2011 American Flat Track Worlds - July 15-17, 2011

[oldweirdherald]

2011 American Flat Track Worlds
Pacific Slot Car Raceways
2908 Meridian Ave E # 104
Edgewood Washington 98371
253-446-5039
www.pacificslotcarraceways.com (http://www.pacificslotcarraceways.com/)
July 15, 16, & 17, 2011

"The Flats"


Flats Schedule:


Friday July 15th - Doors open at noon,

Wing racing on The Chief" modified Hasse Blue King track
- Box 12
- Group 27 lite
Tech CLOSES at 7 PM racing immediately afterwards

Saturday July 16th - doors open at 11 am for open practice

Tech CLOSES at 1 PM

- 1/32 GTP On the Hillclimb
- LMP Advanced on the "Twister" Ogilvie flat road course
- Group 10 on the "Twister"

Sunday July 17th - doors open at 11 am and open practice

Tech at 1 PM
- GT 12 on the Twister
- 1/24 Eurosport on the Twister

Awards presentation right after racing

LIVE WEBCAM COVERAGE (check this thread for link to be posted)

2011 American Flat Track Worlds Photo Gallery (http://www.oldweirdherald.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=43767)
(race photos will be asap posted following event)

Race Info (http://www.slotcartalk.com/slotcartalk/showthread.php?31043-quot-The-Flats-quot-2011-American-Flat-Track-Worlds-At-Pacific-Slot-Car-Raceways-in-Edgewood) (Race Announcements Forum Thread)

[oldweirdherald]

http://www.oldweirdherald.com/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=43772&g2_serialNumber=2

http://www.oldweirdherald.com/gallery/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=43779&g2_serialNumber=2 (http://www.oldweirdherald.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=43778&g2_imageViewsIndex=1)

[EdC]

Where can I get the rules and specs for the Group 10 cars?

I went to the site and it says for Grp10 that you have a choice of 6 arm types for C-can.

[wjdougherty]

Here are the rules for PNW Grp10:

1/24 Group 10 GTP

Motors:
1.Any production Group 10 C-Can motor is allowed.
2.Armature must be a tagged Challenger, Contender, S16C, SWasp or Sportsman.
3.All armatures must have a minimum stack length of .440”.
4.Armature must have a minimum diameter of .510”.Armature may be reconditioned.
5.Any manufacturer's armatures or magnets may be interchanged with any manufacturer's set-ups.
6.Magnet clips are not required.
7.Shunt wires and insulation is allowed.
8.Magnets may be glued and honed.
9.Can bushing may be replaced with a ball bearing.
10.Motor may be soldered into the chassis.

Chassis:
1.Only mass-produced 4” "Flexi" style chassis allowed.Pin tubes may be added and chassis may be braced.
2.Only bushings allowed - no ball bearings.
3.Pan movement may be increased or restricted.
4.Front wheel towers may be trimmed for lead wire clearance. Front axle is not required.
5.Light weight pans allowed.
6.Front wheels must be at least 1/2 inch (.500") diameter.
7.Rear axle vertical location may be changed.
8.Rear tire width may not exceed .810".
9.No other modifications allowed.

Bodies: GTP or Prototype bodies.

If you are expecting 16d's; they don't run them in their series...

Now they (the PNW guys) may want to recheck their own rules because if they have a .440 minimum stack length then SuperWasps would be illegal (their stacks are .350)...

[EdC]

I'm so tempted...

[Ingram]

What A great event !

I want to thank the entire crew at PSCR for hosting a first class race. The tracks were in great condition and the facilities were top notch. This was my first visit and I can tell you that I will be back !

Jim, Dianne, Fester and Sarah did a fantastic job of making everyone feel at home.

The crew from Wade Raceway came with plenty of horse power (provided by Dub) and if they had been able to come a day earlier would have been very tough to beat. Great meeting you guys and good luck on the Wade 500. I don't think I will be able to make it this year but a trip to come visit is definitely on my list.

