Holiday Race #1- OCRC Raceway

I wanted to post some updates from the track, live, as I completed each race, but with working on 3 cars, there wasn't very much down time. Maybe next time :)

Tonight was Race #1 of the Holiday racing season :) It was also the maiden race for my new B4. I would be racing it in Super Stock Buggy and running my B44 in Super Stock 4wd. My brother would be running my T4 in Amateur Stock Truck. My brother and I got video of all our races, so this post incudes almost an hour of video!

Super Stock Buggy
My B4 was not hooked up at all :( The setup I put on it was way off. It was difficult to keep pointed in the right direction. For my 1st practice run I tried a pair of worn Holeshots. The rear end slid around so much that I pulled it off after only a few laps. Next, I tried my Double Dees. These were much better, but I still had to be careful. I decided to switch to my Square Fuzzies for round 1, as well as loosen my slipper a 1/4 turn, put silver springs on the front shocks, and loosened up my diff a little bit. I would also just apply traction compound to the rear tires only.

The Squares felt ok, but I still couldn't get on the gas too hard in round 1. The car was also pushing too much in the sweepers, and didn't carve through the turns how I liked. I had a decent start and was in 3rd place, but got hit from the back in the whoops and got stuck on a pipe. I ended up in last by the time I got marshaled :( I hung on and finished in 5th with a 14:00. At least I didn't finish last! Check out the race below.


I made no changes to the car for round 2. Just wiped down the front tires with a wet rag and washed and sauced my rears. My lap times were still around 21 seconds. Not too impressive :( I was still unhappy with the handling, but I crashed less this round, and went a little faster, finishing 4th with a 15:20.


I would have to switch tires for the main, as my Square Fuzzies had developed several bald spots during the last race! I'd go back to my Holeshots, crossing my fingers that they'd get me through the main. I had qualified 6th out of 9 cars. I was able to avoid an accident on the start and went over the step-up table-top in 3rd! But I landed short and wrecked. After I got going again I was in last place. I struggled with the car being so loose the entire race. I even spun out a few times at the end of the straight under braking! Thankfully, nobody hit me! I finished where I started, in 6th, with a 14:03.


I need to make a bunch of changes to the car! Let's see.... Remove all the travel limiters from the front shocks, change the oil to 30wt, pistons to #2's, and install longer silver springs. Install the 25° caster blocks. Change the rear oil to 25wt with #1 pistons. I also need to enable anti-lock brakes in my 4pk.

Super Stock 4wd
I only took 1 practice run with my B44, as it felt pretty good with the Inside Job tires I was running. I needed to sort out my B4 anyway and help my brother with running my truck.

In round 1, I got a horrible start and was running in 4th place. I then started reeling in Joel Navarro from RC Car Action (the orange car). We had a good battle going, but he was a little squirrelly, making it hard to make a pass. He finally wrecked and I was able to go by :) I think something happened to the leader that same lap, and I found myself in second place! Adam was in the lead now, but he was long gone, so I kept out of trouble and finished a lap down with a 15:00.


In round 2, I had a decent start and came across the line in 3rd. Woohoo! But then, Adam takes me out in the whoops section, sending me over the pipe and I get stuck :( dropping down to 4th. The leaders wreck on the next lap and I catch back up, but Adam hits me again after the step-up table-top! I held onto 3rd and wasn't too far behind the leaders, but wasn't able to make a pass. I finished with a 16:18. After the race, Adam apologizes to me for hitting me during the race. I told him not to worry about it, but to just clean up his driving.


I needed to change tires for the main, as my rear Inside Jobs had started to go bald. I went to my Double Dees and again only sauced the rears. These tires were hooked up! I was almost a second a lap faster on these tires compared to the Inside Jobs :) and turned some laps in the low 18's. I kept my nose clean for the 1st lap and found myself in 2nd place right behind the leader, Adam. We would have an epic battle for the lead the entire race, swapping the lead several times. He made a clean pass on me going through the whoops and then later over the triple, but I took the lead back when he made mistakes. We raced to the line, but I made it over for my 17th lap and Adam got caught, so I took it easy on my victory lap! Too easy in fact as, I slowed too much for some cars in front of me, and couldn't make the gap from the step-up to the table-top and ended up on my lid. It took forever for a marshal to turn over my car, but it didn't matter, as there was no way to lose the lead now! :) I had won the race! Check out this great race between Adam and myself below.

Oh ya, my brother did pretty well for his 1st race back since we were kids. He went a lap faster every round and qualified in 5th for the Amateur Stock Truck Main. He finished the main in 3rd place! Congrats Ran! Check out the video's I took of his races below.

Round 1

Round 2

Main Event

Next up will be the Winter Series race at Delta RC in Antioch, CA. I will be running Mod 4wd and maybe SS Buggy. Maybe this time I'll have live updates from the track! Stay tuned!

New layout at OCRC!!! *UPDATED*

Almost there!! Looks like this layout will be more technical with some big jumps and run counter-clockwise now...

*UPDATE* The new layout is complete! A huge roller onto the straight was added last night. The left side of the track looks to have many hairpins and narrow lanes. There's a huge triple in front of the driver's stand. In the center of the track seems to be a huge pit that you land into. Should be a very technical track!! Can't wait to try it out next month, as I will be racing in Northern Cali over the Holiday break...

Ready to Race!

Just finished painting and applying decals to my B4 body a few minutes ago. All ready to race tomorrow :)

B4 build completed! (almost)

Bored here at work so I thought I'd post an update on my B4 build!

I mounted up the front tires a couple of nights ago, (the rears are the same as on my B44) then set the ride height, camber, toe-in, and steering endpoints last night. I still need to paint the body and pick up a 78 or 72 spur gear, then it'll be ready to race :) Some things I noticed compared to my B3: the cars overall height seems lower, the rear wing is tiny, and I need another body with sidepods tall enough to clear the heatsink on my LRP Sphere ESC. I had to cut a hole in the stock body to clear it :( I can also probably shorten my motor wires a bit, but I left them alone for now. I'll also probably need to lengthen the battery wires to switch to bullet connectors when I pick up the Reedy 35C lipo pack when it comes out.

Hopefully I can get the body painted Saturday and pick up a spur gear at the track. Then I'll take a few pics of it before I dirty it up :)

I also picked up an HTC Touch Pro Pocket PC Phone and an unlimited data plan, so I may start blogging from the track with updates after every race! (If I have time that is)

Holiday racing schedule

My first holiday race will be this coming Sunday at OCRC. My brother will be running my T4 in the Amateur Stock Truck Class. I will be running my B44 in Super Stock 4wd (or Mod if there aren't enough entries for SS) and possibly my B4 in Super Stock 2wd (if I can get it ready by then).

Next I plan to race Round 2 of the Winter Series at Delta RC in Antioch, CA the Saturday after Christmas day, since I will be at my parent's place in Pittsburg, CA over Christmas break. This is my "Home" track as it was where I started racing over 20 years ago (well the relocated track anyway, as the original was torn down in the early 90's to build track homes).

Then I want to try and run at Norcal Hobbies in Union City, CA. I first learned about this track earlier this year when I was working in Hayward at a vendor of my company. But, at the time I haven't gotten back into RC racing full time. Hopefully they'll have some club racing going on the Saturday after New Year's, as they haven't posted a schedule online yet for next year.

Happy Holidays!

Unintentional break from racing

I was planning to run the Bob James Memorial race out at OCRC, but I overslept Saturday morning :( By the time I woke up it was already 9:30 am and racing started at 10 am! I did catch some of the racing on LiveRC though, and it looks like I missed a great event :( I will definitely be there next year!

I decided to work on my cars a bit, (as I was now awake) and get them ready for racing next Sunday. I changed the motor in my T4 back to my LRP 17.5, as my brother will be racing it in the Amateur Truck class! I hope he does well! He tells me he's been practicing by playing VRC, the RC car simulator game.

I plan to rebuild both cars soon. I want to rebuild the shocks and diffs on both my B44 and T4, and possibly change ball cups on the B44, as I've been noticing alot of slop lately. I also want to try some different settings on both. I just need to pick up a bunch of rebuild kits first!

