Another super busy truck week setting a new club record of 9 heats . Obviously that’s a bit of a double edged sword. Great for racing but not so good for going home early . Next truck week we will shave some time off practice to get started earlier.
It’s your last chance to get some carpet action in down at 1066 this Sunday before they move outside for the Summer as it’s round 1 of the 2WD Regional championship.
The first week of the new practice token system went quite smoothly last night and seemed to be well received. It certainly made for a better quality of practice which is what we were aiming for. Dave is learning how to use the race software so we can book directly into the laptop reducing the time it takes to get going. Last night we were quite quiet but we were ready to race as soon as practice had finished so we’re off to a good start. Next week may be more of a challenge…
Good luck to all our guys heading out to one of the Nationals this weekend 🙂
Due to a few technical issues, last night has become non-championship so week 7 will be re-run next week.
Starting next week we will be trying a new system for practice. It may take a few weeks to iron out the creases but hopefully we will all benefit in the long run. In brief, everyone will get an alloted practice session when they book in. The number of cars in each session will be limited to 8 and the length of the session will be determined on the night depending on how busy we are. So…
Step 1 – Book in and receive a token for your practice session. No token, no practice!
Step 2 – Be patient and wait for your session to start. While you’re waiting, you could volunteer to marshal session 1… There will be a distinct gap between each session during which time NO CARS ARE TO CIRCULATE! Start when you’re told to start and Stop when you’re told to stop.
Step 3 – Enjoy your practice 🙂
Step 4 – Marshal the session following yours.
We’ve got 20 MRT transponders available which we will be selling for £40 each. Priority will be given to those that put their name down on the list at the last meeting followed by those still using club handouts on a weekly basis.
Please spread the word. Sorry for the short notice but we only found out this week. The driveway up to the hall is being resurfaced 😃
Another busy week with the number of entries topping the 50 mark. We had a quick drivers briefing highlighting a few issues around safety, practice and the efficiency of the whole evening.
As part of our efficiency drive (reducing the amount of time it takes to get the meeting going), we’re putting an order in with MRT to get personal transponders to sell at cost. We’ve got 11 people on the list so far but there will be a few extras if anyone else would like one. Price to be confirmed once I hear back from Terry @ MRT.
Round 2 of Barham’s Summer Series is a week on Sunday. Gary has stepped down from running the club and the whole kit and caboodle has now been taken over by Les and Bob. We wish them both good luck in their new venture and would encourage you all to take a trip over there to give them your support 🙂
Truck week next week 🚚🚛🚚🚛🚚😍
Following on from last weeks post, and just to reenforce the point that safety must come first, Alan has informed me that regrettably the injured marshal ended up in hospital after his wound got infected. He’s ok but is on antibiotics for the infection. Tonight I saw 2 of our youngest drivers running around on the track marshalling their own cars during practice with little regard for the traffic around them and towards the end of the evening a young girl was walking across the track with no shoes on which obviously could have had serious repercussions. Safety is not something we can take for granted and is something we all need to work together on to improve.
If you’re a Junior and are not in the Junior championship, let me know and I’ll get you added in. In case you missed it, The Leg 2 videos have now been added to Winter Series post below.
We had a stark reminder this week that model car racing can be dangerous with a marshal getting hit flat out on the straight causing quite a significant injury to his foot. With that in mind:
All practice laps should be considered ‘slow‘ laps and you should be ready to stop at any point on the track since there are people going to and from both the rostrum and the marshal points. It is the drivers responsibility to ensure the track in front of you is clear and safe to drive on. Never assume the person on the track will get out of your way. Not everyone has the eyes of a hawk and the agility of a gazelle…
In addition, the straight is one way only at all times!
It is your responsibility to ensure it is safe to leave your marshal point when going to marshal a car regardless of how enthusiastic the driver is being in getting you to hurry up! (Incidentally, crying out for marshals before you’ve even finished crashing is a sure way to get yourself marshalled slower…). You should ensure your footwear is appropriate for what can be quite a harsh environment. Anyone choosing to wear flimsy or open-toed shoes or saddles does so entirely at their own risk…
It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster ride but after 6 months, the FORCC Winter Series for 2016-2017 has run its course and drawn to a close. As my son would say, “Hashtag Sad Face”. There were 45 entries today making a total of 243 entries for the championship this year. Not bad for a little middle aged club!
