Racers;

You didn't think Thunder Road would go out any way but with a bang, did you? Well, here it is! Our last oval race will be held on Saturday, November 17th; and it will be a doozy. Sponsorship will be by JACO and SMC; and there will be $1,000.00 in merchandise awards on the line!

This race is intended to thank JACO and SMC for their support over the years; and to reward all the oval racers for their patronage of Thunder Road. Entry fee will be $30.00 for the first class, and $20.00 for a second. We will run 10.5/4300; Stock; 13.5 and Spec NasTrucks; and any other regular class that draws four entries or more. This will be our last bash, so let's make it a great one! Details, directions, maps and more at thunderroadrc.com.

In addition, almost everything in the shop is for sale at 30% off normal prices. We have a great variety of chassis', Almost Ready to Run cars, motors and general RC parts that must be sold! So come on down to Thunder Road for our last, and quite possibly our biggest, oval race. You can save a bunch on RC parts, have a good time, rub fenders with the big boys, and help us say goodbye. This will be your chance to say "I won the last race at Thunder Road". Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

Guess I know what I'm doing that weekend. Thunder and then back home to Glen Burnie to make a double header.

UH GUYS will it be me and Ernie running or is anyone else showing ????????????

I think we can count on some company, buddy. I talked to a handful of people today, that will definitely be there. Why none of them have posted here is a mystery to me (unless of course a lot of people are at some big oval racing event this weekend); but check out thunderroadrc.com, and you'll find it should be a good crowd. Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

Never fear, CJ is here.

I will be showing up for the oval event of the year (so far)!!

I plan on getting back to the brushed stock class to celebrate the final Oval run at Thunder Road. How can you loose with this kind of pay out?! Plan on having fun at TR.

I just returned from the final Road Course race @ TR, which Demon Dog proved victorious (won the A-Main), and it was lots of fun. Six stock cars in the A-main proved to be most exciting especially with only 2-1/2 corner marshals... (the 1/2 belonged to Dirt dog’s very young son).

Hope everyone can make this the send-off, final event, that Ernie and Thunder Road deserve to have... this will be a showcase event. BE THERE!

I'll be there wouldn't miss it for the world. I've had a geat time racing this year! Rick

Team L&L will be there running Spec Truck. Ernie you have a PM. Thanks KRITER

Hey guys! jimmy, and I are definetly coming for the last race and we will be running brushed stock, 4 cell pan cars. Might have a couple more people coming with us! We wouldn't miss it for the world! Besides, we have to eat at Fabio's Pizza one more time! If you have never had their pizza, you don't know what you are missing! I had a blast yesterday running in the last road course race at T-Road! The A Main was an exciting race and in the end I came out victorious! I wanna give props to everyone who was in the A Main for making the last race a great memory! By the way, if anyone would like to race their old stadium trucks on the oval saturday, let me know because I would LOVE to race mine one more time! Thats the class I started out racing on the parking lot track at Hobbies Plus many years ago. We race them with foam tires, stock motors and 6 cell batteries. Hope to see everyone I have raced with over the years and hope to make one more great memory at T-Road before it closes down! See ya Saturday!

Demon Dog,

If you keep eating that pizza your gona have to start wearing your Fat-boy jeans!

I'll bring prints of some old TR-photos that I have, to help reminisce on this LAST weekend.

Thanks BEACH/ROB/ERNIE/JACO/SMC for the continued support over the years... Oval RC is the greatest!!

It looks as though most of the "Steves" will be there, as well. It's starting to sound like a fast crowd in Spec and Stock; I hope we'll have some 13.5's and 10.5's as well. With $1,000.00 in awards, and with a discount of 30% on purchased items, I think we'll have a crowd. Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

I for one want to try two classes stock and 13.5. Specialy if my pitman is with me :woohoo:

I'll be there for sure! I have been a little side tracked with the Oval Masters this past weekend but I am back and ready to send TR out with a bang. I would prefer to run 10.5 and 13.5 but will be prepared to run stock if that turns out to be the hot class. I have a 3.5 burning a hole in my tool box to if anyone is up for Open Mod.

