30 replies to this topic

[Mark C.]

ok guys, for several months i been throwing around the idea of a 24 hour lemans type slotcar race here in new york (slotsalot raceway)

i would get local tv stations to come on down and film the whole thing,this would promote the hobby in a way it hasnt been promoted in several years or even decades...imagine people coming in off the street or coming down at 2am to watch a total of 32 guys battle it out

I wanted to do something different then anyother raceway is currently doing
heres the basics of what i got put together:

4 man teams- each driver will run a total of 6 hours ( 3 hours in one heat and 3 hours in a later heat in darkness)

Entry fee $200

The race would be held from either friday- saturday or saturday-sunday

Flexi car with Retro Lemans style body
(tsrf, falcon 7 type motor)

(cars must have headlights, taillights hooked up when the sun goes down (all lights in the raceway will be shut off)

1st place team wins 4 tickets to the Richard Petty Driving Experience at a racetrack of their choice

tell me how many of you are interested...if enough guys are interested ...i will proceed with setting a date for next year and hammering out more details

[Zippity]

You got TV channels over there that will come down to the raceway and film the whole event?

I wish you luck

[Champion 507]

Mark,

If I lived 1300 miles closer I would do it in a heartbeat! I was in a 12 hour endurance race in 1966 and an 8 hour in 1967 and a 24 hour race just sounds awesome!

Regretfully, I won't be able to make it, but I hope you get enough support to make it happen!

Heck, I couldn't even talk the local track owner into a 4 hour enduro several years ago.

Go get 'em! I hope you can make it happen!!!

[Mark C.]

all i need is 32 crazy guys lookin to have some fun...and wanna have a shot at riding shotgun in a racecar at 190mph....i think im in the right place

[John Streisguth]

I'm crazy enough to do something like this, but I would suggest allowing for shorter driver's stints. From experience, going for long periods can cramp up your forearm muscles something fierce.

[Mark C.]

could always allow up to 1 substuite driver per heat example...

(real) driver must run at least half of the heat example i start on green i must race for a hour and 30 mins before i hand off my controller to John to finish off the heat


nothing is written in stone...which ever rules will attract the 32 guys i will run!

[Michael Rigsby]

Mark, I seriously wish you luck in doing something like this. As for being able to get a local TV station to even give you more than a few minutes of coverage, that would be an accomplishment in itself. Most of them think our hobby is like watching grass grow. If it doesn't have blood, gore, death, or political scandal involved they pretty much don't want to cover it.

As for using Falcon type motors over a 24 hour period, that could be interesting. I would predict at least one or two motor changes per team.

If I lived closer, I would be interested, though I doubt with my leg problems I could stand for three hours at a stretch. Good luck with whatever you get going, though. It sounds like fun.

Michael Rigsby

[Larry LS]

Back in 1964 we ran a 24 hour race in Lompoc Ca. It was a fun race with 3 driver teams then.

Then we heard that some where back East they had run a 48 hour race. So the owner of the Lompoc speedway decided to have a a 52 hour race to beat that record in 1965.

So we did, we had 5 teams and each had 4 drivers. Each driver ran for one hour, one guy was a turn marshall for one hour and one guy took care of maintenance on the cars and one guy could sleep or rest for one hour. Then we would switch positions every hour.

I ran it with three 706 motors that were switched every four hours for tires and new brushes if needed. it took about one minute to switch the motors out of the chassis with a new motor. We finished second with 17,670 laps to a similar team that used DC 65 motors, they could also switch quickly. They were a bit faster on the track than us and we lost by 256 laps over 52 hours of running.

I had three 15-16 year old teen age drivers on my team. And one got sick and had to go home after 18 hours so we were a bit short handed till the end. But a fun great race.

I still have one of those 706 motors now that still runs fine. Hard to wear them out for sure.

[Ron Hershman]

As for using Falcon type motors over a 24 hour period, that could be interesting. I would predict at least one or two motor changes per team.

Just one or two the entire race???

I will predict...... based on some thinking they can get 5 24 minute races out of a F7........ That's a little under two hours of running time...........10 to 14 motors per team through out the race...barring any duds.

Any predictions on how many pairs of tires will be needed per team?

[Mark C.]

no ones stopping any driver from sitting down during the race.

Mark, I seriously wish you luck in doing something like this. As for being able to get a local TV station to even give you more than a few minutes of coverage, that would be an accomplishment in itself. Most of them think our hobby is like watching grass grow. If it doesn't have blood, gore, death, or political scandal involved they pretty much don't want to cover it.

As for using Falcon type motors over a 24 hour period, that could be interesting. I would predict at least one or two motor changes per team.

If I lived closer, I would be interested, though I doubt with my leg problems I could stand for three hours at a stretch. Good luck with whatever you get going, though. It sounds like fun.

