Woohoo!!! Triple A Mains! I was stoked to make the A Main in Stock Truck at a race of the caliber of the Hot Rod Hobbies Off Road Shootout :)
In A1 I wasn't expecting much as I was starting from 8th, just hoping for a big wreck so I can move up! Instead I got caught up in a pile up after the 1st jump section. I cruised around in 10th waiting for a car to break. It was the same story in A2. For A3, I changed to white compound fronts and upped my boost. But, the biggest change was in my head as I was determined to drive more aggressively rather than conservatively. I wasn't out to run into somebody, but if I saw a chance to make a pass, I was going for it! I had enough of finishing dead last! I was able to make a few passes on the start, but fell back after clipping the pipe coming up the staircase to the straight. Oh well, I still made the A, but I was hoping for a finish higher than 10th. Next year :)
I kinda blew off my SC main, as I was starting 5th in the B. But after talking to David Orner about my handling problems, he suggested some setup changes that I tried during morning practice that made my SC10 a bit easier to drive, which allowed me to push harder. I was able to take 3rd place but lost it during the last minute of the race! But, I took it back when he wrecked in the closing seconds. I was able to hold on and finish in 3rd :)
Videos coming soon!
Notes:
-Brought a towel this year to dunk in my ice chest. It made the heat bearable when putting the cold, wet towel on my head.
-SC Suburb MX's wear out fast on the dry track! They were going bald in 3-4 runs. I switched to soft Wishbone's in the rear of my SC10 for my main and after 2 runs, they still look good! I also saw that Maifield was running some sort of SC JConcepts bar type tire.
-Was trying out some different o-rings in my shocks and they didn't last as long as I hoped and started leaking on the second day of qualifying, but I was too tired to rebuild them. Can't wait for the new V2 shocks, which look super easy to rebuild!
-Thinking of going to 1 run tires for next year, as all my best runs were on new tires. :(
-I've been running a super low gear and high boost for a few races now and have found a side affect of that I don't like. Too much drag brake!! At first I thought it was the motor itself, but I think the small pinion and large spur gears aren't helping any. The drag brake is causing the steering to be too twitchy and making the truck turn in too fast. I'm going to gear up and use a smaller spur and larger pinion for my next race and re-set the boost to a lower level. Also try some negative steering expo, to settle the steering feel around center.
-I freaking forgot to actually watch the Mod mains, because I was busy with running my own main! LOL! I only watched the Mod mains if I was the turn marshal for them, waiting to go on the driver's stand to run my own main, or after going through tech for my brother's main. I did get some on video though.
-Running triple A mains on Sunday is fun! There were about 10-12 races before someone's race was up, since all the guys in my group made and A! My friend's son made the A for Stock Buggy and my brother made the Rookie A. Which made the day go really fast.
5 comments:
Ack I just posted the results file on the Hot Rod Hobbies site and saw you finished last in the Stock A Main...after qualifying fourth, bummer! Yeah starting in the middle of the pack is brutal, you really have to be careful the first lap or two but also not give up speed. I really think there's a lot of luck that plays into that part of the race.
I started 8th, Bill Koch started 4th. But, ya I was getting run over or passed since I was driving really conservative on the starts. Thus, I rocketed to the back.
I think this was the first time I ever saw Bill Koch get beat in the 40+ category. You know, used to be the wisdom was "you don't win or lose a race in the first lap" but I think nowadays you can actually lose it on the first 20 feet :)
Great reporting!
Could you clarify the "boost" in the paragraph that says "super low gear and high boost".
also what is a "one run tire", seems expensive.
thanks
jd
Hey thanks! Sorry I didn't answer right away, I just found your post!
"Boost" refers to the timing advance feature of the speed controller I use, the LRP SXX Stock Spec. I was using a large spur and small pinion gear, with a high boost setting in the speed control. This lets you use a low gearing for more torque, but still have good straightaway speed.
Yes, "one run tires" are just that. I use a set of tires for 1 race, since my best times are done on those tires. The track surface is really abrasive, but with high traction, so runs on used tires are slightly slower. Yes, it's expensive! But, I still use the tires later at the next big race for practice.
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