IFMAR Worlds 2004 ISTC Kissimmee FL USA

 A few years ago, 16 do be exact, I decided to attend the 2004 IFMAR WORLDS for 1/10 electric powered touring cars in Kissimmee Florida, USA.

I arrived on the day of 1/12 scale pan car finals and started filming right away.

Next day was registration and technical inspection of cars, where I discovered that my Futaba transmitter had broken during the 12 hour long transit from Greece to Florida. You can imagine my disappointment. 

With the help of some other racers we tried some fixing but that didn't work well and saw my car go out of control during my first couple of practice runs. Bear in mind that was the FM/AM - pre-2.4 - era with high sensitivity in transmission signal.

That race marked the breakthrough of the phenomenon which is Marc Rheinard and I was excited and happy to witness his outstanding performance. He dominated every single run he competed in, from the practice runs all the way to Amain Nr. 3.

The rest is history as they say.

https://youtu.be/awj8rcjGGOA

LRP GmbH Electronics

I am a fan of the stealthy look, having the entire chassis in black silver hue with electronics and parts on the car following this theme.
Sometimes though I am curious to try something different, maybe because lately I’ve done photo shoots of colorful items such as the beautiful TRF420, Marc’s body and lately RC MAKER brass options.

So this time I chose to install a colorful kit of electronics and LRP came first to my mind.
Is blue better?

**Click on below link**
HD GALLERY

RC MAKER

For some time now I’ve been following the products of Australian racer Ryan Maker is making through his company RCMAKER and always admired his high quality work and the functionality ingenuity and aesthetics of his products.
Lately I got the chance to buy a bunch of them for the A800MMX and I am happy to present them in a series of photos.

There are a few more available for the A800MXX but didn’t choose to try them at the moment.
Apart from what is presented I also got a few tools from Ryan which work perfectly.

Ryan is a great guy, runs the absolutely best looking color scheme on his body, is always available for help and working hard to provide high quality products and valuable information.

Photos below include:
* Centre Stiffener Weight for MMX
* Floating Electronics Weight Plate Set for MMX
* GeoCarbon V2 Front & Rear Steering arms for MMX
* LCG Front Centre Weight for MMX
* LCG ESC Weight Plate - Universal
* Weight Shift Adjustable LCG Chassis Weights Front / Rear
* GeoCarbon battery mounts
* Slimflex Top Deck, 1.6mm & 2.0mm
* Brass LCG battery weight and floating mounts

P.S. - he insisted I mention he can bench press more than 100kg

**click on below**
HD Gallery Link

Protoform D9 Marc Rheinard signed by TD Takashima

I met Marc Rheinard in 2004 during my attendance at the 2004 IFMAR ISTC Worlds.
At that time, he was the upcoming new talent in the scene of electric touring cars and went on to dominate the entire event and become the 2004 World Champion. Since then I've been admiring his silky smooth driving style and amazing aggressiveness, as he is possibly the best overtaker in this class if not any class he races on.

Fast forward many years and I decide to attend an ETS race in 2015 at the great Hudy Arena where I get the chance to meet another Rheinard, Marc's older brother Toni.
A great guy, very friendly and always willing to help whoever approached him for assistance. During my 2nd ETS attendance at the 2019 Madrid race, under very difficult weather conditions, I met Toni again who was once more very kind, doing anything possible to help his father's organization and every racer approaching him.

So come to 2020 and Toni includes a surprise in one order I received from his shop, an original signed body by Marc, painted by none other than the great TD Takashima. A very fitting present considering Marc's bodies now feature the AWESOMATIX brand, which is what I've also been running since 2011.
This is certainly a body to stay preserved and not hit the track, at least under racing conditions.
Thank you Toni and Marc and hope all goes well for your future.

FULL HD GALLERY ALBUM

AWESOMATIX A800MMX

New from AWESOMATIX is the latest version of their belt drive chassis A800, the MMX.
Integrating now all the latest features it is a fully loaded weapon, performing around the world with great results.

I had the pleasure to build an all new fresh kit, my first built of a new kit for 3 years as I've only been adding updates till now to an aging chassis, and I am happy to observe improvements in quality in all areas, in what already was a very well manufactured kit.
It is at a point which you can call it absolutely flawless.

FULL GALLERY ALBUM

Note:
Photos include a few options, such as the magnificent one piece servo holder - steering arm, the motor mount centre weights, the low profile rear body post, cooling fan mount, carbon front bumper brace, ADC dampers, one piece aluminum short battery holders and aluminum top deck screws.

Bittydesign Hyper ULT

Latest entry from Bittydesign in the current trend of front-ish cab low profile bodies is the Hyper body in Lightweight and Ultra Lightweight versions.
This is the ULT weighing at approximately 75gr with a good amount of paint and rear reinforced wing supports.
The design is very good, providing great rigidity thus not requiring any additional components to keep it stable and maintain its shape while racing.
Aesthetically it is the prettiest of what is currently available, but this a subjective opinion.
Future track time will show its performance.

ZooRacing Hellcat 1/10 TC Body

So can the best get better.
Early reports are positive. Probably at the next big race we will have a clear picture.
The design is quite aggresive, with a long pointy front end and a curved rear where the wing follows the curved line to increase downforce.
Very impressive work.