I was also able to finally get my B4 built! The chassis is done, but I need to install the electronics and paint a body for it.

OCRC Gyro Hobbies Platinum Battle! Better late than never :)

I haven't run a "big" race since 2002 when I ran at the Reedy Touring Car Race at Tamiya USA in Aliso Viejo, thus I was somewhat nervous during the 1st qualifying round. This made it difficult to drive smooth :( I'm not sure why I was nervous, as this race was really just a glorified club race and the turnout wasn't much bigger than a large turnout for a Sunday club race. It probably didn't help that I was racing sick too :( I was also a little disappointed, as I was hoping for a alot of entries in the Super Stock classes, to see how fast/slow I was. There were only 2 heats of Super Stock Truck and 3 heats of Super Stock 4wd. But this time there was a prize on the line! The winners of the Super Stock classes were going to get a Platinum membership to OCRC and discounts for a year in the Gyro Hobby shop!

Super Stock Truck
I would run my new Holeshots for round 1 of qualifying. They felt a little loose during the race, but I wasn't sure if it was really the tires or my nerves. I just wasn't able to get into a good rhythm during the race :( I finished in 5th with a 14:01, which seated me in 9th for the A main. I would need to go faster in round 2, as I was currently sitting on the "bubble", since only the top 9 were going directly into the A, with the 10th truck bumping in by winning the B main. Below is the video of my run, but my Dad ended up following the wrong truck for part of it, thus only caught the end.



In round 2, I switched over to a new set of Panther Stingers. The track had more bite than the previous weekends and was beginning to develop a "black" groove on the racing line. The Stingers felt alot better and my nerves had calmed down, so I was able to go faster this time :) I finished 4th with a 15:15! I was also able to improve my qualifying spot to 8th in the A! Unfortunately, I don't have any video of this run, because the camera quit for some reason right after the warm up :(

I was in the show! I made the A! Woohoo! Although, I didn't really have a chance at the big prize, I would still give it my best, as you never know. The leaders could drop out, or not be eligible for the prize, thus I wanted to finish as high up the order as I could! The track had grooved up good by the time the mains came around! I bet a set of Taper Pins would hook up now, as the track was dry and swept and didn't have much dust. Too bad I left those tires at home, since they've never worked in the past :( Oh well, next time.

I got a horrible start! I tangled with Smalley after the hairpin then got hung up on the pipe. I was running in the back of the pack :( After a few more laps I thought I got a break, as there was an accident at the end of the straight, and I was able to go around! But, I got loose squaring up for the step-up table-top and went off the far side of the jump :( Thankfully I didn't loose any positions. The leaders came up on me next, so I let them by when they got close enough. Now Matt was right on my tail for position! But, I went too wide at the end of the straight and pushed on the staggered doubles, allowing him to squeeze by for 7th :( Toward the end of the race a few cars dropped out and I moved up to 6th, where I remained. I finished the race with a 20:03 in 7 minutes. I didn't like how my Truck was handling at all. It seemed too "edgy" and not really hooked up. I think I'll rebuild all the shocks and diff and try out some different settings on the front end and start over. My truck always felt pretty good in stock, but I guess the more powerful 13.5 motor is too much for that setup. I would have liked to finish better, but at least I made the A main :) Check out the race below.




Super Stock 4wd
4wd was the biggest Super Stock class with 24 entries. It would be a challenge to make the A in this class. I headed out to the track for some practice. I wasn't feeling too good, as I was still fighting off a bad cold, but I wanted to try some new tires. I had picked up a set of JConcepts Double Dee's just in case my Holeshot didn't work. They felt pretty good, but my practice run was cut short :( I hit a car on its lid after landing the triple and broke a shock shaft! :( Fantastic! I pulled off and went back to the pits to rebuild my shock. I would need to make the repair as fast as possible, since I wanted to get back on the track for a few laps, to test the car. I was able to finish with about 10 minutes left before the track closed! I ran out to the track for a handful of test laps. Everything seemed to work ok, so I went back to the pits to get ready for qualifying.

I still had a bit of nerves during the 1st round and was still having trouble finding a good rhythm. I was swapping 3rd place back and forth with Brandon though :) I made few bobbles on the triple and got loose at the end of straight, stuffed it into pipe, ending up on my lid on the last lap :( This mistake probably cost me a 16 lap run, as I finished 4th, with a 15:01. This put me in 10th, or the BQ :( I would need a faster time in the second round to get into the A. My Dad had a bit of trouble following me in the beginning, but sorted that out. Check it out below.



In round 2 I switched over to my Holeshots as the track was grooving up and there was barley any dust on the it. I thought that the slightly softer compound and shorter pin height compared to the Double Dees would be faster. But, the timing computer crashed about a minute into the run, and Jeremy stopped the race. We would try it again after the end of the round. After marshaling, I went back to the pits and cleaned my tires off a bit, then re-coated them with Buggy Grip. They were mostly dry by the time our race was up again. I also didn't bother charging my battery as it would have no problem running for 10-15 minutes anyway. I was having a good run this time and the car felt fast! It did feel a bit loose, but it wasn't too bad. I was on a 16 lap pace and running in 4th, when I noticed that the car was losing some punch. As if the slipper or diff was loosening up! Great! This was my last chance for a shot at the A and something broke on the car :( A few laps later, all the punch was gone, and I couldn't clear the jumps anymore, so I pulled off with about a minute left in the race. At least this let go now, instead of in the main. My time from the 1st round seated me in 4th for the B main. Nuts! I really wanted to make the A, and now my only way in was to win the B. See the race below.



When inspecting the car, I saw that a CVD pin had gotten past the retaining ring and ejected from the joint. Thus, I lost drive to one of the rear wheels and the pin had cut a groove in the arm. I bet this was why my car felt a little loose during the race. Repairing the CVD wasn't a big deal, but changing the rear arm was going to be a pain, because the rear of the car would need to be taken apart to get to the hinge pin out of the car to change the arm. I was busy getting the car ready for the main, so my Dad kept an eye on my raffle tickets for me :) but, I didn't win anything good. I did score a metric 4-way wrench though :) After finishing up the repair, I decided to switch back to my Double Dees, as theHoleshots were pretty worn and I wanted to run fresh tires for the main.

Starting in 4th, I had a real chance of winning as the guys in front weren't that much faster. I was able to make a pass for 3rd off the start, but it didn't last long as I bobbled and dropped back down going into the center table-top. I got 3rd place back after the whoops and held it going over the triple and onto the straightaway :) But I got bumped when squaring up the step-up table-top and went off the far side of the table-top :( Next I tangled with another car in mid-air going over the triple, and got the worst of it :( The 1st few laps were very chaotic! I finally got some breathing room and tried to catch up to the cars in front and improve my position. But, I clipped the inside pipe on my approach to the triple and crashed between the 1st and 2nd jump :( Next I try to pass a car going over the center table-top and actually land on top of the other car and crash again! Then I go though the whoops and my car does this weird flip and crash yet again! So far this race was not turning out very well for me :( I thought I finally got in the clear and settled down, but a few laps later a car tangled with me at the end of the straight, and I got stuck on the pipe right before the step-up table-top, and ended up landing on the far side of the table-top again. Nuts! Then I do another weird flip in the whoops, but at least this time I was able to keep going. This race was a joke with one crash after another! Then to cap it off I stuff it into the pipe at in the hairpin at the end of the straight, and it takes forever for the marshal to get me :( I drop another position and finish the race in 7th with a 16:21. See my laughable performance below.



I was over driving the car the entire race. I kept pushing passes when I should've been more patient. Normally I drive in a more controlled manner, but with the competition being so tough, I had to step it up a notch and I probably went too far. It's a fine line between going safe and too slow and going fast and pushing too hard.

Next time I think I'll need to do a more complete rebuild of the cars prior to a "big" race. I had been running my B44 for more than 2 months straight with virtually no maintenance, and I had parts break on me during the race. For a club race I wouldn't care, but with prizes on the line, I should've looked over the cars more carefully. I plan to rebuild the shocks and diffs on my B44 and T4 and try different settings on both. I think I'll also secure my CVD pins with some heat shrink tubing! LOL!

