The second round of the EWS took place this weekend and attracted 114 drivers to place their entry for the most famous winter racing series in the UK.
LRP Modified Touring
Elliott TQ’d all four rounds, behind was a nice fight through the qualifiers between Kyle and Alex for 2nd, with Kyle getting the nod. In the final, Kyle stayed in touch with Elliott, but had to worry more about defending from Alex behind. Elliott opened up a small gap as they worked through lapped traffic, and Alex couldn’t get close enough to seriously challenge Kyle. Chris Grainger had a lonely race after qualifying fourth and finishing fourth.
Zak TQ’d ahead of Tony and Andy Murray. Andy dropped back in the opening laps, and there was a great battle for 2nd between Tony and Billy. Zak checked out. Billy lined up a great pass on the final lap to take 2nd place, leaving a Tony to settle for 3rd
1st Zak Finlay (Xray/Zombie/Zombie) 2nd Billy Fletcher (Schumacher/Team Powers/Optipower) 3rd Tony Broad (Xray/Zombie/Zombie)
Ride / MB Front Wheel
Ben TQ’d from Nathan, and had a clean drive through the final, so the top three finished in grid order.
1st Ben Moorey (Schumacher) 2nd Nathan Parker (missing from photo) (Awesomatix) 3rd Andy Faulkes (Destiny)
In the third episode of our ETS Beginners Guide we will inform you about the racing tires of the Euro Touring Series, and what to do (and not to do) with them during the event!
First, you should make yourself one thing clear again: The tires are the only part of you race car which is in contact with the surface of the racetrack. Tires are probably the most important thing in racing – but their importance gets shifted aside very often. Drivers are caring a lot about many other things when working on their car setups, but the tires are having one of the biggest impact most of the time!
People are investing a lot of time (and money) in buying option parts, titanium screws, tungsten weights, flex bumpers…. But they are practicing with old tires all the time! If you really want to make a step forward with your racing, you should care more about practicing with better (and new) tires from time to time. The car reacts completely different compared to old tires and you need to practice that “feeling for new tires”!
Patrick Beck (DE) ToniSport
Handout tires for everybody
But let`s go some steps backwards. At the Euro Touring Series, every racer gets one set of race tires which is included in the entry fee. Depending on the racing class, drivers can buy an additional second or third set of tires as well. All sets of tires are marked with a number, which is clearly assigned to a driver. Racers are only allowed to use the sets of tires which they picked up for themselves – sharing tires with others is not allowed to keep the chances equal for everybody. All race tires can get used with the start of the timed (seeding) practice. Before seeding practice, every participant can use as many (or fewer) own tires for all rounds of free practice as he wants.
Pro Tipp: You can practice with the tires you have in your box. There is no need to use a new set in every round of free practice. For sure, you will see the top drivers doing this when they are fighting for the win at an ETS weekend. But when you are doing your first or second ETS race and you just want to have a good time with your friends, there is no need to use a crazy amount of tires in practice!
The handout tire system is working great at almost every big electric 1:10 scale onroad race and is a major puzzle piece behind the success of the Euro Touring Series since it`s early days. For sure, it is a lot of work for Jutta Treder and Marlo Prümper (who are always at the ETS, caring about tires and motors) to mark and control all these tires, but the limited amount of allowed tire sets is very important to keep the costs for the racers somehow under control. Another positive aspect of the handout tires is the possibility to give tires from the same batch of production to all racers!
The fact that tire additive increases the tires (and cars) performance on track is nothing new. Tire additive is a chemical substance, which gets applied to the tire surface before each run. The additive makes the tire more sticky which results in more overall grip on track, especially in the first laps of the race. So if you have ever asked yourself “Do I really need additive? Does it makes sense?”, there is only ons simple answer: YES!
During free practice, you can use your own additive and also your own break cleaner to clean the tires between the runs. When the official race starts on Friday, the Euro Touring Series provides special additive tables where everybody needy to go to “sauce” the tires. You will only find the ETS additive (MR33 V3 or MR33 V4) there, and you must use it. The same is for the break cleaner. The ETS crew is putting Würth brake cleaner on all pit tables and nothing else is allowed to use. Easy and transparent rules for eerybody!
