HEIDI BERTOLINO / Times-Bonanza & Goldfield News The Best in the Desert's Vegas-to-Reno Offroad race was a 597-mile marathon from Jean to Dayson Saturday and featured motorcycles, cars, trucks and quads. HEIDI BERTOLINO / Times-Bonanza & Goldfield News A quad clatters along the Las Vegas to Reno route about a mile northwest of Tonopah. HEIDI BERTOLINO / Times-Bonanza & Goldfield News A truck follows suit in roughly the same area. Advertisement

TONOPAH -- Larry Ragland and Brian Collins, off-road veterans who intimately know every bump, rock, and ravine in Nevada, persevered again to win a major race. This time, it was the Best in the Desert's Vegas-to-Reno, a 597-mile trek from Jean to Dayton last Saturday.

Driving the No. 12 Chevrolet truck in the 1400P class, Ragland, a 54-year-old driver out of Cave Creek, Ariz., and Collins, a 44-year-old Las Vegan, completed the rough-and-tumble race in 9 hours, 51 minutes, seven seconds. They finished ahead of a Ford, co-driven by Arizonans Garron Cadiente and Chris Godfrey, who needed 9:58:36 to reach the finish line.

Third in 10:16.35 was the Ebberts team from Canyon Lake, Calif. Danny, 25, Dale, 36, and Tom, the eldest at 64, drove a 1500P Class Jimco in the race that passed through the Tonopah area at mid-day Saturday.

In July 2005, the Ragland-Collins duo teamed up to win the four-day off-road marathon, the McMillin Nevada 1000, that was contested in the greater Tonopah area. The thousand-miler won't be held this year, but part of that course was used by 119 cars and trucks, along with 140 motorcycles and quads in the Vegas-to-Reno race.

Of those 259 starters, 67 cars or trucks and 92 motorcyles or quads completed the long haul.

Mike Childress of Wrightwood, Calif., and Steve Hengeveld of Fontana, Calif., rode a Honda to victory in the motorcycle division, taking 9:26:25 to get to the checkered flag. Eighteen minutes behind were Johnny Campbell of San Clemente, Calif., and Robby Bell, of Murietta, Calif., riding a Honda. Campbell and Hengeveld were teammates who dominated the Terrible's Town 250 -- the Pahrump-to-Beatty-to-Pahrump race -- for several years before splitting up this season.

Third in 10:29:43 were Christopher Blais and Nicholas Blais, California teammates who rode a KTM.

Wayne Matlock, a former Terrible's Town 250 winner, prevailed in the Vegas-to-Reno race, winning in 10:59:24 aboard a Honda. Matlock, from El Cajon, Calif., had Chad Prull of Laveen, Ariz., as his teammate.

The second quad to finish required 11:36:34 to get the tough job done. It was a Honda, with Jeff Hancock of Salome, Ariz., and Joshua Edwards of Peoria, Ariz., as co-riders.

Third in 11:41:08 was a Honda that had Cory Hove, a 52-year-old veteran out of Temecula, Calif., as the chief rider. His team included Rick Cecco of Shamokin, Pa., and Tyler Lenig of Shamokin, Pa.

In the cars-trucks division, Pahrump's Ron Haigwood was on a Ford team that finished 26th in 12:51:56. His co-competitors were Tom Giordano, Jerry Boytner and Steve Robledo, all from Las Vegas.

Eric Shenberger of Pahrump was on a quad team that was sixth in class and 70th overall, aboard a Yamaha. His teammates were Brandon Holly of Henderson and Damon Gill of Las Vegas.

Shaun Moore of Pahrump and Nicholas Granlund of Las Vegas were ninth in class and 100th overall in the quad division, riding a Yamaha.

In the Special Classes competition, the Pahrump team of Garey and Nathan Leavitt were fifth overall, driving a VW. Noteworthy: only the first two vehicles, a Mirage and a Yamaha, completed the race, requiring 19:30:36 and 22:35:30, respectively, to do it. Listed ninth was a Chevrolet that had Pahrump's Jeff Perkins, James Tyler and John Perkins on the team, along with Rett Tyler of Henderson.