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 UNIVERSITY PARK, PA (February 5) – They don’t call the Penn State campus “Happy Valley” for nothing. John Seasock was as happy as ever after he and the Traxxas T-Maxx™ put together their best weekend in United States Hot Rod Association® competition during the Thunder Nationals® in Bryce Jordan Center on the campus of Penn State University.
Seasock, a Nittany Lion himself, drove the T-Maxx to victory in Friday’s race and finished second in all but one of the other competitions during the double-feature event. The Thunder Nationals featured Doughnut, Wheelie and Freestyle Contests, in addition to side-by-side races, throughout the weekend.
“We had a monster weekend,” Seasock said. “We won Friday’s race and finished second in everything else except for one third. The truck was phenomenal. We pulled up to the Bryce Jordan Center Friday and saw we would be racing against the best trucks in the country again, so we knew we would have to be at our best. Maximum Destruction®, Hot Wheels®, Predator® and Prowler® were there, too. They’re all tough competitors.”
Seasock drove the T-Maxx with its front tires off the Bryce Jordan Center’s concrete floor during the Wheelie Contest and received 23 points from the judges.
“We went back and forth with Maximum Destruction all night Friday,” Seasock said. “Phil (Foster, who drove Maximum Destruction) won the Wheelie Contest with a 24 and we tied Prowler for second.”
Prowler, driven by Larry Jaruzez, took the early lead with a 21 in Friday’s Doughnut Contest. Seasock brought the crowd to its feet with a rousing 24, only to have Maximum Destruction win with three more points. Seasock and the T-Maxx defeated Predator in the racing finale in a photo finish, however.
“Maximum Destruction won the Freestyle and I finished second (just two points behind),” Seasock said. “He wasn’t able to come back for the semifinals because he had a drive shaft problem, so I got a bye into the finals. We were able to beat Predator in a close race in the finals.”
After signing autographs for an hour during Saturday’s Party in the Pits, Seasock was ready to show his hometown crowd what the Traxxas T-Maxx could do once again.
“We had a great pit party,” Seasock said. “The Penn State RC Club was there, so we got the chance to hang out with them all weekend. They’re a great bunch of guys.
“Mike (Hoy, the team’s crew chief) worked hard and gave me a great truck. His wife helped us, too. My boys would have been there, but they haven’t been feeling very well lately.
“We wanted to try to dominate Saturday’s competition for our friends and family who were there. We went out in the Wheelie Contest and pulled an awesome wheelie, dragging the tailgate a long way, and I thought we had it won. Unfortunately, Maximum Destruction went after me and went a little bit farther.”
Foster won the Doughnut Contest after the T-Maxx collided with Maximum Destruction during its third-place performance.
“We accidentally hit Max D when we were turning wheelies,” Seasock said. “I went over and apologized and called (team owner) Tom Meents about it yesterday out of respect. Fortunately, there wasn’t any damage to the truck. Those things happen sometimes.
“We also had a great freestyle pass,” Seasock said. “We pulled a giant wheelie over by Maximum Destruction again and pulled it down at the last split-second.”
Seasock and the T-Maxx defeated Hot Wheels in the semifinals, but finished an eyelash behind Maximum Destruction in the finals.
“We had a really close race in the finals; I’d hate to be a judge calling that finish,” Seasock said. “I wanted to win it, but we still had an awesome weekend. Everything worked well and it was great racing close to home. We couldn’t ask for a better weekend.”
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