[F500] Solo II Nationals 2002

[Jeff Blumenthal]

John, & other FMod Nationals competitors:

  I sent an email to Eric Heller, asking if he had seen the screwup with

T&S. He checked the results on-line after he got home from our local
Sunday autox (boy did it take some effort to go to a local event that
after a 14 hour ride back from Topeka on Saturday) and was surprised to
see that T&S forgot to assess his under-weight penalty. Like  many of
us, he didn't pay much attention to the results after the penalties,
protests, mechanical problems on day one. I'm sure he'll contact Denver
to rectify the mistake.

 I'm looking forward to the "off-season" or as someone on a different
list referred to as "Rules Season". Let's use the time wisely to clarify

any issues that need to be resolved. We don't need to "reinvent the
wheel" though. Let's just share what we know, and voice any concerns
about competitor's cars. I sincerely hope that Chris and Clint will let
us know what they feel needs to be addressed. We've got a great class.
I've have had lots of fun and made great friendships over the past three

years. I hope to continue, and will, as long as the competition is fun,
fair, and sportsmanship is at the highest level.

Good luck to all the F500 drivers competing at the Mid-Ohio Runoffs this

week! Be safe and have fun.


-Jeff Blumenthal



John Whitling wrote:

> Bob,
>
> I was wondering why you mentioned weight in this email when a friend
> of mine (do I still have any??) pointed out to me that Eric Heller had
> not been given a penalty for being underweight 3 pounds. He *was*
> penalized by the protest committee, a 2 second penalty. I saw that
> happen. Somehow it never got assessed to T&S, I guess. I didn't notice
> it myself since I had little interest in the results, short of seeing
> my buddy John finally trophy at nationals. Even he got screwed over on
> that, as he should have had third place, save for a cone that clearly
> wasn't his on his third run of the north course. I'm sorry for Chuck
> Buysee, who should have trophied. He has worked had on his Vee all
> year, and is quite fast in it. I'm surprised no one involved with the
> issue noticed it at the time.
>
> I'm beginning to think that the Solo 2 Nationals is not about racing
> anymore. It's turning more and more to being a social event and a
> revenue stream for the National office. I cannot believe how sloppily
> this event was handled by T&S, course workers, and just it's general
> organization. Maybe the national staff is burned out.
>
> John Whitling
>
> Bob Jordan wrote:
>
>> I would like to say a few things concerning the E-mails we all
>> received.  Lets stick to the facts. #1--Weight a)  Many people have
>> been at Regional, Tour, Divisional and National events and have
>> their car fail.  In the rush to get into another car, they forget
>> about the fact that their host driver may be marginally or much
>> lighter.  At the scales this fact surfaces and many times a winner,
>> not just someone down the line is given a penalty or times totally
>> disallowed.It happens more times than you think, just ask around. b)
>> Weight in a modified car is very important.  In 2000 and 2001 I was
>> seventy pounds over minimum weight.  Being 54 and big, it was easier
>> to put a Rotax in.  I am now 20 to 25 pounds over minimum and with a
>> Rotax instead of a Kawasaki.  Nice safety margin.  It was a very
>> large expense to change, but worth it.  Plus we moved a few other
>> things around to make the weight work for us. #2-- Current Rules a)
>> The rules as they are seem to make a lot of sense and I don't think
>> is would be fair to change them.  FM's growth is not in the Solo
>> V's, but with the F440 and F500 cars because all the things on our
>> cars are road legal.  I was always questioned by a former FV owner
>> about all the things I had done to my car, the wheels and tires
>> mostly.  I told him we are allowed eight inch wheels on all four
>> corners and the 18.0 x 7.5 x 10 tires are listed for F440 or F500 in
>> the Hoosier Tire Catalog.  The options equipment he mentioned would
>> still pass the GCR.  I saw some intake horns on a Solo V that didn't
>> look like stock items (I owned a V and have a few pairs of them),
>> but I didn't say anything.  I don't remember seeing them on
>> Wednesday. #3) The 55 inch width rule a)  One of the most important
>> rules in the books.  When I bought my first 7 inch wide set of front
>> Douglas wheels we made sure that these 7 inch wide wheels would meet
>> the rules and fit on the car.  When I got the 7.5 Keizer wheels we
>> made sure they would fit also.  Have had to make a fewchanges on the
>> car to clear them, but it was worth it. #4) Mufflers a) We have a
>> $200 muffler and we only use it twice a year, in the small parking
>> lot as you enter New Hampshire International Speedway.  We need this
>> only because a couple moved from Conn. to NH after the speedway was
>> rebuilt into the new speedway, which brings lots of money to the
>> area. b) I also know it is longer than 24 inches from the centerline
>> of the axle, so we will have this corrected.  It would have made the
>> event a lot more fun if someone had mentioned this to the people who
>> were using them.   I could go on all night, but it is after 3:00 am
>> on Sunday morning, but I needed to get this off my chest.  A lot of
>> us have spent a lot of time and money getting our cars ready for
>> competition.  Chuck Voboril has spent ten (10) years and a lot of
>> time to get his totally legal car to work as best as possible.  And
>> people like him, Art Trier and Clair Smith, (both from NY) have
>> helped me understand these cars in the past five or so years that I
>> have owned it.  I have tried to sell this class to many people, even
>> knowing I may get beaten a few times in the future. Furthermore, the
>> growth in this class is in the F440's and F550's due to the lower
>> overall cost than the FV's.  But mostly, because we follow the GCR
>> rules as much as possible.  We don't have different engines than the
>> club racing cars.  All the wheels and tires we use can be used by
>> them too.  We even have to use smaller mm carbs on the Rotax than
>> the club racers.  Many of them are thinking of going to the wider
>> wheels and tires in the front and they are just as legal in club
>> racing as they are in Solo II. So lets do a better job of sticking
>> to the good rules we have and by helping each other as Chuck, Art
>> and Clair have helped me.  I hope I have always been as kind to my
>> fellow New England friends and competitors as the above mentioned
>> guys have been to me.  And if I haven't I will strive to do
>> better. But the best thing that can come out of all this is that a
>> certain KBS Mk 3 driver is going club racing.  He will not be missed
>> by many and will not be overly welcomed with the club racing group.
>> I really don't know how he will handle the new Arrow F500 being
>> built in Massachusetts.We in NER get to see it as it is being built
>> and it will blow his mind away if it runs as good as it looks. Bob
>> Jordanfmod15 at cox.net
>
>
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