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Anderson, Blurton, Campbell Pace Qualifying for 2026 Casey Folks Vegas to Reno The Other Way presented by Camburg/Magnaflow

UNLTD AORC BITD
Aug. 13, 2026
Chris Leone

The 30th anniversary running of the Casey Folks Vegas to Reno, and the first to be held “The Other Way” from Reno to Vegas, kicked off on Wednesday with nearly 150 entries from the American Off-Road Racing Championship’s top classes hitting a four-mile qualifying course in Dayton. When all was said and done, Unlimited Truck 4WD racer RJ Anderson would post the overall fastest time with a 3:19.986 in one of the final runs of the day.

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Open Pro Motorcycle racers would kick things off, with last year’s top riders right on top of each other. Preston Campbell would come out with the edge on incoming points leader Ciaran Naran by just .723 seconds, while Shane Logan, who won last year’s Vegas to Reno with Naran as a teammate and currently sits second in points, would qualify third.

Group 1 (Open Pro Motorcycle) qualifying results for Vegas to Reno were as follows:

  1. #N3 Preston Campbell, 4:13.027
  2. #N2 Ciaran Naran, 4:13.750
  3. #N1 Shane Logan, 4:18.595
  4. #N46 Dalton Shirey, 4:20.315
  5. #N13 Caiden Fenstermaker, 4:30.237
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Next up were the UTV Pro entries, with more than 60 registered to take times on Wednesday. Most of the session saw racers take their best shots at Phil Blurton, who won this race four times in a row from 2017 to 2020, but none could top his 3:47.992. Back-to-back Mint 400 winner Brock Heger came closest, coming within .532 seconds of Blurton, while the top 15 qualifiers were split by just 15 seconds in total.

Group 2 (UTV Pro) qualifying results for Vegas to Reno were as follows:

  1. #T44 Phil Blurton, 3:47.992
  2. #T96 Brock Heger, 3:48.524
  3. #T25 Corbin Leaverton, 3:50.474
  4. #T74 Ethan Groom, 3:53.464
  5. #T52 Ronnie Anderson, 3:54.076
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The third group would see the debut of Rally Raid vehicles at Vegas to Reno, qualifying alongside many of AORC’s more familiar unlimited class entries. In the North American debut for the Ford Raptor T1+ rally raid car, Mitch Guthrie would post the top time in the group, becoming the only racer to break the four-minute barrier. Fellow rally raid veteran Brian Baragwanath was second in the group in the other rally raid entry, a 2WD Century Racing CR6, while Unlimited Truck SPEC points leader Kyle Jergensen was third and best in class.

Group 3 qualifying results for Vegas to Reno were as follows:

  1. #RR228 Mitch Guthrie, Rally Raid 4WD, 3:59.399
  2. #RR288 Brian Baragwanath, Rally Raid 2WD, 4:05.336
  3. #222 Kyle Jergensen, Unlimited Truck SPEC, 4:10.549
  4. #251 Dane Miller, Unlimited Truck SPEC, 4:11.961
  5. #280 RJ Stidham, Unlimited Truck SPEC, 4:12.859
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Unlimited Truck 4WD and 2WD entries wrapped up the qualifying sessions with more than 20 of the top entries in the sport, and their speed was no joke: 16 of them posted times faster than any other class. Dave Mason set the initial top time in the 2WD class before Nic Whetstone outpaced him by 8.809 seconds, but the 4WD trucks would finish things up with four of the fastest five times in the group. Tracy Graf set the initial high water mark, withstanding challenges from Bryce Menzies and Robby Gordon before Anderson shattered it by 4.330 seconds in the penultimate run of the session.

Group 4 qualifying results for Vegas to Reno were as follows:

  1. #20 RJ Anderson, Unlimited Truck 4WD, 3:19.986
  2. #58 Tracy Graf, Unlimited Truck 4WD, 3:24.316
  3. #18 Nic Whetstone, Unlimited Truck 2WD, 3:26.259
  4. #7 Bryce Menzies, Unlimited Truck 4WD, 3:30.356
  5. #5 Robby Gordon, Unlimited Truck 4WD, 3:33.280
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For full results from 2026 Casey Folks Vegas to Reno “The Other Way” presented by Camburg/Magnaflow, click here.

Vegas To Reno The Other Way continues on Thursday with the Reno Off-Road Festival at J Resort Reno. The event, featuring tech inspection, contingency, and some of the top exhibitors in the sport, is free and open to the public from 9AM to 6PM.

For complete race information, schedules, spectator guides, and to watch the livestream, visit BITD.com.

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About American Off-Road Racing Championship


The American Off-Road Racing Championship (AORC) is the premier desert off-road racing league in North America, created through the unification of Best in the Desert (BITD) and Unlimited Off-Road Racing (UNLTD).  

Best in the Desert, founded in 1984 by legendary racer Casey Folks, is the longest-running and most respected off-road racing series in the U.S., with a legacy that includes iconic events like Vegas to Reno, the Silver State 300, the Parker 425, and the Laughlin Desert Classic.

Unlimited Off-Road Racing, established by the Martelli Brothers in 2023, produces world-class events such as The Mint 400, The California 300, and The Parker 400. UNLTD is recognized for its focus on innovation, storytelling, and large-scale racer participation, with events known for high car counts, challenging courses, pre-running, and family-friendly fan experiences near major markets.

Together under the AORC banner, BITD and UNLTD preserve the heritage of desert racing while building its future—offering racers, sponsors, and fans a unified championship built on clarity, consistency, and world-class competition.
For more information, visit
americanoffroadchampionship.com

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