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Slot-Racing 2019 Slotstox 2 October - Arena points chart round 2 at 'WACC' –
with these now running alongside Parmastox points rounds rather than as stand
alone meeting there was only time for one heat - there was only time for one
heat - 14 points chart points.
27 March - Arena
points chart
round 4 at 'Hobbs Cross'. The intention was to race and
continue to test my red Parmastox chassis with Chris Branch’s metal body work
and shell – which I had agreed to borrow – only swapping his wing for my shale
wing. This was following its performance at Wellgate when used by Chris to win
the championship! Practice confirmed that
intention with this Parmastox set up more suited to the Hobbs Cross track than
my blue Parmastox or my red Parmastox chassis with its usual metal body work
and body shell. This proved a good decision for heat 1 (including winning
the first two races!) - 1st of six drivers (41). I was also going well
in heat 2 but in
the third last race my Parmastox shot off the track at the end of the home straight
all on its own – subsequently diagnosed as two detached engine screws which
meant there was no way of it slowing down!
For the last two races I used my blue Parmastox but in the first of
these a big crash broke the metal body work and I had to nurse it to a finish
in the final race of the heat – 2nd of six drivers (30 – the winner scored
34 so, without the issues, it may have been a different result but that’s
racing!) My heat win meant I qualified for the final and with my red
Parmastox chassis still missing an engine screw and with my blue Parmastox
metal body work damaged, I raced my blue Parmastox chassis with the metal body
work and shell of Chris Branch – whilst not the quickest set up, consistent
finishes provided decisive - 1st of six drivers (38 – only 1 win but finishing 11
of the 12 races) – first final win and maximum 13 (best heat 5 + final 8)
points chart points of the season.
During the first 4 rounds
points/grades cycle, I was the highest points scorer on 49 points with the highest
average 12.3 points. Being the Arena Silver Top Champion my grade
for the season would not change. 17 April - Arena points chart round
5 at 'Hobbs Cross' postponed from 10 April. I continued to use my now repaired red Parmastox chassis
with Chris Branch’s metal body work and shell and my red Parmastox shale wing. Heat 1 - 2nd of seven
drivers (23 - 3rd scored 22), heat 2 - 1st of seven drivers (36 - second scored 35) and heat 3 - 1st of
seven drivers (32). All seven drivers raced in the final - 1st (45 - finishing all 12 races) –
second final win and maximum 13 (best heat 5 + final 8) points chart points in a row. 24 April - Arena points chart round 6 at 'Hobbs Cross'. I continued to race
my red Parmastox chassis with Chris Branch’s metal body work and shell and my red Parmastox shale wing.
Heat - 1st of five drivers (46 - a heat that somehow ended up consisting of 14 races!) This heat win was sufficient
to qualify direct to the final - 2nd of six drivers (38 - finishing all 12 races) – 12 (best heat 5 + final
7) points chart points.
I missed Arena
points chart round 7 at 'WACC' due to one of my twin boys breaking
his arm that evening. 8 May - Arena
points chart round 8 and Gold Top Qualifying round 2 at 'Hobbs
Cross'. I continued to race my red Parmastox chassis with Chris
Branch’s metal body work and shell and my red Parmastox shale
wing. Heat 1 - 1st of six drivers (35), heat 2 – 1st of six
drivers (36) and heat 3 – 2nd of five drivers (35). All remaining seven
drivers raced in the
final - 1st (38 - finishing 11 of the 12 races) – third final
win and maximum 13 (best heat 5 + final 8) points chart points of the season
plus Gold Top Qualifying points.
During rounds
5 to 8 and despite missing 1 round, I was third highest points scorer on 38
points with the highest average of 12.7 points. Being the Arena Silver
Top champion my grade for the season would not change. I was joint top of the
Arena Points Chart with one other driver with 87 points and the highest average
of 12.4 points. I was joint top with the same driver in the Gold Top Qualifying
points after round 2 with 25 points.