Mike Williams was there from Hot Slots in Iowa also. All I can say is that with people like Mike, Dub, and Jim running 1st class operations our hobby is in great hands ! Mike is making a bid for the 2012 Nats and is pretty serious about promoting and advancing slot cars.

For everyone in California and the rest of west coast, you need to mark your calendar for next year because you do not want to miss this race ! How can you not love 18 Eurosports ? How many did the Nats have this year ? Hmm.... I believe all of the Scale classes had 3 mains which kept each one very competitive. It also allowed someone like myself to win a race, even if it was a C main.

Thanks again to everyone I meet. Gary, Dub, Kyle, Odie and Mike it was a pleasure pitting next to you. After having been away for so long it was great to be around so many fellow crazies. I look forward to seeing everyone at Rohnert Park.

[GearBear]

First let me say thanks to all our sponsors for the great prizes and their support! It is very much appreciated!

Also, I want to thank Dianne, Jim, Sarah, Fester, and Jeff for the tireless work they did in putting on such a great race! Big standing ovation people! This was a first class event!


My 2011 Flats started out a little after noon on Friday. Once I got to the track I finished up mounting my bodies for Group 10 and LMP. I took the two LMP cars I had prepared and did a couple laps with them. One of them was significantly faster than any LMP I had ever owned, turning 3.9's on Yellow. I was HAPPY :)

I then moved on to working on my Group 10. I had assembled 4 different cars trying different Cheetah configurations and different motor configurations. I found that the X25 with .030" C11 pans was the best handling of the bunch, but the motor in that car was soft. So I started swapping motors until I found the one I wanted to run. It was a Cahoza UL can with T2 magnets. I had honed it out to .560" and stuffed a S16C in it at the Nats but had not run it as I couldn't find a gear ratio I liked. This car felt and drove like a GT12. It was very fast and handled great.

Everyone was giving me a hard time about not racing the Wing classes so I grabbed my Box 12 and put tires on it. Teched it in and away we went. This was the third race on the motor since I won the car at Slugfest and it was showing signs of needing a rebuild. It was still fast though. I qualified 2nd just slightly behind Chris. Unfortunately, I drove poorly making too many mistakes and putting myself in harms way too often. Chris was on fire so I ended up 23 laps behind him. He got the most laps on every lane. Well done Chris! I did manage to drive well enough to get second overall though.

I didn't run G27L as I had bent my chassis during the Slugfest race and blew a stack on the arm. While I straightened out the chassis somewhat I just wasn't able to get it flat. So with needing to purchase both a chassis and an arm, I chose to just not race that class. This decision cost me the chance to have a pie in the face! :)

On Saturday, we started off with 1/32 GTP. I had decided to hand Lee a body and have him assemble a new car for me. He did a great job on the car, but I should have cut down the tires before the race as they were too tall. The car didn't really start working until the last heat. Oh well, I had a lot of fun with the class like always even though I made a LOT of unforced errors. For some reason I really like this class!

When qualifying came around for LMP I knew I had a car that should get me into the A main for a change. Usually my LMP cars are too slow to get me there. But this one was a rocket! I was the first one to get even close to Lee's track record and I was ecstatic! Even though I ended up qualifying P2, I was VERY happy! I started out on White but coudln't get through the keyhole putting me 10 laps down and in LAST PLACE. OUCH! I then proceeded to push hard while still trying to have a clean race. It paid off as I was able to claw my way back into 3rd place just barely getting past Shawn in the last 30 seconds of the race.

