[Top Down]

Don't worry Jeremy. 

'Rally Team Chesterfield' (three generations of Passells) got off to a bad start on the off road stages - and none of our cars have been tested on SCX track, so it's anyone's guess what's going to happen over the last few stages.

As they say - 'Watch this space'  It's all to play for.

[BAracer]

Don't worry Top Down. 

'Rally Team EBN Peugeot' (me) got off to a bad start on the off road stages - and my car has not been tested on SCX track, so it's anyone's guess what's going to happen over the last few stages.

As they say - 'Watch this space'  It's all to play for.

Ditto!

[Mazda]

Don't worry Jeremy. 

'Rally Team Chesterfield' (three generations of Passells) got off to a bad start on the off road stages - and none of our cars have been tested on SCX track, so it's anyone's guess what's going to happen over the last few stages.

As they say - 'Watch this space'  It's all to play for.

My cars had not been tested on any track as I don’t have a 1/32 layout, but I’m still not last yet  .

[BAracer]

If we all knew what we were doing, we'd be dangerous!

[Top Down]

Looks like our two 'Class B' entries are making a strong challenge - for last overall  

[woodcote]

   

WHO Winter Rally-Sprint News Briefing 5 – Wednesday 24 February 2021

We’re now five weeks into the event and the cars have just completed their road transfer back to Brighton, ready for the concluding four stages of the Rally-Sprint. First, let’s recap on a memorable weekend of action...

   

1. Stage 6: Marlets 1. Jean gave us two stages in a day. He also laid on the most sensational live coverage – a split screen of three camera angles and the Race Coordinator timing at the top. The footage of each class can still be watched on Facebook – the links are in thread, starting here.

   

The class podiums for Stage 6 were…

Class A: 1. Noah Passell, 2. Rebecca Shtasel, 3. Graham Edwards
Class B: 1. Graham Edwards, 2. Andy & Rebecca, 3. Oli Abbott
Class C: 1. Ade Child, 2. Alan Wilkinson, 3. Graham Edwards

   

The full results for Stage 6 are here.

The top three – Alan B, Phil F and Alan W remained the same, but they were now covered by just 1.6 seconds. You can find the overall standings after Stage 6 here.


2. Stage 7: Martlet 2. After a quick break, Jean ran the cars through the stage a second time...

   

Class A: 1. Jeremy Belcher, 2. Mike Scott, 3. Graham Edwards
Class B: 1. Graham Edwards, 2. Andy & Rebecca, 3. Paul Cooper
Class C: 1. Alan Wilkinson 2. Graham Edwards, 3. Ade Child

Race Coordinator gave the stage victory to Alan by just 0.001 seconds! The full results for Stage 7 are here. The links to the video coverage of Stage 7 start here.

   

Alan W moved up a place into the runner-up spot, the top three now covered by a mere quarter of a second... Graham is top of Class A, with Oli Abbott hanging on to the lead in Class B. The overall standings after Stage 7 can be found here.

Jean really pulled out the stops with a gripping couple of hours for all of us who were watching. Thank you Jean! It’ll be a tough act to follow – but other proxy hosts now have an example of how far live coverage can be taken with everyday equipment and free software. I am sure Jean will be happy to pass on info and tips. He used Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) on a PC to stream to Facebook.

   

3. Stages 8 and 9 this weekend. Next up, the cars will tackle their first hillclimb – a first run on Saturday afternoon/evening and then an early-morning repeat on Sunday. Our schedule will work around the WRC+ coverage of the Arctic Rally. No snow is forecast on the South Downs this weekend... There will be ‘traditional’ coverage of Saturday’s stage – including some pre-recorded video. Expect basic single-camera live streaming for Sunday’s stage, starting on Facebook around 6am. The link is here: https://fb.me/e/209mf4wX9

   

4. Prizes from Jadlam Toys & Models. Jadlams supported this event from the off and have sent a sheet of stickers for each entrant, plus this Scalextric BMW M3 touring car as a prize. A big thank you to Russ and the team for backing our WHO events. The Jadlam website is: www.jadlamracingmodels.com

   

5. Proxy Racing section at SlotRacer Online. Proxy slot car racing has certainly attracted a new audience over the past year. There’s a dedicated Proxy Racing section at SlotRacer Online to support this growing branch of the hobby. You can check it out here.


Next week’s Rally-Sprint round-up will be posted here on Wednesday at 5pm UK time. The final two stages are scheduled for Thursday 4 and Saturday 6 March.

[woodcote]

I'm starting to knock a schedule into shape for the weekend...

The Arctic Rally starts tomorrow and is on WRC+ (and selected action on BT Sport?). Friday's WRC action is just two stages - the first at 13:08 (GMT) and the second 16:38.

Saturday - Stage 8. I'll be building the hillclimb Saturday morning (cleaning, testing and maintenance is already done), making sure I catch the four WRC stages (SS3 07:08; SS4 08:38; SS5 10.08; SS6 13:38). I may squeeze in Class A or B between 2pm and 3pm - the WRC SS7 starts at 15:08. The other smaller class could follow between 3.30 & 4.30pm - the final WRC stage of the day starts at 16.38. Class C will start at 5.30pm - or Rebecca and I may run all three classes then. There's no live coverage, but I'll be posting results and pics between the classes and the official results and overall standings in the evening.

Sunday - Stage 9. Barring any overnight cat vandalism, the stage should be good to go for 6am. I'll be getting up a bit earlier to make sure everything is ship-shape and the course car will pass through the stage at 5.45. I plan to go live with single-camera streaming at 6am. The link to the Facebook event is here.

It looks like people are interested... so I'd better make sure everything works. I can 100% promise you that the coverage won't be anywhere near as good as Jean's. This will be a solo effort (maybe some feline assistance), but I'm aiming to get through the three classes by the start of the first action of the day from Finland at 08:08 (GMT). If not, I'll pause to watch the leading cars go through. The final stage of the Arctic Rally is scheduled for 11:18. There's a good chance the official results and overall standings of our Stage 9 will be posted by then.

   

[Top Down]

It looks like people are interested...  

Oh yes. Not sure I'll be making 6am though! 

I like my sleep too much 

[AdeC]

If I was in a band, "overnight cat vandalism" would be my first choice for an album title!
Looking forward to a weekend of racing 

[woodcote]

Trust me, this one always has vandalism on her mind - overnight or broad daylight, it doesn't really matter.

   

The main 'arena' at Devil's Dyke - the top of the climb - is beginning to take shape. This is just over 3ft above ground level, with a 15ft ascent - that's an average of 1 in 5, if my maths is correct. But it'll kick up steeper than that in a couple of places.

Sad news about Hannu Mikkola this morning (WRC obituary here). Today's stage will be in his honour.