CONTROL LINE: Racing
Kenn Smith 521 Jansen Avenue, San Dimas, CA 91773
Columbia Basin Balsa Bashers and 1993 Champions
The 1989 Nats in Richland, Washington inspired the formation of the Columbia Basin Balsa Bashers in eastern Washington. Each year they award trophies to their control-line High Point champions.
The 1993 champion is Todd Ryan. Shown in a photo with Todd are Julie Rice, 1993 Junior High Point champion, and Joe Rice, 1991 and 1992 champ. About 60% of Todd's points came through racing competition. Congratulations to Julie and Todd.
T R Inquirer
The T R Inquirer is dead. Along with losing my job in November 1992, I lost access to a computer and printing facilities. I have the computer now, but the cost of printing is too high. I had hoped to resume the T R Inquirer, but I must prioritize earning a living and catching up on financial responsibilities. Uncompleted subscriptions will soon be taken care of in a manner satisfactory to subscribers.
Tucson Racing Challenge
Chris Peter once again hosted the annual contest the first weekend in March. The second annual Racing and Speed Challenge was bigger than last year's meet. Four AMA events (Mouse I, Goodyear, Fast Rat, and Team Race) and three "Do-Dah" local events (ACLA Slow Rat, ACLA Formula Unlimited, and Texas Quickie Rat) were offered during the two-day meet. AMA events were held Saturday; Do-Dah events were held Sunday. It's a great special-interest contest in a great town with great weather.
Results and Highlights
- First, second, and third overall went to:
- Chris Peter (with Bobby Fogg flying)
- Kenn Smith (with Lenard Ascher flying)
- Jed Kusik (with Dave Braun flying)
- Mouse I final:
- The Mouse I final was notable in that none of the three teams finished the race.
- Kusik/Braun went out on the 35th lap when a lead-out guide broke during the first pit.
- Kenn Smith broke a prop on landing in the first pit and sat back until Chris Peter broke a line on the 97th lap.
- Kenn put a new prop on the plane and tried to finish, but kept losing a tire on landing; he finally retired after a tire split on landing on the 84th lap.
- Team Race final:
- 1st: Lenard and Aaron Ascher
- 2nd: Bill Lee and Paul Gibeault
- 3rd: Jed Kusik and Dave Braun
- Goodyear and Rat:
- There was only one team entered in Goodyear and Rat, so no races were held in these events.
- Championship points:
- The contest points championship ended in a tie between Dale Long and Kenn Smith; a coin toss determined who received the trophy.
Put the contest on your calendar for the first weekend of April 1995. Chris Peter does a great job — you won't regret going.
Fast Fills
Kustom Kraftsmanship's rubber fast-fill valve is going by the wayside, raising concerns about supply. Alternatives:
- McCollum/Knoppi mechanical valve.
- Model Racing Services (MRS), Victoria, Australia — offers mechanical fast-fill valves for both suction and pressure systems for about $14 Australian (≈ $10 US). MRS makes a brass collar that solders to the tank screw valve collar. Their product/price list includes fuel shutoffs, racing wheels, bellcranks, machining services, kits, and more at reasonable prices.
Contact: Robin Hiem, Model Racing Services, PO Box 976, Cranbourne, 3977 Victoria, Australia. If you would like a copy of their price list, send an SASE and I'll forward a copy.
Carbon-Fiber Fast Rat Bodies
Steve Eichenberger 1402 East Guadalupe #228, Tempe, AZ 85283
Steve is producing new carbon-fiber Fast Rat fuselages for .40-size models and other Rossi .21–designed, half-pan inverted-engine setups. I saw very good quality; the bodies are very strong and aerodynamic. Steve says they will sell for $50 to $60. He has other items in development and will send details for inclusion in this column as soon as available.
Glass and Carbon-Fiber Props
Looking for competition props for Mouse, Goodyear, Rat, or T/R? Mike Hazel stocks a wide selection at competitive prices. Contact him at:
- Address: 1073 Windemere Dr. NW, Salem, OR 97304
- Phone: (503) 364-8593 (call before 9 p.m.) for a list of available props.
Lenard Ascher — T/R Supporter
One of the photos shows a good friend of Team Racing: Lenard Ascher. Lenard has been importing Russian T/R equipment for resale to the U.S. T/R community.
On New Year’s Day in Big Bear, California, he married a very beautiful and very nice lady he calls Barbie. He didn't invite his racing buddies, so with Barb’s help we crashed his wedding. The photo shows us in our club shirts with black bow ties, two of which had blinking lights. It was great fun.
Unifying Local Event Rules
One thing that deters growth in control-line racing is the proliferation of similar events with differing local rules. Entry-level events (Foxberg, Goldberg, Foxy Hazel, Northwest Sport Race, Big Goodyear, etc.) use big-profile models that look like midget racers, yet local officials make small rule changes that turn them into highly localized contests. This creates a dilemma for modelers on the fringes of two areas with "similar, but different" events: which way should they go?
We have too many event variations. By unifying local event rules we will not only help control-line racing in general, but we will increase local contest participation by drawing competitors from adjacent areas.
Column Frequency
Model Aviation managing staff have determined that the Racing column will be published on a bimonthly basis, shared with one of the other control-line columns. If you would like to see the Racing column monthly, send a letter to the Publications Manager and the Managing Editor (names and addresses are in the front of the magazine) indicating your request.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