For Group 10, I knew the car was fast as I stated above so I felt comfortable going into Qualifying. I qualified fairly early and had to wait for all the big guns to finish before I knew I had TQ'd. The track record is a 3.7 so I wasn't too far off, but you never know with this crowd when someone is going to set a blistering time. For the first time since I started racing again I chose to run a O/S Mercedes instead of the "normal" O/S BentLee. It worked VERY well and was just planted. Unfortunately I again had problems at the beginning of the race putting me over 15 laps down in LAST PLACE. I suspected the braid was up slightly on the Keyhole in White but since I didn't ask for a track call too bad for me. I took a deep breath and told myself to just go for it. I don't think I have ever pushed so hard in any races I've raced as I did this weekend. I was taking no prisoners and passing cars where I likely shouldn't have but I didn't feel I had the time to wait to get by. My car was so much faster than everyone through the twisty section of the track that I would be a foot behind entering the esses and be two feet ahead of the pack coming out the other side. This car was FUN to drive! Going into the last heat, I was on Orange 5 laps behind Shawn on White. I knew Shawn has never been comfortable on White so I felt pretty confident that I could catch him if I drove cleanly. Luckily for me, the only time I came off, Shawn did too. Then I noticed him make another error and I was past him! However, I knew that Dub had put down a good lap total in the B Main so I still had to push hard. When the time ran out and I was able to breathe, I found I had just made it past him by a couple laps! Phew!

When I put my GT12's on the track and the two Mack Bulldogs handled great but the Tazer was loose. Unfortunately all my motors felt soft. Since the Tazer was loose I pulled the motor and put it in the BD2. It still felt really soft so I pulled it. On Sunday I took the original BD2 motor and put it back in but changed the gearing to 7:41. The motor was still soft, but I gained 2 tenths on the clock so I ran it as is. I ended up qualifying well enough to get in the A main and knew I had a car that could win as it was super easy to drive. Yet again I made some mistakes early in the race that made me have to play catch up. So I again pushed hard and by the beginning of the last heat I knew I had my work cut out. Shawn was again ahead of me and I needed 42 laps to tie for the win over Jay. Since I have done 50 laps on Orange in GT12 in the past I knew I should be able to do it. I just needed a clean heat. Early on I made a mistake but took a deep breath and kicked it up a knotch. :) That was just what I needed as I pased Jay with 5 seconds to spare! WOW!

Eurosport... Well on Saturday night I still hadn't mounted the bodies for Eurosport. I was providing a car for Dale as well so I had to choose what car to give him as well as what car I wanted to run. When I got to the track Sunday morning I had talked myself into using the Mack. So, Dale got Mack Jr (the car I won with last year), and I was going to run Mack Sr. (Herman named them, not me!). So I mounted up the bodies and finally took some laps. Dales car felt great and my car was good, but not quite right. Then after the GT12 race, I put it on the track one more time along with the Horky. The Horky felt MUCH better as the track had changed. So I quickly remounted the body and teched in. I took 3 laps in qualifying and hit the wall hard. The car just didn't feel right after that and I knew I had made the A-Main so I pulled with 15 seconds left on the clock. I didn't find anything wrong with the car before starting the race. I started on Orange and the car was a handful. I knew right then that it was going to be a long race and there was no way I was going to win this one. :( When I got on White the car kept coming off on the lead on and finally it felt like the motor went away. I yelled at Bill Clemans to pull the motor out of Mack Sr for me and then checked the braid just to make sure. It was pretty flat so I fluffed the ends. That made it better but still not right. I finished out Red, but the car felt like it was getting slower so I changed the motor after Red. What a difference! While the car was unforgiving due to the front end being broken, I now had HP and it compensated for the ill handling. I was back in the hunt but 50 laps in arrears. Too much to make up but these cars are so fun to run, I just had to finish the race for kicks. I actually managed to set the fastest time of the A-Main on Purple!

Congrats to Brad on his well earned win! He had a race similar to mine last year where he was able to drive cleanly and stay out of wrecks all night. Sorry to Alicia for ruining your race in the early going. I think you hit my ill handling car 4 or 5 times on the straight.

After racing on Friday night and Sunday night a few of us went to Shari's up the street for food and bs'ing. This is one of my favorite things at big races and I thank you guys for joining me.

