Hi yah all

I have been working on some EOS carpet set ups for a couple of weeks now so this weekend I went racing up and down the country to see how my cars compare.
The plan was to go to Junction 16 in Daventry as they were hosting their first ever Winter series and then go to Hastings 1066 all the way down south for their Winter Whip round 🙂

Junction 16.
The club runs mostly on Friday evenings and has invested heavily in new EOS style carpet, a great size rostrum and a lot more.  Run primarily by Lee Romang and Alec Springer (obviously many others too) these guys seem to understand the racing scene.  The track for the event was some 30 plus metre long straight, some interesting and to say the least demanding jumps and generally a good feel to everything.  Plenty of pitting space to spread your wings too.  It would be easy to critic but as a first event it’s right up there with many established clubs.  Well worth a visit.  Hopefully there will be a spot for me at their next one on the 16th of December (Saturday)

My Serpent SRX2 MH was on point as they say.
I will make the report easy as I will simply post pictures of all the qualification rounds and finals and you can easily get the details of that.
Basically I qualified 2nd.  With 2 from 4 to count in quali, I had a TQ and a 2nd counting.
One leg final for everyone.
I had to put a better set of tyres on for the main as my tyres were certainly too worn in the last quali round.
The first half of the final my car was much slower than normal.  The better rear tyres were locking in the rear way too much and I should of really put better fronts to match.  As the tyres came in i got quicker and quicker and finally bridged the cap to the leader.  Only a couple of laps to go i was beginning to push hard but I took a corner a fraction too tight, caught the pot dot and caused the car to roll so I dropped to 3rd.  Happy with that to be honest especially as I had some fast laps.  Congrats to the Hall family for a 1st and 2nd.  Both lads certainly getting much faster 🙂 
Here are the pics

The track

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Final

Enjoyed the event very much and now the drive down to Hastings – Weather was terrible

Hastings 1066
Well what does one say about 1066.  Ben Winters and many of his helpers has really done an amazing job with the place.  The Kent area needed desperately another club and with Maritime Raceway shutting its doors recently, this place is getting more and more popular and rightly so.  Extremely friendly guys and really good facilities and race track.  More than big enough, you don’t need pit table or chairs, it’s all super good 🙂

My Serpent SRX2 MH
I had a premeditated decision not to  change the car from one club to the other, as ultimately I am looking for a good base set up for EOS carpet.  I was pleasantly surprised with its performance right from the off so I did ultimately just leave it as it was from the previous day at Jun16.  Round 1 came very quickly and actually too quickly for me as I didn’t even change the Lipo in the car.  With a long practice session beforehand, the car didn’t want to move come round one and as much as the Serpent Team guys tried to figure out the problem on the start line it was not going to happen.  I had to sit out round 1 with the most school boy error of not changing the Lipo.  I think I will just call that a senior moment!! 
I then discover the club only runs 3 rounds and also on FTD qualification and not the most recent common way of round by round.  Round 2 came and I actually managed to get my car going (LOL) and managed 7th overall just behind Jamie one of the UKs Team Serpent drivers.  I did have some errors so I was happy the car had pace.  Well last round was upon us and I knew it had to be clean as many in the previous heat went 17 lap pace.  It was obvious a 17 lapper was needed to get into the main.  I drove a clean race with no heroics.  In fact you could argue I drove like a girl (although some girls are actually very quick) I was pleasantly surprised at 4th overall.  I knew I could go faster still as many put new tyres on and I was using older ones.
3 leg finals for everyone so here we can try and push a little harder and see what develops.  
1st leg I got tangled up at the beginning and somehow still finished 4th.
2nd leg I drove a decent enough race and finished 3rd although a last lap error actually cost me 2nd.
3rd leg was really better for me.  Managed 2nd in the final and I believe 3rd overall although there might be some discrepancies with other peoples times/scoring and that might change.
Either or, I was really pleased with my car and the result.  Even more that Jamie and Chris that are representing the Serpent brand also made the main A final too.  Has to also be said Darren and Mark amongst others driving the Serpent brand had a brilliant showing in the 4wd class too 🙂

