My First Proxy Race

I'm going to enter my first ever proxy race: GVSCC Targa 2. It takes place in Western Canada, mostly British Columbia and will near the end of the year. Here's what I'm sending:

This fits the bill perfectly.

The classes according to the rules:

Class A

These cars must have competed in the Targa Florio before, and including 1964. There is a maximum

width for the rear tire tread – 8mm or 5/16 in. (0.3125 in.) Although this is a class maximum, effort should be made to match tire sizes to the real cars.

Class B

These cars must have competed in the Targa Florio in years 1965 to 1973. There is no tire limit for this class, but again, effort should be made to remain in scale to the 1:1 car. 

Class B it is. I plan on some modifications: new motor, screws and grubs for security and control, and new urethane tires from Paul Gage Tires. These modifications won't start until well into the Spring, so I'll be able to complete this championship before committing to changing the car. 

I'm considering buying another Alfa for home, as I can't count on this one coming back in the same shape it'll be going out. It would be nice, but I need to expect the worst.

Other Rules:

1. Cars may have any chassis type, made of any material.
   
2. Bodies must be reasonable scale representations of the 1:1 car made from hard plastic or resin. No clear bodies will be allowed.
   
3. Chassis may have any motor alignment, inline, sidewinder or anglewinder.
   
4. Wheels may be of any type, but should look scale for the car being modelled. For example, no
   O-ring front tires, and front wheels must turn. Limits in class A can be exceeded only with
   documentation for the real car.
   
5. Rear tires may be URETHANE ONLY. No rubber, sponge or silicone tires will be allowed.
   

6. Any gear ratio is allowed. Be advised that most of our tracks are quite technical, with short straights and lots of turns. None have extra long straights.
   
7. This round of the Targa Proxy will have an open motor rule for both classes. Entrants should carefully balance the power to weight ratio to achieve the best driveable proxy car. It is not recommended that motors be more than 25K. Class A cars with the thinner tires may run better with lower rpm motors. Your call! Over power at your peril. All races will be run at 10 volts.
   
8. Car clearance should be at least 1/16 inch to protect track surfaces. Spur gears may be closer but a car will be disallowed if the gear touches the track.
   
9. Guide flags should be of the standard size and depth. Deep wood or Carrera guides are not recommended. 
   

In The House

Not completely moved-in yet, but completely moved out of the apartment. It's still very much boxes and piles around here, but I did manage to get some temporary electrical up in the attic so I can see and plan.
Originally I wanted to make an 18' track along the width of the attic, then I got greedy and decided I wanted the 24' along the roof instead. But now I'm back to the 18' and I think I'll be happy with that. It makes more sense for the room and avoids having the monolith in the way.

I did make it out into the garden with the cars the other day, and now that I have working internet, I can do stuff like upload pictures again:

I love shooting outside in overcast weather.
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It really brings out the color in the cars.
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Good to see the #11's typical unwillingness to sit still for the picture.
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Racing will commence in a few days. I'll be sequestered up in the attic while some windows are being installed in the house, and plan on setting up a track to finish the championship.

Could Be Racing

Another installment of "why am I so stupid?"

At least I didn't send my computer over there. I could have raced tonight, and probably could have done the last three races between tonight and tomorrow morning. But nooooooo....

So, I started window shopping again. I want a Matra, and a couple Group C cars. I found a site online that has them at good prices, so hopefully we could make that happen soon. I also found a commercial track near my new house, and I'll be checking that out soon. It's called Garage Racing Center and it looks to be pretty good. They even run some Slot.it races.

But that's not why we're here. We're here to talk about slot cars.