Vance, it was great racing with you again, but I still got your number dude! :) Dustin, and Mike, you guys build some wicked HP! I'm glad my cars handled so well as you were both faster on the rest of the track! We're all going to be in trouble when Kevin puts that new Dub motor he won in his Group 10! Dub, sorry I was not quicker getting your Euro back on the track. But it took me a minute to figure out how to make the stop. And your GT12 was wicked fast! Great job this year. Alan, it was a pleasure pitting next to you. Please come back soon! Kyle, great job at your first race on an unfamiliar track. Everyone in Idaho will need to watch out for you in the future as you will be a force to be reconned with!

[Hot Slots 1]

First Class is the only way to describe this event.

So many great people. So many new friends. Any racer that enjoys flat track racing needs to mark there callender now for next years FLATS.

Way to many great people to thank by name so I'll just say one big THANK YOU to everyone involved. I will be back next year to use what I learned this year.

[Ingram]

Wow Mike that is bad news for the rest of us:lol::lol::lol:. Every car you put on the track had a real chance of winning. Your Gp10 and GT12's had wicked HP. Once you get more comfortable on that track you will be a sure podium threat across the board.

[Ingram]

First let me say thanks to all our sponsors for the great prizes and their support! It is very much appreciated!

Also, I want to thank Dianne, Jim, Sarah, Fester, and Jeff for the tireless work they did in putting on such a great race! Big standing ovation people! This was a first class event!


My 2011 Flats started out a little after noon on Friday. Once I got to the track I finished up mounting my bodies for Group 10 and LMP. I took the two LMP cars I had prepared and did a couple laps with them. One of them was significantly faster than any LMP I had ever owned, turning 3.9's on Yellow. I was HAPPY :)

I then moved on to working on my Group 10. I had assembled 4 different cars trying different Cheetah configurations and different motor configurations. I found that the X25 with .030" C11 pans was the best handling of the bunch, but the motor in that car was soft. So I started swapping motors until I found the one I wanted to run. It was a Cahoza UL can with T2 magnets. I had honed it out to .560" and stuffed a S16C in it at the Nats but had not run it as I couldn't find a gear ratio I liked. This car felt and drove like a GT12. It was very fast and handled great.

Everyone was giving me a hard time about not racing the Wing classes so I grabbed my Box 12 and put tires on it. Teched it in and away we went. This was the third race on the motor since I won the car at Slugfest and it was showing signs of needing a rebuild. It was still fast though. I qualified 2nd just slightly behind Chris. Unfortunately, I drove poorly making too many mistakes and putting myself in harms way too often. Chris was on fire so I ended up 23 laps behind him. He got the most laps on every lane. Well done Chris! I did manage to drive well enough to get second overall though.

I didn't run G27L as I had bent my chassis during the Slugfest race and blew a stack on the arm. While I straightened out the chassis somewhat I just wasn't able to get it flat. So with needing to purchase both a chassis and an arm, I chose to just not race that class. This decision cost me the chance to have a pie in the face! :)

On Saturday, we started off with 1/32 GTP. I had decided to hand Lee a body and have him assemble a new car for me. He did a great job on the car, but I should have cut down the tires before the race as they were too tall. The car didn't really start working until the last heat. Oh well, I had a lot of fun with the class like always even though I made a LOT of unforced errors. For some reason I really like this class!

When qualifying came around for LMP I knew I had a car that should get me into the A main for a change. Usually my LMP cars are too slow to get me there. But this one was a rocket! I was the first one to get even close to Lee's track record and I was ecstatic! Even though I ended up qualifying P2, I was VERY happy! I started out on White but coudln't get through the keyhole putting me 10 laps down and in LAST PLACE. OUCH! I then proceeded to push hard while still trying to have a clean race. It paid off as I was able to claw my way back into 3rd place just barely getting past Shawn in the last 30 seconds of the race.