Pro Tipp: Practice at your home track and use the ETS tire additive when preparing for it. There are so many additives out there and as they are really different, it makes no sense to practice like hell for an TS race with a different tire sauce!
Do tire warmers make sense?
Next clear answer: YES 🙂 Tire warmers are very important when it comes to outdoor racing in the touring car and FWD class. Drivers are saucing their tires, and put their tire warmers on with a tissue between tire and warming cap. The tire warmers are staying on the tire for 10-20 minutes at 60-75° degrees, and it is not just about to “warm up the tire”. It is more about creating the best temperature in the tire while the additive is on. This generates an even more grippy tire surface befire the run and everybody is using these warmers during the outdoor season. At indoor races, they are not neccesary and we do not see them at any time on pit tables!
How to prepare a set of rubber tires for the race?
When it comes to tire preperation, every driver has kind of his own way to do it. When running in a touring car, or in the FWD class, it is allowed to remove the center line of the tire with a cutter (not with sanding it down on a tire sander as seen on the picture below). Removing the center line is the only modification of the rubber which is allowed to do.
But there is way more you can do with your rubber tires. Here we have listed some tipps for you:
Check that every tire is perfectly glued onto the rim.
Check that no glue is on the contact surface of the tire.
Put every tire on a fine digital scale and write down the weight (into the wheel).
Use the heavier tires in front, the lighter ones in the rear.
Mark every tire with the position you like to mount them onto the car. FR = Front Right, RL = Rear Left, and so on…
Use a tire roller (available from MR33 and Boom RC) or a different tool, and roll your tires forwards and backwards on your setup board .(with pressure from above) to let hard glueing spots “crack” ad to increase the air gap between tire and foam insert.
Clean your tire properly with brake cleaner and put them back into the a plastic bag until you need them.
Make sure that you mount them properly on our car.
Keep in mind to go to the additive table on time to use the additive for the right amount of time (mostly between 10 and 15 minutes).
Another fact to keep in mind is the time you want to use the tire warmers (outdoor racing) after you have applied the additive.
We recommend to set the temperature of your tire warmers to a value between 60 and 75 degrees.
Clean and check your tires after every run.
On some tracks (especially outdoors) it makes sense to change the tires from left to right and backwards after every run.
As we already said: This is just a basic guideline of things you can do. Find a way that works fine for you and which feels good, and stick with it. You can ask all the others around you and you will learn a lot of great and also silly things for sure 🙂
The Formula tires at the ETS are different from all the others as we are using foam tires. They are ready to use out of the package and there is no need to put them on a tire truer to sand them down (like in 1:12 scale pan car racing). Basically, you just need to mount them onto your car, applying tire additive, and you are ready to go.
But as there are also some secrets about foam tires (which our ETS reporter does not know) we have some tipps from IFMAR World Cup winner and reigning ETS champion Andreas Stiebler (Austria) for you:
So outdoors I change the tyres from left to right after every battery. Also on the front axle, so that the camber is constantly on the tyres and the handling in left and right-hand bends remains the same. This is not absolutely necessary indoors, as tyre wear is virtually non-existent. What you should not forget with the foam tyres is that the rollout changes with heavy tyre wear on the rear axle and with the diameter of the contact tyres it can be said that for every 1mm smaller diameter you have to translate one tooth longer in gearing at 64dp. For example, if you are training with used tyres that have a diameter of 59mm and you change to racing tyres with a diameter of 61mm, you have to reduce the gear ratio by two teeth to keep the same rollout. Indoors, a glued sidewall is almost always necessary with the grip that the ETS has and this should also be cleaned with brake cleaner after every run, otherwise the edge becomes sticky and builds up grip again. Driving with solid axle has also proven to be the best choice since the indoor foam rubber tyres and outdoor I use a gear diff all the time. As far as additives are concerned, it is important that the tyres are dry when you go out on the track. I usually sauce the rear tyres longer than the front, e.g. 20 minutes at the rear to 10 minutes at the front. Especially indoors, I always sauce the full tread at the front and not, for example, the inner half, as I have the feeling that the unlubricated part of the tyre becomes more clogged than the lubricated part. I prefer to only sauce the front of the tyre very briefly but over the entire surface. I use masking tape to clean the tyres. I bought one of the cheapest ones on Amazon in a pack of 5, but the reviews said that the adhesive strength could be better. 😅 You shouldn’t use armoured tape like this as it sticks far too well, I speak from experience.
