Hi I used to be a hobby racer ~for fun only. Well here is my story I had an rc-10 truck back in the day of aluminum tub chassis, I worked and worked for hours at a time setting it up. I had all the good parts on it and with a good speed controller, but just had a Magnum Sport radio, no fancy controls on it.I had about $500. total invested in everything~truck~radio gear~& batteries, witch was a fair amout at the time. My frist real race at a local hobby shop that had a big indoor drit track ~Robbys Hobbys in Bay City MI.~Well when I got there I was racing guys with $1000. to $1500. set-up's, And my truck did just fine with running with theirs. I guess my point is that you don't have to spend a lot of money to race the so called pro set-up trucks. ~Tom

Hi I used to be a hobby racer ~for fun only. Well here is my story I had an rc-10 truck back in the day of aluminum tub chassis, I worked and worked for hours at a time setting it up. I had all the good parts on it and with a good speed controller, but just had a Magnum Sport radio, no fancy controls on it.I had about $500. total invested in everything~truck~radio gear~& batteries, witch was a fair amout at the time. My frist real race at a local hobby shop that had a big indoor drit track ~Robbys Hobbys in Bay City MI.~Well when I got there I was racing guys with $1000. to $1500. set-up's, And my truck did just fine with running with theirs. I guess my point is that you don't have to spend a lot of money to race the so called pro set-up trucks. ~Tom

That was "then", now you are a backmarker..unless you have a bunch of sponsorships and a big pocket pocket book!! It's not fun anymore, it's who can outspend who..:o

That depends on the track, the type of car, and the type of racing. Our spec classes are very competitive but low in cost. Some racers prefer the next step up and then some of the top dogs run the all out classes.

Everyone is willing to help everyone else no matter what level they are racing at. The guy who pits across from me is one of the fastest and usually is 1st or second in our series. Last week he helped a kid rebuild the diff on his Legend. Never talked down to him but made suggestions.

That was "then", now you are a backmarker..unless you have a bunch of sponsorships and a big pocket pocket book!! It's not fun anymore, it's who can outspend who..:o

Do not listen to her, she QUIT!

JB -- you are binary in your posts aren't you? I really do not get you. You have made some great posts as of late them come here with this.

Look -- we all know you feel burned, can't stand us Oval racers and have an axe to grind. But really, if all you can do it come in here and tell us how foolish we are to stay at it, just go fishing.

Now as far as having to outspend the Joneses. That is a matter of self control. Decide, as a racer, where you want to run. If you want to run up front ith the fast guys, then yes you will HAVE TO HAVE good stuff. If you are comfortable running with your buds, who do not spend all their spare time working on their stuff and do not have all the latest, that is GREAT too!

IMHO, alot of this "winning" a class came from making a class for every Tom, Dick and Harry that could not win in Stock, 19t or Mod. Now look at how many classes there are. The competition is thinned out to such a point that there are only a few guys in every class.

That was "then", now you are a backmarker..unless you have a bunch of sponsorships and a big pocket pocket book!! It's not fun anymore, it's who can outspend who..:o

jb im not picking on you but i race for fun and i go to the big events but at the local tracks me and the rest of the guys all run for fun , we play around and not get mad when one of us takes the other one out or spends the other one . but as i was saying we can get down to where we are really at each other and still have fun or just play and we dont spend tons of money to do this , to me you half to remember your not getting paid, and chances are your not going to get tttthe big sponcership deal at a local track so keep the attitude in check and enjoy , sorry for the book guys but this sport is suppose to be fun:freak:

Since this is the general section, I'm going to post this. I've spent less money and have had more fun racing USVTA on-road the past six months than any other class I've raced in 10 years. I've consistently beat TC5's with my old TC3. I am constantly asking myself if I need to buy something to be better and 99% of the time the answer is no. I focus on setup and driving.

Point is to find racers that have the "right" mentality for local club racing. Show the "deep pockets" that it is setup and ability that wins and not $$$. Help promote the positive aspects of this hobby and your local track and keep the negatives off the internet.

Trust me, if everyone here spent as much time promoting/helping at the track as we do posting on Hobbytalk there would be plenty of great places to race at.

well said indy!

To the original post - there are and have always been guys who WORK for thier wins, and do it (On Purpose) on a lot smaller, non-sponsored budget.

The set the goal to do it...and find a way to make it work.

There are TONS of places in these great UNITED STATES where club racing is alive and well, and racers are racing to have a GOOD TIME.

I agree with INDY about the new US VTA class bringing FUN (Since this is NOT in the OVAL section) and we've even done a race with THOSE cars on a 85 ft. OVAL, and run over 150 laps (WITH 12 cars) WOW what a kick that was, and some of THE MOST FUN I've had in a long time.

No EGOS, No YELLING and SCREAMING, Lots of Beating and Banging and PUSHING your way through the open spot...it wasn't about WINNING - it was about HAVING FUN and putting a great, fun show on the the spectators who were watching.

Lest we forget, we are all racing TOY cars. Unless your last name is Drake, Truhe, Maifield, Tebo or Hara, you probably aren't relying on RC racing to put food on your families' tables. For me personally, it is a chance to spend a Saturday afternoon enjoying good company and some friendly competition.

I've been in the hobby since 1983, but have taken a 2-6 months off now and then for a couple of years due to real life things.
In that time I've met and raced in different classes and forms of R/C. What I've learned is to have fun, don't compare myself to another racer but improve on what I accomplished the week before. While it is good to win, it's also better help your competition improve their level as well.

Even back in the day, if you did well others thought you spent a lot of money, had sponsors, had equipment no one else did, or you were cheating. That is still some of the thinking today.

Stop worring about what another competitor spends or has, in some cases they can afford it - but doesn't mean it will bring a win. Generally those that get sponsorship backing have earned it because of their skills and dedication. Spend within your means and most of all go with the notion of having fun and if you win all the better.

A personal note: Never say something you may regret and can't take back, I did once and the person died of a brain hemorage 2 days later. Don't take winning too serious.

Oval has always been about the hot battery or motor of the week.t As of late with the advent of brushless and lipo, it has been put in the drivers hand again to get a fast car. Other than an occasional motor, all I have bought the past 5 years has been second hand. It still keeps up, so I work on setup or try different things to get more out of it. Look at all the rtr stuff out there. Same as the pro stuff without the bells and whistles, which you can get when you get the cash.

I bet most of you are talk about paved or carpet oval but the dirt oval tracks have the same thing hand full of guy run fast and every one thinks they have to get the lattest and greatest stuff there is a post on a diferant thread about too many cars and crashing but no one is tring to fig out what there car need to go fast there are shocks and other adjustments that you can change I try new stetup all most every time I go out on the track and look at my lap time to see if its better or not