Saturday 5 May 2012

Layin' down the astro at SHRCCC.

 Everyone loves a bit of old school grass action but when the weather doesn't play ball the post race clean up can become a little tedious. This, coupled with the inevitable wear and tear of a grass track, has prompted SHRCCC to up sticks and relocate just down the road to a year round astro based facility.

I made the trip on a nippy Sunday in April for the innaugral meeting.

The enthusiastic committee, headed up by Neil 'Dudders' Dudman and Darren 'Tartman' Parker, have put in some hard graft to turn a 5-a-side footy pitch into the bristly green oasis seen in the pics below. The various members have bought their respective skills to bear and produced an interesting track with something for everyone.

(click on the pics for full size versions)



They have peppered the circuit with a range of hazards including a 180 degree step down and a viscious little kicker onto a table top which, for those inclined to such hooliganism, can deliver some serious hang time.  


It's a narrow track with a lap of around 20 seconds that rewards accuracy and punishes those who dont give it respect. I think Apex models, the track sponsors, will do a decent trade in wishbones and shock towers!

 
It's an interesting surface here with racers making various different tyre choices. I settled on yellow Schumie mini spikes front and rear on my SX3 but others were using mini pins in various different flavours, the odd Dboot also popped up here and there.

The surface seemed to change throughout the day which, combined with fairly high tyre wear, made tyre choice critical. I guess regular visitors will settle on the most effective combinations so look out for what they are using.

Dudders seemed quite pleased with the fruits of his labours, as he should be, and Paul 'Berky' Berkinshaw kept smiling despite being single handedly responsible for the impending shortage of AE spare parts!


The step down onto a fast back straight had racers fiddling with slippers all day. The trusty alloy ramps have made the trip to the new venue as, unfortunately, have the chinese hats.


Mark makes time for some lunch and is working hard at growing a serious Santa Claus beard.
Darrens track time has made him a force to be reckoned with around here.
  
 

Kristian prepares his lunch whilst Freddie discusses tactics with Dudders.

 

James takes things in his stride.


Here are a few shots of the A final grid. The Losi 22 is enjoying renewed popularity now people have worked it out, whilst the Cougar and Centro were also well represented.




A little bit of first corner jostling.

The guys have managed to secure a round of both the 2 and 4wd Mid South Regionals.
I am sure that with the constructive feedback that the top drivers will provide at these meetings the S&H committee will be able to make the necessary tweaks to turn this into a top class venue.

I had a good day and will attend some rounds of the planned Summer Series, if Summer ever arrives! There is also a full calender of midweek racing and practice sessions that would be worth getting along to. Details of which can be found HERE.

If you are in the Mid South region I reckon you should pop along and show these guys some support. They have put in a lot of work on this and deserve to succeed.


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