The 1:12 scale IFMAR World Championships took place last weekend for 21st time in it`s history. Beachline RC in Florida was the host and the whole event produced high quality pan car racing!
Orlowski wins first ever IFMAR title
In the prestigeous Modified class, Michal Orlowski was able to follow all the big names from the past like Neisinger, Hirosaka, Spashett, Matsukura, and Rheinard (to only name a few) and won his first world championship title from second on the grid. After qualifying, USA driver Kemp Anderson was TQ with Orlowski and Rheinard starting second and third. While A1 went to Anderson, the US boy was not able to get it done in A2 where Orlowski won ahead of Rheinard and Hagberg. The title was on the line in A3 and the start was one to forget. Anderson`s car did not get off the line and Rheinard crashed right into the back – the race was done for both, same as their hopes for the world championship title. Meanwhile, Michal Orlowski took the win in A3 and crowned himself with one of the most prestigeous and historic titles of the sport. It was the first ever world title for a polish RC racer and Orlowski celebrated it together with his Schumacher team in Florida. Marc Rheinard and Alexander Hagberg jouined the new world champ on the podium at Beachline RC.
Mächler becomes second world champion in the Spec class
The spec class (13.5 Motors) saw a big fight between many drivers in the A-Main. Top qualifier Max Mächler and his teammate Mark Stiles (both Awesomatix) were batteling it out for the world championship title. Stiles won A2, and Mächler took A1 and A3 to wrap up a very first world championship title for himself and the Awesomatix brand. A well-deserved win for Max and the team and a moment which “Mad Max” will never forget!
Congratulations to Michal Orlowski (PL) and Max Mächler (GER) for your achievements!
Power HD has announced the signing of Sven Rodewald from Germany, who are among the top drivers in the large scale racing.
Being the 1:6 Large Scale 4WD Off-Road European Champion, 6 – Times National Champion, Multi-times Euro’s Finalist, Multiply 1:5 Large-Scale Touringcar GP Race’s finalist, Sven Rodewald will be using Power HD high end servos GTS-6 & GTS-7 in his 1/6 Off-road and 1:5 On-road Car!
Sven has the following to say: During the last year I tried the Power HD GTS-6 and GTS-7 servos, and its was a pleasure to use them! The whold time the servos performed just Great! Im Happy to join the Power HD factory team for the upcoming season!
After having announced his retirement from Nitro racing, former IFMAR world champion Dominc Greiner has joined Serpent now – a team he raced for in the past. Greiner will now race their actual 1:10 scale electric touring car and the world of RC is already excited about it 🙂 Will we see him soon at the ETS?
This is what Dominic had to say about it in the official posting on Serpent`s Facebook page:
I´m very happy to join back to my family Serpent and very excited to use and help the team with the X20/24. As I decided to stop nitro I thought electric is the best option I have, and as I saw the first pictures from the new 1:10 electric car it was an easy decision to use Serpent. I´m pretty sure the car has a lot of potential, could test it already indoors on the carpet and was very surprised and happy about the performance. I want to thank Joaquin and Mr. Lau for the warm welcome back.
Japanese company Axon has publiched more pictures and information about their new (and first) complete touring car kit – the TC10/3. The release date is still open, but we like to share the new imopressions with you as Axon is one of the ETS supporting companies.
The AXON TC10 has continuously evolved as a high-end touring car with outstanding performance under the product concept of providing the ultimate high-end touring car.
The new TC10/3 is a masterpiece of the highest order, offering not only speed, but also a refined handling experience and a total balance to a higher dimension.
Axon is pleased to present the details of the machine and its price as a pre-release.
More detailed information will be released at a later date, so please look forward to it!
List price 99.800 yen (excluding tax)
Please note that some parts may be different from the product.
