Our Beginner’s Guide is written for all RC hobbyists who have never been at an ETS event, or at any other “toy car race” in their surroundings. In the first episode of our ETS Beginners Guide, we like to inform you about the general process during an ETS race weekend.
So, if you are relatively new in the RC hobby, you can learn many things about racing and especially about the ETS material, the ETS rules, and why they are structured like they are. More exciting and informative articles will follow in the very near future.
Our Beginner`s Guide is your go-to source to learn about the Euro Touring Series, 1:10 scale onroad technology, and why pro drivers are doing what they do 😊
Are you good enough to attend an ETS? Surely you are!
Many RC racers who are racing on an entry club level are asking themselves the following question very often: “Am I experienced and/ or fast enough to go to an ETS? Or will everybody lap me when I will finish dead last?”
Well, it is understandable that you might have things like that in your mind, but we can reassure you directly. Due to the fact that the ETS is always having many entries in all of the 6 racing classes, the quality of drivers is mostly well spread from rookies to the highly professional pro-drivers.
What does that mean for you now? As long as you are able to turn some solid laps around a racetrack, there is no reason for you to stay at home. You are more than welcome to race with us at the biggest 1:10 scale onroad RC racing series in the world – the ETS. Don`t be afraid or shy, everybody will welcome you with a smile and you can learn so many things during our events while also making new friends (and competitors 😊).
Pro Tipp: Don`t hesitate too long with your decision. If you want to experience an ETS race, JUST DO IT. Travel to the race as a FAN and you will love it!
How to sign up for an ETS event?
When you have finally thrown the monkey off your shoulders and the decision to attend an ETS is made, you need to let us know 😊. To register for an ETS event and the racing class of your choice, you need to place your entry on the website of MyRcm (www.myrcm.ch). This platform is probably the most used website around the globe to sign up for RC events of any kind.
You can create your own account (100% free of any cost) and enter your personal data and transponder number there. You can also leave us a note if you like to sit together with friends or a certain team. To sign up for an event, you simply need to select it together with your desired racing class and follow the instructions on the page. Signing up for a racing event will only take you a minute or two.
We always open the registration for our ETS events many weeks ahead (6-8 weeks) to give everybody enough time to fix vacation days, book hotels or flights, and to talk with friends and teammates about the race and the perfect preparation. We always publish the opening of a registration period for a race here on our ETS website and on our Facebook channel. It sounds easy, and that`s what it is!
Pro Tipp: Sign up for the event of your choice early and book your accommodation. This prevents you from paying higher hotel room prices for sure!
Now you need to figure out where to stay during the event and how to travel there. Most locations are featuring enough hotels and other accommodations in the near surroundings, and it should be not a big problem to find something which suits your likings if you plan ahead of time.
The event starts – what is going on?
When “the day” has come, everybody travels to the race and arrives one day before, or early in the morning at day 1 of the event. After arriving and setting up your reserved pit space, you can soak up your first ETS impressions while checking the track and everything around which is well prepared in most of the cases.
While the first day normally is a Thursday, it is all about free practice in groups. This day is not officially part of the event, but 90% of the participating drivers are present to make use of the maximum possible track time. The cost for the Thursday practice (10€) is not included in the ETS entry fee which is 90€ per class including one set of race tires.
When we are racing outdoors, the fee of the Thursday practice goes to the hosting club to support them as good as possible. At indoor races, it helps to cover the huge amount of costs for renting the venue, buying new ETS carpet, and all these things.
Pro Tipp: Bring your car and your equipment well prepared to the event. Everything you can do in advance will help you to have a smooth and relaxed time at the event. Check that your car has the correct weight and check that your car and body shell is complying with the ETS rules. Thursday is the perfect day for these tasks.
On Thursday, you will have 5-6 rounds of free practice in groups with each practice run scheduled for 4 or 5 minutes depending on the number of overall entries. This day will help you to learn the track, to set-up your car, and to get familiar with everything around you. You can and must also pick up your handout motor (for all classes excluding modified), and your rental speed controller if you need one. Use the evening for a nice dinner with your friends or teammates and you will already feel the spirit of the ETS.
Friday brings the heat as racing goes underway!