For Group 10, I knew the car was fast as I stated above so I felt comfortable going into Qualifying. I qualified fairly early and had to wait for all the big guns to finish before I knew I had TQ'd. The track record is a 3.7 so I wasn't too far off, but you never know with this crowd when someone is going to set a blistering time. For the first time since I started racing again I chose to run a O/S Mercedes instead of the "normal" O/S BentLee. It worked VERY well and was just planted. Unfortunately I again had problems at the beginning of the race putting me over 15 laps down in LAST PLACE. I suspected the braid was up slightly on the Keyhole in White but since I didn't ask for a track call too bad for me. I took a deep breath and told myself to just go for it. I don't think I have ever pushed so hard in any races I've raced as I did this weekend. I was taking no prisoners and passing cars where I likely shouldn't have but I didn't feel I had the time to wait to get by. My car was so much faster than everyone through the twisty section of the track that I would be a foot behind entering the esses and be two feet ahead of the pack coming out the other side. This car was FUN to drive! Going into the last heat, I was on Orange 5 laps behind Shawn on White. I knew Shawn has never been comfortable on White so I felt pretty confident that I could catch him if I drove cleanly. Luckily for me, the only time I came off, Shawn did too. Then I noticed him make another error and I was past him! However, I knew that Dub had put down a good lap total in the B Main so I still had to push hard. When the time ran out and I was able to breathe, I found I had just made it past him by a couple laps! Phew!

When I put my GT12's on the track and the two Mack Bulldogs handled great but the Tazer was loose. Unfortunately all my motors felt soft. Since the Tazer was loose I pulled the motor and put it in the BD2. It still felt really soft so I pulled it. On Sunday I took the original BD2 motor and put it back in but changed the gearing to 7:41. The motor was still soft, but I gained 2 tenths on the clock so I ran it as is. I ended up qualifying well enough to get in the A main and knew I had a car that could win as it was super easy to drive. Yet again I made some mistakes early in the race that made me have to play catch up. So I again pushed hard and by the beginning of the last heat I knew I had my work cut out. Shawn was again ahead of me and I needed 42 laps to tie for the win over Jay. Since I have done 50 laps on Orange in GT12 in the past I knew I should be able to do it. I just needed a clean heat. Early on I made a mistake but took a deep breath and kicked it up a knotch. :) That was just what I needed as I pased Jay with 5 seconds to spare! WOW!

Eurosport... Well on Saturday night I still hadn't mounted the bodies for Eurosport. I was providing a car for Dale as well so I had to choose what car to give him as well as what car I wanted to run. When I got to the track Sunday morning I had talked myself into using the Mack. So, Dale got Mack Jr (the car I won with last year), and I was going to run Mack Sr. (Herman named them, not me!). So I mounted up the bodies and finally took some laps. Dales car felt great and my car was good, but not quite right. Then after the GT12 race, I put it on the track one more time along with the Horky. The Horky felt MUCH better as the track had changed. So I quickly remounted the body and teched in. I took 3 laps in qualifying and hit the wall hard. The car just didn't feel right after that and I knew I had made the A-Main so I pulled with 15 seconds left on the clock. I didn't find anything wrong with the car before starting the race. I started on Orange and the car was a handful. I knew right then that it was going to be a long race and there was no way I was going to win this one. :( When I got on White the car kept coming off on the lead on and finally it felt like the motor went away. I yelled at Bill Clemans to pull the motor out of Mack Sr for me and then checked the braid just to make sure. It was pretty flat so I fluffed the ends. That made it better but still not right. I finished out Red, but the car felt like it was getting slower so I changed the motor after Red. What a difference! While the car was unforgiving due to the front end being broken, I now had HP and it compensated for the ill handling. I was back in the hunt but 50 laps in arrears. Too much to make up but these cars are so fun to run, I just had to finish the race for kicks. I actually managed to set the fastest time of the A-Main on Purple!

Congrats to Brad on his well earned win! He had a race similar to mine last year where he was able to drive cleanly and stay out of wrecks all night. Sorry to Alicia for ruining your race in the early going. I think you hit my ill handling car 4 or 5 times on the straight.

