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Me 2.....  ------------Bill

Now That's an ENDURO!  ------------------Bill

I used "GOOP" to glue the lead weights in place (I don't like them coming loose and moving around). Here's the location of the lead weight pieces in the front portion of the chassis:

I soldered the motor connectors (chicken legs) to the copper contact strips on the chassis. To do this without melting the chassis, first I remove the motor and pod assembly from the chassis. I then apply a small amount of solder to the bottom sides of the chicken legs. Then I apply a small amount of solder to the copper contact strips where the chicken legs will make contact with the copper strips. Allow a little cooling time for both pieces. I re-install the motor and pod assembly into the chassis. Now with solder already applied to the motor chicken legs and the copper strips, all I have to do is place the tip of my soldering iron on the top sides of the chicken legs for a second or two to melt the solder on both pieces together. The amount of tension on the chicken legs when you install the motor/pod assembly determins how much movement you'll have in your pod (i.e. the further the chicken legs hang down below the bottom of the motor, the stiffer your pod movement will be).

Here's the weight I have in the rear of the car. I basically cut small strips of lead and filled the cavity for the traction magnet. Again I made sure it wouldn't go anywhere by "GOOP"ing it in place:

This is how I like the guide flag braid to lay:

This is a trick I learned from Monte. I used a small "O" ring to lock my guide flag in place eliminating the spring action. You can get these type of "O" rings at Ace Hardware stores:

I trued my front tires to get them round, and to get the frontend to sit where it should. This allows the guide flag to sit deep in the slot:

Last but not least, I use slightly longer screws to secure the body to the chassis (also available at Ace Hardware). This allows you to leave the body mounting screws a little loose without them falling out:

There you have. Nothing secret, just a little careful preparation and attention to detail.  ------------------------Bill

Three cut pieces laying on the floor already!!!!................  ---------------Bill

Hey George, I wasn't disagreeing with you or your proposal. My comments regarding enduros were not directed at you either.

Randy, What I see so far is a series, that in the end is rewarding individual performance, based on a percentage of team acquired data. Is that about it, or am I missing something?  ---------------------Bill

Good question........My real question is; even with the team concept and the team scoring, in the end is it going to really change the overall finish positions on an individual racer basis????

If you're going to do a team series, then why not make it a team series?

Even for the Auburn Enduros we attend, I would much rather be on the same team each time. I don't think it really means anything when the teams change at each race. I would like to know if our team is improving or not. Its the same as when you are racing a series and the specifics of the track are always changing (i.e. layout, applied voltage, heat race length/time etc.). How do you know if changes you make to your car actually improve it's performance? You cannot compare data (i.e. laps times, number of laps during heats, etc.) when your baseline keeps changing! For that matter, how do you know if your driving is improving? In my opinion some things need to remain constant (i.e. TRACKS & TEAMS)..........  --------------------Bill

I heard an idea from George that sounded pretty fair to me. Race two rounds each night as you have always done. The first round would be individual races. The second round would be team races, with racers paired up by their first round finishes. George, I like it! Give us more details!!!!

I also like what Monte mentioned about two teams on the track at a time, with team members running together at the same time. After the first round teams could decide which lanes team members would run. Each team member would run two lanes, they could pick and run their best lanes.   --------------------Bill

If you use lap count you will end up with the same effect as Monte said. The only fair tool is to use timed segments. I still vote you forget the fuel managment system. Save that for endurance races with long (i.e. 30 min. minimum) heat races. That's where fuel managment fits in! Short races don't have pit stops for fuel!!!! Have the teams change drivers between each heat. Set the pause between heats to 30 seconds. The team members will have to work together and efficiently to get ready for the next heat. Same difference as your "fuel managment" pit stops, but less confusing and hectic.......................

As far as the seeding goes, I don't really care, it's a team race. However I did notice that there were quite a few racers that ran much quicker than the times I heard of for the first race. The thing here is that generally racers improve their cars from race to race. So basing your "seeding" on the times from a previous race or early practice laps may not prove to be accurate for any given team race. With that said, for example where wouild I be seeded for the next race? And based on what?  -----------------------Bill

Randy, KUDOs for bringing this to an open format!

1st - I like the team racing concept. I agree with you about the equal run time. If you keep the fuel management as is, the bulk of the teams score or lap totals are based on the slower of the two racers. In this scenerio there is no advantage to slower racers having a faster teamate. The longer the race, the further behind they fall because the slower racer is running more. I understand the idea of giving the slower racers more run time, but that should be in practice not under race conditions. Racers become better drivers by practicing, not by being forced to drive over their heads!

2nd - My feeling is the races are too short for the use of the fuel managment system. The heats are only 6 or 7 minutes long, and you're wasting half a minute or better just to change drivers. In my opinion the fuel managment system is a tool for enduro races. A mini-enduro is an oxymoron. In addition, the driver's stations are too crowded to complete driver changes effectively in the short amount of time alotted. Due to the short 6 or 7 minit heats everyone is trying to pit around the same time, or at least in close proximity. My vote is to scrap the fuel managment! Save it for ENDUROs!

3rd - I want to stay on Art's team (if he'll take me as a teammate)! We have a bond, and I think we make a good team!  -----------------------------Bill

The BullRing is down. It awaits transport back to Roseburg. It's been fun but its time to move on to other things. Thanks a bunch to Monte for helping me with the tear down today!

So what's next? I have portions of a 3 lane track already routed. I am thinking of turning those pieces into two separate 1/32 copper tape routed tracks. Each track will have a smaller footprint, something around 5 or 6 feet by 10 or 12 feet. When completed they will be for sale. So if you've got any interest let me know. You could even be part of the build up if you'd like.  -------------------Bill

Thank you John & Chrissy, and as always it was a great race and great fun!!!! Thanks for all the excellent pizzas as well!!!

And as Arnold would say...........We'll be back!!!!!  ----------------Bill

Help is always appreciated!!! If you have some spare time Sunday that would be great!!!!  ------------------Bill