It looks as though most of the "Steves" will be there, as well. It's starting to sound like a fast crowd in Spec and Stock; I hope we'll have some 13.5's and 10.5's as well. With $1,000.00 in awards, and with a discount of 30% on purchased items, I think we'll have a crowd. Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

I am going to try to show up in the morning, but can't race. My wife is working and I'm babysitting the girls and have to be back to Richmond by 1:30 to get one of them to a birthday party.

Charlie,

It's too late, already wearin' some of them!! LOL! Being off for two months after surgery and having to lay around to heal up tends to put the weight on ya. So, I don't think some pizza is gonna hurt me!

Just wondering if someone could tell me the roll out I should be running with a CO 27 motor. It's been awhile since I ran the oval and I can't find my notes. I'm bringing my KSG Slider, but I'm planning on racing my old school Hyperdrive/10L that I won my last points series with at T-Road many moons ago. I'm curious how it will do and plus wanna run it for nostalgic reasons. During that point series if anyone remembers, all my competition was running the newer 3 shock chassis and I still whipped up on em'! Unfortunately, I don't run oval anymore so I can't drive a consistent lap everytime like I used to be able to do, but I will still have a blast! Maybe if I put a nitro engine in it so I can hear it, it might help me! LOL!

anyone have an educated guess at how many 13.5's will be there on Saturday? Thinking about making the trip.

Mike 13.5 or not come on down I'll be there with my drawer full of motors....all stockers. But I do plan on running stock and 13.5 :wave:

Just wondering if someone could tell me the roll out I should be running with a CO 27 motor. It's been awhile since I ran the oval and I can't find my notes.

somewhere between 2.15-2.30 should get you in the ballpark for stock.

Seven,

Just bring your stuff we will all wear party hats and bring cup cakes. Your daughter will think it is a birthday party.

Demon Dog,

I second Seven's advice on gearing. I think I ran a 2.26 the last time I ran a CO27 there.

Yep, 2.20 or so on the CO27's.

does racing start at 2 o'clock as posted on the website?

As far as I know it will start at 2. I think the doors open at 9am. There are talks about maybe opening up on Friday, but I dont think Ernie has confirmed that yet.

As far as I know it will start at 2. I think the doors open at 9am. There are talks about maybe opening up on Friday, but I dont think Ernie has confirmed that yet.

J-Dub;

Actually, I did confirm we will open Friday night at 6:00 PM for people wanting to practice. And, we will open at 9:00 AM, and start at 2:00 PM, on Saturday. Thanks for the help guys; it's looking good. Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

are there any tires available at the track for purchase?

Thanks guys for the info on rollout! If anyone is interested, I have a like new KSG Slider that I will sell if anyone is interested. I've raced it a few times, but not much. I also have some tires that I will sell if Ernie doesn't have what u need. I don't see myself racing pan cars much after sat. unless people are interested in running at Linville's track. So that is why I want to get rid of some of my inventory.

are there any tires available at the track for purchase?

I have plenty of tires for sale; and at 30% off normal prices. Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

Demon Dog,

I've pulled my 13.5 from my Maverick and have installed my old CO27 just to run with the 'brushed' gang one last time. Are you coming early as before to knock some of that rust off of your KSG?

Oval at Linville would be great but those young organizers will have to get their act together to entice racers to show...they are out there!

Charlie,

I plan to be there early sat. I know what you mean bout Linville. You don't know how much it burns my ass that they don't promote their racing more! That's why those of us that do race and want to race there try to do it ourselves because they ain't goin too! They have their hands in too many cookie jars instead of just concentrating on one flavor!

Guys;

Our last race is shaping up to be a good one. Let's make it the one to remember! Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

All cars cleaned and ready to go. I'm bringing a broom and looking for a sweep. lol... See everyone tommorrow night if all goes as planned.

There can be only one first time; and only one last time. Some time, they can be the *same* time. Some people miss their first time. And, some people will miss the last time. This will be the last time for Thunder Road. Will you miss it?

Tonight is the last practice night before a big race. See you there? Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

Ernie

I am sorry that things did not work out for TR. I know when I first got involved with Greeneville, I could always call you and get help. I cant tell you how much I appreciated that. We will miss you and TR. Take care.

Allan A

We're is this track at ??

The track is in Gordonsville, VA.

There can be only one first time; and only one last time. Some time, they can be the *same* time. Some people miss their first time. And, some people will miss the last time. This will be the last time for Thunder Road. Will you miss it?