You can find out about the features of the car HERE:
Awesomatix has released new parts for their current A800R Touring car. The parts will be available at Hobbyshops very soon. Read the new parts offiacial description:
ABH Adjustable Battery Holder set Awesomatix ABH Adjustable BattersyHolder set. Optional Alloy Battery Holders for A800R. Width for battery adjustable via sliding the AM280R in and out. Length for battery adjustable via P68 Battery adjusters (kit parts). Only suitable for A800R. Total weight: ~6g.
AM19-LTL Upper Arm Holder x 2 In normal positions these holders provide +1mm longer top link compared to AM19R. Reverse mounting is also possible to get extra long top links which are ~10mm longer than AM19R. (requires optional AT25-2 turnbuckles!).
It also offers an intermediate mounting position which provides ~8mm longer top links. AM19-LTL should be mounted reverse for that. One link mounted on the AM19-LTL and the other link on the Bulkhead. (requires optional AT25-2 turnbuckles!).
+1mm longer top links layout with AM19-LTL is recommended for carpet tracks. +10mm and +8mm extra long top links layout with AM19-LTL is recommended for asphalt tracks.
AM15R Battery Nut (2) Awesomatix AM15R Battery Nut x 2. Only suitable for the use with AM280R.
AM280R Battery Holder (2) Awesomatix AM280R Alloy Battery Holder x 2. Only suitable for the use with AM15R
Right after the first carpet race of the actual season, it is time to talk about cars and equipment which was in use at the Transworld Hotel Auefeld in Hann. Münden. As always, the RC industry is not standing still and we saw some new and interesting products again. For sure we can not spotlight everything, but here are at least some of the things we have seen!
Cars
Yokomo BD12 much improved on carpet
The year 2022 was very good one for Team Yokomo. With their BD11, they won two ETS races (Krapp and Prümper), and celebrated a vice-world championship in Italy where Christopher Krapp finished second behind world champion Bruno Coelho. For 2023, Yokomo released their new BD12 car with some major changes and improvements. But as the new ETS season started in Apeldoorn, the team never was as strong as with the BD11 in 2022 and the search for the ultimate performance started. It took the whole team around Krapp, Lee, Vogl, Jasmin, Hovgaard, Prümper, and Jung the whole summer to improve their cars step by step. With the start of the carpet season, Yokomo was back on pace and could immediateley win races. Yannic Prümper won the TOS in Hasloh ahead of Awesomatix driver Marc Rheinard, while Enrico Jung won another TOS race in Augsburg. After this very promising start to the indoor season, the team traveled to ETS RD4 in Hann. Münden with high hopes – and delivered.
When looking onto the results, it is maybe not looking perfect but as we have seen the team on track over the whole weekend, it was clearly visible that Christopher Krapp, Yannic Prümper (Modified), and Enrico Jung (Pro Stock) had a very good pace in all practice runs and in a big part of qualifying. Krapp and Prümper both were leading a several times in their heats and an even better result would have been possible too. In the end, the team had two cars in the Modified A-Main, and another two in the Pro Stock final. Performance wise it was a step forward for the Japanese racing factory and we are already looking forward to ETS RD5 in Daun.
Iris ONE.05 FWD – a real contender
There was a new FWD car in competition at ETS RD4 – the Iris ONE.05 FWD. With this car being the first FWD platform for the relatively new Iris brand, their results had been fantastic with a second (Manuel Stankowitz) and sixth (Andreas Myrberg) place overall. Manuel Stankowitz was able to TQ the first round of qualifying with the new car and his speed wa sgood all weekend long. Hard work pays off and Iris car designer Andreas Myrberg was more than happy after the race. Let`s see how the Iris brand will move forward!
Torsten Baggendorf was able to win his first ETS race in Hann. Müden. The ARC driver used the actual A10-2023 car to dominate the race ahead of a very strong competition. For ARC it was the first victory at the ETS since a very long time (Lars Hoppe won for ARC many years ago). The A10-2023 of Torsten Baggendorf looked amazingly good all weekend long and it was great to see a different car winning the race as everybody would have expected an Awesomatix or Xray car on the absolute top!
