18 September, 2008

Race 12, Skippy's Revenge

So, there we were, at set to take on our longest, fastest race ever as the season closer. Three kilometres of mountain road from the highest point in our fair city. Brakes had been tested, wind cheating bodywork refined and applied, helmets ready, courage mustered.
But. There is a fine line between brave and stupid and racing 'Baker's Delight' after it had been raining the night before falls into the later category. We are of the opinion that it is better to be also able to race again next month, so we decided our super season closer would become our super season opener instead and we hightailed our motley convey over to 'Skippy's Revenge', a somewhat more sedate course, to get our monthly fix of gravity assisted fun.
We had three debuts and a host of mods. First up was Obsession. This cart has been engineered by an engineer. It's wheels run true. It has brakes that work really well. I bet there are drawings of it that were drawn before it was built. It's been measured with a ruler. It's fast. So fast that it sat on the line for a little while, causing a bit of a jam, then flew down to take the win.* Awesome.
Dogmatic seems to have a new nemesis. Dogmatic has a lot of nemesi. It places consistently in the top results, but seems to also get pipped by upstart first timers.
Debut two was Death Proof, sister cart to Death Ray and Death Machine. It will of course be fast when it's dialled in and has the benefit of three other development builds before it. A better grid position would have also helped.
Death Machine got a new boot that does nothing for aerodynamics or speed but looks really cool and opens with a gas strut. We all went 'ooh' and 'aah'.
Death Ray was really out of sorts and struggling to come to grips with new front wheels. It had some other unintentional mods when the bonnet flew off at speed while making the journey down from home base. If you see it, let us know.
White Lightning is sister cart to Kymbo and also made its AIGRF debut. Like Kymbo, it is very quick and looks unreal too. Neither of them made it through the cones, but that was a technicality. They got there plenty quick enough.
Agent Orange has been undergoing some major modifications and showed off extensive new body work and a striking yellow paint scheme. Wait till next time for the orange to return. It's paying off with a big climb up the ladder and a good result in the second race too.
Trouble Maker remained steady, but hasn't seen much improvement with all hands on deck to finish Agent Orange. Expect things to change soon.
Quicksilver stunned the field with a massive reversal of fortune. Work done to the brakes has helped capitalise on the new wheel setup, and the handling improved too. He finally got to use that rear view mirror.
Also with new rear view mirrors is Blue Bandit. They shake a bit though but there wasn't much to see in them anyway. A lift kit has helped handling and stops the bottom scrapping over the reflectors in the road.
Ton O' Fun has a new body! And while it may not yet look wind cheating, it certainly hasn't slowed it down any. Like some other fast carts it missed the corner, but it made up for that by treating us to an unreal power-slide through 180˚. Watch the improvements to this cart keep coming.
Fruit Loop needs some modifications to remain competitive in the field. Sleep deprivation makes that a bit difficult, but once the new baby is a bit bigger he can be put to good use as a test pilot.
Subrid got a bit stuck in the back of the pack in only its second race with us. It seems to have recovered well after that tree attacked it in race 10.
Trollywood again finished higher than a loner cart should. It's wobbly, but fast. Also fast was the Ice Cream Man but missing that last corner cost it bragging rights.
Bootylicious is the quiet achiever of the field. Always fast, always at the pointy end, even with no major mods since the body was put on. This is a well put together, fast cart, skillfully piloted.
Official Results:
  1. Obsession
  2. Dogmatic
  3. Trollywood
  4. Bootylicious
  5. Death Machine
  6. Quicksilver
  7. Agent Orange
  8. Subrid
  9. Trouble Maker
  10. Blue Bandit
  11. Death Proof
  12. Fruit Loop
  13. Death Ray
*OK, so there was some controversy with these results. There were some carts that got down the hill faster than the winner, but they didn't take the final corner and go between the cones. It's not just speed that we hold dear, it's handling, control and the ability to listen to directions. DNF (ie didn't make it around the corner through the cones to officially finish):
  • Ice Cream Man
  • White Lightning
  • Kymbo
  • Tun O' Fun
Go see the movie here. It's choice.

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