Question for non racers only

[Livewire121]

Thanks for the heads up Doby!
Now back to square one!!!

[ezhitz]

I think you have to willing to drive to the races if there are any close to your area. Most guys I've met at races whether from Michigan,Ohio,New York it didn't matter where willing to talk and help out a new guy.
The problem even if you find a dozen guys in your area the odds they run the same class is slim because the are so many styles to chose from. I think reading this forum would give the average guy a boat that would be competitive enough to get out there and race if willing to try but some people just don't want to race and be confined to rules. I doubt many guys are lucky enough to have a pond and a club in there own back yard so you may just have to travel to do it. I know when my son and I go out it for the day wife knows eat supper with out us as were there until the sun goes down LOL. I may have missed the point here just my 2 cents.

[fas]

by just reading this its sound like there are a lack of clubs in the areas where people want them
when I started back in 2005 the club that was around me was MMEU it had about 4 members, 2 of us tested at a local ditch and raced 1 time a year which was about 2 hours form me house other then that we went to Canada or Ohio to race for the weekend. It was like that until 2008 when the club members had started to work to get more members, by posting flyers in LHS and our website, by talking to people it has taken alot of work to get where we are today 25 members and we race at a pond 15 mins form my house
we test and tune every Wednesday and race 1 Sunday every month, is it a lot of work YES but you have to be willing to do the work,the guys in the club love it but it is not just 2-3 guys that make it happen, our races take 8 guys to run we all ways have 2-3 guys that just race and talk to new people the everybody helps in set up and take down, I dont think it is as much set ups as it is guys just want to show up and just race.

It only takes 5 guys to be a NAMBA club but it does take a lot of work you want set ups here they are

Q-offshore 36" sprintcat 1527 /1Y, castle 240, x450, 2x 6s 5000mah winner of open offshroe at the Michigan cup this year, 2 place q-Offshroe and MR. Offshore
P-Limited Offshore No Step 3 AQ 2030, Aquastar 120, 42x55 cupped 2x4s 3300 mah winner Michigan cup
P-limited Mono same boat just a x445 prop winner Michigan cup
Q-Sport whiplash 40, 1527/1y castle 240 x455 detounged 2x 3s 6500

if having "the right set up" keeps you from racing you are missing out on a lot of fun so there's 4 that will be running at the 2014 nats here in Michigan show up with one of these set ups and you will be running with in the top races, but you still have to drive it( took me 5 years to learn) and as any racer will tell you you can go run by yourself all you want but when you get in race water its something you will only learn from racing.
if anybody wants other set ups just give me a call


Fred

[T.S.Davis]

Fred's right. All you really need is some guys that are interested in racing and not just playing around. 3 guys with SV's from the local hobby shop, toss some buoy in a pond, and you're racing. You could use our SVR rules anywhere just to get guys racing. For that matter you could do that with any brand or type of boat. Proboat, Atomik, Aquacraft. Any RTR could be raced stock. There are plenty of options these day. 3 of anything and you're ready to have some fun.

When I think back to all the goofy puddles Ken and I raced on locally it makes me chuckle. Drainage ditches, construction sites, gravel pits. We've been asked to leave a couple times like teenage hooligans.

[T.S.Davis]

A few RTR Hobbyking Pursuit monos RTR would be super fun too. Easy easy drivers. Just use all the same motors in them.

[TheShaughnessy]

If you need the set up spoon fed to you maybe racing isn't for you. To me that's a big aspect of racing, finding a set up that works for you and the course. A prop can make a 10 mph difference in a setup but maybe that's only at the end of the straights and not coming out of the corners. Take a look at any form of racing, motocross- not everyone runs the same tires or gearing or boots they use what works for them, running - not everyone is wearing the same shoes and not everyone trained as hard. So not only is racing about set up but also training or practice. If you aren't practicing and testing set ups then what business do you have at a race course?

I drive an hour and a half to go race at legg and I consider that kinda close. I was a little nervous about racing my first time so what I did before I entered any was just go to a couple. It eased my nerves getting to watch how the start works, how pitting works and to see the course. By doing that I ended up getting introduced to Tony ( Propperchopper ). He filled me in on the classes and we talked about boats for a while. About a month or so later I was buying my first hydro from him to race in p spec hydro. Another year down the road p limited cat started developing and I was excited about that because I originally wanted to race my geico. Almost another year went by and I acquired a p mono . Work kept me from attending the d19 heat race that just passed but knowing what Tyler or mark or tony or anyone was running wouldn't have made a difference in going or not if i wouldn't have had to work. In fact I'm sure they'd let me look right in their boat and answer any questions I had about it right down to the prop.

I get to race with a few of the fastest FE boaters in the nation and wouldn't want it any other way. Ever heard the saying, " if you hang out with nine losers guess who number ten is." I think the same hold true with boats, hang out around a bunch of fast guys and someway somehow you might end up being a pretty fast racer yourself.

