** 2023 Vintage Off-Road Nationals - R/C Excitement Inc., Fitchburg, MA - Sept. 8-10 **

[mikea96]

Anyone watching the races on Live rc? Someone needs to give the race caller a Snickers

[MarkyDents]

Dang that backside double seems brutal on the 2wd cars currently running….

[MarkyDents]

Although most any of the jumps seem to be as well.
Looks like Jason got the center table top to double down to a science, super smooth through it

[scr8p]

This track is a challenge to not over power. So easy to miss the backside of the jumps and pound the flats.

[scr8p]

Another Vonats in the books. It was great to meet up with everyone again. And now, with the vintage races in NC in January, we have a chance to hang out some more throughout the year. The flyer isn't posted yet, but that race will be Jan. 12-14 at Thunder Alley R/C in Lucama, NC. So pencil it in, come out and have a good time.

[stickboy007]

It was a great time and definitely great to see everyone there. Basically wasted all of Friday open practice trying to go fast without traction compound, then gave in at the last minute and bought some from the shop. The new surface definitely took some adjusting to. The layout was mostly okay, but the backside tabletop to single had a brutal lander, while the frontside tabletop to double had low grip between the table and approach to the double. Took a bit of finesse to get it right.

My memory card died before the first A-main, so unfortunately I don't have any of my usual A-main recordings for 2wd, ST, and 4wd. I formatted the card afterwards and was able to record the Sunday events just fine, though. Kind of annoying, as I finally won 2wd and don't have the video proof...lol.

2wd: That little cheater Kyosho Rampage Pro-E mid-motor is unstoppable. Just the fact that it jumps nicely is its biggest saving grace compared to rear motor buggies. I was able to take many different lines over the back tabletop without kicking the back up/nose down. Thinking of bringing a TRX-3 next year, as I need a good win with a rear motor buggy and that one is both strong and light.

ST: I was hoping for TQ and 1st place this year, but got beaten yet again. Even still, for those who don't want to scratch up their pristine Pro-XRT, I can confirm it is an excellent truck. I ran it at 3 separate VONATS events and it drove great each time. If I would change anything on it the next time around (assuming I use it again), I would probably install the 5deg rear block just to give me a bit more confidence on corner exit on this grippy-yet-sometimes-slippery surface. Thinking of running its mid-motor variant next year, or maybe a T2.

4wd: Had breakage issues during every round of qualifiers with the Lazer ZX-S Evolution. Spur gear, shock tower, then ESC thermal overload (I think). Pre-breakage, though, it was fantastic and I felt fairly comfortable keeping a similar pace as Mark with his XX-4. I ended up running my XX-4 for the main, as I didn't want to risk yet another DNF with the Lazer. Worked my way up to 2nd while very, very nervously driving that glass rocket around the track. Definitely running the ZX-S Evo again next year after sorting through the mechanical/electrical issues.

Classic 4wd: Same story as 4wd. Broke out of every qualifier and didn't get enough track time with the '92 Works to feel comfortable with it. Ran it nervously during the main as it didn't jump very well and was inconsistent on corner exit, but still managed to wrestle 3rd place out of it. It could do better with more work on the shocks, but it has a pretty hard limit on this kind of track and so next year will see something else in this class. Either run my Lazer ZX-RR again, or maybe the CAT 2000 EC, or maybe....maybe.....a Top Force?

Classic: Tried running a Tamiya VQS this year. Despite being based on the Egress, which itself is more bark than bite and not that tunable, it wasn't great. It rides kind of high and corner exit is inconsistent on this kind of track surface. I brought stiffer springs with me, but completely forgot to try them out while being knee deep in all of the hustle and bustle of working on cars between rounds. Qualified 2nd and then DNF'ed the main after the pinion came loose while chasing down Jason. It's kind of a cool car and definitely keeps with the Classic theme, but it is quite heavy and doesn't handle very well, so I guess you can say that makes it "fun" to drive. In terms of "legal" chassis, by a freaking mile the Manta Ray/Dirt Thrasher is the superior choice.

I have an Excel spreadsheet (because of course) where I track which cars I used during which years and rate them, to help me figure what to bring the following year. I think next year has the potential to be pretty funky.

[scr8p]

Thankfully, I didn't really break anything. Popped more than a few ball cups, but there was no crazy cartwheels or barrel rolls, no broken steering knuckles or arm mounts. But I did go through a few spurs in 2wd and ST. I have never tightened motor screws that hard in my life. If I didn't downside the jumps properly a handful of times that motor was gonna move. It's a big reason why I wasn't up for trying to make the tabletop/single in the infield. Too worried I wouldn't be able to clear it consistently. Hurt my lap times, but.....

My goal when I go the Vonats is to make the A mains. Whatever happens once I'm in it... it is what it is. While I am getting better at racing off-road, I still know where I'm at compared to "the ones to beat". It was disappointing to lose a spur in my truck after starting 7th and making it to 3rd on the first lap. 3 laps later..... done. I would have rather raced for 6 minutes and finished dead last than only run 4 laps.

[Chemical]

It was great running with everyone at the VONATS! Hopefully next year I'll spend less time fixing cars and more time being social.
My spur gear held up until the 3rd minute of the D-Main. I reviewed the video of my races. I need more confidence on jumps. Ironically the spur gear broke bumping into something on a flat part of the track off camera.