The new LRP Graphene4.1 5100mAh pack dominates stock classes
Batteries are always crucial – especially in onroad stock classes which we have many at the ETS. Battery manufacturers are batteling for every piece of the cake and the LiPo development goes further and further every year. LRP released a new Graphene 4.1 Stock Spec battery some weeks ago, and the pack was the most used one in the A-Mains of our stock touring car classes (40+ Masters, Pro Stock, and 21.5 Stock).
There had been 13 out of 33 A-Main drivers who used the 5100mAh LCG Stock Spec battery in the A-Mains of these racing classes, while a total of 18 drivers used an LRP or Nosram battery to power their touring cars. The Graphene4.1 Ultra LCG 5100mAh battery had a great punch over the whole runtime, provides a super low center of gravity, and seems to be very good for the rest of the carpet season!
Other companies like Ruddog Racing, Intellect, Gens Ace, Orca, and Orion had also been in the A-Mains with some drivers, but LRP clearly stamped authority on the battery side of the ETS stock classes for now!
Boom RC is a new, and very small brand from ETS racer Michel Zierold. He is a clever guy and enjoys to create 3D printed stuff that can really make your RC life easier. We have seen his tire roller in the pits very often – a tool that can help you to roll and prepare your race tires before the first run on track.
Michel also made some nice looking steering wheels for Sanwa and Futaba radios (FlySky to follow soon), and you can find other bits such as winglets or charger stands from Boom RC. Michel Zierold is also selling his stuff under the MR33 brand at ToniSport to reach out even more customers. We are excited to see what comes next from Boom RC.
Body Shells
Nothing new as Xtreme and Zoo Racing taking touring car victories
The Xtreme Twister Speciale and Twister body shell continues to be “the body to have” in the Matrix Modified class. All A-Main drivers used these shells in the super lightweight 0,4mm version and nothing has changed since a long time. A positive aspect as it brings some consistency in the (sometimes) quickly changing market.
In all the stock touring car classes, the Zoo Racng Wolverine is still the strongest force and was in use by most of the drivers. The Pro Stock drivers used it in 0,4mm or 0,5mm thickness, while the Orca 21.5 Stock and 1up Racing 40+ Masters drivers used the 0,7mm version according to the ETS rules. For sure, there had been other bodies on track from Xtreme, Mon-Tech, Protoform, Blitz, Bittydesign, and Lens Bodies – but all stock class race winners and podium finishers used the Zoo Racing Wolverine.
Fight between Zoo Racing and Blitz in FWD class – Protoform won the race!
The Hobbywing Frontwheel class was a different story. The drivers tested many different body shells from the official list of allowed bodies and it seemed like it was possible to go fast with every of those. The A-Main saw six drivers using the YRS from Blitz and 5 drivers rocking the Gorilla from Zoo Racing. Race winner Adam Izsay used the Speed3 from Protoform which is hard to get at the moment as Horizon Hobby (owner of Protoform), for whatever reason, has problems to send fresh shells over to Europe.
Today we like to inform you about the 5 things we have learned from ETS RD4 Season #16 2023/24. Read about first time race winners, our drivers of the weekend, the perfect debut of the Iris ONE.05 FWD car, Lucas Urbain who jumped back on the championship train, and the fastest onroad girls of europe!
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1) Our drivers of the weekend are…
At every ETS event there are drivers achieving great things like first victories, first A-Main appearances, or just having their best time at their first ETS attendance. Last weekend in Hann. Münden, we noticed two drivers who just knocked it out of the park!
We are talking about young racer Phil Langner, and the very experienced RC veteran Torsten Baggendorf. Both have something in common: They practiced a lot at Chucks Raceway in Hasloh (close to Hamburg), and they won their races at ETS RD4 after stellar performances.
Phil Langner, the winner of the Orca 21.5 Stock class
Phil Langner was shining bright like a diamond for the whole weekend. He was racing in the Orca 21.5 STock class, and in the Hobbywing Frontwheel class. He showed great driving and speed and was able to TQ the Orca 21.5 class and to put his FWD car onto third place of the grid.
In the finals he drove amazingly clean, made no single mistake, and celebrated his first ETS victory under the applause of the audience around the track. What a day for the young racer who showed his talent at the last races as well. But now, Phil Langner is an ETS race winner at the age of just 13 years – and that is simply amazing. By the way: In the FWD class, Phil finished third overall making it a double podium weekend.
