If you’ve ever been to the SXSUSA Spring Hoedown or Fall Hootenanny, you’re well aware that the man behind it all, Hunter Owen, knows how to throw a party. And the Hootenanny’s first-ever nighttime sand drag race—complete with a DJ, laser light show and, of course, MC’d by Hunter himself—was no exception!
This was the most outrageous and fun race we have ever experienced. SXSUSA spared no expense to create a great 300-foot sand track complete with lights and a pro tree. The stage was set, and the lineup was packed with local favorites ready to defend their turf against Team EVP and other drivers who made the trek to Crossbar Ranch in Davis, OK. Classes consisted of Stock Turbo, Mod, and Outlaw. And just like the Spring Hoedown races, Team EVP cars dominated once again!
STOCK CLASS
In the stock turbo class, Dustin Couch’s Can-Am X3 driven by Derek Wolfe picked off one competitor at a time to finish the Stock Class in first place. Wolfe ran undefeated for the class aboard Couch’s Can-Am X3, which was tuned by EVP Co-Owner Jim Zuccone running a modified version of the consumer Stage 5-X85 tune with EVP integrated Launch Control. This car continues to impress in the Stock Turbo Class—congratulations to both Derek and Dustin!
MOD CLASS
The Mod Class was a 43mm turbo shootout. Local favorite Michael Reid, fresh off setting a new PSDA World Record ET of 3.794 at the 2023 Cajun Nationals in Louisiana, was looking to make this his third consecutive SXSUSA drag race win. Mike and Steph drove all through the night to get to the track midday Friday, just in time for test and tune. They made a few clutching changes and passes to make sure their Can-Am X3 “Batmobile” was ready to rumble.
In the first round, Reid drew Rick Spencer who was driving the WSDN record holder 43mm car built by another shop. This would be the second time Reid has raced this car, with the first being at the SXSBlog event in early October where Reid’s driving and chassis setup combined with EVP TAPP clutching and tuning allowed him to easily beat the shop-built car. At this race, Reid and Spencer battled it out, but once again Reid went undefeated to take first place.
Congratulations to Rick Spencer and Cameron Underwood for their 2nd and 3rd place finishes. Reid’s car is powered by an EVP Paragon P43R Turbo System, custom tuned on the factory ECU by EVP Co-Owner Jim Zuccone. Cameron Underwood is also running a P-43R turbo system custom tuned on an Emtron ECU by EVP’s Brandon Toole.
OUTLAW CLASS
The Outlaw class had the largest field with approximately 10 competitors. EVP-tuned favorites such as Reed Goering (Can-Am X3), Michael Reid (Can Am X3), The Man himself Hunter Owen (Can-Am X3), and EVP Shop Manager Dan Picht debuting the Polaris Pro R Paragon P57R turbo system in an actual race.
Reid and Rick Spencer both entered their 43mm cars in the Outlaw Class and drew each other first round. In a crazy race where both drivers had to pedal and keep their cars straight down the track, once again Mike Reid beat the WSDN record holder Can-Am X3.
Dan Picht put on quite a show with the EVP Polaris RZR Pro R – wheelieing off the line, pedaling, getting back into it, wheelieing again, going sideways ect. The spectators were amazed that a 2,600-pound car could move so fast.
Because the car has largely stock suspension and the insane amount of power the car made, it was virtually uncontrollable going down the track, which took Dan out of the race.
Mike Reid went up against local favorite Landon Wood and pulled an amazing wheelie right off the starting line, which gave Reid the first loss of the day. Reed Goering barely edged out Landon a few races later. Mike Reid lined up with Spencer again and took the win, knocking Spencer out of the outlaw class. Reid is now 5-0 against the 43mm shop-built car between the SXS Blog Event in Michigan and the SXSUSA Hootenanny events. This just goes to show that when the pressure is on during a legitimate heads-up race, Evolution Powersports and Mike Reid deliver wins. All on the stock ECU – no standalone needed.
The finals came down to the same two Outlaw finalists from the spring Hoedown: Reed Goering and Michael Reid. Reid came into the finals with one loss, Goering with zero losses. They lined up and both cut a great light, but Reid got better traction out of the hole, jumped ahead and was able to maintain the lead for close race. Since Goering was undefeated, they had to line up again. This time Goering redlit, giving Reid the win in the Outlaw Class.
Congratulations to Michael Reid, Reed Goering and Landon Wood for their 1st, 2nd and 3rd place finishes. Reid and Goering both have Paragon turbo systems – Reid runs the P43R and Goering runs the P46R. Additionally, both were also using EVP TAPP Primary Clutches with race calibrations. EVP Co-Owner Jim Zuccone custom tuned both vehicles on the stock ECU, proving once again that the expense of a standalone ECU is not needed to win races and set records.
Todd and Jim Zuccone have pushed the tuning envelope of the OEM ME17 and MG1 ECU’s farther than anyone else with more power and with EVP’s proprietary integrated launch control. With that said, if a customer wants an aftermarket ECU, EVP has two of the best tuners in the industry to get you to the podium: Dan Picht and Brandon Toole. Stay tuned for big announcements in the coming weeks concerning standalone ECU’s from EVP.
As always, special thanks to Stephanie Reid for capturing all the action behind the lens!
Companies that contribute to EVP race programs:
Spectrum Turbos
Opus Precision
Tapp Clutch
Shock Therapy
Knutson Fabrication
Brian Crower
Sand Tires Unlimited
Keizer Wheels
TiAL Sport
STM Powersports
Injector Dynamics
Syvecs
Motec USA
