IFMAR introduce controlled tyre and SPEC class for 1/12 Worlds
Alongside the running of the 1:8 Offroad World Championships in Las Vegas this week, the World governing body IFMAR has been holding its AGM. Along with confirming what has been widely known for some time that Perth, Australia, will be the venue for the next 1:8 Offroad Worlds in 2-years time, more interesting developments from the meeting relate to the next Electric Onroad Worlds and the 1:12th scale class. With the recent running of electric’s longest running class attracting another small entry as it did 2-years earlier in the United States, IFMAR are hoping to make the event more viable by introducing a number of changes including controlled tyres, a blinky mode 13.5 Spec Class as well as a Formula class, although the latter is stated as being ‘under investigation’ and subject to a ‘POSTAL Vote’.
With a new rule that ‘Roll over antennas are no longer allowed’, the big standout is the introduction of the ‘Controlled tyre and rim’ which the minutes from the meeting state was ‘decided by the IFMAR Electric Executive must be used’. The tyre or tyre/rim are to be decided by IFMAR together with the race organisers, which in the case of the next Worlds is Welkom R/C Club in South Africa. The race organiser will have to forward recommendations based on local experience 8-months prior to the event with the final decision to be made 6-months before. Tyre handling will be the duty of the race organiser and their supplier.
On the 1:12 Spec class, rules include the race requiring a minimum 20 entries to run. Also drivers who have finished in the Top 20 of the existing IFMAR 1/12 Open Modified class in the last four years are not allowed compete in Spec. For Formula, the motor spec undecided yet between 21.5 and 25.5, the cars are set to run on rubber tyres and use a 2S LiPo battery. The basic chassis technical spec is a max width of 190mm, min weight of 1050 grams including transponder with a 4mm minimum ride height. Just one rule change is listed for ISTC with the new ruling ‘Only single level wings to be used in ISTC’.
Interestingly IFMAR have a proposal to change the rotation system for the World Championships which it itself describes as having ‘become outdated and is no longer relevant’. It states the proposal is still under investigation and so will be handled by postal voting.
