JBRL Round 8, Hot Rod Hobbies
Saugus, CA
10/20/2012
By: Chris Blais
Round 8 of the JBRL series would be at Jimmy Babcocks Hot Rod Hobbies Raceway. This would be my first time at this facility and I came prepared with plenty of Pro-Line tires for the race. My cars were dialed in with my Pro-Line tires and the track was nicely prepped.
In Pro 4, I was able to grab the TQ in the 2nd qualifying round by 1.5 seconds (TQ = Top Qualifier). I had a good main race with a couple of small mistakes but would end up 3rd and finished the season in 2nd overall, just 1 point ahead of 3rd. My Coyote Hobbies Raceway Truck was dialed in with my new Pro-Line Ion Tires, Venom Batteries, Tekin RX8/ Pro 4 motor, and BCE Chassis.
Round 8 would also be the first time for me to drive my new Team Associated RC8.2E buggy. I built it the week prior and decided to take it to the race. I was the 3rd qualifier and finished up 6th in the main event. I was setup a little loose for the cooler temperature and couldn’t put the power down. I will definately be setup for the next race.
My Open 4wd buggy Race went pretty well bringing home a 5th place with my Team Associated B44.1 buggy. In Expert Stock Buggy, I finished 7th place and 8th for the year end points with my Team Associated B4.1 buggy. Next year, I plan to focus more on the 4wd classes which I enjoy the most. Thank you to Coyote Hobbies, Pro-Line, Venom, Tekin, Team Associated, and BCE for all your support. It’s great companies like you that make this hobby so fun.
2012 JBRL Round 8 Pro 4 Short Course with Nick and Chris Blais
2012 JBRL Round 8 Open 4WD Buggy at Hot Rod Hobbies Raceway
Pro 4 Series Top 3
Ryan Dunford 1st, Chris Blais 2nd, Doug “Casper” Nielsen 3rd
Sportsman 4wd SC, Round 8 Podium
Martin Blais would get his first podium of the series at JBRL Round 8 with a 3rd place in Sportsman 4wd SC. He was extremely happy! Martin would also finish 6th place in the Expert Stock SC Main event.
Season Final: Round 8 JBRL at Hot Rod Hobbies
By: Nick Blais
Well finally, the last race of the year. It’s been a long great series with just the right amount of races to compete in. It’s pretty easy to plan one race a month and a great series for anyone to get into, novice to expert racers. Well for this race, we were back outdoors on a blue groove track, surprisingly didn’t eat up your tires too fast. Got up to Hot Rod Raceway around noon on Friday, checked into the Blais Racing camp, then proceeded to get some pretty good track time in as most people had not arrived yet. I got some good set ups pretty easy, mainly changing sway bars and some minor adjustments to shock oil.
After waking up on Saturday morning and getting outside, I realized that it was misting out and would continue most of the day like that. While practicing, I noticed that my Pro-Line body actually had “real mud” on it. After the first qualifiers, the mist had lightened up and it was to stay pretty cool the rest of the day.
Qualifying went good for my 1/8 scale class, as I was to come in 2nd only getting beat by a little because of my bad tire gluing job. I just bought an Associated 8.2E since the last race and I know that is the only reason why I was going so good. My Losi was old and sloppy and it was just time to trade her in. My second qualifier went even better, getting the win but missing the TQ by less than a second. My tire selection for my pro 4 class was not quite right for the temperatures and the outskirts of the corners of the track needed to be blown off. 1st Qualifier, I was all over the place and finished up toward the back. 2nd Qualifier, I came back to claim a 6th place on the starting grid for the final. My Pro 2 class went about the same with just the wrong pick of tires for the first qualifier. After mounting a set of Pro-Line Ion tires, it was to all turn around for me in all my classes. It helped me turn 1 full lap extra in my Pro 2 class sticking me mid pack for the main.
Time for the mains! Now that I have all my Pro-Line tires mounted up to my BCE chassis and stuck to the track. I can put to use the mass power from my Venom batteries and my Tekin electronics and put the power to the ground. 1/8 scale race 8 started smooth with me starting in the 2nd position on the grid. I drove smooth the entire race with the Associated 8.2E not missing a beat, took me to a runner up spot which was a season best.
For my short course classes, Pro 4 race 10, I was off to an awesome start going wide and railing the outside of the first turn, coming out third. Within the first lap I was able to get into 1st place. Continuing on with the race, there was to be mistakes and collisions with other drivers being that everyone is going for the lead position, tempers were starting to flare as all the leaders were just running away. I was able to make it to a 4th place finish with all the drama. Pro 2 race 20 was the first race that I had to race in the dark under the light. I finally found out that I just can’t drive at night with the black pipes and the shadows that the lighting provides. I was to finish toward the back of the pack. Good news I would finish the series off in 3rd overall for 1/8 scale, 4th for Pro 4, and 4th for Pro 2.
Overall this was a great series and I will be back next year. I would like to definitely thank Jimmy Babcock for putting on a great series. Thanks to all his sponsors that gave out many giveaways throughout the series from T-shirts to Venom batteries and car kits. Also to mention was the payback from JBRL for the top five spots in every class. I received $270!!! My only suggestions would be to stress the rules on the smoking in the pit areas and the cursing/ bad attitudes on the drivers stand. We are all human and we make mistakes plus the fact to make the hobby stand out to a new community of people we all have to be a little more professional. Bring the family and friends out next year and join the fun. See you all next year!
1/8 Electric Series Top 3
Justin Lew 1st, Scott Wolf 2nd, Nick Blais 3rd
2012 JBRL 1/8 Scale Buggy A Main Round 8 at Hot Rod Hobbies
2012 JBRL Round 8 Pro 2 Short Course A Main at Hot Rod Hobbies Raceway
Thanks to our awesome team sponsors:
Interested in becoming part of the Blais Racing RC Team. Just send us an email at contact@blaisracingservices.com
Blais Racing Services offers engine rebuilding and online parts for all your Motorcycle, ATV, & UTV needs. Owned and operated by Chris Blais, former Factory KTM Dakar Rally Racer. We specialize in KTM/ Honda, but can work on anything. I do all of the engine work myself. www.BlaisRacingServices.com