The next race I plan to run will probably be the Bob James Memorial next Saturday, then the Sunday club race the following weekend, as my brother will be coming up from San Diego to try his hand at racing. In the meantime I plan to get my B4 built and ready to race :)

Bob James Memorial Race

From the OCRC site:

"In Loving Memory of Bob James, 1959 - 2008. You were a huge part of our R/C Community and OC/RC Family. You will be dearly missed. Rest in Peace my Friend. The 1st Annual Bob James Memorial Race will be held on Saturday, December 13th. Please mark your calendars and tell your friends. The race will be the standard club race fee but everyone is more than welcome to donate as much as they'd like."

Doors open at 8 am, racing starts at 10 am. Come out if you can.

Race info

Brushless friendly spur gears for the B4/T4/B44!!!

Finally! AE has released smaller spur gears for the B4/T4/B44! This will allow the use of smaller pinions when using 17.5, 13.5, and 10.5 brushless motors and let you gear a 17.5 in a buggy! Just in time for me too, since I plan on building my B4 this weekend :) Read about it on RedRc.net

I haven't been able to write up and post my race recap from the Platinum Battle yet :( I've been really busy at work trying to get things done before the Christmas shutdown and my folks have been staying with me since Thanksgiving, so I'm busy with them after work. I should post it this weekend though, and it'll be a cool one with videos! As, my Dad came along and filmed my races :) Stay tuned!

Practice Race #2 for Platinum Battle

This would be the last practice race for me before the Platinum Battle on the 29th. I used this race to tryout different tires and pick the ones that work best for the big race :) I would be also working on my lines for the hairpin, step-up tabletop, and triple.

Super Stock Truck
For round 1, I was experimenting with Panther Switch 2.0's. These tires had too much wheelspin, leading to slower laptimes. The front end didn't seem to steer as well either, pushing some in the sweepers. I finished last with a 14:00.

For round 2, I went back to my trusty Panther Stingers, which always worked well in Stock. I also increased the power setting on my ESC, as I noticed Robert spraying his "secret sauce" on the racing groove, so I gambled that the traction would be better for this round. The Stingers did work a little better, as I was barely able to make it over the line for the 15th lap, finishing 3rd with a 15:20.

For the main, I tried running Holeshots, as it was the tire of choice for everyone else. I was pulling wheelies with these tires during practice on Saturday :) However, the truck was still pushing in the sweepers. Which has a big impact on lap times, as there are a lot of sweepers on this layout. I barely hung on to 4th, finishing with a 14:02. I really don't like the new roll center settings I have on the front end, and I changed them back to my old settings for the race next weekend.

It's also worth mentioning that every race I was battling with little Andy Castro. He's this young kid that comes up from TJ with his parents to race. He's pretty quick and drives clean (unlike others, Casey B). Keep an eye out for him at the big races in the coming years.

Super Stock 4wd
For round 1, I would be trying out my Panther Bobcats/Switch 2.0's. These tires worked great on the old layout when the track was bone dry and swept. While they felt ok, my lap times were slow, in the mid 19's to 20's. I also had what started out as a good start, only to get taken out by Tyler and got stuck on the wrong side of the pipe. I finished dead last with a 15:00.

For round 2, I tried out a weird tire combination that I had only been using during practice days, Blockhead fronts with Square Fuzzie rears. I also turned up my power setting on the ESC, to profile 2. I was able to turn a couple of low 19's, but the rear end was a still sliding around some, making it difficult to drive fast. I didn't go any faster with a 15:01, but at least I didn't finish last.

I qualified horrible! I was seated in the 9th spot :( I decided to quit testing tires and put on my Holeshots that I was saving for the Platinum race. During warm up these tires felt dialed! Hopefully I can make some time on the cars in front of me. I was able to keep up with them and was in a 4 car fight for 5th!? But, I landed short a few times on the step-up table top and triple, because I began shortening up my approach to catch up to the cars in front. I could only make it about 90% of the time, and that other 10% when I ended up on my lid, dropped me back down the order. I managed to finish in 7th with a decent 16:12.

I need to be able to clear these jumps consistently if I'm going to turn a fast time on Saturday! To be able to clear these jumps with a short approach, I tightened up my slipper, increased the power profile in my ESC, and need to run the right tires.

Well that's it. No more practice for me. Next race will be the one. I will be in San Diego with my family for Thanksgiving, but will drive back up to OCRC on Saturday for the Platinum Battle. The cars are ready. Just need to glue up more tires, in case I need to run new rubber. Wish me luck!

Uggh!

Driving at 125% and still finishing in the bottom half of the field sucks! As does not getting one good start :( I guess tonight was not my night :( I bet it didn't help that I wasn't running the ideal tires anyway... My 4wd felt good when I had the right tires on there, but my Truck was slower. I guess the changes I made to the front didn't help, so I'll be going back to my old setup for next weekend. I also tried higher power profiles in my ESC's in both the truck and 4wd. I'll probably go back to my old profile in the truck and up 1 more power profile in the 4wd. More to come later.... I'll probably post the race recap later this week, since I need to work on the cars before I head to San Diego for Thanksgiving.

Some setup notes:
4wd- ESC power profile 3, tighten slipper 1/8, Holeshots, gear up?
Truck- 25° caster blocks, inner front camber link positions, lower rear ball stub 1 washer, rear hub carrier middle position, loosen diff 1/16th, tighten slipper 1/4, Holeshots

4PK shakedown

I headed out to OCRC to shakedown my new 4PK radio and learn how to take the new triple where the huge double was last week. I would also only use my lipos during practice because I wanted the punch to feel the same as when I would be racing.

It took me 2 runs to get used to the feel of the 4PK. It's easier to hold than my M8 since its lighter, and the trigger/wheel feel about the same. The timer worked great, except for the fact that I kept running after time was up. I just had to get one more clean lap! LOL! The only problem I had was with my finger slipping off the trigger when I applied the brakes. This was especially un-nerving when it happened during braking at the end of the straight with a wall in front of me! I fixed the problem by putting a short piece of fuel tubing over the brake side of the trigger. This kept the tip of my finger from slipping off when I hit the brakes :) It also worked great! No glitching or shutdowns :) It was invisible to my driving, as it should be :)

I also ran my lipos for all my practice runs, instead of using my NiMh batteries. The NiMH just don't have the punch I need to clear the step-up table top and triple. I was also able take three 5-7 minute practice runs on one charge! And the 3rd run on the pack still had the same punch as the 1st run :) I only recharged my Reedy 5000 mah pack, as I need it ready to run for practice tomorrow. I put back in about 3200 mah, so I can safely run four 5-7 minute runs on this pack and still stay above the 80% capacity use rule. I use this rule with my helicopter lipo batteries. To keep them healthy and keep from over discharging them, only use 80% of the pack's rated capacity. So for a 5000 mah pack, you shouldn't be putting back in more than 4000 mah. Of course, if you change motors or gearing this will change how much capacity you use up in a 5-7 minute run.

Since I raced on this layout last weekend, I was already familiar with it, but a new jump was put in, the triple on the left side of the track. This jump changed my line through this area. I would need to go over the double before the triple wider and slower, so that I can take the turn prior to the triple wider, thus giving me the run I need to clear the triple. If I take this turn a little tighter, it becomes hit/miss on clearing the triple. It does make the layout more challenging though. There was also more traction this time around. I guess the rubber is getting laid down now :)

I was also trying out some different roll centers on the front end of my truck. I moved the mounting positions of the camber links to the outside hole on the shock tower and outside hole on the hub carrier. I also switched over to 30° caster blocks and moved the rear hub carrier forward to increase rear traction. With all these changes, the truck felt slightly more stable, and hopefully my lap times will decrease a bit :)

Anyhoo, time to get some sleep for racing tomorrow! It'll be my final practice race before the Platinum Battle!

I caved!

