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!