Son took 1st in pack, thanks to this forum!

General discussions for car and semi-truck racers.
Post Reply
pcar993
Journeyman
Journeyman
Posts: 33
Joined: Sun Mar 11, 2007 10:19 pm
Location: SF Bay Area, CA

Son took 1st in pack, thanks to this forum!

Post by pcar993 »

Thanks again to all who contributed their great ideas on the board.

My son's car took 1st in the pack race. He ran a 50' alum track with his fastest heat at 3.96 seconds.

He ran the track 8 times.

His first four runs were a 3.97, 3.96, 4.01, 4.05.

So the first two runs were fast and then the car got signifcantly slower.
His next four runs averaged in at 4.01825 (i unfortunately missed the individual times).

I imagine that's a function of the graphite. I used MaxV's graphite this year. Any tips for district would be appreciated...

Thanks again to all who contribute to this forum & especially Stan Pope who gave me many pointers..
doct1010
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 1300
Joined: Wed Dec 21, 2005 5:06 pm

Re: Son took 1st in pack, thanks to this forum!

Post by doct1010 »

Congrats to you and your son, job well done! 50' :shock: No easy task I'm sure.
How long is district track? Must you use same car? Are mods allowed if track should be different?
keithg30
Apprentice
Apprentice
Posts: 17
Joined: Wed Feb 20, 2008 4:58 pm
Location: Indiana,usa

Re: Son took 1st in pack, thanks to this forum!

Post by keithg30 »

I am not a pro by any means but my son did make district this year...He pretty well smoked the local races ...Here is the only add. that I can give for district....IF you have a practice track then you can play with the car a bit and try to better your speed ....I DIDN'T have access to a track and made some adj...which turned out to slow the car down a bit . We still came in 4th . BUT I think we could have done better if I had left things alone.....SO if you have a track to play with try to improve it . But if you don't then best to leave the car alone .... JMO . I am sure some of the other guys will have more tips.......CONG. on the win...
pcar993
Journeyman
Journeyman
Posts: 33
Joined: Sun Mar 11, 2007 10:19 pm
Location: SF Bay Area, CA

Re: Son took 1st in pack, thanks to this forum!

Post by pcar993 »

District is the same track (not just same model - the exact same track). Car is confiscated so no changes allowed, only to relube the axles.

Yes a 50' track can be tough. Especially for kids that don't prepare their cars well enough. It is rough on kids when the cars don't get to the finish line. But the pack does a good job of trying to help all the kids on registration night...
BlackLotus
Master Pine Head
Master Pine Head
Posts: 122
Joined: Tue Jan 15, 2008 9:02 am
Location: Boonies, Nevada

Re: Son took 1st in pack, thanks to this forum!

Post by BlackLotus »

Congrats! Sounds like you guys built quite a little speedster. How close were the other cars?

Just a little tip, check your alignment again. Without knowing the stop section or how the car was handled, it's just a guess, but if the alignement was moved, just a little, it could account for the drop in speed.

My experience, would not have the graphite dropping speed until at least race 6. Usually, from what I have seen reported, guys are getting 10-15 runs without significant drop in performance.
User avatar
Stan Pope
Pine Head Legend
Pine Head Legend
Posts: 6856
Joined: Sat Jul 05, 2003 7:01 pm
Location: Morton, Illinois
Contact:

Re: Son took 1st in pack, thanks to this forum!

Post by Stan Pope »

pcar993 wrote:District is the same track (not just same model - the exact same track). Car is confiscated so no changes allowed, only to relube the axles.

Yes a 50' track can be tough. Especially for kids that don't prepare their cars well enough. It is rough on kids when the cars don't get to the finish line. But the pack does a good job of trying to help all the kids on registration night...
Talk to Terry (Teeeman) about what to add before adding more of MaxV's good stuff! He can talk about how to add longevity without tossing speed! And his solution fits your constraints!

May want to take a can of compressed air to blow out all the old use-up stuff ... Dunno.
Stan
"If it's not for the boys, it's for the birds!"
Post Reply