Red RC » Electric

November 24, 2007

Greg Hodapp Joins Team Kyosho

World class driver, Greg Hodapp has joined Team Kyosho for the upcoming race season. This return to racing for Greg will also be the second time that he has been able to work with Gil Losi Jr.

I spoke with a few other interested manufacturers, but when given the opportunity to work closely with Gil Losi Jr once again, the choice was simple. Gil has always been able to bring out the best in me and I’m very excited about the direction this team is taking.

Greg will be driving both of Kyosho’s RB5 and ZX5 for the upcoming season. His Kyosho buggies will be powered by Slingshot Batteries and Novak Brushless systems. Look for Greg to be attending major events throughout the 2008 race season.

November 19, 2007

Federations react to Exploding cells

Update on the Exploding cells

Following up on the decision by the Norwegian federation to stop all EP racing until the new year in response to the safety hazard of exploding NiMh cells, a number of other countries have also reacted, however so far not as strictly. Neighbours Sweden decided to just ban a certain batch of the offending IB4200 cells, as have Belgium, and racing will continue as normal, while the BRCA in the UK have advised their members on the best way to handle, use and charge NiMh cells. In the meantime the Intellect Battery Co. have now supplied the batch numbers which may contain cells that could potentially explode when subjected to race type conditions.

Click here to read the list of affected cells and also the BRCA recommendations… content

November 18, 2007

Marc Rheinard wins JMRCA Touring Nats

Marc Rheinard has won the Super expert class at this years JMRCA EP touring car nationals held at the Yatabe Arena. Having qualified 2nd, the Tamiya driver was able to win the first final by less than a second from pole man Hayato Matsuzaki driving for Hot Bodies, with Masami Hirosaka racing for Yokomo in 3rd. In the 2nd final the German former World Champion could win once more by less than 2 seconds, once more from Matsuzaki, with Daisuke Yoshioka coming home 3rd. This result was enough for Rheinard to claim the title and he didn’t then run the last final, which was won by Atsushi Hara which secured him 3rd overall behind Matsuzaki in 2nd.

Click more for the final standings… content

November 17, 2007

Hayato Matsuzaki TQ’s JMRCA Touring Nats

This weekend sees the best Japanese, and some top International, touring car racers battle out in the Super Expert class at this year JMRCA Japanese EP touring car Nationals. Held once more at the great indoor facility of the Yatabe Arena, the racers have been present since early in the week to try to find the best setup for this race. After qualifying, it is current 2wd off road World Champion Hayato Matsuzaki that has taken the top qualifier spot for Hot Bodies in front of former World Champion Marc Rheinard for Tamiya in 2nd with 3rd spot going to Yokomo racer and current Champion Masami Hirosaka (not shown). Current World Champion Andy Moore lines up in 5th with team mate Hara in 6th, Victor Wilck for Tamiya in 9th and British National Champion Chris Grainger for Yokomo in 11th.

Image: Team Novi [teamnovi.blog.drecom.jp]

November 17, 2007

Norwegian National Cup Rd2

Xray have a report from the second round of the Norwegian National Cup that was held recently on a 600m2 track with sharp turns and high grip in Spydeberg. The 19T touring class saw Truls Solberg take the TQ ahead of Markus Alvestad in 2nd and 13 year old Petter Berntsen in 3rd. In the finals, Truls took the win in the first 2 finals, but he forgot to marshall after the 2nd final and had his result nulled and in the 3rd final he had problems, so he ended the race in 5th leaving Markus Alvestad to take his first win from Knut E Enger in 2nd and Petter Berntsen in 3rd. In the modified touring class Adrian Berntsen took the pole position from Helge Johannessen in 2nd and Georg Ellingsen in 3rd. After a problem in final 1, Johannessen managed to take the win in the 2nd and 3rd finals to take the overall win with Adrian Bernsten finishing 2nd and Petter Solvberg 3rd.

Source: Xray [teamxray.com]

November 14, 2007

Kinwald, LeMieux & Dieter to Team Trinity

Kinwald, LeMieux & Dieter return to Team Trinity

RC Car Action have the scoop that Team Trinity have announced the return of on-road pro Paul LeMieux, horsepower guru Jim Dieter, and the legendary Dirtinator, Brian Kinwald. Brian made his name as one of off-road racing’s all-time greatest drivers while Trinity powered, and his return marks a highly anticipated comeback for the superstar. With multiple national wins, a World Championship title and five consecutive “Readers’ Choice Awards” for favorite driver, Brian is the man to watch in off-road for 2008. Team mate Paul LeMieux, considered by many to be the best on-road racer in the world, brings the heat with a long string of victories that includes the Novak Champs, ROAR Nats, Snowbirds, and the International Indoor Champs. Both drivers will benefit from the inestimable skills and experience of veteran motor man Jim Dieter, who has tuned the winning motors of too many drivers to count and helped develop some of Trinity’s most popular powerplants.

Source: RC Car Action [rccaraction.com]

November 14, 2007

DRCMU Indoor On-Road Rd1 & Rd2

DRCMU Indoor On-Road Rd2

We received reports from both the 1st and 2nd round of the Danish DRCMU indoor championships held in Tinglev and Fakse. Round 1 was held in Tinglev near the German border and a few German racers were competing at the event. The drivers were greeted with a high speed track with a very good flow, and many drivers liked it a lot.

November 8, 2007

Northwest Indoor Champ Series Rd1

North West Indoor Championship Series Race 1

Xray have a report on their site from the first round of the Northwest Indoor Championship Series that was held at the Seattle Indoor Raceway, which saw just under 100 racers in attendance. With a groove formed after practice and the Friday night club race, Saturday’s qualifying was very quick and saw Darren Shank place first in both TC Mod Foam and 1/12th 19T, while the TQ in the other classes went to Frank Mirabelli in TC stock foam, Marcos Garcia in rubber stock class, Randy Sides the 19T Foam class and Brian Bodine the 19T TC Rubber class. The races ended the very same with all the TC top qualifiers taking their pace into the final and winning it, giving Xray top honours across the board, while in 1/12th 19T, it was Sean Maybell that took the win.

Source: Xray [teamxray.com]