We had a blast racing Saturday at The Doghouse in Gilbert, S.C. -- even if the gathering was much more sparse than normal. It seems October vacations and other family commitments whittled-down the group to only four. But they were four of the group's most original members, so the racing was really tight.
The four who were able to make it:
From left: Marty "Dr C" Cwiakala, Dan "Rocky the Flying Squirrel" Parker, "Fast" Richard Sylvester, and yours truly.
The four of us have been racing together for many years, and enjoying each other's company (for the most part) the entire time.
The weapon of choice for the day was Retro Formula 1s. The liveries were varied and sharp:
From left: Marty, Dan, Beas, Richard
Unless I'm mistaken -- which rarely happens; just ask my wife -- all of the cars were powered by our leftover Puppy Dogs from the days of racing at Slots of Fun in Abbeville, S.C. I can't vouch for all of the cars used, but mine was geared 8/29 and ran pretty well. You'd never know I've had that motor since the Eisenhower Administration. All cars were logging fastest laps that were very close, but it appeared Dan's had the ability to move around the track a bit faster than others. Unfortunately, a lack of braking forced it out of the slot several times, too.
For those who are unfamiliar with our monthly race format, we typically run three full heats with everyone running three minutes in each lane of our four-lane track. We take the top two heat totals to determine a winner for the day. On this day, the track was a little rusty from lack of use -- as were our trigger fingers. The first heat was little more than a warmup, paving the way to faster times and higher lap totals as we went along. Results of the three heats:
As mentioned above, we use each racer's top two heats to determine a final total:
Beas: 354.29
Richard: 340.73
Marty: 339.87
Dan: 334.19
Another monthly race in the book. Next month, we hope (and expect!) our other members to return for the start of the 2022 Holiday Season. We missed them this month. Initial discussions indicate that the November race will feature our Jail Door retros, which is always challenging and eventful. If you have one, you're certainly welcome to join us.
Good racing to you, and regards from The Doghouse gang!
Beas
