79 replies to this topic

[Tom Thumb Hobbies]

Mo entries mo betta Having the ability to beat the track owner - priceless

I am quite sure Ron and those that are helping you will cover the bases very well but here's a few quick thoughts:

Thanks for the list. All things I've done many times in the past. Just been a while and needed my memory jogged. I will put together a package of track/store/area info in plenty of time for the event. For now, the quick answers to some of your questions:

Power - 90 amp clean power supplies with five taps
Surface - resurfaced in 1995 with MDF (no original kinks or bumps removed)
Paint - Black epoxy
Braid recess - 10 thou nominal

The King is an original, very well-cared-for AMCR track and even though it has a new surface it still retains most of the "warts" that most Kings of the era had. When we resurfaced I decided to leave the track with its original "personality" instead of turning it into a "swooped King" clone.

I agree... Mo entries mo betta. As far as beating the owner... that will come VERY cheap.

[Cheater]

Regarding photo resizing, almost all digicams allow you to select different resolutions, as the higher resolutions, once you get above about 5 MP, are really only useful for printing out in large sizes.

At the Sano, I set the wifey's Nikon L6 to 1024 by 968 resolution, which it calls "PC". If you don't have a manual, go to your camera maker's website, as they can usually be downloaded or accessed there. I had to do that at Chicagoland as I had only used her new camera once before.

And since Swiss didn't have any photo editing software on his Dell, I searched download.com and found a very nice free photo resizing utility that would do batches and was very fast to boot.

[Jon Laster]

Dear Mike,

What a wonderful spot for this! I remember Tom Thumb as a remarkably original slice of slot's old glory days, complete with the American Raceways pits, along the walls! If people would volunteer to crash in sufficient numbers, I'd come just to marshall the 90 on a REAL King!

Good luck,

Jon Laster

[Cheater]

Jon,

If Pappy and I race at this event, there will be no problem with sufficient crashing!

Make your plans now.

[CruzinBob]

...I decided to leave the track with its original "personality"...

Mike, this is shaping up to be a very interesting race. I truly appreciate your reply, you sound like a great fellow. I hope you can get some media coverage... the raceway history would go a long ways toward that.

Would love to watch and race against Jon... haven't done so since the early '90s.

[Ron Hershman]

The Tom Thumb track and the McMasters family hold a very special spot in my heart and have for years. "Mac's" Tom Thumb, as it was called back in the day, was the first out-of-town race I ever traveled to in March of 1983 ( it was their 20th anniversary race... I have the original flyer here someplace). It was the first that I had ever seen and raced on a American blue King track. Mrs. McMasters was so nice and polite and made me feel welcome every time I visited Mac's.

As time went on, I never missed a race at Mac's... Mac's was a big part of the Tri-State USRA series in the day and we always had the biggest turnout and amount of entries when we raced there. Mike always ran the races fairly and treated everyone with the same respect and fairness.

We held the Parma Challenge Cup Nats there in '93, if I remember correctly, and we hosted over 140 entries for the two days of four classes. There was many a Ohio Challenge Cup and Ohio Valley Cup races there in the early and mid '90s with entries exceeding 100 or more per event. The record for the quickest race run was done at Tom Thumb; Mike and I ran 120 some entries through starting at 12 noon on Sat and finishing at midnight the same day. Whew... what a day that was.

Yes, the track has "humps" in the straight, but they are not ski ramps. We never had any problems with launching in the main straight with non-wing cars. The bank is also full punch for the Retro type cars also. The track has a full infield so no worries about cars winding up on the floor.

I hope that Jon Laster comes to the Retro Revival/Reunion race... it will just be like old times. A few other Tom Thumb regulars have been in touch with me the past few days and are stoked up about racing Vintage cars at Tom Thumb.

Once you race at Tom Thumb, you will be hooked... racing on a American blue King track... it doesn't get anymore Retro than that. Remember this, too... the race is also being held in conjunction with Tom Thumb's 45th Anniversary of being in business... the same location for 45 years.

[Tom Thumb Hobbies]

We held the Parma Challenge Cup Nats there in 93' if I remember correctly and we hosted over 140 entries for the two...

Glad to see your memory is no better than mine. It was 1991 and we managed 199 entries. You remember... there was that incident with the wedge bolt on the Elliot T-Bird.

Thanks for the kind words, Ron.

We have been fortunate to have a large number of entries at most of our events. I remember an OVCC with 157 entries - 13 asked for their entry fee back so they could head home - leaving us with 144. I have recently been looking over race sheets from many of these events and reminiscing about the people, the racing, and the long hours. Many times we opened as the sun was coming up and went home about the same time the next day.

What I remember most, however, is the fun and excitment of spending time with a group of people that share the same passion for slot car racing. We made many friends over the years and had many "interesting" experiences. . That is why I am looking forward to March so much. Seeing old friends again and racing some cars from the golden years (and maybe kicking a little butt on the track - who knows??).

Bottom line. No matter how long the hours, I always and FUN and I hope the racers did also. I can't wait for March.

[Pappy]

If Pappy and I race at this event, there will be no problem with sufficient crashing!

My car doesn't go fast enough to crash, but I sure know how to cause them. I think that comes with age, I do the same thing on the highway.

[goose]

Where can I find a picture of the King track? I want to see what I'm up against!

[bobo]

Ron,

Can you post the hotels in the area? Dave Feidler, myself, and two others would like to get a jump on securing two rooms as soon as we can.

Thanks,

[Ron Hershman]

Here you go...

You can use this list and do some checking for the best rates, etc. You want Columbus West hotels. The raceway is off the I-70 exit for North Wilson Road and the raceway address is 460 North Wilson Roadd. Again the raceway is on the WEST side of Columbus.

Hotel-Guides - Columbus, OH

[bobo]

Ron,

Thanks!

[Tom Thumb Hobbies]

Thanks, Ron, for posting that list.

I have been working long hours lately, between rebraiding the King and preparing the store for the holiday rush. I hope to have a package put together in the next three weeks that will include hotels, restaurants, attractions (for the non-racers), and anything else I can think of.

As soon as we finish the King I will post pictures. Now... somewhere in that schedule I must find time to build my own Retro rocket.

[NJ Racer]

Okay, lets get a list of attendees going here. You know with every day that passes airfare just gets higher! Make your plans now!

[Noose]

I'm going and sponsoring.

[Pappy]

I'll be there.

[Ron Hershman]

Rande and I will be there.

A few others who have expressed interest...

Bob Kurkowsi
Rob Garland
Bill Garland
Terry Watson
Garry Haworth
Jay Kisling
Les Wright

A bunch of others... but I will let them post on their own.

[One_Track_Mind]

I'll be there.

I was...
You following me... again?

Only kidding... that's a YES as of right now...

[NJ Racer]

Noose,

You flying?

[Noose]

No, wife is going with me and we are driving. We have family out there and will be staying with them. Going out earlier and not leaving until early Monday morning to come home.

[bobo]

I know of at least six from the Chicago area, including the Sano winner, Dave Fiedler.

[gascarnut]

This event is on my travel plans too, but it's still too far in the future for me to commit.

[Vay Jonynas]

How retro is retro? Would I actually have to run my carefully-assembled 1/32 Monogram Ferrari 330P/LM or Scarab from the sixties? If I tried to run a hard-bodied 1/24 1973 Dodge Charger on a Scholer M5513DG chassis, would I be thrown out the door?

[Noose]

Vay,

The event is going to be run under the new IRRA rules. Go here: IRRA rules thread.