15 May - Arena points chart
round 9 at 'WACC' racing my blue Parmastox - heat 1 - 4th of six drivers (29 - same points as 3rd but
they had 5 race wins whereas I had 1 whilst 2nd scored 31), heat 2 – 1st of six drivers (41) and heat 3 – 1st
of six drivers (41 again including 9 2nd place finishes!) All remaining six
drivers raced in the final - 3rd (30 - 1st scored 36 and 2nd 34 but it all came down to the last 2 races and
a couple of incidents here and there but luck probably balanced itself out over the evening!) – 11 (best heat 5
+ final 6) points chart points. 5 June - a late change of fixture meant that Slotstox Arena points
chart round 2 was replaced by Parmastox Arena points chart round 10 at 'WACC' and racing my blue Parmastox - heat 1
- 1st of six drivers (36) and heat 2 – 1st of six drivers (37). Winning both heats despite handcontroller
issues subsequently identified as being due to a loose wire. All remaining
six drivers raced in the final - 4th (30 - 3rd also scored 30 and both of us had 2 race wins but
they had 2 2nd place finishes to my 1 whilst 2nd scored 36 and it all came down to the last race and unfortunately
I was on the outside... perhaps it wasn't so good that my handcontroller issues were fixed!) – 10 (best heat 5
+ final 5) points chart points.
7
June – I attended the Aaron Talbot Tribute meeting at 3 Counties Slotstox Club
but chose not to take my Parmastox and race (arriving after the start of the meeting) due to the likely finish time. I did manage to win an Ice Age 4 DVD in the
raffle however!
12
June - Arena points chart round 11 at 'Hobbs Cross'. I
continued to race my red Parmastox chassis with Chris Branch’s metal body
work and shell and my red Parmastox shale wing. Originally
planned as four five car heats but with a driver leaving after the first two,
heats 3 and 4 were redrawn as three six car heats. Heat 1 - 3rd of five
drivers (31 – 2nd scored
33), heat 2 – 1st of six drivers (35) and heat 3 – 2nd of six drivers (31 – 1st
scored 33 as my Parmastox began to suffer from pinion issues). My heat win ensured
I qualified for the final - 2nd of six drivers (28 – all very close with 3rd
to 6th scoring 26, 25, 23 and 20… thankfully my pinion held out as best
it
could during the final!) – 12 (best heat 5 + final 7) points chart points.
19 June – at
‘WACC’ and although this date was meant to be the Midsummer Madness /
Alternative formulae round 1, I had undertaken some maintenance work on both my
blue Parmastox and also the red Parmastox chassis with Chris Branch’s metal
body work and shell. It was a good
decision as a late change of fixture meant this meeting was switched with the
following week and became Arena points chart round 12. A mixture of circumstances
meant a depleted
number of drivers - heat 1 racing my blue Parmastox – 1st of four drivers
(42) and heat 2 giving my red Parmastox chassis with Chris Branch’s metal body
work and shell plus existing shale wing a try at WACC – 2nd of four drivers (40 – 1st scored 42). All four drivers qualified for the final and
I decided to stick with my my red Parmastox chassis with Chris Branch’s metal
body work and shale wing as I felt this had performed better despite suffering from pinion
issues - 2nd (35 – all very close as 1st scored 39, 3rd 32 and 4th 31
– 12 (best heat 5 + final 7) points chart points. With an early finish
post meeting I made tested
a change to my blue Parmastox and this showed some improvement I was hoping for.
During rounds
9 to 12, I was the highest points scorer
on 45 points with the highest average of 11.3 points. Being the Arena
Silver Top champion my grade for the season would not change. I was top of the
Arena Points Chart with 132 points and the highest average of 12.0 points.