Michael Rigsby

[Mark C.]

im sure it would be a great rivalry between TSR and JK for whos motor survived the enduro the best....

im sure Jk, Parma, and other manf. would LOVE to brag that their chassis won a 24 hour race

i really like the idea larry gave me about maybe rotating teammates several times a heat to keep them from getting to tired...each team can switch a teammate every hour if they want

of course id give a trophy to the guy who ran the most hours in the entire race

[Mopar Rob]

Swiss had a 24 hour race a couple of years back. If memory serves me correctly they used 16D's. Maybe you can get him to chime in with some advice.

[Dave Larsen]

Mark

We ran a 24hr enduro out here in N.Ca. a few years back at Harbo's Raceway and it was a blast We ran four man teams, and raced on three tracks. A full size Kingleman, a 150' "pinched" Blue King and a American Black flat track. We used Flexi chassis with coupe bodies and SLICK 7 mini brutes with lights on the cars. If your lights did not work at night you were black flagged to the pits until you got them to work. At least one head light and tail light had to work when it was dark. We even repaired our cars in the dark when they were sent to the pits



My pit helmit, with lights and the bare necessities ......



Some night photos......







We had eight teams, all doing over 20,000 laps per team. Yes, your fore arm will be sore as will your feet, and your eyes will be tired. People will get very cranky also in the weee hours of the morning Would I run in one again? You bet I would

[MantaRay]

Swiss had a 24 hour race a couple of years back. If memory serves me correctly they used 16D's. Maybe you can get him to chime in with some advice.

Rob is correct............501 Handout Deathstars were used....Swiss can chime in about how many were used.........I'll check for some previous posts

[slotcarone]

It's a good idea Mark but IMO sealed Deathstar motors with only brush and springs changed are the way to go for a race this long.

[Wizard Of Iz]

Back in about 1991 or 1992 I participated in a Twelve Hour GTP Enduro at J & G Speedway in Jacksonville, Florida.

We ran flexi-style chassis with your choice of Super Wasp or Super 16D motors and Parma GTP bodies ---- pre-Intrepid.

One of our local racers, Tom "WFT" Marlowe installed headlights and taillights in everyone's body using a small battery and a mercury switch so that the headlights were on all of the time and the brake lights only came on when you decelerated.

Everyone had a great time. And a bunch of us still race together. But none of us are in a hurry to do it again.

[Duffy]

I want a real Le Mans start. I want the drivers to clamber over the track from the infield side to their positions, hook up their controllers, set their cars in the slots & go. Osteoarthritis, presbyopia and all.
Duffy

[Dan Myers]

Is that $200 a team or $200 a guy?

[Mark C.]

$200 a team

i love the hat vitter

and yes duffy i would make everyone stand away from the track , start the race and youd have to hook up your controller put your car on and go

[Dan Myers]

I may have to beat some bushes and see if anyone around here would be interested in that trip its an 11 hour drive from here to Slots-a-lot I mapquested it a few weeks ago when I was thinking about what to do on a vacation.

[Mark C.]

first team who signs up gets to sleep on the king track for free

i would want to schedule this race around june of next year right around the time of the REAL lemans

did i mention thiers is actually a dunkin donuts right next door to the raceway?

[Dan Myers]

MMMM. Blueberry glazed donuts.

[Gus Kelley]

Hey Mark! Sounds like you have a great idea. Get some input from others who have posted on this matter. Certain motors that have to be purchased from the track is a definite. Maybe have each team post certain minimum account at the track counter to be used on approved motors only. I don't believe drivers will be able to go longer than two hour stretches at a time maybe even less. I raced in numerous 4-6-8hr enduros back in mid-60s these were two man races.I remember that a certain was given per driver shift but every thing else is a blur at the moment. Good luck in your endever and I hope you reach your expectations. Gus

[Michael Rigsby]

Mark, I would probably go the Deathstar motor route instead of the Falcon. I think you would have less motor failures. Say for the signup, each team gets two motors, and additional motors can be purchased for a fee, and all motors are marked. That way everyone is on the same page and the raceway makes a few bucks on motors. As for a LeMans start....that would be a site. A mess of old farts like me with bad legs, backs, and whatever scrambling over a track, trying to hook up a controller in a hurry, to race a toy car for 24 hours. That would be a Kodak moment in itself. The Dunkin Donuts being right next door would be a boon during the night for staying awake..

Michael Rigsby

[Duffy]

As for a LeMans start....that would be a site. A mess of old farts like me with bad legs, backs, and whatever scrambling over a track, trying to hook up a controller in a hurry, to race a toy car for 24 hours. That would be a Kodak moment in itself.

We're not done yet: I watched Le Mans again last night (I'll give ya this much, Steve McQueen's no Yves Montand and that's a very, very GOOD thing!) and there are just a myriad quirky sidebar possibilities:
Banal "Announcer" voice-overs
A kiddie HO race in the Infield, carnival rides
Tent camping (for spectators only)
Papparazzi (local cable TV qualifies)
A contest for "Best Ethereal, Grieving, Slightly-Vapid French Woman Ghosting Around Without Pit Pass"
...ohh, I'm just warming up. It's gonna be a show, just you wait.

--How Retro can a body be, by the way? Does my 1959-winner Aston Martin DBR1 skate?

Duffy