Tonight is the last practice night before a big race. See you there? Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:
I will be making my debut and farewell on Saturday, always wanted to come down and check it out. just never got the chance... 13.5 and stock for me

Sounds like a great group of Spec, Stock, and 13.5's showing up. Hope this is a good one. I am going to try to make it up there. Hope to see everyone in the morning.

Joel White

Thanks for the info. I'm from Indana so I should have left a few hours ago.It sounds like a real GOOD TIME.

See you guys in the Am me and the pit man are comming down to run one last time. I'll more than likely be tired after all today was day one of an all r/c weekend. I was out testing the new 1/12 car for road cource. Then sunday is all about racing at home up here in Glen Burnie. Man I look forward to monday so I can get some sleep :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

great day of racing 2day in Virginia. Thanks for everything Ernie. Great bunch of guys to race with.Sorry to see such a fun place close. Hope to race with all you guys soon somewhere........Maybe Glen Burnie, come on up.

I fully agree it was a fun yet kind of sad day at thunder road. The fun part was getting to run that track just one more time. The sad part is knowing it was the last time. Like I said before I left Ernie if you happen to resurect thunder road some where in the future I'll be there as much as I can.



HEY Mike what you gots warp drive in the dodge ?????? you got home fast.

2hrs and 8 mins.....I was still in race mode LOL

Racers if your really interested in getting oval at another track. It's time to start calling and emailing frederick hobbytown about running oval on thier indoor asphalt track. I have a toe in the door but need ALL racers that can make it either on a sunday or a saturday if the racing gods are real nice. Don't hold your breathe for a saturday date though. It's time we all become active in getting track time AND attention to our part of the r/c racing world !!!!!!

See ya'll around a track some where :woohoo:

Had a great time. Wish I would have grabbed a car and ran one last time, but I had fun running some of the races, and bench racing with everyone.

Joel White

Everyone knows that I waited to the last race to have my best day. What a way to say good-by. Thanks again to Ernie for all the hard work. Congt's to all the winners. Mike G, wish we could have raced more.

To everyone, Thanks for the memories.

wish i could have made it to the last one! thanks for the great times ernie and the tr gang. hope we meet again someday. ernie if your ever up in maryland look me up!

ernie sorry i couldnt make it there the holidays was picking my pocket so i couldnt afford it but i would like to say you had a great place to race. wonderful people to race with. I know i learned alot off many of the driver down there. so like i seen other say come join us at glen burnie we would love to have you all here and if you bring enough people for another class like the spec truck just let me know ahead of time and i will make sure i have my truck there to run with you guys.


if there is any chance you could find another place to race and can get it going as long as i'm not doing a points race here i will come there where ever you are to race with you again as much as i can. gl and sorry to see thunderroad go.

Final Race Report 11/17/07

Well, there just couldn’t be a better way of ending things. All the normal crowd gathered for the last time; and enjoyed a final day of racing and bench racing. Some familiar faces were missing, and a few new one’s showed to replace them; but those that were there did us proud; and finished things the way they should be finished, with a fast pace, close racing and a tight line. And knowing that $1,000.00 was on the line made no difference to any one when it came to running hard and clean. A good race and a fair one, all the way around.

The heats were close and fun. Beach (Steve Walker), Kriter and Steve Herndon showed fast in Spec NasTruck; although Beach seemed a bit off pace in the first heat. He came back hard, but seemed vulnerable. Kriter was also off his normal pace early on, and again came back strong in the third heat.

Harold Ruckle looked fast in the Stock heats, but Mike Gindlesperger was right on his bumper. Jimmy Zirk, Charlie Johnson and Bob Hall were looking strong; and Mike Ruckle had what must have been the most frustrating day lately. He somehow got behind at the start of each heat, quickly started making up ground, and either crashed out or DNF’ed every time. Mike had perhaps the fastest car, but just couldn’t seem to shake the gremlins.

The 13.5 heats were almost monotonous. Larry Boyd had his act together in fine fashion; grabbing a quick lead and slowly drawing away in every heat. Mike G., Steve Herndon and Harold Ruckle nipped at his heels in turn; but none of them could decide which one was supposed to challenging Larry. By turn, they fought and scrapped among themselves; leaving Larry free to slip away until it was too late to catch him.