3
July – Arena points chart round 13 at ‘WACC’. Having
both been away for maintenance I
practiced both my blue Parmastox and my red Parmastox chassis with Chris
Branch’s metal body work but wasn’t really happy with either of them. My
blue Parmastox had too much rear chassis
movement causing too much bouncing whilst my red Parmastox chassis wasn’t on
the pace. A quick fix with blue tac to
my blue Parmastox and it was much better – heat 1 racing my blue Parmastox –
1st of six drivers (38); heat 2 racing my red Parmastox chassis with Chris
Branch’s metal body work and existing shale wing to try and identify the problem – 6th of six drivers (14
– but I did identify the problem – new rear tyres required!) and heat 3 racing my blue
Parmastox – 2nd of six drivers (35). All remaining six drivers raced in the
final and racing my blue Parmastox – 5th (18 – as things didn’t quite go my
way!) – 9 (best heat 5 + final 4) points chart points and the first time
since 2 September 2015 that I finished lower than 4th in an Arena Metal
Slotstox final and didn’t score double figures!
For the record - 63 consecutive double figures scores: 2015 after 2
September - 5 meetings, 3 attended – 1 x 13 / 2 x 12; 2016 – 18 meetings, 16
attended – 11 x 13 / 3 x 12 / 1 x 11 / 1 x 10; 2017 – 15 meetings, 13 attended
– 6 x 13 / 4 x 12 / 3 x 11; 2018 to date – 20 meetings, 19 attended – 5 x 13 /
3 x 12 / 6 x 11 / 5 x 10; 2019 – 12 meetings, 11 attended – 3 x 13 / 6 x 12 / 1
x 11 / 1 x 10. Both Parmastox have gone away for further maintenance! 10 July – Arena points chart round 14 at ‘Hobbs Cross’ - maintenance had
only been done on my blue Parmastox and this was running well but I didn't want to risk this at Hobbs Cross and so raced my
red Parmastox chassis with Chris Branch’s metal body work and existing shale wing. It still needed new rear tyres
and wasn't running as well as I would have liked but ultimately proved sufficient. Heat – 2nd of seven
drivers (38 - winner scored 40 with a non-finish in the final race due to hitting a de-slotted Parmastox preventing the win). For
various reasons it was then decided to go straight to the final with all seven drivers - 1st (26 - 2nd scored
25) – 12 (best heat 4 + final 8) points chart points. 17
July – Arena points chart round 15 at ‘WACC’ racing my blue Parmastox - heat 1 - 2nd
of six drivers (36); heat 2 - 2nd of six drivers (36) and heat 3 - 1st of five drivers (39). All remaining five drivers
raced in the final - 2nd (35) – 12 (best heat 5 + final 7) points chart points. 7
August – Arena points chart round 16 at ‘WACC’ racing my blue
Parmastox - heat 1 – 1st of five drivers (35 – 2nd scored 34 with the heat
win helped by another driving accidentally pulling out 2nd’s handcontroller in
a race whilst they were leading and I had already crashed resulting in a re-run
of that race!) and heat 2 - 2nd of five drivers (32). All five drivers raced in
the final - 2nd (40) – 12 (best heat 5 + final 7) points chart
points.