Photos below as before

The track

My Serpent 2wd MH High Grip car

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Finals

So another great days racing to wrap up a long tiring weekend.  Found a nice neutral set up for my MH high grip car and will post the set up laters – Thanks all and look forward in seeing you all soon at trackside  – many thanks to both clubs for hosting great racing for all of us – Your massive efforts for running the clubs are very appreciated from many of us – the next picture sort of sums it all up after a long weekend up and down the country 🙂

Hi yah all.
I have been changing layouts in my SDX4 for some time now and basically learning what suits what in what circumstance.
It has to be said I have never had a 4wd that can practically have every layout possible apart from with my Serpent SDX4.
I have now settled on the saddle configuration as I feel this gives the most consistent feel and the most balanced corner to corner as well as front to rear.
I chose to run a shorty servo as this is less weight up front.  A short servo is around 20-22g lighter than a full servo.

The Herts Astro track is sand based and can be very tricky if off line.
2 practice session went very well and I quickly turned the first 2 runs into TQ runs.
This would guarantee me 2nd on the grid whatever happened in the next 2 runs

The 3rd run and the 4th run were to basically get some minor stuff dialled in for the final.  
In the 4th run I was fighting with my friend Steve (drives a Schumacher- we all have problems) and he was to just steal the round from me that actually gave him TQ for the event, on the same points as myself.  He had a faster run in round 3…..

Certainly up for the finals as up to this point I didn’t use any new tyres like all other competitors were!!
I was running the 4wd full staggers on the front axle and the Darts on the rear.
Forward traction on this tract comes at a price of a new set of tyres unfortunately.

I will cut the final report short as I am actually very disappointed in myself.
Historically, most know if I get out in front I am a difficult person to overtake.  I will hold my lines and even if slower someone would have to go round me to gain the position.   I got out in front in leg 1 but a self inflicted error cost me the win only to finish 2nd.  In leg 2 I got out in front again and it was a repeat stupid error again to finish 2nd.  With a realistic chance of winning the meeting leg three started.  I held on to second only to make the most stupid error and put me last after the 2nd lap.  With nothing to lose at this stage I started to push my car to unprecedented limits for my driving style.  I took over place by place to find the commentator announce I was leading.  I was so surprised.  I was even questioning this as I was circulating.  Last lap and yes you guessed it.  The jump on the far side caught me out to find myself finishing 3rd in the leg.  This report is the day after and I am still annoyed at myself.  From a clear win, I finished 3rd for the event.
 

Conclusion is simple.  
This is radio controlled car racing and we take the rough with the smooth.
Mega enjoyed myself with some good friends.
Well done to all especially to Matt Perry for the win.

Next – National at Stotfold

Hi all
Just a quick report on the 2wd regional at Stotfold.

Competition at this club is always strong as there are so many people that run here mid-week, especially through summer months.
The same as National level, there are only 2x 3 minutes practice sessions so getting up to speed quickly is always difficult.

I had plenty I wanted to try so this is how it panned out.

After 4 rounds of qualifications I qualified 5th

Finals are always tricky but I found myself fighting for the lead every leg.  3rd, 2nd and 3rd again gave me a chance at the win but it turned up to be equal points and therefore 2nd for me.

Happy with it 🙂

Catch up soon

Setup used:

SRX2 MH TEAM Tony Evdoka Stotfold Regional Aug17 Web
SRX2_MH_TEAM_Tony_Evdoka_Stotfold_Regional_Aug17_web.pdf

Regional Stotfold setup

Category:	SRX2 MH
Date:	August 8, 2017

570.9 KiB
416 Downloads
Details...

Hi all….
The 4wd regional BRCA event at Stotfold.
A National track so practice was needed but also racing against some very good drivers with some very good local track knowledge gives a good measure where ones at.