Torsten Baggendorf finally got the job done and is a ETS race winner now
Torsten Baggendorf was able to claim his first ever win at the Euro Touring Series in Hann. Münden. He was very fast at so many races in the past, but unlucky crashes, small driving errors, or just bad luck eluded him a win in the past. This is history now as Torsten finally had his perfect weekend and took the win in the 1p Racing 40+ Masters class.
Torsten was TQ after qualifying and never looked back in A1 and A2 after the sound of the tone. It was a very impressive performance and Torsten also brought home the biggest victory for the ARC brand at the ETS since a long time. His ARC A10-23 was on rails and he clearly showed the huge potential of the car!
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2) The Iris ONE.05 FWD made a perfect ETS debut
The Iris team was at the ETS with car designer Andreas Myrberg, Ruddog CEO Sven Rudig, Alex Kunkler, Dionys Stadler, Manuel Stankowitz, and Jan Petersen. The team`s FWD drivers used the brandnew Iris One.05 FWD car for the very first time on the big stage of the ETS and Manuel Stankotiz and Andreas Myrberg made into the show and qualified 2nd and 6th on the A-Main starting grid – what a debut!
Manuel Stankowitz was super fast all weekend. He was TQ after the first round of qualifying, and scored P2 in all other rounds. We saw lots of emotions going on after Manuel was overnight TQ on Friday as it meant a lot to the whole team to present such a competitive race car to the public. In the end, Manuel finished second on the podium behind Xray`s Adam Izsay and Andreas Myrberg came in 6th place – what a fantastic result for the whole Iris team!
Awesomatix factory driver Lucas Urbain added his first ever ETS win on carpet to his CV last weekend at the Transworl Hotel. It was a very important result for him as it brought the French driver back into the fight for the overall championship of the premier Matrix Modified class. Lucas had a good start into the season with a second place in the Netherlands, before he missed out RD2 in Austria and “only” took a P8 away from Arena33 in Germany.
After winning the race last weekend, he must be looking forward to the last two races of the season with huge excitement. Two more race wins (depending on other drivers results) could earn him the big trophy at the end of the season.
Re-watch the fantastic first A-Main from ETS RD4 in Germany
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4) You can make the top 5 in FWD with an “old car”
Adam Southgate from the UK amazed the ETS reporter when he saw his car while collecting drivers technical data. Adam qualified on a fantastic 5th spot for the A-Main of the Hobbywing Frontwheel class with his Xray T4-2019F – a car that looks like coming out of last century.
Compared to nowadays actual FWD cars, the “old” 2019 model is still featuring a front motor position, relativeley long shocks, and for sure not the lowest center of gravity. But Adam showed that you don`t need the latest and greatest all the time to go fast. When you know your package well, an older car can still do the job. Thanks for remembering us about that, Adam Southgate!
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5) Fast girls having fun at the ETS
We have been extremeley happy to see so many ladies racing at ETS RD4 in Hann. Münden. They are always showing that our sport is not seperated in “Mens” and “Womens” classes which is just great. Thanks for being a part of the ETS family Nadine Zühlke, Susanne Reile, Manuela Borrmann, Meggy Schaal, Lena-Marie Zemke, Elena Fuchs, Jasmin Donath, Emely Ratheisky, and Svantje Ratheisky!
Here you can watch all press conferences from ETS RD4 Season #16 2023/24 at the Transworld Hotel Auefeld in Hann. Münden, GER.
Friday Press Conference
Hear what the Modified drivers said after the opening round of qualifying on Friday evening!
Matrix Modified
Saturday Press Conferences
After qualifying we talked to the top 3 of the Modified and Pro Stock class to sum up their qualifying and to hear about their expectations for the finals. Hear from Lucas Urbain, Ronald Völker, Marc Rheinard, Adam Izsay, Olivier Bultynck, and Lukas Ellerbrock!
Matrix Modified
Awesomatix Pro Stock
Sunday Press Conferences
The voices of the winners…. We talked to the top 5 Modified and top 3 Pro Stock drivers on Sunday after the triple A-Mains.