After the free practice on Thursday, the next day will be a lot more intense as seeding practice and the first round of qualifying is going to happen. Most of the time, there is a chance for some free practice in the morning for everybody who was not able to practice on Thursday. After that, one or two more free practice runs are getting everybody up to speed again.
Pro Tipp: Watch the drivers from the fastest heats to learn how they master the track. You can watch their lines, breaking points, and how their cars look on track. It can be a great learning experience to just watch the best in the business going for it!
The timing system is set to count the overall time of your three fastest consecutive laps. It doesn`t matter if you drive your fastest times in seeding practice one or two, just try to “nail” three hot laps in a row 😊and you will see where you end up.
There will be a ranking list after seeding practice which we use to then set up the groups for the upcoming 4 rounds of qualifying. The fastest 10-11 drivers (depending on track size) will race together in a qualifying group, and all following drivers will be grouped in the same way down to the slowest drivers from seeding practice. The benefit of doing so is the fact that drivers of an almost similar speed will race together in qualifying making it easier.
Pro Tipp: Ask other drivers how to manage your race tires. Sometimes it is good to break in your tires (FWD or F1 class), while in the touring car classes it is more important to use new tires in the right moment. Everybody will be happy to tell you some secrets about the tire management!
Time to show what you`ve got when it is time for Qualifying
After all that practice and seeding runs, the first round of qualifying is starting on Friday afternoon. It is always a magic moment as everybody needs to show the full speed and potential over 5 minutes. Clean and fast driving is required to score a good result. All cars are starting by the call of their number, and everybody is racing against the clock only.
The race announcer will tell you if there is a faster car coming from behind. It is all about the drivers to work together and not block each other or to lose much time when letting someone by. Drive your own race, but also try to have kind of an overview about what`s going on. And listen to the announcer who will always try to help everybody out there with information about positions, lap times, and the forecast for the overall results of the run.
When the run is over, bring your car back to the pit lane and proceed immediately to your marshall position. Congratulations, you have now mastered your first ever ETS qualifying run.
Pro Tipp: Just try to do a safe and clean Q1 without big mistakes. This will take some pressure away and you can attack a little more in the remaining three rounds on Saturday!
On Saturday you need to be in the best shape of your live (joking). Three more qualifiers are on for the day, and you can try to go as fast as you can. Even if you mess up one or two races by making mistakes or destroying your car (shit happens), you just need one mega fast run to qualify a little higher as you may have expected.
Pro Tipp: Don`t expect to win the event when it is your first ETS 😊 Just try to have fun and surprise yourself with your qualifying result. And do not forget: You are here to have FUN 😊!
At the ETS, we are counting 2 out of 4 qualifiers to set the grid for the finals. Your best two results will be combined, and you will see in which final you will start. The A-Main is the final for the top 10 qualified drivers, followed by the B-Main, C-Main, D-Main and so on.
The Finals – time for some serious racing!
After qualifying is done you will see happy, and also disappointed drivers walking through the pits. Sometimes, the emotions are going wild but after some minutes everybody calms down again. As most of the participants are investing a lot of time, preparation, practice, money, and own expectation into the event, not everybody can reach their goals. “That`s racing”.
After you have qualified for your Main, you may need to change your starting number on your windscreen for the grid start. For example, you have qualified 6th on the grid for the D-Main. That means that you will start always from P6 in your three D-Main finals. You can battle for positions with the drivers in your main and you will have a lot of fun for sure.
Try to get a clean start and hope that nobody collects you in turn one 😊. Enjoy the races and be fair with your competitors. Sometimes, crazy things happen on track and normally nobody does this on purpose. After the three finals your final position at your first ever ETS is defined and if you are the lucky winner of your main, you will receive a nice trophy during the trophy ceremony!
Pro Tipp: Watch the A-Mains (or better – qualify for it😊). You can probably see the best RC racing you have ever watched live and it is always a great atmosphere when everybody stands trackside to watch their favorite drivers going for the win.
That`s it – done and dusted. You will travel home with many impressions, learnings, new friends, and memories that last forever. Your first ETS race is in the books.
Comin soon: More “Beginner`s Guide” articles with detailed information about ETS equipment and technical insights!