I wasn't planning to install my 4PK receiver's into my cars, until after the Platinum Battle race, but I got my extra receivers last night and installed one in my B44! LOL! That radio is just too cool to not use! Throttle curves, steering speeds, expo, ABS, backlit display, 7 color power led! My favorite feature is the built in timer. You can set it to time up, down, and laps. It also has an audible alarm and vibrates the handle to tell you when you hit a preset limit. This will come in really helpful during practice to make sure that I don't run too long and overheat the motor. Did I also mention that it will record your lap times and calculate your average lap time? You still have to hit a button on the handle when you cross the line though :( I plan to test the "radio/driving" part of the 4PK tomorrow during practice :)

New toys!

I picked up a Futaba 4PK 2.4GHz radio and an Associated Factory Team B4!




I don't want to install the 4PK just yet, as I'm not sure if I want to use it at the Platinum race. I may wait until afterwards. I want to keep as many unknowns out of that race as possible.


I also picked up a B4 to use during the 2009 JBRL series. I plan to run this and my truck in the stock classes.

Practice Race #1 for Platinum Battle

I raced Super Stock Truck and 4wd Sunday night as practice for the Platinum Battle race. I wanted to see how I fared against the competition, get motor temps in competition for my gearing, and race on the layout for the big race.

Super Stock Truck
Based on my practice runs Saturday, I decided to lower the height of the inner ball stud of the rear camber links to help the rear end hook up better on power. I didn't want to loosen the slipper, as I need it tight to clear the step-up table top. There's no point in making big changes anyway, as the traction level is going to go up as more races are run.

The turnout was extremely light, but everyone was fast. Joesph Smalley, Robert Black, and Andy Castro. That was it. I would consider these races as controlled practice for the Platinum Battle. For round 1, the track had no traction at all. I had no steering and no bite coming off the corners. Smalley was in another zip code by the halfway point of the race. I held 2nd for about half the race, but Robert made a clean pass to the inside of me though the keyhole turn going into the whoops section. I just tried to hold it together after that, trying not to slide around too much. I finished the race with a 15:14 in 3rd.

For round 2, I put Buggy Grip on all my tires hoping to get more bite. It helped a bit, making it easier to drive, but still not hooked up. Smalley and Robert had a good race going at the front (so I heard) and I was running in 3rd trying my best to keep up. I don't know what my time was, as the computer crashed and the times from round 2 were lost. I probably turned 15 laps though.

In the main, I would be starting 3rd of 4. Andy made a clean pass on me after the step-up table top on the start, then passed Robert for 2nd going over the center table top. I had a good race going with Robert and we traded 3rd place a couple of times. He even made an awesome inside pass on me at the end of the straight! I finished in 4th with a 15:20.

I probably should've run my Stingers or Switches instead of Holeshots, but I'm saving those tires for... the big race! I did start running a better line into the step-up table top towards the end of the race. I was able to brake and rotate the truck to line up for the jump, instead of rounding the turn and punching the gas. The "brake and rotate" method seemed faster, but only my lap and race times will tell me the truth. I'll probably tighten my slipper a little to get more punch, so I can clear this jump with a shorter take-off too.

Super Stock 4wd
During practice my car felt good (compared to my truck anyway). I could clear the step-up table top with the right approach every time :) With the right tires and a tighter slipper, I bet I could clear it with a short take-off.

In round 1, I got an excellent start off the line, and moved up from 5th to 2nd by the center table top. But I made a mistake in the sweeper after the whoops, allowing the cars behind to catch up, and I got sandwiched between 2 cars, going into the small double to the left of the stand. I got the worst of it and rolled. I spent the rest of race trying to catch back up to the leaders, but made a bobble here and there, and wasn't able to close the gap. I finished in 4th with a 15:00.

On the start for round 2, I bounced off another car in the hairpin and got stuffed into the pipe at the end of the straight and the whole field goes by me. I work my way back up to 4th and battle for position with Adam. I finished the race in 4th, but don't remember my time, as the times from round 2 were lost.

For the main I would be starting 4th out of 8 cars. I finally got a clean start and held my position for the first few laps, right behind the top 3 cars. After the whoops, I was able to make a clean pass on Alex and moved into 3rd. I traded 3rd with Alex a few times during the race. At one point I thought I bounced off him and stuffed him into the pipe after the whoops, so I waited for him to be marshaled, but Jeremy said "I don't know why Angelito is waiting, I guess he wants to battle with Alex?", so I took off again. LOL! I finished the race in 3rd with a 16:13.

After the race I talked to Alex and his dad and apologized for bumping him into the pipe. They both thought I wasn't at fault, thus didn't need to wait for him. They just considered it racing :)

Only one more practice race before the Platinum Battle! I'm not sure what I want to do with the setup on my T4. I was thinking about trying out the shock settings I wrote about in my last post or just changing the roll center on front of my truck for next weekend. But I may just wait until the bite comes back up on the track and leave my settings alone. I guess I'll decide after practice next weekend. Whatever settings I leave the track with next Sunday will be the ones I run for the Platinum race. On a brighter note, my B44 was working good even in the lower traction conditions! I just need to run the ideal tires and tighten slipper a little and I think it'll be dialed in! I'll probably also gear up another tooth on both cars as the motor temps were in the 150's for the B44 and 160's for the T4. I'll just need to keep on eye on them next weekend.

A sliping and a sliding!

I went out for practice at OCRC today to get a feel for the new layout. Wow! Talk about no grip! The dirt had no traction at all :( Probably because all the dirt got turned over for the rebuild, thus getting rid of all the rubber and syrup that has been put down over the last 2 months. I sure hope that as the track gets run in, the traction will come back up to the level I'm used to. Hopefully in time for the Platinum Battle race in 2 weeks.

The layout is more of a "flowing" style vs the "supercross" style track, like the last layout. There is really only 1 big jump on the track (the step-up table top in front of the LiveRC camera). The rest of the track is mainly flat, with alot of fast sweepers, a whoops section, and 2 sets of doubles (one that's easy to clear and another that nearly impossible). There's also a medium table top in the middle of the track, but it's so easy to clear, that its a non-issue. The last layout has 3 big jumps and a hill, and the lanes went back and forth in front of the driver's stand, supercross style. This new layout will require more "line" driving through the sweepers, kinda like on-road, but without the grip :(

Since I was working on learning the layout, I didn't want to make any setup changes to my T4 or B44. I just wanted to work on my lines and get a feel for how each car handled. But, my T4 was suffering from a lack of both front and rear grip :( It didn't turn in and rotate like I wanted and it was hard to get on the gas :( I tried old R3 Edges, M3 Blades, and a new set of M3 Edges on the front. The new M3 Edges provided the most steering. While on the rear I tried a set of older Stingers and Holeshots. The Holeshots worked the best, but it was still hard to put the power down. I plan to play around with the roll centers on the front and rear tomorrow, as a lower ball stud height or shorter camber link length is supposed to work better in low traction conditions.

My B44 worked pretty well! (love that 4wd!) I was trying out a different tire combination, Blockheads up front and Square Fuzzies on the rear. The rear felt ok, but the front pushed a little on power in the sweepers. I think I'll go back to my Inside Jobs on all 4 corners for racing tomorrow.

Well, I've got a feel for the layout now. Time to whittle away at the lap times :)

Some other random thoughts. I love LiPo batteries! At first I was running NiMh in my truck for practice (like I normally do). But I didn't have the punch I needed to down-side the step-up table top. I switched to my Reedly LiPo for my last run. Ah! That's where my acceleration went! It was now easier to down-side the step-up table top :) And I charged this battery more than 24 hours ago! I need to pick up another LiPo for my truck, so I can run LiPo during practice, and stop using my NiMh's.

Track piping. While the white PVC pipe that OCRC was using will shear off an A-arm if you hit it at the right angle, you were able to "bounce" off of it if you touched at a shallow angle. The black corrugated pipe that's on the track now, seems to suck you in if you touch it at all. Since it flexes, it turns your car, and you end up stuck on the pipe. Personally, I prefer the PVC pipe, since if you touch it at least you can keep going. With the black pipe, you need to drive extremely tidy and not touch the pipe, as you'll probably end up stuck.

