I've been promoting and holding slot car races for over 35 years now. In that time I've learned that rules are an important part of a successful racing program, and that for the most part, the simpler the rules the better. Here at TooBad Motorplex the written rules ar simple, and even those are loosely enforced. That has resulted in some great racing on odd Thursday nights. However as we develope and refine our cars, and improve our driving skills on the race course, the racing becomes closer. As the racing tightens up the rules become more important as a car's performance becomes more of a factor as skill levels equalize.
At the last race I stated for a car/driver to claim an official win, the car must be compliant to all the rules. What bothers me the most about out of spec car wins is that it skews the race statistics. A lap record is of no value if it cannot possibly be met or broken by a legally prepared car. So that brings us to rule enforcement, and I just totally HATE that! It seems lately the biggest issue with the rules seems to be motors that are above spec, producing more RPM than allowed by the rules.
I am currently conducting some testing using a hand held mechanically driven electronic tachometer. My goal is to come up with a "spec" number to use as a guide to determine if a particular car's motor is within the rules. Where this becomes difficult is in obtaining a measurement from a car without total disassembly and removal of the motor. I addition to RPM, this particular instrument I have measures in FT/MIN. I have found that the FT/MIN reading may be usefull as the reading can be obtained without disassembly of the car, by measuring rear wheel speed. I understand that there are other variables that affect the rear wheel reading such as tire diameter, friction, and gear ratios. From testing I have seen that these variables do not have a great affect on the FT/MIN readings. The RPM readings on the other hand vary much more according to tire diameter and gearing, and the readings also fluctuate more as the car runs. To date I have test data from more than 60 cars of all makes and configurations.
I will continue with the testing and may even try to validate the test results at the next race. Please keep in mind NOTHING is really changing at TooBad in regards to the current rules. The testing to be done is simply accomplished, and will only be required of the "official" winning car. The Traction Magnet Rule for new and less experienced racers that have not won a race is still in effect. The only difference is in my data collection as cars with traction magnets will not be elligible for establishing records (excluding the BRM Porsche 962 Class). In addition there are other reasons a racer may wish to race a car that is out of compliance with the class rules, such as car developement and testing for another race or track. TooBad's policy of WHAT a racer can race or put on the track is not changing. What is changing is a car's elligibility for an "official win".
==========Bill
