Driver, Navigator Die in Nevada Road Race After Tire Blows

ELY, Nev. – Two men are dead after a tire blew on their Chevy Camaro during the Silver State Classic Challenge, a high-speed race in rural Nevada.

Nye County Sheriff's officials say 53-year-old driver Richard DeKneef of California and his 41-year-old navigator, Merle Hill of Ely, Nev., were killed in the fiery crash Sunday at the 24th annual event.

Authorities say the 1994 Camaro was traveling at about 200 mph when the tire blew. The vehicle rolled several times and caught fire. Both men died at the scene.

The deaths were first reported by the Ely Times.

The Silver State Classic Challenge was the first legal open-road rally in the U.S. in a half-century when it debuted in September 1988. The Times reports there have been no deaths at the race since 1992.

The closed course covers 90 miles of State Route 318 in White Pine, Nye, and Lincoln Counties.