During rounds
13 to 16, I was the highest points scorer on 45 points with the highest
average of 11.3 points. Being the Arena Silver Top champion my grade for
the season would not change. I was top of the Arena Points Chart with 177
points and the highest average of 11.8 points. 14 August – Arena points chart round 17 and Gold
Top Qualifying round 4 at ‘Hobbs Cross’. I debuted a new red Parmastox metal
work and body with existing shale wing in heat 1 which whilst fast was still a work in progress to set
up right on the chassis - 4th of seven drivers (23 - 3rd scored 25). I switched
back to borrowing Chris Branch’s metal body work for heat 2 – 4th of seven
drivers (28 - 3rd also scored 28 but they had two race wins to my one whilst
2nd scored 29 and 1st 32 so it was all very close). I continued to borrow Chris
Branch’s metal body work for the final with all seven drivers which proved a
good decision - 1st (40 - finishing 11 of the 12 races – 10 (best
heat 2 + final 8) points chart and Gold Top Qualifying points. I was top
of the Gold Top Qualifying points with 44 points and guaranteed a top six qualifying spot for the Gold Top final on 20
November. 21 August – Arena
points chart round 18 at ‘WACC’ racing my blue Parmastox and with
blue lane not working all heats were 10 races (2 races per lane, 5 lanes) -
heat 1 - 2nd of five drivers (33 - same as 3rd but I had 2 race wins to their
none); heat 2 - 1st of five drivers (42) and heat 3 - 1st of five drivers
(43). All five drivers raced in the final - 1st (39) and a first
final win at 'WACC' / fourth maximum 13 (best heat 5 + final 8) points chart
points this season. 11
September – Arena points chart round 19 at ‘Hobbs Cross’ racing my new red
Parmastox with existing shale wing. Heat 1 – 2nd of six drivers (34),
heat 2 – 2nd of six drivers (29 – 1st scored 30) and heat 3 – 2nd of five
drivers (37). The remaining six drivers raced in the final
- 1st (29 – only 3 more points than 2nd with a crucial race being when I had been
stopped by a de-slotted Parmastox but I kept pushing this until another
Parmastox clipped it and took out all those remaining including the driver who
eventually finished 2nd!) – 12 (best heat 4 + final 8) points chart points.
18
September –
Arena points chart round 20 and 5th and penultimate Gold Top Qualifying round
at ‘WACC’. I raced in 3 heats of six
drivers and won all 3! Heat 1 and 2 racing
my blue Parmastox (39 and 37); and heat 3 – starting with my blue Parmastox but
ending with my red Parmastox after my blue Parmastox stopped working after
being involved in a crash (35). All
remaining seven drivers raced in the final – racing my blue Parmastox with the
problem, a loose wire, identified and fixed – 4th (20 – 3rd scored 21 whilst 5th
scored 19) – 10 (best heat 5 + final 5) points chart and Gold Top
Qualifying points. I remained top of the Gold Top Qualifying points with 54
points. I had already guaranteed a top six qualifying spot after round 4 for
the Gold Top final on 20 November
During rounds
17 to 20, I was the highest points scorer on 45 points with the highest average
of 11.3 points. Being the Arena Silver Top champion my grade for the
season would not change. I was top of the Arena Points Chart with 222 points
and the highest average of 11.7 points. 25 September
– I missed Arena points chart round 21 at ‘Hobbs Cross’ due to a works conference. Despite not
being far from 'Hobbs Cross'
I decided not to leave on the evening. 2 October
- Arena points chart round 22 at ‘WACC’
racing my blue Parmastox. Heat 1 - 1st of seven drivers (45 - finishing
all 12 races); heat 2 - 4th of seven drivers (27 - 3rd scored 29 whilst 5th
scored 25); and heat 3 - 3rd of six drivers (30). All remaining six drivers
raced in the final – 3rd (24 - 2nd also scored 24 but had 3 wins and 2 2nds
whilst I had 3 wins and 0 2nds. It was all very close as 1st scored 25, 4th 23
and 5th 20 - low scoring and a little scrappy!) – 11 (best heat 5 + final 6)
points chart points. 9 October
– Arena points chart round 23 at ‘Hobbs Cross’. Heat 1 – racing my new red Parmastox with Tarmac
wing - 4th of six drivers (16 - only 5 finishes whilst 5th scored 15 and 3rd scored 18); and heat 2 – racing
my blue Parmastox with my red Parmastox having struggled for grip - 3rd of six drivers (25 - same as 2nd but
they had 4 race wins whilst I had none). My finishing positions were sufficient to qualify as the sixth and
final qualifier for the final and I switched back to my red Parmastox with Tarmac wing as this appeared to now have
more grip after a couple of laps practice beforehand - 2nd (34 – with 11 finishes, 10 of which were
3rd place!) – 10 (best heat 3 + final 7) points chart points despite not winning a race all meeting! Classic Hot Rods 13 March - Arena points
chart
round 1 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat - 2nd of four drivers
(31) - 5 points chart points.