This is why I love slot cars. How cool would it be to own one of those 1:1 and drive it? A Ford GT40 all race-ready. It would be insane. I know for a fact that I'll never be able to achieve what is required to do something like that. And that's why I love slot cars. It doesn't have to be full size to be great. And the amount of mechanics involved makes it more than just a pretty car to look at.
My wife doesn't like video games because they don't allow the imagination to work, nor is there much in the way of hands-on. But what she likes about slot cars is they are a game you have to work on. The better a slot car is set up, the better it'll run. It becomes a series of achievements to get to the next level, or tenth of a second.
The car in this picture is barely bigger than a pack of cigarettes, yet is has loads of things to tweak and adjust. There's so much great detail on 1:32 cars that they seem bigger in pictures than they actually are.
Yellow might not be your thing, but I gotta say that it really helps see the car. The painted gray track makes a huge difference, and between the two there is no trying to follow a black streak around the track. This matters to me as I like to see my cars. Plus, look how damn pretty it is. I mean, seriously.
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As I was shopping/picking my cars last xmas, I was under the impression that "a couple" was two cars, so that's what I went with. Two Fords, as I considered they would be pretty compatible with each other. But biting me on the ankles was this beautiful Alfa Romeo. It was driving me a bit crazy, and mentioned to my wife that I was having trouble deciding between cars. She made the decision for me in picking up both of them. I know the Alfa doesn't look like much to some, but this car is so addictive, and is the first car I put on the track during a session. I've mentioned here plenty of times its great handling, quickness and speed, but no matter what I would say, it would be an understatement. While a pretty car, this is actually a very well-made slot car, and that puts it into a separate category. Yes, the Fords are well-made, as is many Slot.it cars, but the length and balance of the Alfa is just fantastic. It's the car you want to RACE.
That doesn't make it dominant, however. It's only ahead by two points in the championship, and the Ford #8 could win it. While it explodes through technical sections, it's length becomes its weakness in faster sections, not getting as secure of a grip on the road as the Fords do. That makes it a tricky proposition to drive well, and requires care. Its rabbit-like reflexes will throw you off the track if you're not paying attention.
Oh, and by the way, that rear-view mirror hasn't come off yet, and it has had plenty of opportunities.
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Prettiest car of the bunch? Possibly. Fastest? Could be. I haven't forgotten that this car largely ran perfectly right out of the box. I didn't have to do anything to it, and I probably screwed it up somehow tweaking it. Had I left it alone, it would probably be leading the championship.
There are times when my idea that getting two Fords so they would be competitive with each other really panned out. Problem is that they are usually competing for 2nd place. This Ford runs quieter than the other one, largely due to the motor on the #8 car riding loose in the mount.
As far a photography goes, this car is by far more difficult to shoot well. The other two step right up and photograph quite well. This one only gets good when all of the settings are manually adjusted, with flash and long exposure. I'll be making a lightbox soon to take proper shots, but until then this one will have to do.
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The next race will be in my new house. Not sure when that will be. I'm hoping that it will be one night when I have the time to set it up and enjoy it. It won't be long and I'll have a semi-permanent track and will be able to go up there anytime and race on it. I'm looking at getting more track next. I have been unsuccessfully designing a track to fit my attic, but I think I need to run on a table for awhile until I find what's fun.
Funny part: I'll be taking the current carpet in my apartment and using it in the attic in the new house. So the rug-racing will not have gone far.

Going Crazy

I've had two chances now since taking my track over to the house to do a race here at the apartment. Most of the stuff is out, and I absentmindedly [a bit] took my track over as well. I've got loads of stuff to do, but I like stopping at the end of the day and having some fun, but I took my fun over there.

I found a race center not far from my new house online today, and I'm going to check it out as soon as I can. There are two in the general vicinity, and I'm going to check out both. This one seems smallish but is nearby, and the other one is pretty well known, apparently, although a bit further away.

If I can get over to this place and rent some open track time, I'll run my final races there. That should be pretty fun and relatively easy to do. It would also be a hell of a way to end the series, I think.

So I'm kinda going nuts without my race cars, even though time is running out to do much about it. We have at least two more weeks here, so I'll be bringing them back, I think...that is, if I can do it in a way that won't make my wife think I'm trying to get out of work. I just need to have some fun.

I need to have some FUN!!!

Moving Day

Today is small stuff moving day. That includes my track. That will mean the last three races will happen at a new location. I boxed everything up last night and it's sitting here, ready to go.

Three races left and two cars almost neck-and-neck. The Alfa [69 pts] leads the Shell Ford [67 pts].

I was hoping to get one more day of racing in here before moving, but it doesn't look like it'll happen. Curious to see if I'll get a chance to do anything at the house within the next few weeks. There's a lot to do.

50-Lap Sprint [Race 17 of 20]

I'm getting pretty low on available time here on this rug. The move is happening soon, and I may not get another chance to lay the track down and finish this series before packing up.

So, today's race is a 50-lap sprint on an old favorite track due to time constraints:

RESULTS [Race 17 of 20]:

Car                     Time          Offs        Points
Alfa #2             2:39.19          0                3    
Shell #8            2:38.99          0                5          
Gulf #11           2:44.86          0                1

The Gulf car really had a loose end on that round, cutting down its overall lap time. The Shell car, on the other hand, was quick and grippy, as was the Alfa.


Championship Standings:

Car                     Points          Total
Shell #8                  5                 67
Alfa #2                   3                 69
Gulf #11                 1                 46

Reminder: Glue Your Tires

The other day I reported that I had a mysterious cut in my tire, which I discovered after trying the CRV setting again on my controller. It causes cars to be tremendously fast, and I prefer the speed limited option for my small track.
I had come to the conclusion through advice that I needed to cut my motor shaft so the tire wouldn't rub. I was talking to guys on SCI about it, when one of them happened to mention gluing tires, which I had somehow completely overlooked.
I can't even tell you how much of an improvement it is.

When a car's tires aren't glued to the wheels, the wheels can spin independently inside them, which makes a car lose acceleration. Also, in high revs, the tire expands, and that's what caused the cut that I got in my tire [it was pretty superficial and eventually went away after a bit of racing].

To glue the tires, I used a standard, all-purpose craft glue. I put a few drops on a toothpick, then [with the tire off] I spread the glue thinly around the thick middle of the wheel. Then I re-attached the tire, rolled it a bit on a hard surface, and let it sit for awhile. The tube suggests that it's totally dry in 10 minutes, but I gave it overnight.
The next day I sanded the tires and ran the cars for a few hundred laps each. ALL of the cars improved in acceleration, didn't chatter in the slightest, and were much more responsive. The Alfa probably improved the most, as it was suddenly very grippy and VERY fast.

I encourage anybody reading this to glue the tires to the wheels on your slot cars. It's a very easy improvement and will really help lap times.