The Spec NasTrucks lined up first. Harley Antal scratched with a broken front suspension, leaving us with seven fast trucks ready to roll. Beach may have won almost everything lately, but no one was betting his streak could continue. At the start, Beach and Herndon quickly came to grips, with Beach leading and Steve right on his bumper. Oliver Campbell, Rick Schenck and Kriter all had a couple of slips and scrapes; letting your humble yet confident track owner slip into third, with Harold Lam a bit behind. Any thoughts of running down Beach and Herndon evaporated quickly, and I settled in to just avoiding any mental errors on my part and avoiding those of others. I figured I had a good chance of letting traffic do the heavy lifting for me, so just tried to stay out of trouble. Around halfway, Beach and Herndon ripped past; and I noticed Harold Lam starting to creep up on me. I concentrated on hitting my marks and started easing away; but then Harold closed again. I was running a good line, but this time I couldn’t shake him off. It finally came down to letting Harold through or risk crashing both of us; so I let him slip past and into third. Rick Schenck dropped out early, leaving Oliver and Kriter to fight over fifth place; which they did with abandon. Somewhere along the line, Steve Herndon had gotten past Beach and into the lead; but right at the end, Herndon and I touched coming off four. Neither of us spun, but it momentarily slowed both of us; and it was all Beach needed. Beach led Steve home by just over a second; with Harold a solid third and his best race ever. I was lucky enough to grab fourth, with Kriter finally in front of Oliver for good.

Scott Gregory and I self scratched out of Stock; leaving seven cars on the line. Mike G. set off at the start, with Harold Ruckle chasing. Mike Ruckle once again slipped at the very beginning and set off to chase down Jimmy Zirk, Bob Hall, Charlie Johnson and Toby Taylor, who were having their own little dustup. One at a time, Mike ripped past all of them, grabbed third place and set off after Harold, who had slipped past Mike G. in traffic. With the fastest car in the field, it looked like only a matter of time before Mike Ruckle caught both of them; since Harold was being forced to drive a defensive line to keep Mike G. behind him. A minor shunt in turn three left Mike Ruckle with a dead car, courtesy of an on/off switch knocked into the off position. With the fastest car sidelined, Harold slowly drew away from Mike G.; with a good lead at the end. Jimmy Zirk grabbed third from Toby Taylor; with Charlie and Bob only a bit behind at the line.

13.5 was supposed to be all Larry Boyd; but he forgot to tell that to Mike G., who had steadily been improving all night. Mike simply wrestled the lead away from Larry in an early move down through one and two, and set sail; with Larry nipping at his heels. Harold Ruckle and Steve Herndon tied up in a hard fight for third. All four cars were running in a tight string; with no one able to improve his position. Steve Herndon was all over Harold like a cheap suit; but couldn’t find a way past. Around the halfway point, Harold finally slipped on the ice, and Herndon was through and running. He caught Larry Boyd by the third minute and slipped past to grab second. There was no way he was going to catch Mike G. in the time remaining; and all four cars hit the line with only a couple of seconds from first to fourth. A great race, with very controlled and clean driving on the part of all concerned. And, a good way to end a good night of racing.

My personal thanks to JACO and SMC for their support over the years. And, special thanks to Oliver for all his help. To all the racers; You have all made this a rewarding and fun experience.

After the racing, a few of us sat around talking about good times in the past; and races to come in an uncertain future. Whatever comes, know this: The racers at Thunder Road were a fast bunch. They were fair; they were helpful; and they were friendly. But most of all, they were fast! Thanks; Ernie P. :cool:

Like I said before I left Ernie if you do it again at another location and if I can make it every now and then I'll be there as much as I can. Simply cause your right the racers at Thunder Road over the yrs have been some of if not the best I have had the honor of racing with. This is from the skinny banked days right up to this past Saturday night. Don't forget if Linn does'nt want that # 3 sign behind the race directors booth ......I know I can give it a good home here in the shop as a reminder of all those fun and hard racing days gone by down at good ole THUNDER ROAD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :thumbsup: :wave:

Ernie,

That yellow #4 transponder followed me home, can I keep it?
Kidding aside, it's now in the hands of the US Postal Service on its way back home...

Happy Thanksgiving to you all...
I'll never forget THUNDER ROAD and all of the friends that I made there!!