Wadonga Vintage Racing Challenge 19.05.13
The Wadonga Off Road RC Club, based in Victoria, recently hosted a Vintage Race Day on the 19th of May, so a few of us Vintage Racers based in NSW got ourselves organized to drive the 600 kilometres to attend the event. I have to say….I was not disappointed.
There were 3 classes of racing on offer. Class 1 was designed for entry level style buggies running silver cans. I entered my SUPER SHOT. Class 2 was designed for comp spec 2WD buggies running Tamiya Sports tuned motors or 21.5 turn brushless systems. I entered my ASTUTE among a field of mainly RC10s. Class 3 was an open brushed motor or 17.5 brushless motor category for any vintage buggy/truck. I ran my Top Force Evo with a Dynatech 02H motor in this category. Mmmmmmm dynatech… ;-)
We arrived just after lunch on Saturday, the day before racing to see if we could get a feel for the track….it was moist and slippery, yet at the same time, the track surface was sticky, meaning our buggies, and tires, were very quickly layered in thick mud. We didn’t spend too much time running on the Saturday, given the conditions weren’t too great. So we packed up the gear, checked into the motel and started cleaning and tuning the buggies. It was at this point that I realised my original wings wouldn't survive the conditions, so I removed them on the Astute and Top Force and replaced them with modern wings.... I don't care if they get destroyed. Once that was all done, it was time to start drinking… :-)
Sunday morning saw the conditions being very similar to the Saturday….a slightly wet sticky surface that gave not a great deal of traction. However, by lunchtime, the surface was drying out and the driving conditions altered greatly. GAME ON!
There was some genuinely good racing, and a lot of sportsmanship. Respect is such a critical element when racing these classics. My results were “varied”. Given this was the first race meet I have taken to the Top Force to, there were some glitches that needed attention on the fly that affected my results. Speed wasn’t an issue as it was bloody fast, however, keeping it all race perfect was. I needed to change the steering servo midway when it started to fail to centre midway through one of the finals, and also managed to lose button head screws from c hubs on 2 separate occasions which resulted in a dramatic loss of steering.
My Astute came away from the day even worse. I drifted off the preferred drive line in the slippery conditions and at near full speed made contact with a wooden brace that supported a table top jump. Result? A front bulkhead snapped in half. GAH. Day over for the astute… :-(
As usual, my Super Shot delivered the goods. This old girl takes a hammering and against all odds just keep going. I was really happy to come away with a 2nd place in this category.
So, to summarize, I had a fantastic weekend! I have been home over 2 weeks, but the buggies still remain coated in a layer of dried mud. If not for the fact that the track surface may have additives that may corrode alloy, I’d be tempted to leave them smeared in the muck as it brings a smile to my face when I look at them now……aside from the snapped Astute of course. ;-)
Comments
JWeston
Sounds like a fantastic time
sunnyjai
Looked like a fantastic weekend you had there AJ and congrats on your 2nd place win, fantastic effort! I am not surprised the SuperShot survived as these cars were designed for the period rough tracks compared to clay like surfaces of today.
Thommo
Great stuff and what a sweet line up of vintage racers. Good to see you and Jesse James representing amongst all those RC10's. Well done bro !
Percymon
Congrats and commiserations !
Cleanign modesl with wild turkey is a bit excessive though, and probably flushed the grease out of the bearings.
hot rod
Looks like a great day and nice to see the old super shot in action and doing the job tamiya imagined it to do when they released it. Sure it has terrible bump steer but looks like you had it well tamed on the day and 2nd is a good result!! well done and good story
Gruntfuggly
Nice pics - good to see a couple of Dyna Blasters getting a run out too. Shame about the Astute - still better to get some action than to sit on a lonely shelf all day!
beefmuffin
that falcon on the end of the table looks SWEEEET
AJFord
@ Percymon The Wild Turkey doesn't get wasted on RC cars, it was there to lubricate me.
AJFord
@ Thommo , Yeh Jesse James and I drove down together. He was, as always, right on the pace. His Dyna Blaster was awesome. Running a 17.5 brushless with turbo settings it was really moving. He picked up a trophy for his efforts with the Dyna Blaster in Class 3 (open class).
Grumpy pants
Great fun photos, lots of good cars there as well. A top day out by the looks of it.
R/CVET
Wow...awesome event and epic photos! Great collection of vintage machines!! That broken Astute tears my heart out but you did it racing on a track and it's easily fixable so well worth it. What can I say about the SS, they look awesome in race trim and you brought home a second place finish....love it!!
Ram318
Great collection of racer's you got there. Going racing is always a good time.
SHY69
Cool! I have a Supershot & Top Force runner myself!
Want to leave a comment?