So in conclusion if you are having to beg and plead with someone to race maybe they aren't the right person to race with. People that want to race will seek out the info not expect it to be handed to them on a platter. Lots of racers go though great efforts to find fast set ups. I don't think it is fair to expect them to share all their research with the public. I mean I doubt Vince Lombardi left his playbook laying arou d so the other coaches could go though it. Now if you went to a game or practice maybe he'd share a couple plays( hypothetical here). The same goes for boat racing. If you actually show up to a race most guys will help you, share set up tips, and just point you in the right direction in general. Tony even offers psychological counseling for recovering boat addicts looking to lead a stable life of racing.

I'm not exactly a non racer but not a racing vet by any means and that's my take.

[T.S.Davis]

Great post.

......or hang out with fast guys, learn gobs, and then actually beat them on occasion.

There is a weird dichotomy with FE boat racers that I'm told is different than many other forms of racing. While it's probably not fair to ask a guy exactly how to get to the speeds he's achieving.....he'll probably tell you. He'll spill it because racing along side someone is just as important as being the absolute fastest. It's an unusual thing about FE'rs and part of the reason I keep doing it. PAGS will pull a motor from his box and tell you to "Try this one. Here's the prop for it too" Tom C. handed me a second set of cells at the Cup after I destroyed the first set of cells he loaned me. Who does that? FE'rs do.

Sure, everyone likes to win but to compete and run deck to deck for 6 or even 12 laps. Swap leads lap after lap. That's the charge of adrenaline that sticks to your ribs. Not sure I can even describe the satisfaction.

[ReddyWatts]

Thanks FAS, you are the type of person that promotes the sport more than yourself. Hats off to you.

[blizard05]

I'm running sv 27 motors in my boats, others are running big $$ motors. I'm still using nicads. It's hard to compete with them,never mind race with them

[TheShaughnessy]

T.s Davis. Deck to deck racing is what its all about. This last p limited cat race I was chasing down tony for 5 laps, I'd gain a little in the straights but let off too much in the corners. I was only 50 or so feet behind him the whole race. On lap 6 tony drove deep into turn two. I held tight in lane 1 and got inside of him. By the exit of turn two we were pretty much side by side and drag raced down the front straight where I edged him out by no more then a boat length. It was so close I had to turn to lenny the CD to see who crossed first. One of my greatest race moments. That adrenaline keeps me hooked .

[Gary]

What I have also found is that RC Boaters are a very rare breed. You have to have A LOT of patience...and I mean a lot. A stuck boat a dozen times will really turn you off so you really need the correct mind set to forge ahead. I remember an afternoon fishing for my first nitro boat at least a dozen times and just could not get it right....and new nothing about them either. Angry for the intire day was all I got out of it. But the longer you stay into it the more you will learn and grow but it takes a lot of time. Like I said 2 years battling my PT 45 and I'm finally there. Now I can start to look into racing and having some real fun with the right bunch of people! TheSaughnessy that must have been a great day !!!

[siberianhusky]

Speaking of such things. I just pulled the bag of bouys out of the garage, think I'll set up a course tomorrow morning.

[jaike5]

Terry and Fred and the rest of the Michigan gents put on a great race with food tunes fireworks and great racing . They even had a diver lined up to get my torpedoed p-mono. May I suggest that you all come to the nationals next year and race , and if not racimg come and see the best FE racing on the continent . and pick up lots of info and enjoy the first class hospitality, you will not be disappointed.

Race On

Cheers, Jay.

[shannon87]

hey guys some awesome answers really helps with things and i hope heaps of new guys get to read this i try and point any new guys towards great forums such as this but in saying that some people ive dealt with just aint very nice haha and can discourage some of the younger guys from this hobby which is unfortunate especially over here it doesnt help that local hobby stores dont stock many boats and if they do they tend to be twice the price im glad there are alot more great guys and gals on here who help newbies like you all helped me go budget racing lol

[Hydrozz]

I started rc boats about 20 years ago. Im not a racer, just a guy that likes to build and run boats. Chris Craft runabouts to gas monos and hydros. I use to live about a 1/4 of a mile from a club lake. Very convenient, the bouys stayed up all year round. Nice dock right down to water level. I joined the club a few years just to have access to the lake, but you dont have to join to run there. The best times I had was running with guys on a saturday or during the week. Guys like me that like to go fast with good equipment, just not interested in racing. Then there were the racers.This hobby doesnt seem to bring out the best in people. I have seen people go to pushing and even fighting one time, throwing stuff at each other and on many many occasions just cussing each other out. Some days I would see who was there and turn around and go home. I have talked to and run with probably a hundred guys that were turned off with the club and only want to be a sport runner like myself. I think deciding to race takes some of the fun out of running, turning a great hobby into a chore. I have seen a few guys that were great to run with as sport runners, running hundreds of laps with, some good close running, turn into guys that you just dont want to hang around with anymore. Talking about how to run some one over or take them out. Deciding to be a racer can take some of the shine off of the hobby, so to speak.I have seen a few guys that were hard core racers, that just quit racing and can not go back to just running as a hobby. Not a rant here, just an observation. Racing or sport running, run and have fun. Thats what its all about.