A bitterly cold day at the track. This time I cannot even tell you that as the day progressed, it became warmer. The first time we’ve seen a bit of sunshine was at about 13h30 in the afternoon. Please note; it was sun rays and by no means WARM sun rays… It had been a terrible day outdoors..!! Notwithstanding the unpleasant weather, we’ve had 29 entries. Thank you guys & girls; you were very, very brave! We admire and appreciate your efforts deeply.

 

               

 

The Race:  

Best Presented Car of Day:

James Theron – Congratulations!

Beginners:

We started the day’s racing with a total newcomer to official RC racing, Manie Pretorius and young Ruan Brauer that we’ve seen here a couple of times. Manie kicked off with an average lap time of 36.64s, and a best lap of 32s, which really isn’t bad for a total novice. But for some reason the car that he was driving went slower and slower towards the Finals. Ruan, on the other hand, started slower than Manie, but he then improved drastically in the Final legs. If I remember correctly, his dad said that he was going to give him a better set up car to try out and it definitely worked for Ruan. Ruan’s fastest lap – 24.77s.

 

Manie, in orange jacket, feeling at home at Meyerton Raceway

 

540 Touring:

Artur Winiecki paid us a visit again, after a long absence. He might have been away from the track for a long time, but he most certainly did not forget how to handle his car! Artur won one of the two qualifying rounds as well as both the Final legs. Best lap – 20.34s

Piet du Toit ended 2^nd twice and took the race that one time when he beat Artur. Unfortunately he couldn’t participate in the last leg of the Finals. Piets’ best – 20.18s Well done!

Henry completed all his races without any hassles and boats a fastest lap of 23.10s.

James Theron came to spend the day with us and like Henry he completed all four races in this class without any car troubles. Fastest lap – 21.90s. Good job!

 

 

Electric Mini:

Paul Langenhoven walked away as the uncontested winner of the day in the Mini class. Him and his car made a mean team this month! He won almost all the races with several laps. His quickest lap – 20.77s   Great job, Paul!

Having said that, I must say that should Louis Nortje had a disastrous day in this class. He experienced countless problems with his Mini. The one race that he managed to complete, he equaled Paul’s 16 laps. Louis’s best lap – 22.53s

Gert Fourie is fast becoming a regular now. And his driving skills have improved tremendously since he started here last year. Gert boasts three 2^nd places and one 3^rd place. Best lap – 26.65s

The two van Straaten brothers, Divan and Ruan both competed in the mini class again.

It seems like Ruan had a bit more luck than Divan. But looking at the day’s overall results, there wasn’t much difference in their driving skills. Still, it was Ruan who ended on the podium (3^rd overall). Congratulations, young man! (I think he is about 10 years old)

Divan with his Mini: "I am not pretty, but I am fast" (translated from Afrikaans)

 

21.5 Touring:

Willtin Brauer competed with an exceptionally fast car(which came under suspicion) . He won 3 out of the four races. Quickest lap – 18.80s. He later admitted that he tampered with the timing…

Paul Langenhoven, who ended 3^rd in both qualifiers, jumped to 1^st and 2^nd places respectively in the Finals. Paul’s best lap – 18.48s

Piet du Toit also had himself a good day in this class. He earned one 2^nd place and one 3^rd place and ended 4^th overall.

Kevin Gates usually excels in 21.5. Today he couldn’t walk away as the winner, but he can at least boast two 2^nd places. He ended 3^rd overall.

Henry Ogden was seen somewhere in the middle, as always. Best lap – 21.33s

Francois Geyser is a guy who thoroughly enjoys his RC racing. His best lap- after a bit of car trouble – 20.8s. Well done!

Esmarie Geyser – wife of Francois – is performing better and better each month. Her quickest lap today – 22.22s Good job!

Gert Fourie was on a roll and with no car trouble, he can be pretty satisfied with himself. Loads of his laps were around 21 seconds. What an achievement for this relatively new driver!

 

 

TTO1 stock:

Louis might have had trouble in the Mini class, but in THIS class he made no mistakes; he won all of them convincingly. Best lap – 21.81s. Great job, Louis!

It seems like Divan van Straaten has found his niche in this class. He sat comfortably in 2^nd place all day long. (Apart from the last leg when Nathan took 2^nd place) Quite an achievement for a boy that only started racing a short while ago. He obviously has a talent for this…. You go, Divan!!

Nathan Steyn had a couple of hiccups earlier on, but he delivered his best performance in the last qualifier, when his average lap time had been 26s. His fastest lap however was in the last race of the day – 23.12s. Good job!

James Theron had his best performance in the first TTO1 race of the day. He completed 13 laps and he had his best lap in this race – 26.47s

Ruan van Straaten struggled more than a bit with his car on this day. He nevertheless achieved some pretty fast laps, like the 25.93s that he had in the 2^nd qualifier. Better luck next time.

 

 

13.5 Touring:

Three times it had been Kevin Gates in the lead with Freddie Kotze 2^nd. In the last leg of the finals Freddie managed to beat Kevin to the starting line. It was such a close call….! Kevin’s fastest lap – 16.40s and Freddie’s fastest lap – 16.86s.

Congratulations, Kevin! I know how much you must love this Overall results!

Derek Sardini is also a guy that loves his RC racing. He aims for perfection, but sometimes, like today, his car let him down. Some races he couldn’t complete and for the last race he even had a DNS. Sorry about that, Derek.

Willtin Brauer had serious problems during the qualifiers, but in the finals he ended 3^rd in both legs. Best lap -17.14

Below: Derek Sardini, enjoying a bit of sun, waiting for prize giving.

Hoping to see you all again next month!!