Thank you all for supporting the Winter Series this year. Thanks also to Schumacher Racing for supporting us this year.
Yet more thanks to the early birds and night owls that help set up and pack away. You guys know this stuff doesn’t happen by magic and these guys make all the difference!
Yet even more thanks goes to Nes and her team of helpers for all the tea, coffee, hotdogs, bacon rolls, Jacket Spuds and Chilli that have been served up over the past 6 months.
The last thank you goes to Andy Von Ashman for bringing his gopro along so we could capture some of the action on video 😀. It recorded the first 2 legs of the finals before the battery gave out. I’ve uploaded Leg 1 for now and Leg 2 will follow later.
UPDATE: Leg 2 videos now available 🙂
With first place wrapped up in all 3 championships going into the final round, it was all about who would be best of the rest.
4WD had the most contenders with 4 drivers in with a shot at 2nd overall and after qualifying they were sat line astern in 2nd to 5th behind the pole man and championship leader George. George scampered off into the distance in all 3 legs to win overall but that coveted 2nd spot would not prove so easy to come by. Leg 1 was quite messy and by the roll of the dice Mark would get 2nd followed by myself in 3rd. In Leg 2 it was Dave that regrouped after a disappointing first leg and had second place in the bag until about a minute from the end when he lost the nut off a rear ball stud and would limp home in 4th. That left myself and Mark to pick up the pieces but this time I came out on top. In Leg 3, there would be no denying Dave this time with every nut on his car fully tightened he held 2nd place from start to finish followed by myself in 3rd.
In the 2WD A final, leg 1 was taken by poll man and championship leader Kyle, followed by Neil in 2nd and Spangly in 3rd. In Leg 2, Neil got the upper hand but a mistake 3 laps from the end opened the door for Kyle to go through and take the win followed by Neil in 2nd and Sam in 3rd place. Kyle, Neil and Sam would go onto replicate their positions in Leg 3.
In Short Course, it was Poll man and championship leader Spangly that had everything to lose. He had been untouchable all day, but would he be able to make it a clean sweep? In Leg 1 traffic would play its part and try as they might, Verner and Dave just couldn’t stay with Spangly. Leg 2 was much the same but this time It was Dave in 2nd and Verner 3rd. Going into leg 3, 1st place overall was wrapped up, but with a 2nd and 3rd each, Dave and Verner had everything to play for. This time it was Spangly that had issues which left him in last place after lap 1 and a mountain to climb. Dave took the early lead with Verner hot on his heels. Verner made it to the front by lap 5 and by lap 9 Spangly had made his way from last to first. A mistake on lap 13 would see Spangly relegated to 3rd and would soon be a lap down. With Spangly now out of contention, it was left to Dave and Verner to fight it out. Dave drove the wheels off his truck but couldn’t catch a break with the traffic and while he would get within spitting distance of Verner, he just wasn’t quick enough on the day and finished just a couple of seconds behind at the fall of the flag.
Never known for being afraid of his own voice, Alan took center stage for the closing ceremony. His attempt to auction off the kids didn’t raise as much as he’d hoped for.
With the formalities out of thw way it was time to give out a few prizes 🙂
(For those that entered a class but didn’t complete 4 rounds in it)
Congratulations everyone and with the Winter Series now over it will be back to business as usual on Wednesday which will be a great relief since I think it has taken longer to put this post together than it actually took to run the meeting… 😉
Winter Series Round 6 of 6 this SundayThe Final round of this years Winter Series is this Sunday. Doors open 7:30 and as always some help would be appreciated early on to get the Astro and track out 🙂. As per the last 2 Sunday meetings, Bacon rolls and Jacket spuds will be on offer 😎. At the end of the meeting we will tally up the championship points and there will be a prize giving and photo opportunites 🍸.
So I got a new app on my phone and well, I’ll just leave this here…
