This last weekend was the US Offroad Championships. Unfortunately, we didn’t attend this year. This is Scotty’s race, and the best carpet race on the circuit. The environment is unmatched by any other event in my opinion.
AE found some serious speed with the 2WD this weekend, and it was awesome to watch. I’m pretty sure they were testing different geometries. I had a hunch this might happen after seeing the video Aydin posted from RC One—his car looked totally dialed, especially the way it sucked into the corners, really “in the track.” He put down TQ runs in all three qualifiers and took wins in A1 and A2 in Cleveland, making it a perfect weekend. Curious about the pace, I dug into the setup and saw he was running what looked like a B6.4/B7 hybrid, with B6 front arms, a B6.1 transmission, and a wider-than-stock D-Block. Not sure what rear arms he had on there, though.
Timing is everything! Over the past couple of years, we’ve tested a lot, and most of this data has been shared with AE and our followers. When it comes to design and setup, one race always comes to mind: The Florida Carpet Championships. This event draws more talent than any other carpet race in the USA and demands the most from both car and driver. Driving “round” is essential here, and our European friends often excel at it more than we do. A few U.S. drivers have mastered it, but many haven’t. The culture at many American-style tracks is “hard in/hard out,” which usually isn’t the best approach at Beachline. Cleveland is another race were driving round can be critical.
We just released a 3-part series showing how the B7 can face challenges on these types of tracks. This is a perfect example of important the roll center on your car is. I’m thrilled AE has used the data to improve and go faster; that’s the ultimate goal. It feels like all the work we’ve put in over the past two years has been validated. Our customers played a big role in that, and for that, I’m grateful.
Thanks Again!!
Chuck
