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| The Bone Shaker - A Race Report |
| By Bill Kurtz |
Western Pennsylvania Slot Car Club
Pittsburgh, PA
April 12, 2008
"Enjoy the Slot car Hobby to the Fullest" - That is the creed of the WPSCC and did they ever live up to it in last weekend's Bone Shaker event. This group of racers from the tri-state area of the Ohio Valley opened up their club to host 25 racers from as far away as North Carolina that included East coast "Top Guns" Henry Harnish, Hiram Durant and Paul Kniffen along with mid-America racers Adam Wright, Brad Morgan, Myron Brenner, Ryan Peoples and Chris Abston just to name a few. The speed that was assembled in the Pits of Mark Frazin's fabulous Bone Shaker Speedway was one of the most competitive fields this racer has seen at a local clubs race. And, fellow racers, that is exactly what this race started out as before it took wings.
They called it the Fray Prep and although it was one of the highlights on the WPSCC racing calendar, what they saw last weekend was absolute support from the HO hobby from sponsors, racers and enthusiasts who have met John Bamonte at a race here or a show there and realized that this was going to be a class HO racing event. It seems that the Pittsburgh and surrounding area has got themselves a bonified yearly slot car competition that will draw and be supported and the WPSCC has stepped up to the plate to insure it’s one of the best any racer could and will attend.
The format of the event was well thought and gave the traveling racer plenty of track time, which is a must, no one will drive more than 50 miles unless they are guaranteed more than 4 3-minute heats. On the schedule was the opening Fray / VHORS head to head competition followed by a Gjet IROC race with superbly prepared SlotPro Boss Mustang bodies and it all took place at a venue that featured a super sweet Scott Dunlap 6-lane circuit that gave the racer a numbing dose of fun yet challenged every ounce of skill you could muster. Throw in more than enough mouthwatering food, drink and snacks with a sponsors table that looked like a traveling hobby shop and you got a race that had all of us in attendance go home and mark out all of April 2009 on our calendars.
Now to the race, which started with the Fray Prep - Some racers played with the idea of running a 12-tooth but the track proved to be to technical to hang with a well prepared 9-tooth whether it was a VHORS or Fray prepared chassis. We ran our 3-minute heats in a round robin format and seated the field for the mains according to our finish. Anyone who has run a similar format knows that the qualifying races are just as if not more important as the mains. It is rare when a racer, even one who has a great car or a racing technique that improves during a race can handle more than 2 or three move-ups, anything below the "C" main truly limits your chances to take the "A". Doyle Racing ended up with a 10th in qualifying but in the "C" main, despite 2 wins could not move up, the gutter lanes (as predicted) were in fact my undoing. We did however see some racers make the transition through a few brackets including Chris Abston, who made it to the "A" and Myron Brenner who climbed into the "B".
The "A" bracket field was a combination of the who's who and the local racers that didn't care much about what your name was when they were racein' ya. We had the pre-race favorites the likes of Paul Kniffen, Henry and Hiram along with Chris who was now becoming well practiced thru his advancements, but we also had the track owner Mark Frazin, who's car had less speed than a fully loaded A/FX tractor trailer on the straights but handled like a magnet car in the infield road course and Tom Ficcari who despite an excellent qualifying run seemed almost surprised and even grateful to be there.. This racer just loves to race and it shows
As the final bracket progressed through lane after lane the points lead collapsed in on itself. Henry Harnish was both consistent and fast, taking two of the first three heats, Paul Kniffen kept it close by finishing second or at worst third in all of his heats but Mark Frazin, who drew the gutters in his opening heats, began to make his move as soon as he got out of them taking it to the other racers heat after heat and when the checked flag waved, it was Mark's day, he was the best against the best!
It was now 8:00 pm and after the sponsor table drawings, which went on and on and on and on ...Believe me, I'm not complaining except that I couldn't find a bag to put everything in, we powered the track down to 12 volts for the Gjets ...
I love these cars and Jim Nagy out did himself on the bodies.. Extremely Cool.
It's said that the 45ohm controller is the way to go with the Gjets, but I prefer the 35 and apparently so did Paul Kniffen who borrowed mine to take the win. Both of us really never had a problem with the extra "punch" on this road course except for the by now dreaded Yellow lane. The cars were set up loose, which I prefer and scooted around this track with the perfect balance of speed and talent that gives them the popularity they currently enjoy. In the end I finished second to Paul, (should have made him borrow someone's 120ohm), but he would have most likely beat me with that as when you think of perfect combinations you have to think of Paul, an excellent builder who can race.
As the day of racing came to a close, it was now about 11:30pm and I had been there more than 12 hours ... .To my and several other racers delight, Hiram Durant put on a Tjet building seminar the likes that I have never seen. What one would think were secrets that no one would share, Hiram explained in detail. He carefully picked through a case of truck chassis and critiqued the gearing, then armature plate, then axle seating and on and on, by the time he place a car on the track that topped the fastest speed of the day it was now 2:30am Sunday and well worth it!
To the WPSCC, the Sponsors, the Racers and everyone who did what they could to make one of the best events this racer has ever attended I would just like to say, Thank You!
You are the reason that I love this hobby as much as I do and as always,
Keep on Racing
Bill Kurtz
Charlotte, NC
