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MAKE
YOUR FIRST RACE FIRST RATE
If
you've never raced before, you might feel a little intimidated
showing up for your first time. There are some things to know
that will make your first outing go more smoothly and help
put your mind at ease. I often hear statements such as this,
"I'm not good enough to race, I'll just embarass myself."
The fastest way to get better is to get out on the track and
race. You have marshalls to flip your car, and you get out
there with people that know what they're doing and you can
learn a lot real quick. To make you more familiar with the
racing process we'll list some "quick hits" to get
you off to a good start.
- Show
up early to get signed up and practice
- Check
the heats listings for your frequency, car number, etc
- Wait
for your race to be called
- Install
your transponder
- Race
- Turn
off your radio and RETURN THE TRANSPONDER
- Report
for corner marshalling duties
- Repeat
and enjoy
When
you're at the races, there's an order to the madness. You'll
want to show up early (at least an hour before the start time)
so you can get signed up and also get some practice time on
the track so you can get your motor tuned in and your car
ready for the race. During practice make sure that you get
the appropriate frequency clip BEFORE you turn your transmitter
on. And, return your clip when you're not using it, there
will likely be others sharing your frequency and they might
need some practice time too.
Once
everyone is signed up, the race director will print the heats
listings and announce that they have been posted. Check the
listing to make sure you're in the proper class with the correct
frequency assigned. You'll also want to pay attention to your
car number, transponder number, heat number, and the race
or two that preceed your race. There will be number decals
available and you should place your car number on your car.
The transponder number will tell you which transponder you
should have when your race rolls around (more on this later).
You can keep track of the races by the heat number, when the
heat before yours is running, you should start getting ready
so you're not late for your start (don't turn on your radio
yet!!). Most days there will be 3 heat races followed by the
mains.
Before
you get on the track, you need to install a transponder in
your car so the computer will count your laps. Transponders
are the means by which laps are counted during the race. There's
a wire in the track (called the "loop") that picks
up a signal from the transponder and sends it to the computer
which recognizes the unique signal from each transponder and
registers another lap for your car everytime it crosses the
loop. The transponders will be referred to by the last number
listed on them. You can mount the transponder on your car
in a variety of ways, but we'll be discussing the two most
common techniques. The transponder has a body post sized nub
on it with a place for a body pin to pass through. On most
gas trucks and monster trucks you'll need to make a hole in
your body, pass the transponder nub through (from the inside),
and insert the body pin to keep it on the car. Mount it such
that the transponder will not interfere with anything under
the body, and where the transponder will be protected in the
event of a crash (the windshield is a good place). On most
1/8 scale buggies a transponder mount is included that attaches
to the radio tray. It's usually a piece of plastic with a
hole in it that you pass the transponder nub through and pin
it - simple as that. It is imperative that as soon as your
race is complete you remove the rechargeable transponder and
place it back in the rack so the next race will be able to
start on time. There is also the Personal Transponder that
you can purchase and permanently mount to your car. It is
powered by your receiver pack and is lighter and much more
convenient than the rechargeable transponders. If you plan
on racing frequently, I'd highly recommend getting a personal
transponder.
OK,
so now they've called for your race and you've installed your
transponder and are ready to go. There will be a short warm
up session before the race starts (usually a couple of minutes).
This will allow you to get your motor up to temp and get a
last second feel for the track. The heat races are typically
5 minutes so you may need to top off your fuel tank after
your warm up just prior to the start of the race. If you don't
have someone who can do that for you (a pit person) it's generally
pretty easy to find a friendly person willing to help you
out. If you can't find anyone, just ask the race director
and he'll likely find you a helping hand. Don't wait 'til
the last minute though, try and find someone well in advance
of your race.
After
the warm up, the race director will say something like, "Let's
top 'em off and get 'em on the gate." At this point you
should drive your car over to the starting gate where your
pit person will place your car on the gate and top off the
fuel tank. Now you just wait for the gate to drop and you'll
be RACING!! Try and drive smooth without crashing. If you
can keep your car on all fours and without needing the help
of the corner marshalls you'll likely finish pretty well.
If you stay in control and place the car where you want, you'll
get faster and faster. After your race immediately pull your
car off the track. Exit the driver's stand and kill the engine
on your car. Turn off your receiver and transmitter and RETURN
THE TRANSPONDER TO THE RACK!! Get your car squared away quickly
so you can get out on the track to perform your corner marshalling
duties. After that race is done you can get back to the pits
to perform any necessary repairs on your car to make it ready
for the next race.
The
nice thing about racing is that you'll have marshalls for
your race that will be on the track and their job is to right
overturned cars, unstick stuck cars, etc. The marshalls are
the racers from the previous race, so after your race you'll
be expected to take your trun at marshalling for the guys
that are racing after you. For the first race, the racers
from the last race will be the guys on the track taking care
of the marshalling duties. Make sure you report for corner
marshalling duties as soon as you return your transponder
and make sure your radio is turned off, the next batch of
racers will be counting on you during their warm up as well
as during their race.
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