Victorian State Championships-2005
 

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Photos courtesy of Harry Bailey

Time for Vintage A. Nine teams lined up to do battle. No doubt that Jim and Colin Ray were the surprise packet. At this competition, the Cosmics proved without doubt they are the real deal. They were on a roll. With a CS tuned by Robin Heirn, they started out by posting their fastest ever heat time of 3.31. It was only seconds behind the Rothwells and was good enough to take the them into the final.

Of the three NSW teams at the field, It was Hugh and Dave Simons who had the worst luck. A troubled first heat had them behind the eight ball and a mishap on takeoff at the start of the second heat ended their chance of a competitive time. The other two NSW teams, almost as expected, qualified first and second for the 180 lap dash to the line for the coveted Victorian trophy.

Gavin Knight and Ray Harvey made FTD with 3.28.03, but only by .22 of a second from Grant Potter and Brian Hoggan, who now have a reputation to protect.

They showed head turning airspeed with the Rothwell 250. These super close times clearly show how important it is for Vintage A timekeepers to be absolutely accurate with their stopwatches.

So the top combination of Grant Potter, Brian Hoggan and the R250 continued along their merry way with yet another fine win. They showed why they have been so successful in many events in recent times. Jim and Colin pushed them all the way to post their best ever final time of 7.32.39. The Cosmics had enough airspeed to keep the
others honest and 47 laps per tank for good measure.

Gavin and Ray came in third in 7.44.97, a time they both know can be bettered by well over a minute when things fall into place.

Who can knock Grant & Brian from their comfortable perch when the Nats come around? Andy & Richard? Stan & Peter? Gavin & Ray? Or can Mark McDermott do the trick….?

Mark was practicing at 18 dead for 10 a few weeks ago with his Timmy Tiger. And getting 49 laps as well. His reserve model was doing 18.6/10, also with the necessary laps. The raw speed is definitely there to mount a serious challenge to this NSW juggernaut.

The other possibility is that one or more of the 3 Victorian teams now with R250 power can get up and boogy when it really counts. The Vics may then be in with a chance… particularly if Paul Stein throws his hat into the ring.

So the top combination of Grant Potter, Brian Hoggan and the R250 continued along their merry way with yet another fine win.

They showed why they have been so successful in many events in recent times. Jim and Colin pushed them all the way to post their best ever final time of 7.32.39. The Cosmics had enough airspeed to keep the others honest and 47 laps per tank for good measure.

Gavin and Ray came in third in 7.44.97, a time they both know can be bettered by well over a minute when things fall into place.

Who can knock Grant & Brian from their comfortable perch when the Nats come around? Andy & Richard? Stan & Peter? Gavin & Ray? Or can Mark McDermott do the trick….?

Classic B was first away as interstate visitors Hans Bertina and Ian Thompson had a plane to catch back to Western Australia,. As an overview, every team recorded a time in the 3 minute bracket. That’s a sure sign competitors are right on top of the systems required for this exciting class of team race. The racing was extremely close with only 3 seconds separating 3 teams for number 3 spot in the final.

There were 8 teams entered, but Lance Smith and Murray Wilson didn’t make it to the start line as Lance was laid low with a virus. A pity, as Lance’s practice form with the Antares had been really good. And with Murray’s confidence sky high after a sensational win in F2D, they were set to make an impact.

Jim and Colin Ray were showing the usual good speed in practice with the Crescendo and LA 25 combination. However, as usual, a few things went wrong, including a wheel falling off and the tank coming loose. Never say die. It was nothing that couldn’t be fixed. So they raced through the heats in the good times of 3.20 and 3.16 to qualify second for the final.

Winners last year, Graeme Wilson and Mark Ellins were simply off the pace and their best of 3.45 was never going to cut the mustard in this group. Fast landings and one flick starts were never going to be enough. New model or new motor…something needs to change to enable this super team to strut its stuff again.

Harry Bailey and Peter Roberts had the metallic finished V tailed Backtrack in good form. With the FP on song, these guys posted a best time of 3.26 to sneak into the final ahead of some very well credentialed teams.

Speaking of credentials, the Nobster has it all… And big Neil Baker was taking out the frustrations of following the Tigers last year on the propeller of Ken Hunting’s Enya 29. His strong arm was giving the prop a fearsome whack! They didn’t make the final 3 with Ken’s own design, but certainly kept the others honest.

The Thunder Tiger hauled elliptical wing design of Gavin Knight and Ray Harvey is loaded with potential. As shown at the last NSW State Champs, it’s as fast as the FPPE in the air. Seems only to need a reduction in ground time to be truly competitive. On Super Sunday, they missed the final by only 3 seconds.

All the way from WA, Hans Bertina and Ian Thompson had the airspeed to take home the trophy. The ‘Thornley Thunderbolt’ is a superb racer, beautifully built and incredibly light. F2C pilot ‘Thommo’ flies it real well…but the lack of instant starting has left Hans slightly perplexed. Nothing his vast experience in racing won’t solve when he puts his mind to it. Their best time of 3.28 was less than 3 seconds away from being allocated a segment in the final. That’s just a couple of flicks. I’ll bet they’ll make amends at the Richmond Nats in a few months time.

John Hallowell and Keith Baddock had a plan. What was that about the best laid plans of mice and men…? Yes. They sometimes go astray. After a promising start with the Rocket and a FTD of 3.12, things began to go downhill. Fast!

We used the FPPE in the second heat and after a quick start and a good first tank, the LA refused to start at the pitstop. It eventually fired up after almost a minute and a half. Keith wearing out his arm, flicking away like that is something I have never seen before in all our races. Most likely a simple blockage at the wrong time.

The final was an all Victorian affair and turned out to be a two up race. At the starters gun, it was disaster for Hallowell/Baddock. A cross wind gusted on takeoff, a wheel fell in a hole, the lines caught on grass…or all of the above. Still don’t know exactly what happened, but I do know that immediately after the moment of release, the Rocket was heading for the centre circle!

No kidding… I was standing there with wide eyes and open mouth wondering which way to jump! Fortunately, the wing clipped the concrete, causing the prop to break, stopping the motor. Damage to the model was a few scuff marks. Lucky, on more counts than one.

Bottom line is that we had first choice and didn’t pick the best segment, despite Keith checking and Paul Stein highlighting the potential danger. My mistake.

I really believed we could cope, as we used the same segment with no problems just minutes before in the last heat. But the wind changed quickly in both direction and intensity and I was caught out.

The mishap left the way open for some easy 2 up flying for Harry and Colin. The Cosmics had the edge in airspeed with the LA. However, they were down on range as they had to make a third pitstop just 5 laps from the finish. The stop was a breeze and they claimed an easy win by almost 50 seconds from Harry and Peter.

It was Colin and Jim’s second State Championship victory, following up their thrilling 2001 effort with the Firebrand when they crossed the line 3/10ths of a second in front of John and Keith.