Anyhoo.... Time to get some sleep and rest up for tomorrow's racing :)

Rebuild time!

I wanted to look over my T4 and B44 for any items that needed attention to get them ready for testing and racing over the next 2 weekends and ultimately for the Platinum Battle race. The T4 was in fairly good shape, but the rear shocks were leaking and needed a rebuild. So, I would rebuild those and install my LRP 13.5 for Super Stock racing on Sunday. I had originally planned to switch my front shock oil over to 35wt, but when looking at Mayfield and Cavalieri's setup sheets on RC10.com, the bottom of the shock is mounted on the inside hole on the arm, changing the leverage on the shock, which is probably why they use 35wt oil. Also, they are using the #3 piston with a smaller hole than the #2, that I have currently installed. Using the inside hole on the arm also requires using more travel limiters on the shock shaft, to keep the droop the same, meaning I'd have to take the shock apart to try this setup, when I originally just wanted to change the oil over to 35wt. I think I'll leave the front shock setup alone for now and try this setting when I need to take the shock apart for a rebuild. My truck has been working well anyway with my current setting :)

I hate rebuilding shocks :( Bleeding them sucks! Sometimes I get it right on the 1st try and other times it seems impossible to get right :( I had both happen to me rebuilding the T4's rear shocks. One I was able to bleed right on the 1st try, while the other took forever! It kept having too much oil or air! I just couldn't hit the sweet spot. Then I stripped the molded shock cap :( I finally got it right after what seemed like a million attempts and buttoned the truck back up.

My B44 looks good! Nothing leaking and the diffs feel alright. I'll probably just clean it up and make sure everything is tight and gear it up a tooth, since the motor temps are still on the low side.

I can't wait to head out to OCRC on Saturday and try the new layout. From watching the racing on Live RC last night, it looks like a fast time will be in the 15-16 lap window, with fast lap times in the low 20's to high 19's. I wonder what times I will run and who will be the 1st to turn a 16 lap run and sub 20 second lap?

Platinum Battle layout is in!

The new layout at OCRC for the Platinum Battle race is in! It runs in the same direction as the last layout, clockwise. It looks sick! They also changed the pipe from the car breaker white PVC to the black corrugated pipe that is used at Hot Rod's. You saw it here 1st! In fact, Robert is running laps on the track right now as I type!

Will my winning streak continue?

I made the journey out to OCRC for my weekly fix of RC racing action! I was originally just going to run my T4, but Jeremy mentioned to me that they were trying to get a 4wd Super Stock class together and he asked me if I wanted to run it. I figured what the heck, I'll run it, since I had my B44 with me, and it was already setup for Super Stock, because I was testing my new 13.5 motor. I put more effort into Stock Truck though, as I had a streak to keep going :)

Stock Truck
Qualify was tough as I had to start mid pack both rounds (5th in the round 1 and 6th in round 2) and had to work my way up to the front. I also kept having problems with Casey Becica. In round 1 I was running in 3rd place right behind 1st and 2nd. We were the only 3 trucks to make it over the line for the 16th lap. While going through the whoops and into the wagon wheel, Casey having finished his race, jumps the Surf City Berm and nearly lands on top of my truck, while I'm in the middle of racing for position! At least after letting him know we were still racing, he backed off. In round 2, he crashes right in front of me in the finish line turn on the start, and I have no where to go, so I rear end him and 3 of us get stuck. Then as we come on the straight, he runs into the back of me, spinning me out, and I nearly get hit by another truck. I wasn't his only victim though, as several other drivers were telling Casey to clean up his driving and stop running into people. I still managed to finish in the the top 3 though. I finished round 1 with a 16:20 in 3rd and round 2 with a 15:08 in 3rd again. Mike Fisk (the TQ from last week) won both rounds of qualifying and TQ'd with a 16:13.

I decided to switch to my Panther Stingers for the main, as the the track was drying out fast and our race would be later in the round this time. I also applied Buggy Grip to all 4 tires for extra traction in the dry. During warm up I had a ton of grip! :) Before the main started, Jeremy announced that because of all the hacking that went on during the 2nd round, he would be immediately issuing a penalty for any intentional contact between trucks. He said he wasn't going to name names, but then told Casey to clean up his driving! LOL!!

For the main, I would be starting in 4th out of 9 trucks. On the start, I went to the inside of the finish line turn and moved into 3rd. Then, I took 2nd going though the leap of faith jump and into the hairpin turn after the step up jump. Next, I take the lead at the end of the straight going over double! Jeremy calls Mike in lead, then realizes I had moved all the way from 4th to 1st on the 1st lap of the race and announces that I'm in the lead! I checked out and was gone! I opened up a straightaway lead, but my pace slowed a little bit in the middle of the race, allowing 2nd to close to a within half a straight, so I picked the pace back up. Casey who had taken me out twice in qualifying, now gave me ample room and slowed when I was lapping him (I guess he learned his lesson?), but I was still very careful around his truck. Everyone else gave me a ton of room when lapping them :) I almost lapped the TQ Mike, as I came up behind him on the last few laps. I won with a 16:07, and fast lap of 19.032! My winning streak continues! COOL! That's 3 weeks in a row now :)

4wd Super Stock
I ran 4wd Super Stock to work on my gearing for my new Orion Vortex 13.5 motor. It was temping around 140°F and could probably take more gear, but I ran it under-geared to save the rotor magnet. I was also trying my Inside Job tires on the dry track. Our race was the last race of the round so by the time we were up, the track was bone dry and dusty. Normally just the tips of the spikes get coated with dirt, but since the dirt was so dusty, the entire tire was coated with dust. They hooked up, but I still prefer my Panther Bobcats and Switches in the dry. However, when the Inside Job's were treated with Buggy Grip, they had so much traction on the dry dirt, that my slipper was slipping out of every turn on the track! During practice on Saturday, this didn't happen at all, and the only change was treating the tires! Even with the problems with my slipper, I managed to win the race with a 17:18.

For round 2, Danny S was hooked up and checked out early! He beat my TQ time from round 1 by 10 seconds. I did have a good race with Carlo for 2nd though. We battled for a most of the race, but he made a mistake, and I took the position. I finished the race in 2nd with a 17:22.

For the main, it was more of the same as in round 2. Danny checked out early turning blistering laps. I was able to keep up with him for the 1st minute or so, but made a bobble here and there and he pulled away. I also had to fight off Tyler for 2nd. He was right on my tail for the middle part of the race, but wrecked, giving me the breathing room I needed to keep 2nd. I finished the race in 2nd with a 17:18.

For next weekend I plan to install my LRP 13.5 motor into my T4 and run Super Stock Truck and start practicing for the Platinum Battle race. The new layout for this race will be put in on Monday, so if anybody racing on Wednesday, get some pictures or video of the new layout! :) I also need to rebuild the rear shocks on the T4, change the oil over to 35/30, mount up some new front and rear tires, and change the rear shock oil in the B44 over to 30wt!

Practice day- Sort of...

I decided to head out for practice at OCRC today to take some video and pictures of my T4 and B44 in action and to let my brother try out my T4, since he was going to be in L.A. this weekend. I also tried out my new Orion Vortex 13.5 motor that I will be using at the Platinum Battle race later this month in my B44 and tested some Inside Job tires as well.

I started out with a 78/30 ratio on the Vortex, but the motor temp was still low at about 130°F after 7 min, so I geared up to a 32 on my 2nd run. This time the motor temp was still low at about 140°F. I can probably still go up 1-2 teeth safely :) The Inside Job's worked ok, but I still prefer the Holeshots. That's why I'm saving them for the big race :)

Anyhoo, checkout the vids that my brother took :)

Me driving my B44.


Me driving my T4.


My brother driving my T4.

A few action shots of my B44 and T4.

Vintage RC Race Vids

Found some YouTube vids of the 1st IFMAR Off-Road Worlds!

Leg 1


Leg 2


Leg 3


1989 Off-Road Worlds- The 1st ever "Stealth" RC10 with a 3-gear transmission and 2.2 inch rear tire :)

New stuff on the way!

