Fast electric nationalls

Radio Control Boat Modeler, Dec 2001 by Yarrish, Gerry

RACING IN THE WILDS" OF ANCHORAGE

Alaska-the final frontier-is known for its scenic beauty and for the tenacity and fortitude of its inhabitants. The winters there are long and cold, and Alaska might seem like an unlikely venue for a national boat race. But the Alaskan boaters I met on my recent trip convinced me that a hardier or more determined modeler would be pretty hard to find elsewhere. Considering the short Alaskan summer (the ice doesn't break until early June), I was very impressed with this year's NAMBA Fast Electric Nationals held in Anchorage. Anchorage is only a few hundred miles from the Arctic Circle, so in the summer, the sun never sets, and model boaters can run their boats 2 they like, to make up for the long winters.

Dubbed the "Midnight Sun Nationals" and hosted by the Anchorage Model Boat Club, the event was held on June 29 through July 1, and registration and openwater running were on June 28. Three contest directors-Jay Turner, Larry Larson and Dan Eames-guided the proceedings, and the event was a complete success. On the pristine waters of University Lake just outside Anchorage, the host club supplied a shaded pit area for contestants, and an elevated stand made it easy for drivers to see their boats no matter where they were on the course.

RACE FORMAT

The standard NAMBA oval course measures 170 feet from the exit buoy at one end to the entrance buoy at the other end and has a 30-feet turning radius at each end. One lap was 528.5 feet, so five laps made a 1/2-mile heat.

Five minutes before each heat, a recording of Jay Turner's voice called the time to start at 1-minute intervals then counted down the last 30 seconds. There were 27 heats every day, a total of 81 during the weekend. With 121 entrants and 20 classes, the action never stopped.

To help some of the contestants get ready for their back-to-back heats, "mercy minutes" were allowed between the end of pit time and the start of the following heat. Several of the racers, if not all, competed in more than one class.

Seven classes raced on Friday, and the concours competitions for the Crackerbox, O-Sport Hydro and P-Sport Hydro classes were judged. Perhaps the day's most noteworthy performance came from Team Alaska member Larry Larson with his impressive fast-time heat in S-Hydro (24 cells). Larry ran a very tight course and turned in a blistering run with his own-design outrigger (see "New Records" sidebar).

Saturday was another seven-class day, and the guy in the spotlight was Dick Crowe, who won more than his share of heats, including P-Hydro, P-Offshore and O-Mono. As I watched these heats, it was obvious to me that everyone was out for the gold, as many 5-lap times were less than 1 minute! The differences between first and second places were often just fractions of a second.

For something just a little different-at least for me-the P-OPC Tunnelhull class was a lot of fun to watch. In this speedy class, Dennis Whitt ran his Aveox-powered Bandit Boats Killer, Dan Eames ran a Maus Motorsports Champ (also Aveox-powered), and Randy Naylor ran his antique Cordit Plettenberg-powered Duck Hunter in heat after exciting heat. Though Whitt turned in the fast time for the class (1:13.09), Randy Naylor took home the firstplace award.

RACING IN THE WILD

Saturday's heats ran longer than usual. University Lake is home to many forms of wildlife, including otters, beaver, geese and ducks, all of which have the right of way during races. Drivers were told of this at the beginning, and several starts were delayed until the various waterfowl had cleared the course. At one point, the local fish-and-game ranger (affectionately nicknamed "the duck lady" by the racers) came out to evaluate the race's impact on the wildlife. After several heats, the ranger left with only good things to say about how the Nationals were being run-a really good example of how electric-powered boat racing can be welcome, even on government-protected water. The local dogs had more of an impact on the ducks than the boats did.

Sunday (with six classes) saw more of the same close action; P-Mono, O- and Q-Hydro and Q-Offshore were the most exciting to watch. The big-cell-count boats are just plain fast, and they throw the biggest rainbow-tintedrooster tails you've ever seen come from electric boats. The Offshore heats kept the drivers honest because some of the faster boats had a really tough time getting past the two left-turn buoys. At times, it was hard to tell who was leading because buoy cuts were frequent!

By day's end, points were tabulated and winners were given their hard-earned booty. Also awarded were prizes for Teams and Overall High Points winners. The four-man Fuller's Fast Electric team of Larry Larson, Dick Crowe, Scott Bickford and Greg Schweers took home the gold. The High Points award is given to the racer who accumulates the most points in six predetermined classes (not including Offshore). This year, Dick Crowe and Randy Naylor tied-an appropriate end for the 2001 Nationals because all of the racing was very close and exciting!