syndr0me

iTrader: (32)

I'm not afraid to say it. I don't care for modified in its current form, and greatly prefer the faster spec classes. I wish we had a spec class faster than 13.5.

All the grassroots modified racers are coming out to defend their turf. That's great. Now show up to a big race where you finance the trip yourself, and run modified. Then I'll believe.

Jon Williams

iTrader: (5)

It's coming.

Magnet Top

iTrader: (4)

At this ETS race at the Hudy facility there were 80+ mod entries and 90 + super stock entries. They don't even have a ( 17.5 ) stock class at these big races.

I think we need to look at something other than excessive speed as being a problem for big attendance. Those guys in Europe and Scotty seem to be doing something right...

Jake D.

Troy Carter

iTrader: (22)

Why does it have to be a big race?

I race at my local track only most times. Last year they hosted the outdoor nationals (Leisure Hours) and I never intended to run that race even though the track is 15 minutes from me. I can't invest that much time in RC, I have a family, job, and other hobbies. If you had more club racers running mod more of them would go to big races so don't poop on people for liking and running the class no matter what size race it is.


That said, you really have good points. We have 3x the 17.5 racers at our track and during the winter mod is completely dead around here. In fact, 17.5 is almost dead in the winter with the biggest draw in the area being USVTA or USGT at many tracks. The slower tracks are easier to stay off the boards and not get greedy with the trigger which goes a long way with people who are new or don't race very often. And, reality is that the racing is unbelievable in these classes no matter the speed.

syndr0me

iTrader: (32)

I wonder how those Ride tires are on the rug? It seems like on-road in the US declined when we went to rubber tires. The Europeans I spoke to at IIC said their cars felt broken on the tires we run here. It seems like the Europeans are always running a higher grip tire on the rug.

That's just a theory. I don't know the answer. All I have are questions. And a troll face.

patorz31

For me I stopped going to big races, for having to listen to the whining made the event no fun. The whining about motors, tech, batteries, tires etc etc... The pits seems to pick up on somebodies big bitch and carry through the whole thing. Racing should be fun, and in my opinion the whole racing scene is flawed. There is no incentive to move up to faster classes when one becomes dominant in a class. That is why north america is behind the ball on the international stage. If Spec racing is to be spec, one motor manufacturer and one esc manufacturer should get a contract for one year, and that motor is the spec. Everyone races the same powerplant. That is spec racing, the way it done in fullsize, we race some sort of bastardized version of "stock" racing. In fullsize racing most guys want to move up the ladder, in RC it seems no one wants to.

geeunit1014

iTrader: (14)

Its all about the tracks... We dont have any gigantor tracks like europe does. Mod laptimes at Hudy were like 18secs. If we had stuff like that we wouldnt run 17.5 either

Magnet Top

iTrader: (4)

We , at my home club , Hangar 30 ( seattlercracers.com ) , have gone to a hybrid "dot" track instead of a hard click track. The learning curve to race in mod has been made easier because the track is more forgiving. In my honest opinion , Mod entries have increased for us significantly because of this. This may be why European races ( ETS series ) have nearly as many mod drivers as ( super ) stock. Most , if not all are dot tracks , and their talent level is impressive. We have great talent here too, but we spend too much time on RC tech when we should be on the track

Jake D.

MikeXray

iTrader: (73)

Agreed, I've only ran TC on a big nitro track a few times, but putting in a 10.5-7.5 on those tracks was easily manageable.

silden

iTrader: (12)

Same here. I respect all racers at the track and it doesn't matter which class trey run in.

B00t13g

iTrader: (9)

Going to a dot/ board track really seemed to help locally.

Magnet Top

iTrader: (4)

Good point.. Our "hangar 30" carpet / indoor track is also big and wide open, if we had a smaller / tighter layout it would be less forgiving for mod.

It's a complex topic, a good discussion.

Jake D.

silden

iTrader: (12)

In open tyre the most run Sorex and in the most cases Ride the controlled tyre.

Jon Williams

iTrader: (5)

This is a salient point.

Let me first say: I'm all for everyone racing what they want to run. 17.5T/stock racing is a blast. The competition at our local tracks has kept me coming back week after week (Cuffs, Fairtrace, Schreff, Scoob, Hanulec, The Cranmers, Gee, Sal, CraigX, Weavernator, etc.) means anyone can basically win on a given day (okay, if Larry or Schreff are on, that's a tall order )

Having said that, the byproduct over the years of everyone running stock for their enjoyment is that we have a far shallower pool of talent for up and coming racers in mod. I think it is as simple as that. In any sport if you only play in the minor leagues and try to play a major league team (in this case European/Asian modified racers) you will have your *ss handed to you.

I will say, years ago, stock was considered a joke by the top racers. I know I raced mod a lot more often as a kid because that was where the competition and prestige was at--little turd bowl tracks included. You should've seen how small some of these tracks were. This has shifted in the USA over the years. I was surprised when I returned to R/C in 2004 that the spec classes were dominant.

Xpress

iTrader: (3)

I'm fairly certain that has more to do with the type of rug raced on than anything else.