To run another Super Stock class I was going to need another 13.5 brushless motor. I already have an LRP, which I will be running in my Truck, so I picked up an Orion Vortex to run in my 4wd for the Platinum Battle race. My second choice was the Novak motor, but I didn't like the non-removable senor wire on it.

I also picked up a pair of Panther Truck Switch 2.0's for my dry track tires on my truck. I already run a set of these on my 4wd, and they worked great! I will test these against my Stingers and run the tire I like better during the Platinum Battle race.

Platinum Battle!

While racing Sunday night, I decided to sign up for the OCRC/Gyro Hobbies Platinum Battle! The winner of each Super Stock and Stock Slash class will win a 1 year Platinum membership to OCRC courtesy of Gyro Hobbies and receive discounts in the Gyro Hobbies shop! Essentially you will be "sponsored" by Gyro Hobbies and become a member of the Gyro Hobbies race team.

I entered the Super Stock Truck and 4wd classes to increase my chances of making the A-main. I've been driving really well lately and hopefully I can do well at this race :) Wish me luck!

Race info --> http://www.ocrcraceway.com/gyro_race.html

RC Tech thread -->http://www.rctech.net/forum/racing-forum/245643-ocrc-gyro-hobbies-platinum-battle-nov-29th.html

2 Weeks In A Row!

Man! What a long night of club racing! The amount of entries for tonight was insane! 16 heats for a freaking club race! Boy! Did I pick the wrong night to run 1 class :( Lot's of waiting and watching races.

I decided to just run my T4 in Stock Truck tonight and give my B44 a break, as I did what I wanted to do with it anyway, win an A main :-) I ran the T4 for the first time last Sunday and did very well with it, so I thought I'd give it another go. Could I repeat my performance from last weekend?

It was nuts on the track during practice! There were about 15 or more cars on the track at one time, with the driver's skill ranging from complete beginner to seasoned racer. It was nearly impossible to get in 2 fast laps in a row without having to slow down for some reason. During my 1st run, someone ran into the back of my truck while launching off the "leap of faith" jump in the center of the track. The crash broke my rear body mount and put a nice big crack around the rear mounting holes. Thankfully this is not my good body :) The track was also very dry and somewhat dusty. Tire choice would be critical tonight, depending on how much water is put down between rounds and how fast the track dries out.

My race for the 1st round would be about halfway through (race 7!). Water was put down before qualifying started and the track looked to be holding the moisture ok, so I went with my Holeshots. I would be starting on the pole this race and I made the best of it! I took off on the start and checked out :) I built up about an 8 second lead and took the win with a 16:14. Fastest lap was a 19.897. My race time would've been faster had it not been for a spin I had coming onto the straight on my last lap. My Holeshots were a touch loose making the rear end slide around too much. I guess the track was drying out faster than I thought and I would need to make a tire change for the 2nd round. I was able to set the TQ though, as the winner of the 2nd heat of Stock Truck was a lap slower than my time :) Would I be able to TQ again?!

For round 2, Jeremy decided to resort the heats by qualifying times, so that you would be grouped with drivers of similar ability, resulting in cleaner races and faster times for everyone. This round would not go so well for me though :(

I switched tires to my Panther Stingers, as these should work better than the Holeshots, since the track was pretty dry. They felt fine in warm up and during the race, but my lap times fell off to mostly low 20's with my fastest being a 20.013. I had to start this race in last place and it took me the entire race to get up to 2nd place. I also had a tough time getting around traffic and even had a marshal run in front of my truck while I was in mid-air going over the "leap of faith" jump, and I hit him square in the back! Jeremy even said "Oh no! Angelito gets taken out by a marshal!" :( I finished the race in 2nd with a 15:08, losing my TQ to the winner of the Amateur Stock Truck race?!? A "sandbagger" in the Amateur Stock Truck class turned a 16:08, beating the current TQ of Sportsman Stock Truck! Jeremy would be bumping him to our class as the new TQ!

For the main, I would be starting in 4th place, being bumped out of the TQ by the guy from Amateur Stock Truck and 2 others in my class. I would have to step up my game for the main now! I decided to gear up to a 33 pinion and treat my tires with Buggy Grip, as the Buggy Grip made a big difference on my 4wd when I had to run a dry track the other week. I also ended up starting in 3rd, since the 3rd qualifier went home early, as it was a very long night. I'm usually on my way home by 7:30-8 pm, and we were just getting on the track for our main at around 8:30! The top 3 had a great start, breaking away from the rest of the field! I was running in 3rd right behind the 2 leaders. On lap 3, the 2nd place truck entered the whoops slow, while I went wider and jumped into the whoops, giving me the inside line for the "wagon wheel" hairpin! I made the pass clean and set my sights on the leader. It took me a few laps to chase him down, but I was steadily gaining on him and finally made the pass on lap 6! I was right behind him going into the "leap of faith" jump. He took the jump slightly to the right and I took the jump to the left, setting me up for the inside of the hairpin after the step-up jump. It worked beautifully and I made the pass clean to the inside, taking the lead! After that I checked out, putting 8.5 seconds on 2nd place. Traffic was very courteous too, giving me ample room to lap them. Thanks guys! I ended up turning a blistering time of 16:03, with a fast lap of 19.5! Woohoo! 2 wins 2 weeks in a row!

Another indoor offroad track?!

I saw a thread on RCTech.com about another indoor offroad electric track under construction in SoCal :) This track is supposed to be located in Norwalk, just north of OCRC in Huntington Beach. While I think its cool to see another indoor track open, but I think it would more successful if it was located someplace else. Maybe closer to the Riverside/Corona/Temecula area? In the 90's you had SoCal in the OC and MnM in the IE. These tracks were successful for a long time, probably because they were spread out enough that each track had a pool of local racers that attended weekly club races :) Both tracks also had great dirt!

I wish them the best of luck, and I'll probably go check it out if the track opens :) But, it's gonna be tough outdoing OCRC!

Here's the new track's site--> http://www.westcoastrcraceway.com/

Winner Winner! Chicken Dinner! 2 times!

Race day! Woohoo! I wondered how the turnout would be tonight as the Reedy Truck Race was running out at Hot Rod's and I bet a bunch of the OCRC locals were running that race. Although I had my T4 working well, I was still on the fence about running both Stock Truck and 4wd Mod tonight. The last time I ran two classes, it wasn't much fun, as I was struggling with the B44. As I walked up to the counter to sign up, I thought thought to myself, f*** it! My T4 and B44 are dialed, so the only thing I would need to do is clean tires and charge batteries, no chasing setups, so I signed up for both Stock Truck and 4wd Mod! I only took 1 practice run with each car, just to warmup for racing, as I practiced on Saturday.

Sportsman Stock Truck
Stock truck had a full heat of 11 trucks, despite the Reedy Truck Race running at Hot Rod's! The race director from Hot Rod's (Notch- his screen name on RC Tech, not sure what his real name is) was running the show tonight, since both Robert and Jeremy were racing the Reedy Race. Our race would be up early in the round and the track was going to be wet, as the track crew was being very generous with the water! I would be starting the race mid-pack and wasn't sure what to expect, as I wasn't familiar with most of the drivers. I just wanted to keep it clean for the first few laps and let the order sort itself out, then make a push for the front. I had a great start and moved up to 3rd place off the line! I then moved into 2nd through the hairpin after the step-up jump on the 1st lap. Time to chase down the leader! I was right on his tail and followed him for the next few laps. He then made a mistake :) He took the turn after the double too slow and to the inside, while I took it wider and jumped into the whoops section, setting myself up for the inside of the wagon wheel. I was able to make a clean pass here and took the lead! From that point on I checked out :) I had to slow for traffic a few times and I think I ended up on my lid once or twice, but I never gave up the lead. I won the heat with a 16:19, 1 lap ahead of 2nd place :) Fast lap was a 19.443! :) And had the TQ! :)