After racing on Friday night and Sunday night a few of us went to Shari's up the street for food and bs'ing. This is one of my favorite things at big races and I thank you guys for joining me.

Vance, it was great racing with you again, but I still got your number dude! :) Dustin, and Mike, you guys build some wicked HP! I'm glad my cars handled so well as you were both faster on the rest of the track! We're all going to be in trouble when Kevin puts that new Dub motor he won in his Group 10! Dub, sorry I was not quicker getting your Euro back on the track. But it took me a minute to figure out how to make the stop. And your GT12 was wicked fast! Great job this year. Alan, it was a pleasure pitting next to you. Please come back soon! Kyle, great job at your first race on an unfamiliar track. Everyone in Idaho will need to watch out for you in the future as you will be a force to be reconned with!

Gary,
Forgot to thank you for helping me solder after trying to burn my already damaged finger off !
I was very fortunate to have so much experience and help right next to me.

BTW, I am sure you will be in the hunt for the pie next year :lol:

[Kyle H]

First let me say thanks to all our sponsors for the great prizes and their support! It is very much appreciated!

Also, I want to thank Dianne, Jim, Sarah, Fester, and Jeff for the tireless work they did in putting on such a great race! Big standing ovation people! This was a first class event!


My 2011 Flats started out a little after noon on Friday. Once I got to the track I finished up mounting my bodies for Group 10 and LMP. I took the two LMP cars I had prepared and did a couple laps with them. One of them was significantly faster than any LMP I had ever owned, turning 3.9's on Yellow. I was HAPPY :)

I then moved on to working on my Group 10. I had assembled 4 different cars trying different Cheetah configurations and different motor configurations. I found that the X25 with .030" C11 pans was the best handling of the bunch, but the motor in that car was soft. So I started swapping motors until I found the one I wanted to run. It was a Cahoza UL can with T2 magnets. I had honed it out to .560" and stuffed a S16C in it at the Nats but had not run it as I couldn't find a gear ratio I liked. This car felt and drove like a GT12. It was very fast and handled great.

Everyone was giving me a hard time about not racing the Wing classes so I grabbed my Box 12 and put tires on it. Teched it in and away we went. This was the third race on the motor since I won the car at Slugfest and it was showing signs of needing a rebuild. It was still fast though. I qualified 2nd just slightly behind Chris. Unfortunately, I drove poorly making too many mistakes and putting myself in harms way too often. Chris was on fire so I ended up 23 laps behind him. He got the most laps on every lane. Well done Chris! I did manage to drive well enough to get second overall though.

I didn't run G27L as I had bent my chassis during the Slugfest race and blew a stack on the arm. While I straightened out the chassis somewhat I just wasn't able to get it flat. So with needing to purchase both a chassis and an arm, I chose to just not race that class. This decision cost me the chance to have a pie in the face! :)

On Saturday, we started off with 1/32 GTP. I had decided to hand Lee a body and have him assemble a new car for me. He did a great job on the car, but I should have cut down the tires before the race as they were too tall. The car didn't really start working until the last heat. Oh well, I had a lot of fun with the class like always even though I made a LOT of unforced errors. For some reason I really like this class!

When qualifying came around for LMP I knew I had a car that should get me into the A main for a change. Usually my LMP cars are too slow to get me there. But this one was a rocket! I was the first one to get even close to Lee's track record and I was ecstatic! Even though I ended up qualifying P2, I was VERY happy! I started out on White but coudln't get through the keyhole putting me 10 laps down and in LAST PLACE. OUCH! I then proceeded to push hard while still trying to have a clean race. It paid off as I was able to claw my way back into 3rd place just barely getting past Shawn in the last 30 seconds of the race.

