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.
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