Maifield confirmed to leave AE
06-30-2014, 04:51 PM
#166
Just saw Frank Root share Maifields signing with Orion on Facebook... Maybe its a hint, maybe its not. My money is on TLR.
06-30-2014, 05:00 PM
#167
Tech Adept
I don't drive ae cars because of the ryans so i really don't care where he goes.
06-30-2014, 06:40 PM
#169
Would be cool to see him go to a smaller up and coming company like durango.
06-30-2014, 07:45 PM
#171
All my race bucks on TLR please....
06-30-2014, 08:00 PM
#172
well it would be cool to see tlr back contending again, i remember the good ol days when it was a crap shoot to who would win, at the club level, then team losi went trough a time of as long as you didnt hit anything you were faster than associated but if you were that good of a driver you were probably not racing at the club level anymore. It is good to see tlr making quality kits again, i guess time will tell how good though.
06-30-2014, 09:36 PM
#173
Tech Adept
No more Losi cars for me i'm switching if that's true.
06-30-2014, 09:40 PM
#174
06-30-2014, 10:15 PM
#176
07-01-2014, 04:37 AM
#178
RM will obviously base his decision on the insightful comments in this thread. 
07-01-2014, 05:37 AM
#180
why does it matter
Does it really matter who signs with who? Does the weekend warrior really think that driving the car that won the big race will make them faster or better?
What always wins big races is driving skill (going fast, but not reckless,) and staying out of wrecks (not losing time.) You can do both of those things with any of the top cars. There might be a slight difference in the going fast component, but tires make up most of the difference, since they account for 90% (IMO) of the grip anyway. If you look at the lap times between the top cars at your local track driven by similar level drivers, they should be very similar, no matter which car is raced.
Just like any other sponsored activity (sports, hobbies, etc,) the top drivers will go where the money and benefits are. In a hobby where racers have a shelf life, they should get the most they can in the shortest time.
In my opinion, the reason why racer salaries and bonuses are not public is because of how low they are. R/C in general is a very small hobby. Races are not televised to the general public, and all of the sponsors are in the r/c industry (parts, batteries, etc.) I also don't know how many racing kits are sold each year, but I would think the total is probably in the mid 5 figure range (across all of the chassis.) That doesn't leave a lot of money for sponsorships, etc.
Racers might race for the glory of winning (to a very small audience,) but they don't do it because of the large rewards.
What always wins big races is driving skill (going fast, but not reckless,) and staying out of wrecks (not losing time.) You can do both of those things with any of the top cars. There might be a slight difference in the going fast component, but tires make up most of the difference, since they account for 90% (IMO) of the grip anyway. If you look at the lap times between the top cars at your local track driven by similar level drivers, they should be very similar, no matter which car is raced.
Just like any other sponsored activity (sports, hobbies, etc,) the top drivers will go where the money and benefits are. In a hobby where racers have a shelf life, they should get the most they can in the shortest time.
In my opinion, the reason why racer salaries and bonuses are not public is because of how low they are. R/C in general is a very small hobby. Races are not televised to the general public, and all of the sponsors are in the r/c industry (parts, batteries, etc.) I also don't know how many racing kits are sold each year, but I would think the total is probably in the mid 5 figure range (across all of the chassis.) That doesn't leave a lot of money for sponsorships, etc.
Racers might race for the glory of winning (to a very small audience,) but they don't do it because of the large rewards.