For Group 10, I knew the car was fast as I stated above so I felt comfortable going into Qualifying. I qualified fairly early and had to wait for all the big guns to finish before I knew I had TQ'd. The track record is a 3.7 so I wasn't too far off, but you never know with this crowd when someone is going to set a blistering time. For the first time since I started racing again I chose to run a O/S Mercedes instead of the "normal" O/S BentLee. It worked VERY well and was just planted. Unfortunately I again had problems at the beginning of the race putting me over 15 laps down in LAST PLACE. I suspected the braid was up slightly on the Keyhole in White but since I didn't ask for a track call too bad for me. I took a deep breath and told myself to just go for it. I don't think I have ever pushed so hard in any races I've raced as I did this weekend. I was taking no prisoners and passing cars where I likely shouldn't have but I didn't feel I had the time to wait to get by. My car was so much faster than everyone through the twisty section of the track that I would be a foot behind entering the esses and be two feet ahead of the pack coming out the other side. This car was FUN to drive! Going into the last heat, I was on Orange 5 laps behind Shawn on White. I knew Shawn has never been comfortable on White so I felt pretty confident that I could catch him if I drove cleanly. Luckily for me, the only time I came off, Shawn did too. Then I noticed him make another error and I was past him! However, I knew that Dub had put down a good lap total in the B Main so I still had to push hard. When the time ran out and I was able to breathe, I found I had just made it past him by a couple laps! Phew!

When I put my GT12's on the track and the two Mack Bulldogs handled great but the Tazer was loose. Unfortunately all my motors felt soft. Since the Tazer was loose I pulled the motor and put it in the BD2. It still felt really soft so I pulled it. On Sunday I took the original BD2 motor and put it back in but changed the gearing to 7:41. The motor was still soft, but I gained 2 tenths on the clock so I ran it as is. I ended up qualifying well enough to get in the A main and knew I had a car that could win as it was super easy to drive. Yet again I made some mistakes early in the race that made me have to play catch up. So I again pushed hard and by the beginning of the last heat I knew I had my work cut out. Shawn was again ahead of me and I needed 42 laps to tie for the win over Jay. Since I have done 50 laps on Orange in GT12 in the past I knew I should be able to do it. I just needed a clean heat. Early on I made a mistake but took a deep breath and kicked it up a knotch. :) That was just what I needed as I pased Jay with 5 seconds to spare! WOW!

Eurosport... Well on Saturday night I still hadn't mounted the bodies for Eurosport. I was providing a car for Dale as well so I had to choose what car to give him as well as what car I wanted to run. When I got to the track Sunday morning I had talked myself into using the Mack. So, Dale got Mack Jr (the car I won with last year), and I was going to run Mack Sr. (Herman named them, not me!). So I mounted up the bodies and finally took some laps. Dales car felt great and my car was good, but not quite right. Then after the GT12 race, I put it on the track one more time along with the Horky. The Horky felt MUCH better as the track had changed. So I quickly remounted the body and teched in. I took 3 laps in qualifying and hit the wall hard. The car just didn't feel right after that and I knew I had made the A-Main so I pulled with 15 seconds left on the clock. I didn't find anything wrong with the car before starting the race. I started on Orange and the car was a handful. I knew right then that it was going to be a long race and there was no way I was going to win this one. :( When I got on White the car kept coming off on the lead on and finally it felt like the motor went away. I yelled at Bill Clemans to pull the motor out of Mack Sr for me and then checked the braid just to make sure. It was pretty flat so I fluffed the ends. That made it better but still not right. I finished out Red, but the car felt like it was getting slower so I changed the motor after Red. What a difference! While the car was unforgiving due to the front end being broken, I now had HP and it compensated for the ill handling. I was back in the hunt but 50 laps in arrears. Too much to make up but these cars are so fun to run, I just had to finish the race for kicks. I actually managed to set the fastest time of the A-Main on Purple!

Congrats to Brad on his well earned win! He had a race similar to mine last year where he was able to drive cleanly and stay out of wrecks all night. Sorry to Alicia for ruining your race in the early going. I think you hit my ill handling car 4 or 5 times on the straight.

