By Ted Maciag
It was good to see and talk to everyone at the Nationals in California this year. One race a year is just not enough for me.
The first run on my new Nelson 5cc engine was the first heat of the race. By the time of the last heat I had things sorted out but by then it was too late. So I resort to my old motto, "Wait 'til next time." I didn't get a good run on the 1.5cc car despite the new super-duper alloy piston. The little ones are so critical that it takes a lot of practice runs to get one to go but it will go next time. California has earthquakes and Florida has hurricanes. Mother Nature still has the final say in those things. Hurricane Georges threatened us here on the Florida coast but at the last minute changed his mind and turned west to miss us. All we got was one of those Florida rains where there is no spacing between the drops. One difference is that we get a warning when a hurricane is coming whereas the earthquakes come as a surprise. The beach cities were evacuated but where I live is a whole 26 feet above sea level so we stayed. All of Florida is a mud flat so the altitudes are two digits unlike other areas where the altitude is measured in hundreds or thousands of feet. The hurricane season is about over for now but I am sure that Mother Nature is saying, "Wait 'til next time"
The World class for 2.5cc (.15) engines has never been contested in the US. Unlike the 1.5cc and 5cc classes there are some very fast 2.5cc engines being made today. All of the U-Control racing and power free flight engines are made in Eastern Europe and are available today for competitors around the world. The piped engines have the exhaust on the wrong end for us but that has not stopped determined racers in the past. A good club class racer could be made with one of the open exhaust engines that are used in the free flight power and U-Control combat planes. These engines are using some very advanced design features that have not found there way into the bigger engines yet. A nice scale looking car could be built for them that would be easy to run and not require one of those 'hundred mile an hour Steve Torrey horses to get it going. Hmmm--- wait 'til next year.
One of the larger live steam model railroad tracks in the country is here in the city of Largo where I live. I stop by occasionally to watch the steam locomotives chug around pulling half a dozen cars with passengers. A prime chunk of city park land was donated to the live steam club for their track. The city has also donated an area for radio control airplanes a couple miles away. I have heard that the lady who is the Largo park commissioner is very much in favor of hobby areas and there is still some open land owned by the city. Just wait 'til next year---
One final item. In Tallinn, Estonia the racers started to build a track in May of this year complete with a roof over it. There was a race on the new track in August!!!! Now that is some fast work by a group of racers who really wanted a new track! It is said to be already one of the fastest tracks in the world. The European Championships will be held there next year. I would sure like to go---I can't wait 'til next year.
- Ted Maciag
1998 AMRCA Nationals Race Report
Whittier Narrows, CA