27 March - Arena points chart round 2 and Gold Top Qualifying round 1 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic
Hot Rod - heat - 2nd of five drivers (40) - 5 points chart and Gold Top Qualifying points. I was joint 3rd with one other driver in the Arena Gold Top Qualifying points. 17 April - Arena
points chart round 3 postponed from 10 April at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat - 5th of seven
drivers (22) - 2 points chart points. During
the first 3 rounds points/grades cycle, I was the 4th highest points scorer on 12 points with the joint 5th highest
average (with two other drivers) of 4.0 points. After this first grading period I was blue grade. 24 April - Arena points chart
round 4 and Gold Top Qualifying round 2 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat - 2nd of five drivers (37
- finishing 11 of the 12 races) - 5 points chart and Gold Top Qualifying points. I was joint 2nd with one other driver in the Arena Gold Top Qualifying points with
10 points. 8 May - Arena points chart round 5 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat reduced to 1 race
per lane - 7th of seven drivers (2) - 1 points chart point.
12 June - Arena points
chart round 6 and Gold Top Qualifying round
3 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat – 3rd of five drivers (31
- finishing all 12 races – 2nd scored 33) - 4 points chart and Gold Top
Qualifying points. I was joint 2nd with
one other driver in the Arena Gold Top Qualifying points on 14 points.
During rounds 4 to 6, I was joint third highest points
scorer with one other driver with 10 points with the seventh highest average of
3.3 points and remained blue grade. I was joint 4th of the Arena Points
Chart with one other driver with 22 points and the joint 6th highest average (with
one other driver) of 3.7 points.
26
June - Arena points chart round 7 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat – 2nd of seven drivers (29 - 1st
scored 30) - 5 points chart points. 10 July - Arena points
chart round 8 and Gold Top Qualifying round 4 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat – 1st of seven drivers
(39) - 6 points chart and Gold Top Qualifying points. I was joint top with one
other driver in the Arena Gold Top Qualifying points on 20 points.
14 August
- Arena points chart
round 9 at 'Hobbs Cross' borrowing a Classic Hot Rod - heat – 2nd of six
drivers (22 - 1st scored 24) - 5 points chart points.
During rounds
7 to 9, I was the highest points scorer with 16 points and the highest average
of 5.3 points and was up to red grade. I was Top of the Arena Points
Chart with 38 points and the fifth highest average of 4.7 points.
Arena
points round 10 at 'Hobbs Cross' on 11 September was postponed with a few drivers delayed en
route due to problems on the M25.
25 September
– I missed Arena points chart round 10 and 5th and penultimate Gold Top Qualifying round at ‘Hobbs Cross’
due to a works conference. Despite not being far from 'Hobbs Cross' I decided not to leave on the evening.