After racing on Friday night and Sunday night a few of us went to Shari's up the street for food and bs'ing. This is one of my favorite things at big races and I thank you guys for joining me.

Vance, it was great racing with you again, but I still got your number dude! :) Dustin, and Mike, you guys build some wicked HP! I'm glad my cars handled so well as you were both faster on the rest of the track! We're all going to be in trouble when Kevin puts that new Dub motor he won in his Group 10! Dub, sorry I was not quicker getting your Euro back on the track. But it took me a minute to figure out how to make the stop. And your GT12 was wicked fast! Great job this year. Alan, it was a pleasure pitting next to you. Please come back soon! Kyle, great job at your first race on an unfamiliar track. Everyone in Idaho will need to watch out for you in the future as you will be a force to be reconned with!

Great write up Gary! Thanks for the compliments and for all your help this weekend. I believe you fixed around half a dozen gt12 cars in the C and B mains and you were always willing to help everyone out with supplies and suggestions (especially me).

Everyone Ive met who races slot cars is always willing to help out new guys and all the racers at Flats last weekend were just as helpful. This was such a great event and im so glad I came. I cant wait to see all the new friends i made at the Wade Raceway 500 in October and next year at flats 2012!

["Dub" Wade]

First Class is the only way to describe this event.

So many great people. So many new friends. Any racer that enjoys flat track racing needs to mark there callender now for next years FLATS.

Way to many great people to thank by name so I'll just say one big THANK YOU to everyone involved. I will be back next year to use what I learned this year.

It was great meeting you Mike. It will be great seeing you again at Nats. Your GT12 was way fast!! Literally drove the tires off it!

I have to agree with Mike on making Flats a permanant destination on your Race schedule each year. Some of the toughest local competition out there. Facility was amazing, clean and packed with cool Inventory. The racing was ran very well, Fester's entertaining race directing, punctual start times and great racing. Everyone is willing to help and give advice.

Gary,
Euro was a race I really worked hard to get ready for, but my last minute changes were Unlogical.
The car was very good in practice, but I wanted to make it a little more stable, so I went to a bigger spur and accidentally set the mesh too tight. The motor heated up and hit the floor, then I spun the pinion, then I lost a hinge I didnt solder correctly. Thankfully you were able to get a hinge put on it and I could go have some more fun, but at that point I was out of the race. The car handled amazing after your homemade hinge, great job!

Early in the A-Main before Alicia's body got sucked under the race for the trophy was great to watch. Both Alicia and Brad were driving great races, missing many crashes. They were both equally matched, but in the end it looks like Brad stayed out of a little more trouble than Alicia.
Great Job Brad!

[HRK]

Once again the AFTW's is behind us. Boy what a weekend of racing. I thought I had the right 1/24th Euro package going until I lost that tire in heat 7, bummer. Cody had it going on in GP10 and GT12, with running in the front of his races and not starting to fade until the 6th heat of so, he drove hard.

It was great to meet Mike Williams too, who made the trip from Iowa, thanks for the Eurosport bandaid!

You Idaho boys, watch out for us Kosir boys, one of these days we just might have to make the trip to see you guys!

To all of this years sponsors, Many thanks for helping out Jim and Dianne, Dan & Sara Parris with this years event. THANK YOU!

Congrads to all this years winners!

Special thanks to these people that help Cody and I out , Jay Mac,Dan Sullivan,Beuf,Lee Gilbert Thanks!

Oh yeah, Jeff Sweeny, I'm calling you out too, thanks for all the help getting the tracks ready to race. Thanks! I'm sure that I forgot someone;that's what happens when you get old. Hope to see everyone next year!

HRK

[fxgeorge]

It was great to meet Mike Johnson too, who made the trip from Iowa, thanks for the Eurosport bandaid!


HRK

Kevin Kaiser, it's Mike Williams, not Mike Johnson.

[jdracer]

hey George.... it's Kevin Kosir......not Kevin Kaiser... sorry, I couldn't resist....lol