Pack Derby (Warning: lots of pictures)

[resullivan]

Ended up coming in 9th in districts. Kind of disappointed. There were some issues with the timer. Not sure that played a part. They are suppose to post the results online. I am interested to see the times. Already have things to improve next year if the rules permit. More camber, get the wheels lighter, and polish the bores.

[pgosselin]

Ended up coming in 9th in districts. Kind of disappointed. There were some issues with the timer. Not sure that played a part. They are suppose to post the results online. I am interested to see the times. Already have things to improve next year if the rules permit. More camber, get the wheels lighter, and polish the bores.

Don't get discouraged. It takes a while to get better. For the first couple of years we would always run somewhere in the middle of the group at District. But we got faster every year and started winning trophies at about the three-year mark. Ironically, it was my Tiger cub that won the first trophy. That didn't sit very well with my Bear Cub who had gone to District three years in a row and come up short. Fortunately, he got his District trophy the next year. Just stick with it. It takes a while. You'll get good advice around here.

Paul

[resullivan]

9th at our district is very respectable as it is very competitive. The top 20 get trophies. Last year we were 4th in pack and 18th in district. This year we were 1st in pack and 9th at district, so it was a pretty big improvement. I think our car was faster than the place we got. I am not sure if I used to much graphite, but I think our last run was our fastest. They are supposed to put the results on the website, but they still aren't up.

[pgosselin]

9th at our district is very respectable as it is very competitive. The top 20 get trophies. Last year we were 4th in pack and 18th in district. This year we were 1st in pack and 9th at district, so it was a pretty big improvement. I think our car was faster than the place we got. I am not sure if I used to much graphite, but I think our last run was our fastest. They are supposed to put the results on the website, but they still aren't up.

Sounds like you're moving in the right direction. I tent to use a tad too much graphite, too. I'm still trying get the proper feel for it. Might not be the graphite at all. You're racing on an unfamiliar track. If it's a different distance than your Pack Track, that can also make a difference. Our best car this year tends to perform better the longer the track is. It's at a disadvantage on a shorter track.

Paul

[rpcarpe]

Yes,
He's moving in the right direction, it was a 49' Freedom track, aluminum, a very gentle curve. Most the cars could have used more aggressive COG's, but the track was the 'Great Unknown' until Friday before the race. Other scheduled track backed out due to software/timer issues.

Huntsville has a lot of engineers, and very active parents in the PWD. I don't have final results yet, but I do know the 5th place car never lost a heat, only took fourth. Fast times were in the 3.7 sec range, quite a few 3.8s, slow cars at 3.9+.

Seems like the public workshops helped quite a few racers, highly recommend them.

[resullivan]

I think our car only got into the 3.7 range once and that was the fourth run. I really think I had to much graphite on there.

[resullivan]

Just got a spreadsheet via another user on here with the average times from district. My son's average was 3.7976. I am pretty sure our 4 and final run was a 3.76, so this adds to my thought that there was to much graphite. Also, it looks like my son qualified for council because they did the top 3 for each rank.

[resullivan]

Also, looking at the times I am pretty confident a bad time got posted for at least 1st place. The average time for first was 3.6544 and second was 3.7463. The difference between 1st and 2nd is more than the difference between 2nd and 20th.

[resullivan]

Just got back from council. Council was run a little different than pack and district. They had 3 categories and a championship race. The 3 categories were Tiger, Cubs (wolves and bears), and webelos. They took the 3 fastest cars from each for the champion ship race. In each category the top 3 received trophies and in the championship only the fastest car received a trophy.

My son's car did better in council than it did at district. I think it was because the council track had a more aggressive transition. Anyway, my son came in second in the Cubs category (behind the the 1st place car from our district) and 2nd overall (again behind the 1st place car from our district). Our district was very competitive at council. I am not sure I talked to everyone there from our district, but I know our district came in at least 1st in each category, and took the top 3 in the championship race.

[whodathunkit]

resullivan,
Congrats to your son for placeing 2nd in the Cub category.
Sounds like you have some really good competitive car builders in your district.
The road to success is always under construction & it has its bumps & turns.

[resullivan]

Thanks. Glad it is over and ready for next year all at the same time. My son had a great time at all of the events.