The track would be drier for the second round of qualifying. Woohoo! It was a pain to clean all the wet dirt off the tires from the 1st race. This time I would be starting in the back of the pack and had my work cut out for me if I wanted to keep the TQ position. I came across the line in 7th place and passed a few trucks on the 1st lap, crossing the line in 5th for the 2nd lap. I then passed 2 more trucks and took 3rd place. I was in 3rd for a few laps and then took 2nd when the 2nd place truck crashed. Time to chase down the leader! I didn't know who it was or what the truck looked like, until Notch started calling the interval between us and what color the leaders truck was. He was on pace to set a new TQ, so I really had to "Strap it up!" (as Jeremy would put it) to catch him and make a pass, to keep my TQ! It would take me most of the race to catch up, but I was doing it! I was finally on his tail and close enough to make a pass with about a minute left in the race. Going through the S-turn in front of the driver's stand, he went wide and left me a hole to stick the nose of my truck in, and I went for it! We were side by side going into the Surf City Berm and touched wheels! He got the worst of it and flipped off the track :( Sorry dude! I waited for a split second, but since I couldn't see where he went and with the horrible turn marshaling (several times during the race marshals were not paying attention and drivers and Notch had to call for them to get cars), I decided to take off before I lost the lead or got hit, as there were 11 trucks on the track and alot of traffic. I kept my nose clean for the last few laps, secure in knowing that since I was in the lead, there would be no way I would lose the TQ :) I won the heat with a 16:14, beating my TQ time by 5 seconds :)

It was time for the Mains! Cool! I would be starting in the TQ position :) I do know that there is the TQ curse though. Since you start in the front of the pack, if you make a mistake, it will take forever for a marshal to get you, since all the cars behind you block their path. And you can't be too conservative, since the 2nd place car might run into you. You need to get away clean, fast, and make no mistakes for the 1st few turns. No pressure :) The track would also be very wet as we were the 2nd race and the track was well watered during the break. Great! I would end up with dirt clogged tires again :(

My brother was watching the race on LiveRC.com and got this screen capture of me sitting on the pole before the start of the Stock Truck A Main :) Thanks Ran!

I got a great start and stayed away from the field! But, there was alot of yelling on the stand during the 1st lap, as a marshal was standing too far in front of the driver's stand, blocking the view of the finish line turn. Everyone was yelling for him to move (including myself). It was the guy in the white shirt in the picture above in front of the driver's stand to the left. He didn't move though, as he didn't realize we were all yelling at him. Finally another marshal ran over and pulled him back toward the stand, clearing the view of the finish line turn. The amazing thing about all this for me was the fact that I could see this going on in front of the stand, out of the corner of my eye as I drove my truck around the track! After all that drama, I checked out and ran away with the lead :) I had to slow for traffic a few times, but I didn't push the issue and looked for enough room to pass or they gave me room to go by :) I think the 2nd place truck got to within a 1/4 straight of me, but made a mistake and wrecked, giving me some breathing room. Another marshal incident occurred, that almost cost me the win :( A truck was on its lid after the double, right behind the marshal in the center of the track. A bunch of people started yelling at him to turn around, but he never did. Two other marshals ran to get his truck as I was about to go over the double. I lucked out because I landed between the marshals feet as they were spread apart enough to get through! Whew! That nearly gave me a heart attack! No other issues occurred (mistakes driving or marshal related, for me anyway) and I won the race with a 16:08, 6 seconds faster than my TQ time! Woohoo! Winner Winner! Chicken Dinner!

Sportsman 4wd Mod
There were two heats of 4wd Mod and I was in heat 1 with 5 others. I was gridded in 3rd position, but 1 car dropped out before the race even started, so I came across the line in 2nd place. While going through the S-turn over the hill, I noticed out of the corner of my eye, that the marshal in front of the stand to the left was standing too far forward, blocking the view of wagon wheel hairpin after the whoops, and I started yelling for him to move. Soon everyone was yelling for him to move and thankfully he did before I reached that turn. Whew! I was in 2nd place and hunting down the leader! I was gaining on him fast, but I didn't even need to make a pass :) I think he crashed out and broke. Next thing I knew 2 more cars, broke and dropped out. I may have even been alone on the track at one point. The marshals were horrible for our race. I think the marshal's were jumping in front of oncoming traffic, causing wrecks and ending a driver's race more than once, as there was alot of grumbling/yelling on the stand. I just concentrated on staying away from the marshal's instead of the other cars, since by this point, there were only 2 other cars left on the track. I won the heat and set the TQ at 17:12. It would only last 5 minutes though, as the top 2 cars in the next heat of 4wd went faster than my time :(

The second round heat race for 4wd Mod would be one of attrition. Cars were dropping out like flies due to crashes and bad turn marshaling :( and I would be one of the casualties this time :( I had a clean start and settled into 2nd place after the 1st few laps, then started reeling in the leader. I could see him about half a straight in front of me. Then I hear a wreak has occurred on the straight and to go low. Next I hear a clear call and figure I can go full speed down the straight. But, apparently the straight was called clear because the marshal picked up the car, but was looking at it, while standing on the straight! I came down the straight at full speed, hitting him, and breaking my front a-arm and shock cap! I was pissed!@ Why was he just standing there on the straight anyway!? My race was now over due to a marshal being where he shouldn't be. I gaining on 1st place too! BOOO! I had to get the car fixed and ready for the main now and my chance at improving my qualifying position was shot :(

My time from the 1st round was still fast enough to seat me in 4th place for the main. While waiting for the race to start, I was talking with the other guys about my last qualifying race where I broke. They said that everyone in that race broke and that I wasn't the only one who broke because of a bad marshal. Who were these guys marshaling our race!@? I hope they weren't the ones marshaling our main!

As we set the grid for the main, the 2nd place qualifier had left the building and we were allowed to move up 1 spot. Nice! I moved up to 3rd before the race even started :) It was then announced that the main would be 7 minutes instead of 5 minutes. Cool! An extra 2 minutes to worry about losing the lead or getting the lead. Depending on what place you're in of course :) We all got a clean start and freight trained around for the 1st few turns. I was running in 3rd for the first few laps, then I think the leader broke and I moved up to 2nd. I was only a few turns behind 1st place and followed him for awhile, until he finally crashed! Woohoo! I moved into the lead! Could I pull off a win again!? I had just won Stock Truck 2 races ago too! That would be too cool if I could pull it off :) The order was me in the lead, Mitch in 2nd, and Jeremy in 3rd. I only held the lead for a few laps though, as I got sideways over the hill in the S-turn (wow alot of action has been happening in this S-turn for me, LOL!) and stuffed it into a pipe, losing the lead to Mitch :( I wasn't too far behind though and pushed to catch back up to him. Mitch crashed again, and I got the lead back! Whoohoo! :) I only kept it a couple of laps though, as I bobbled, allowing Jeremy to get through for 1st. I guess Mitch crashed again, dropping down to 3rd. I was making big time on Jeremy as the other guys were moving out of my way so I could catch him. One guy practically stopped in front of me, but luckily I didn't hit him! Whew! (again) We were the only 2 cars to make an extra lap and I was only half a section behind him! We went over the double and into the whoops and still had cars in front of us. I guess Jeremy got tangled up with some traffic on the outside, because I was able to sneak by to the inside of the wagon wheel hairpin leading to the straight and took the lead! WOOHOO! I got the lead back on the last lap in the last hairpin! WINNER WINNER! CHICKEN DINNER!! for a second time tonight! I couldn't believe it! I pulled it off! I won both Stock Truck and 4wd Mod! WOOHOO!! I was so jazzed! :-) Despite the bad luck I had in the 2nd round, I got my car fixed and pulled off a win in the Main :)

Man! Even though the mains went ok for me, the turn marshaling was horrible tonight. More than once in Truck and 4wd a turn marshal stood in a spot blocking the view of the turn (to the point where every driver on the stand was yelling for him to move, myself included); marshals running in front of oncoming traffic, getting hit by said oncoming cars, ruining your race or breaking your car; and marshals not paying attention to the cars and watching the race, leaving cars on their lid forever, again to the point of people yelling on the stand.

