1910 Ryan Mcintire Rockwall, TX POL 1 16:42:18.729
17 1920 Andrei Isac Las Vegas, NV YAM 1 17:02:04.878
18 1823 Russ Tuck Redondo Beach, CA YAM 1 19:07:16.444
19 1845 Josh Herzing Cypress, TX POL 1 21:07:52.514
DNF 1946 Art Andersen Las Vegas, NV POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1911 Andrew S. Benrud Las Vegas, NV POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1956 Austin Bolton Corona, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1957 Joe Bolton Corona, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1935 Bruce Chaplin Othello, WA YAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1958 George Felix Henderson, NV POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1939 Dan Fresh San Juan Capistrano, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1937 Jesse Gage Lancaster, CA YAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1989 Tim Hall Hawthorne, NV POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1970 Paul Hodge Sisters, OR YAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1938 Kolton Hustead St George, UT TEX 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1954 Kristen Matlock Alpine, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1921 Matthew Mishko Tucson, AZ POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1872 Jimmy Moore Silver Springs, NV YAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1916 Cody Nygren Farmington, NM POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1862 Gunner Savage Dewey, AZ YAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1807 Larry Sobolewski Redlands, CA POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1964 Robert Vanbeekum Queen Creek, AZ POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 1817 Bret Ward Scottsdale, AZ POL 0 00:00:00.000


UTV Unlimited Results
1 2939 Michael Isom St. George, UT CAM 1 12:02:29.988
2 2908 Peter Carr Kenthwurst, NM POL 1 12:56:23.647
3 2946 Hans Luenger Cleveland, OH POL 1 13:21:46.412
4 2930 Steven C Medley Citrus Heights, CA CAM 1 13:29:33.623
5 2910 Brett Comiskey Rock Hampton, BC CAM 1 14:02:01.758
6 2925 Jeramiah Drew Las Vegas, NV CAM 1 14:16:59.128
*7 2931 Nick Psyhogios Park Ridge, IL ART 1 20:32:44.612
DNF 2940 George Pondella Glendale, CA CAM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 2903 Jaime A. Romero Jr.Yuma, AZ CTM 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 2912 Kristoffer Werth Reddick, IL CAM 0 00:00:00.000


UTV Sportsman Results
1 2957 Pamela Hall Bakersfield, CA CAM 1 16:37:40.830
DNF 2993 Bryan Campbell Jersey City, NJ POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 2978 Luis Javier Pelayo Mexico City, CD POL 0 00:00:00.000
DNF 2998 Jax Redline Amarillo, TX CAM 0 00:00:00.000

* Penalty Applied

Photos by Daniel Schenkelberg // UTVUnderground.com