The last round of the Group 5 series was very similar to the two previous rounds – uber competitive. The cars were so closely matched that they were running side by side for many laps in every heat. Along with the cars being closely matched, all of the drivers were respectful and gentlemanly of each other.
Pre-Race – One of the highlights of the race happened before anyone hit the track. We had the largest field of drivers present to compete in this very close series. It was great to see all eight of these great racers come out in the heat of August.
The racers started the day in the usual manner with pre-race warm up and final adjustments. But while most of the drivers were busy running a few laps and making the final tweaks to their cars and controllers Brian was still putting his re-worked Carrera Ferrari 512BB together. He wasn’t just putting it together after making some minor tweaks. He was putting it together for the first time in its newly re-worked in-line Carrera chassis configuration. Nothing like hoping for the best. Ary was also not running any pre-race laps as he was going to run his highly modified Fly Porsche 935 K3 just as it left the track after the last race. His strategy was also used by Shawn and his torquey MRRC Toyota Celica.
The only racer to change cars in this round was Marty. He moved from his double race winning Racer Porsche 935 K3 to a Racer Sideways Ford Capri. Marty had intended to run the Capri from the start of the series but was unable to develop it in time for the first two races. It will be interesting to see if the Capri is that much of an improvement over the Porsche.
The Races
Heat 1 – Stephen, Shawn and Roy were running in this heat and unfortunately Shawn’s MRRC Toyota Celica had a mechanical, just like the real one in Group 5, that took it out of the running for about 14 laps. His car is not easy to drive and would be impossible for most but Shawn has been able to keep it in the slot and stay close in overall lap count.
Stephen won the heat with a total of 70 laps compared to Roy’s 69 and Shawn’s 55. Stephen also had fast lap so far with a time of 4.065.
Heat 2 – Marty, Roy and Stephen were running and all were very close. Marty’s new Ford Capri ended up putting in 72 laps to Roy’s 71 and Stephen’s 69. Marty had fast lap with a 3.985.
Heat 3 – Rich, Stephen and Marty were in this heat with Marty and Stephen having a good run while Rich was doing a great job for only his second race ever. Rich did a very respectable lap count and had a very consistent run with 61laps. Marty had a total of 73 laps while Stephen ran a total of 70 laps. Marty also set the new fast lap with a time of 3.942.
Stephen finished his three heats with a total of 209.36 laps. This was his lowest lap total of his three races so far. His car was very fast but he was having some trouble keeping it in the slot. It was discovered after the race that the tires on his Lancia were more like rubber bands than tires. Looks like some new shoes will be needed before the next round.
Heat 4 – Brian, Marty and Rich ran the fourth heat. Marty finished with 73 laps to Brian’s 65 and Rich’s 61.
Marty finished his three heats with a total of 218.47 and a fast time of 3.942. That was a good lap count but Ary and Russell have yet to run and both of them can never be counted out. Looks like it was a good decision to move from the Porsche to the Capri.
Heat 5 – Ary, Rich and Brian ran this heat with Ary pushing his highly modified Fly Porsche 935 K3 to its tires limits with a total of 70 laps and a fast time of 4.184 for the heat. Brian ran 66 laps while Rich ran 66 laps.
Rich finished his three heats with a total of 184.43 laps and a fast lap of 4.444. A great result for a new driver.
Heat 6 – Russell, Ary and Brian ran this heat with Russell and Ary having some great side by side racing. Russell finished with a total of 70 laps to Ary’s 69 and Brian’s 68. Russell had the fastest lap of the heat with a time of 4.081.
Brian finished his three heats with a total of 199.29 and a fast lap of 4.342. That is a great lap total with a fast lap of only 4.342. Shows that Brian was doing a great job of keeping his car in the slot and moving forward totaling up those laps.
Heat 7 – Shawn, Ary and Russell ran heat seven. This was another epic heat as Ary, Russell were running side by side for almost of the heat. Not to be left out of the battle, Shawn was able to coax his Toyota to stay with them for good stretches. This was a great heat to watch. At the end of it Russell and Ary both had run 70 laps to Shawn’s 68 with Russell setting fastest lap of the heat with a 4.079.
Ary finished his three heats with a total of 209.37 laps and a fast lap time of 4.184. Ary’s lap total was just 0.01 laps ahead of Stephen. That is a staggering close race. Just goes to show you how close this series is and how every tenth of a second counts.
Heat 8 – Roy, Russell and Shawn were all in the final heat of the day. Russell in his favorite blue lane set the pace as he ran a total of 72 laps to Roy’s 69 and Shawn’s 67. Russell also had the fastest lap of the heat with a 4.081.
Roy finished his three heats with a total of 209.56 laps or just 0.19 laps ahead of Ary and 0.20 laps ahead of Stephen. His fastest lap was a 4.126.
Shawn finished his three heats with a total of 190.99 laps but remember he missed 14 laps in the first heat due to a mechanical issue. He had a fast lap of 4.177.
Russell finished his three heats with a total of 212.40 laps and a fast lap time of 4.079. This was another strong run from Russell and his beautiful custom Porsche 935.
Summary – Marty finished in first, Russell second, Roy third, Ary fourth, Stephen fifth, Brian sixth, Shawn seventh and Rich eighth. As stated earlier, the difference between Roy’s third place and Stephen’s fifth were just 0.20 of a lap. That is some close racing.
It looks like the bar has been set and more development will take place as the other racers try to get their cars in the sub 4.0 range to match the Ford Capri. I am sure the next round of the series on the 17th will have a few new cars along with existing cars that have been tuned even more. Rumors around the paddock made it sound like Ary would be running a new car and Brian would be installing a new Slot It chassis in his Carrera Ferrari. I am sure both racers will be faster in this next round.
It’s interesting to me that in a series like this that is relatively open in its rules that the competition is so close. There is a good variety of makes, models, motors, motor configurations, weights, etc… Even though four of the eight cars are Racer Sideways models they are all running very different configurations.
With the rules change in 2013 where racers are allowed to use multiple cars in a series it will be interesting to see who brings what to the track for the next round. I am betting the times will be more in the 3.9 range than the 4.0 range.
I can’t wait.
THE END