Practice rounds were good and the car felt very safe.
Round 1 should of done better but still everyone is learning the track so with a couple of errors I was happy with 3rd.
Round 2 and things got faster for everyone.  I drover way too fast and only got a 7th in round.  My car was good though.
Round 3 and I made some minor set up changes to the car and got a 4th in round.  I knew I was on the right track.
Round 4 and with some more minor changes my car was on it as i say.  2nd in the round and now I felt mega confident being 3rd on the grip for the finals.

Leg 1 and it was an interesting final as I felt under control the whole way through.  I managed to sit in 3rd for a while and while the front 2 where fighting and getting their lines wrong, I sneaked into to 2nd.  Sat there for a little bit and felt comfortable although under pressure from Matt in 3rd. Steve made an error at the front and I took my opportunity to take the lead. I knew driving clean with no errors would take leg 1 and that is exactly what developed.

Unfortunately I felt unwell after leg 1 and although I was running a really good 2nd in leg 2 I wasn’t myself and retired after 11 laps.
Had some great banter with my friends and eventually I finished 4th at the meeting but even if I say so myself, I was much quicker than that.  The SDX4 working really nice 🙂

Thank you as usual to all my sponsors.  Serpent, Muchmore, RudeBits, ArrowMax, Racer and Sick1Grafix

A weekend of running around and a mixture of racing.
Its Monday morning right now and I raced yesterday at TORCH Reedy Race.
Great day racing and i have to say my cars were wicked.
Super fast with my Muchmore equipment .
I was testing loads and loads of stuff so my results were not of essence today.
Learned loads too and had a super lunch from M&S LOL 🙂 

Now off to Neo for the day to see the Team up there

This 1^st event of the year was indoors on EOS carpet.  I call it the home of Schumacher racing as their factory is only round the corner but of course it’s not factually correct.  Many drivers have competed over the winter months here so their cars are pretty much dialled in.  Full concentration needed to achieve a good result here.   The club put in a great effort as usual and laid out a challenging track with some tried and tested features and jumps used over their winter series. 

I was running some prototype parts on my 2wd Serpent and as usual looking forward to the challenge.   Practice was good and the car felt safe and powerful.

Round 1 – I made too many mistakes and simply gifted the others the 1^st round.  Without my errors I would of TQed by some way but of course others would claim similar.  3^rd in round was good.

Round 2 – I had a better round.  Again some small errors so 2^nd in round was good but to catch Charlie Ware was going to be difficult.  He has won many big events here and on this surface and he TQed the round and was the pre-meeting favorite.

Then the most unusual scenario occurred!!  The computer crashed and lost all the data.  The organisers had the printed results and could of course call it a meeting there and then but decided to ask the drivers on their choice.  It was decided by vote of the racers to run a fresh meeting of 2 rounds on a FTD basis.  I can’t remember the last Fastest Time of the Day event I did.   I also voted to carry on.

Round 3 (1^st of FTD) – Went round and made one error but could only manage 3^rd in round.  Don’t get me wrong I would have been happy with that but the lap times showed more in the car so my driving had to improve.

Round 4 (2^nd of FTD) – Well if you’re going to pull off a good run then the last round is the time to do it, especially on a FTD basis.  Charlie, William, Steve and I were in with a shout.  Of course others from other heats were super quick too and already posted superfast times.  Charlie already posted a fast time from round 1 of the FTD rounds so it would have to be fast but clean too.  Going into the run I was 5^th in the round after everyone else had their runs.  I didn’t go for any heroics.  Drove round, clean and tidy and found myself surprisingly at my age right at the top of the qualifications.  

Finals – The Finals would normally be 3 legs but it was cut down to just the one because of time loss through the day.  Off we went and basically I started to pull away after a few laps.  I sort of surprised myself if I’m honest as the drivers behind are not slow.  1 minute goes by, then the next minute goes by and I was really comfortable at the front.  I knew just keeping it clean it will be an easy flag to flag win.  Then at 3 minutes gone I sort of started to play it safe.  For the youngsters out there, this is a mistake.  When driving fast and within yourself then the concentration is high and all is well.  Slow and safe though, sometimes is not the right way.  The quick guys behind were catching me and applying pressure.  Being caught and being overtaken are two different matters though.  Pressure I can handle so still very confident in bringing the car home for the win.   At 4.30 into the race and the smallest error made me clip the pipe and unfortunately running a test car saw me pop a steering turnbuckle.  Crazy unlucky but that’s racing.  Finished around 6^th I believe. 

