RACING

RC racing is serious fun, in toy cars.

SATURDAY RACE MEETS

Scattered throughout the calendar are various organised race meets at various tracks in the South West of WA.

Test your driving skills in the Collie Cup, the Albany-Collie Coalwater Cup, or compete for the king of the hill at the WA EP Interclub.

COLLIE CUP

Typically the second Saturday of the month, the Collie Cup is a fun day of semi-serious racing for drivers at all levels.

 COALWATER CUP

Test your driving skills in a race series with our sister club in Albany. The Coalwater Cup consists of four races in each town.

WA EP Interclub

The WA EP Interclub is a race series that includes six EP off-road racing clubs. Collie is hosting the EP Interclub in February.

Gates open at 11am for registration and set up for all Saturday meets in Collie. Racing starts at noon.

Full canteen facilities, toilets, water and power.

BYO work table, chairs, cables, tools and marquee.

Free entry for spectators.

Practice meets

Get your eye on the ball, your car in tune and ready for racing during regular practice meets on Thursday evenings during the Spring, Summer and Autumn school terms.

Track opens at 5pm, nominations in by 5.30pm, racing starts at 6pm. Racing continues into the evening under track lighting.

Beginners and juniors are welcome and support is given.

Limited canteen facilities, toilets, water and power.

BYO work table, chairs, cables, tools and marquee.

RACE ETIQUETTE

The first priority is to have fun (and maybe win) while also allowing others to have fun.

Passing

If you are a significantly slower car, or are being lapped, don't fight for position:

  • Hold your line until you can get to a safe place at which you can go to the outside line and let the faster driver through.
  • If you didn't realise a faster driver was coming behind you until too late, stay on your line and let them make the pass.
  • If your car is handling so poorly that it is unpredictable, slow down and take control of the vehicle.

If you are only slightly slower than a car behind you, then race your best line and let the faster racer work to pass you.

If you are a faster driver passing a slower car:

Get a feel for the abilities of the driver or the handling of the vehicle and drive accordingly:

  • Wait for the appropriate time to pass, or
  • Make the pass as safely as possible.

You don't want to attempt a pass and have them knock you out because they got nervous or their car was handling poorly. Remember: Everyone is racing.

If you and the other driver are competing for position:

  • Hold your line. Whoever’s nose is ahead of the front doors has the line. If you don't have the line, back off and wait for the next opportunity to pass. Don't push the other car out of the way.

Crashes

Crashes from time to time are inevitable. In the event of a crash:

  • If you caused the crash, stop and wait for the other car to recover and resume the race immediately after the person that you crashed into.
  • Try to keep the aftermath of a big crash jovial. We all make mistakes.

Racing

  • Never drive backwards on the course or in the pits.
  • No corner-cutting or short-cutting the track. If you accidentally short-cut, wait for a marshal to return you to the correct part of the track, or wait long enough to ensure that no advantage is gained. This applies even if you accidentally short-cut due to a crash that is not your fault.]
  • Never rear-end the car in front of you, regardless of race position or ability.

On the Driver's Stand

  • Be courteous to the other drivers:
  • Allow enough space for other drivers.
  • Don't lean forward and obscure the view of the track.
  • No profanity.
  • If you make a mistake, let the other driver know you're sorry, otherwise it looks like you did it on purpose.
  • If for some reason, your car dies in a bad spot (particularly if there is no marshal nearby) make a nice loud announcement. E.g. ‘DEAD CAR on the BACK STRAIGHT’. You may need to repeat your announcement two or three times.

Marshalling

  • Closed-in shoes are compulsory.
  • Cars are to be put back on the track on the same side they went off. Do not advance them on the track.
  • Be alert and attend to cars quickly and appropriately.
  • Check for oncoming cars before running across a section of the track or placing a car back on the track.
  • If you need to wait for a gap between cars before returning to your marshalling position, squat down to ensure that you do not obstruct the view of the drivers.