by BARC 1 » Sun Oct 16, 2016 11:18 am
Well it seems as if this proxy was a lot of firsts for everyone. It was the first time I have hosted an event like this, and I learned a lot of things. I never played around editing video like I did for this event. I learned a lot about my video software, and now have a format to use for the next event. It will be less time consuming for me, and hopefully the quality can improve.
As far as the race itself, I think I will change the qualifying format. The approach I used this year was a 20 lap mini race which was exactly the same as the main event. In future it will be a 20 lap run, but the scoring will be based on the fasted lap of the 20. This will reward really fast cars, as long as they can make one lap. So there is more of a possibility of the race having a different outcome then qualifying
The fact that the physical build,and motor choice of the PDRT mini gave it an magnetic advantage over the others identified the need of two Nomag classes. One I have named the Inherent Magnet Class( IMC) Any car entered that exhibits magnetic force that can pick up 9 grams and no more will be classed as IMC. If a Car picks up more then 9 grams it is simply a magnet car and will not be allowed to race in a nomag event. The Mini did not act like a magnet car, with its tail end swinging out, it gave good driver feedback, and it had the ability to lift 9 grams. The build and demonstration of its handling was my reason for wanting its inclusion in the race. This stipulation will allow small HO motors to be used in a 143 car which I think is important to scratchbuilding in this scale. This is just my opinion and a stipulation I will make for next years race. Something I have to do because of the metal rails of set track. The Mini on a wooden track would be completely magless and this was an issue because of my track having metal rails.
A very big thank you for those that took the time and incurred the expense to send in cars to participate. Without you there is no race. Winning isn't that important, participating is, In this field, even though it was small we had a good cross section of what our hobby is about. We had scratchbuilt cars, 3D chassis, kitbashed cars, repowered stock cars, and just straight stock cars. All of them competing together to have some fun.
When you look at the results, there really is no surprises( maybe the 3rd place finish of the spyder) For the guys who entered this gives you a chance to relate your builds going forward. You can see what is capable without magnets as Peter demonstrated with his entries. I know when I sent cars to the Nomag event, I came away with a lot of useful information, and the returned cars became a bench mark to build against. If I wanted to be competitive I needed to build cars that were 30% quicker then what I sent. I am not there yet, but my latest GCC can almost run with Peter's mini, and I am really looking forward to see how they do on his wood track.
This scale really lacks proxy events like the 132 guys have, but even two races a year would be adequate to give us the opportunity to share some combined time. It is my intent to hold this as an annual event, and as far as I know Peter will be hosting his proxy annually as well. I encourage others who have not yet tried this to give it some thought. Peter's race is in February, so now would be a good time to think about an entry.
I was very pleased to have a field of 10 cars, and only 2 of them were BARC entries. When I set out on this, my thought was a 10 card field, and I was prepared to run all BARC cars if I had to, but it was nice to only need two.
I never spent anytime beating the bushes to get any sponsor other then Viasue. As I had just purchased their hardware, It was easy to ask if they could do something. They offered a 25% discount to anyone who entered, so if you are looking for a timing system I can recommend the Viasue hardware running Race Coordinator software. it is what I used for this event. In order to take them up on the offer I need your email, which I then verify and forward to Viasue to confirm your participation in the event.
At least for next years event I can point to the video coverage of what a sponsor can expect out of the Kleskun Hills event. Some video time and some well placed barrier banners to get some exposure, might help get a few prizes donated.
I will be sending you guys one of my resin castings as a gift for participating, so you have at least something other then my gratitude for being a participant.
The cars with proper guide flags performed the best. The guide pin flag idea I used on a couple of the cars worked in the fact the cars got around the track, where as with the pin they couldn't make one lap. CJR's car was a handful for me, but it was more a balance issue then the guide flag. It needed the COG lowered as did the Capri of JHrico. Both of these cars had my palms sweating as I drove them as fast as I dared, and that down hill grade with the sharp hairpin( Now called the beach corner) was trouble for them.
In summary I had a lot of fun hosting this event, and I hoped you enjoyed being part of it. There will be another one, and I hope all of you , and anyone else who was watching from the sidelines will consider being a part of Kleskun Hills 2
Keep an eye on your pm's over the next couple of days as I might need some addresses to get these cars returned to you, or if you want just pm me your address, and then I will have it.
Cheers and thanks
Dan