Loved the weekend and totally happier to be away from the BRCA shenanigans and to enjoy my racing with great friends.  

As usual many thanks to my sponsors and supporters.
Serpent for great support and great cars
Muchmore for reliability of smooth but super powerful electrics
ArrowMax for great fluids and tools
Racer for great coverage of race events and product reviews from all over the world
RudeBits for the innovation of supporting enhancing products
Sick1Grafix for making my rides look super cool with wicked paint, decals and wraps

Well what was it all about.   
I first found out while at a race meeting.  The race director got a text that I was suspended.  Nice I hear you say!
The original email after I already knew stated and quote: 
“A member of the executive has implemented section 9 of the BRCA constitution and charge of bring the Association in to Disrepute has been levelled against you.”
I still do not know what this is about or how on earth I bring the Association into Distribute.
Next correspondence and quote:
“it was felt that your actions in recent times regarding posts on social media, emails and actions regarding the 1/10 off road web site were not in keeping with that of an officer of the Association”
So to clarify, in my eyes they didn’t like the internal emails where I am straight to the point with my views in making things better and somewhere, something was posted they didn’t like.  
I asked for specific examples and still don’t have them but got the following:
“As your suspension was not racing related your licence would be reinstated with the following conditions.” “The you serve a suspension of 5 years from serving on any committee within the BRCA”
So basically I have been blackmailed to be removed off the committee……all they should of done is asked! 

They have damaged themselves way more than any damage to myself.

The shame part of it all, I never claimed a penny for expenses unlike some with beautiful trips round the globe.  Always in my thoughts was how do we make the sport better and more entertaining. When I had a BIG sponsor for the sport and I am talking HUGE and interested in putting up 1/4 of a million pounds sponsorship, I was told we couldn’t handle more members.
What saddens me is the fact that inside I feel I have let the racing community down not a few power driven ‘boys’ at the BRCA.

See you at trackside ……

“Blackmail refers to a situation that arises when a person threatens another person with some form of punishment if they do not offer some form of concessions” 

Today I had to give in to blackmail for the first time in my life so I can keep my sanity and the well being of my family and friends ……

Hi all
Its been a long time since I used my own website.
Taking charge of the distribution of Serpent Off-Road products in the UK has been hard work but now that it’s established and going really well, I will be using my website a lot more.  Some trick stuff for you to use as well as set up advice and so on.

A little more time is also available to me, after my recent SHOCK suspension from the BRCA.
Yes that is correct and I hear you ask yourself why?!
Well after racing for 35 years, in fact I think its 36, and after numerous years in promoting the sport and supporting it in every way possible, some guy with clearly too much power has decided to suspend my licence because I have sent some sharp internal (quote internal) emails to the relevant committees.  Oh and a typo error.  Yes its true and even more so that they say and quote ‘ bringing the Association into distribute ‘
Yes I know you think its unbelievable but now it’s got more serious as its affected my racing 2017 season.
I had to cancel the 1st 8th National as I am still suspended and soon I will be FORCED to really consider my options legally as this is clearly defamation of my character.

Whats crazy about this is they say I have brought the Association into distribute……bearing in mind that the Association is its member, there is not one person that has negative critic for me on my timeline…..makes one wonder!! …..More soon….. 

I am saddened to announce my departure from the Kyosho Team.
As UK 1/10^th Team Manager for some years I have been very fortunate to drive for a special brand and represent some great people.
I would like to also thank all my Kyosho friends from all over the world.
Special thanks to Neil, Mike, Christoffe and everyone at FDL France (Kyosho Europe) that have given me great support over the past 5 plus years.
I now look forward to some exciting new challenges ahead.