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iTrader: (5)

Reading this thread has been quite useful to me. I'm 64 years old and while I have on road and oval experience, I just started in off road in September. I was also returning to RC from a five year break.

I started in stock buggy (17.5 blinkie). That was okay for a couple of weeks but I got tired of not being able to make the jumps, so I put in an 8.5. Then it was a different challenge. Don't over jump the jumps. Throttle control and timing, but like you I have difficulty getting lined up for the jumps. If your not lined up right that messes up your landing. What I find is when I am so focused on the jumps, it is harder to carry corner speed. The brain can only process so much, so fast. What we are trying to do is become "integrated" with the activity, so it comes naturally and we are not limited by the speed our brains can process things. Reaching the point of "integration" is one basic key factor. The short answer is practice. But practicing properly is important. This is where practice a little slower comes in. It does two things, it gives your brain a little more time to process and you are practicing properly (not hitting things and making the jumps).

I think depth perception and orientation are real issues. Years ago I went to Earnie Hubers R/C helicopter school. Before you fly helicopters around in the sky, you must first learn to hover them. I remember flying some very structured hovering manovers. I won't bore you with the details but the objective was to get use to seeing the helicopter from different perspectives. I know that different viewing perspectives of the car are more different for me than others. Again, this can be helped by driving slowly around the track. I wouldn't think you would want to run too many slow laps before picking up the pace, but we did spend a lot of time on the perspective manovers with the helicopters.

We all want to improve our skills but it needs to be fun. If your frustrated in stock buggy, run a different class for a while. I picked up a stadium truck and it is a blast to drive. The wider track width and larger "ballon" tires make it easy to drive and when you do end up on the wrong side of the pipe, you can usually drive back on the track. I'm just as far off the pace with the stadium truck as I am with the buggy, but it helps keep things fun.

1mrdad

iTrader: (48)

I am now able to compete with the middle of the pack which I am satisfied with for now. Lap times have come down by 2 seconds and consistency has gone up dramatically. Three things have helped. 1) switching to a B5RM from a B4, 2. The car handles and jumps/lands more consistently. 2) switching from a SP Reventon Pro to a Tekin RS Gen 2. The brakes are much smoother and the car accelerates faster. Also, using push control allows me to carry more speed through the corners. 3) Switching from a Futaba 3PM-X to a 4PKS-R. The biggest help was the radio. I used to tell my sons that the only difference from a cheaper radio to an expensive one is more adjustments and a fancier display. I was proven wrong. I am able to put the car where I want it, and maintain better lines. The car brakes smoother, and steering control is more precise. The car no longer does "unexpected" things. I am also better able to line up for jumps although I still have a tendency to over shoot or when I try to land on the downside, I clip the top. I don't know the technical reason why the better radio made me a a better driver, but it works. I let one of the fast guys drive my car and he is a full second faster with it. But, there are 3 sections that know I am losing cornering speed. I still need to learn to brake more consistently and regularly going into 180* turns, but at least I am finally start to make some progress.

Goomba_7

iTrader: (5)

I personally feel the controller you use is a huge piece of the puzzle. I was like you, I thought the fancier radios just added more bells and whistles that a average joe like me didn't need. I think that was maybe the truth 15-20 years ago. but now a days they have been able to get more speed and reaction time from the hardware so you can feel more connected to the car. The gear head full 1:1 racers would probably equate it to not having power steering to having power steering. With out power steering you can feel every little movement the wheels of your car are doing. Without power steering it starts to numb the feeling.

Coming from old Futaba junior radios and the FM 2PL to now using the 4PKR it's a night and day difference in speed and feeling. I feel very connected to the car. It does certainly go where I want it to go unless the car's setup won't allow it. but you can almost feel exactly when you don't have the setup just right.

And having the extra bells and whistle have come in handy to make the car more drivable as well.

Thank god for Technology!

glenng

iTrader: (1)

i still suck after same layoff and same time back on, but what helped was getting a new prescription for my eyeglasses so i could see better. it had been maybe 6-7 years and i was still on same rx for glasses, and my eyes had changed enough to affect far away depth perception even the old glasses seemed to be working just fine for everything else.