I was down to joint 3rd in the Arena Gold Top Qualifying points on 20 points but was now guaranteed a top six qualifying
spot for the Gold Top final on 27 November. 9 October - Arena points chart round 11 at 'Hobbs Cross' racing my mums 'George
Polley replica slot-rod' which had received some maintenance updates from another driver and was quick in a straight
line but lacked weight so the bends had to be negotiated with care - 4th of four drivers (24) - 3 points chart points. I finished 3rd in the Arena Gold Top Qualifying points on 23 points having already
guaranteed a top six qualifying spot after round 5 for the Gold Top final on 27 November. Alternative formulae
On
26th June at 'WACC' I raced in the Arena Alternative formulae points round 1
which doubled up as the Arena Midsummer Madness Championship deferred from the previous week. Total points
from all races counted towards the Midsummer Madness Championship: 1/24 scale
Nascar provided by the club with a set Nascar in each lane (2 races per lane – four
lanes, two to five - over 8 laps) – 16, joint 3rd highest points scorer with
one other driver and 3 points behind 1st; followed by two heats of Go Karts provided
by the club (2 races per lane – four lanes, one to four – over 4 laps) – 13
points and 30 points, 2nd highest Go Karts points scorer and finished 4th in
the Arena Midsummer Madness Championship with 59 points (10 points behind 1st
whilst 2nd and 3rd scored 62 and 61 points respectively. For
the Arena Alternative formula points chart: Nascar – joint 3rd of seven drivers
(4), Go Karts heat 1 – 4th of four drivers (3); and Go Karts heat 2 – 2nd of
four drivers (5 having scored 30 – 1st scored 32) - a total of 12 points. I was 4th in the
Arena Alternative formulae points chart with 12 points and the 4th highest heat
score average of 4 points.
On
31st July at 'Hobbs Cross' I raced
in the Arena Alternative formulae points round 1 which doubled up as Arena Big
Banger Bash Championship deferred from the previous week. Total points from
all races counted towards the Big Banger Bash Championship: Bangers – 21, 2nd
highest points scorer 13 points behind 1st; Small Van Bangers – 25 points, joint
highest points scorer and still 2nd overall but now 7 points behind 1st;
finally Big Van Bangers – 27, 3rd highest points scorer and finished 2nd
overall with 73 points only 3 points behind 1st. The decisive race was probably
the third last
when I was leading comfortably late in the race, from one other driver, only
for them to crash on their own across my lane causing me to non-finish and miss
out on 5 points for the race win.
For the Arena Alternative formula
points chart: Bangers – 2nd of seven drivers (5), Small Van Bangers – 1st of seven
drivers (6 having scored 25 the same as 2nd but I had 2 race wins to their 1
whilst 3rd scored 23); and Big Van Bangers – 3rd of seven drivers (5 having
scored 27 – 2nd scored 28) - a total of 15 points and the highest Alternative
Formulae points scorer. I was top of in the Arena Alternative Formulae points
chart after round 2 with 27 points and the 3rd highest heat score average of 4.5
points. I missed Arena Alternative formulae points round 3 on 28 August (brought
forward from 4 September) due to a family holiday and slipped down to joint 3rd with one other driver in the Arena Alternative
Formulae points chart maintaining the 3rd highest heat score average.
Arena Winter Series The 2019 season started with a mixed formula six round Winter Series with
points from all races counting. The aim of the Series being to give new drivers a chance to race
formulas they hadn't raced before and all drivers to race formulas at the new Hobbs Cross (HC) venue prior to the AGM
and setting the 2019 fixture list. Round 1 on 16 January was due to feature two heats for Parmastox and two heats
for Slotstox but due to a delayed start and availability (I lent out two), the Slotstox ended up being a single 'test' heat
for those that hadn't raced or hadn't regularly raced Slotstox and so didn't count to the points. In the Parmastox for
heat 1 I raced my blue Parmastox and scored 51 points and for heat 2 I raced my red Parmastox and scored
23 points - each heat consisting of four drivers. With 74 points I was top of the Arena Winter Series after round 1
by a 1 point. I missed rounds 2 and 3 at HC on 23 January and 30 January respectively due to illness plus round 4 at WACC
as I was on a work training seminar in France. Round 5 on 13 February at HC featured Classic Hot Rods and Plastic Slotstox plus a bonus heat of Parma-Saloons.
In the Classic Hot Rods heat I borrowed a Classic Hot Rod and scored 28 points; in the Plastic Slotstox I scored
17 points and in the Parma-Saloons I scored 11 points. A total at this round of 56 points meant an overall
total of 130 points and I was down to 9th in the Arena Winter Series points. I missed the 6th and final round
on 20 February at WACC due to holiday and finished 9th in the Arena Winter Series points with 130 points.
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