1st time trying to make a rail rider

[FatSebastian]

wonder if anyone else in the U.S. has to race in this type District.

Questionable "four on the floor" rules is the topic of this recent thread.

[MOFAST]

You guys stole my thread! For Shame!

I don't care, run with it. Our 1st rail rider attempt was okay, made top 20 at districts, but my son dropped it on it's wheels at the inspection table. I haven't put it on my tuning board to see what damage was done. I know my tuning was not perfect before it was dropped.

Our rules you don't have to have four down but you do have to use the standards slots and it specifies the distance between slots.

[Stan Pope]

Speedster, I think you would do fine if we raced. But, maybe I could get my grandson to build my car so I'd have a better chance!

The Wotamalo Rules have evolved very slowly, and primarily to keep them consistent with their intent when I first got acquainted with this district ... it had a different name then and a slightly different area, but not much different. Anyway, the rules produced one of the highest participation rates in the country and I was determined to avoid undermining that success by not vigorously opposing slap-dash changes.

The keys, I think, are to make the technical specs challenging, but not too challenging, so that there is opportunity to build a competitive car without an engineering degree and an expensive workshop.
There needs to be a chance for a fluke to do well, if only occasionally, and yet the probability that knowledgable and diligent work will do well regularly. The rules need to be balanced so that there are no expensive or unreaonably difficult "silver bullets", i.e. techniques which offset a shortage of care elsewhere.

Another key is to make participation in the district races selective but not too selective. That way, the half of the pack that is really interested in doing so can probably qualify to district. Top 3 or 4 from each grade seems to be the sweet spot for maximizing district race participation. Those top 15 or 20 racers represent their pack, so they have reason to participate even if they think that this year's car isn't as good as it could be. And because the pack ought to have representation, the pack leaders are motivated to actually conduct a pack derby. Without that selectivity, the overworded pack leaders are more inclined to think, "The district is taking care of the boy's desire to race, we don't have to worry about that." And then they say something like "Whoever wants to race in the district derby, see me. I'll give you the registration information." And a much smaller number actually do race.

Sorry about that drifting so far off topic ... it just seemed timely.