Despite the horrible marshals, I had a great night racing! (in the mains anyway) TQ and win for the 1st race for my T4! Come from behind win on the last lap of the race in 4wd Mod! When is the next race again? I can't wait! :)

T4 Practice Day

I've been wanting to shakedown my new T4 for a few weeks now, but haven't been able to on a race day. I had a free day today, so off to OCRC I went! I just wanted to make sure everything in the truck was working correctly and set it up to my liking.

For run #1, I moved my battery to the middle position. The 1st time I ran it, I had the battery in the back position, and felt it was pushing too much. It felt much better now :) The scoring system wasn't calling out lap times as you drove today, but you could check the laptop on the driver's stand or the monitors in the pits and see your laps :) It also showed your fast laps and average lap. I was turning laps in the low 20's and high 19's. That would be my baseline for the rest of my practice runs.

For run #2, I changed my front springs to Green from Silver. The Green springs are one step softer than the Silver's and should give me a little more steering. Ah, that was more like it! My T4 was starting to feel more like my T3 now :) Since I was happy with the handling now, I decided to try the "jump" line from the step-up jump again. This is where you jump off the step-up into the other lane, bypassing the 2 of the 3 humps in the hairpin, pull a 180, the head for the double. I was able to make it this time! Unlike last Sunday, where I kept endoing. I guess my truck isn't as nose heavy off this jump as my 4wd, as I was able to pull this line off consistently with my truck. After time was up (I time my practice runs to keep my motor from overheating) I headed back to the pits and checked out my lap times. Nice!! Mostly high 19's with the fastest being a 19.58!

For run #3, I tried changing the rear roll center, by lowering the ball stud. This is supposed to "square up" the rear end better off the corner. I wanted to try this to see if it would make it easier to get on the gas coming out turns. Hmmm.. My truck felt ok, but not as nimble as before, and my lap times proved it. They slowed to low to mid 20's now. To see if this was a fluke, I kept my settings the same for run#4, and got the same results. So, before I went home, I cleaned up my now "seasoned" T4, washed the tires, and raised my rear ball stud back to the original height.

I also put 2 runs on my B44, to make sure driving my stock truck wouldn't mess up my "feel" for driving 4wd mod. Now that I have my T4 working to my liking and I'm used to the B44, switching back and forth between the two isn't so dramatic as before :) I was also trying out a new setting on the B44. I tried lowering the rear ball stud on it as well, and didn't like on here either and ended up changing it back after taking my runs. Hmmmm... maybe I can race both 4wd Mod and Stock Truck tomorrow :) OH! Good luck to those of you running the Reedy Truck Race out at Hot Rod's! I would've run this race too, but my T4 wasn't quite ready. No matter. I plan on racing as many of the big local races next year anyway :)

Wednesday Night Racing! Part 2

As I said in my last post, I arrived at the track 15 or so minutes before the 1st round, so I wasn't able to practice at all. I would have to get used to the track conditions during the 1st round of the night.

The track crew has just watered the track and I was running in race 3, so I stuck with my Holeshots that I was running on Sunday. I wanted to take as many warm up laps as I could to get some feel for the track conditions before racing started. Man! It was dry, slick, and dusty out there already! And the track was just watered 15 minutes ago! I would have to be really easy on the gas for this heat.. I started the race in 5th, but was able to pass 2 cars going through the whoops and wagon wheel, moving up to 3rd by the end of the 1st lap :) It took me a few laps to get my rhythm, then I started chasing down 2nd place, until I lost control of my car! I ran over to the marshal that picked it up to see if the ESC plug had popped out of the receiver again like on Sunday, it didn't, but I pushed on the plug with my finger anyway, and the receiver LED turned back on and I had control again. I put my car back on the track to get some practice, since there was no way I was going to turn a good time this heat. It was still super slick out there and I would have to make a tire change if the track was going to stay dry. I still managed to finish in 5th with a 14:06.

I looked over my car in the pits to try and figure out why my receiver shut down again. The only change I made before this started happening was I lengthened my antenna tube so that the antenna wire wasn't sticking out. So, I shortened it again, so that a little bit of the wire was sticking back out and secured it with a cap. Hopefully this stops my shutdown problem for the 2nd heat. During the break between rounds, Jeremy announced that because the air conditioner was running, it was drying out the track very fast. In order to keep track conditions consistent, the track would be run dry and swept between rounds. This prompted me to change my tires over to Panther Bobcats/Switch 2.0's for the 2nd round. I would also apply Buggy Grip to the tires, as this would provide even more traction for the dry track conditions.

I would be starting in the 4th position this time and needed to get to the front to turn a fast time, since I basically broke in round 1. I got a good start and was able to pass 2 cars in the leap of faith jump section and crossed the line in 2nd at the end of the 1st lap. I wasn't too far behind the leader and started looking for a place to pass. A few laps later I saw an opening for a pass going through the whoops and dove for the inside of the wagon wheel. I made the pass clean and went into the lead! He was still right with me though, so I kept my line really tight when he was close to keep the door shut, leaving no place for him to make a pass. The battle was on now! He would catch up to me, then attempt a pass and/or crash. He even tried to jump over me when I was downsiding the double, but he landed hard and bounced and I was able to hold onto 1st! I bobbled a few times, but nothing bad enough for me to lose the lead. I was close to setting a new TQ, but I won the race with a 17:14, 3 seconds behind. My Panther tires were also hooked up on the dry track! I had good steering and bite out of the turns :)

For the mains the track would be dry and swept again. It was also beginning to develop a blue groove on the racing line. I started the main in 2nd, but I got a bit sideways after going over the double off the straight and dropped down to 3rd. Thankfully I was able to save it and only lose 1 place, unlike on Sunday when the same thing happened and I got stuck on a pipe and the whole field went by. The running order was Matt in 1st, Mitch in 2nd, and me in 3rd. Matt checked out though and was gone! The race would be for 2nd between Mitch and myself, just like in the 2nd round. I followed Mitch for a few laps, until he made a mistake (I think he flipped in the whoops, but I'm not sure) and I moved into 2nd. I could see Matt about 2 straights in front of me, but I didn't think I could catch him unless he had a major crash, so I settled into a rhythm and held second place. I did just that and finished in 2nd with a 17:11 :) I also turned my fastest lap so far, a 17.991 :) Hopefully I can get that down to a mid 17, with a few small changes to the cars rear roll center I plan on making before the next race.

I may head out to Hot Rod's on Saturday to check out some of the racing at the Reedy Truck race or go to OCRC and get some practice in with my T4 and work on the setup. We'll see how I feel when I wake up Saturday morning :)

Wednesday Night Racing!

I decided to give racing at OCRC on a Wednesday night a try because of the following conditions:

1) My boss was out of town.
2) Thus, I was able to leave work about an hour early.
3) I haven't worked on my B44 since I raced Sunday and all my equipment was packed and ready to go racing!

It took me double the amount of time to get to the track on Wednesday vs Sunday (over 2 grueling hours in traffic vs 1 hour of cruising on Sunday) I got home from work, changed clothes, took my dog out for a little bit, then packed my gear into the car and hit the road at 4:40 pm. Didn't get to the track until 6:45pm :( Only had enough time to unload my gear and set up my pit, then racing started. No practice for me!

Full race recap to follow later, as its late and I'm beat!

New Stuff

I've been looking at some RC Rock Crawler videos on YouTube lately and they look like alot of fun! These things can climb over just about anything! The pics above are of the Losi Mini-Rock Crawler. It's a 1/18 scale RTR kit with a 2.4 GHz radio! This looks like the perfect crawler to drive over stuff around the house, in the yard, at the park, or the beach. And since it's 1/18 scale instead of 1/10, it should be easier to take with you someplace and crawl over some stuff :) Check it out here--> http://www.losi.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=LOSB0222

Reedy is coming out with a new LiPo battery in November. The big news is its 35C rating! This is the highest C-rating of any LiPo battery I've seen on the market! What this should translate into is more punch from the battery, resulting in more power for clearing those big jumps :) Check it out here--> http://www.rc10.com/reedy/new/batteries_35clipo.htm