Disclaimer.....THIS IS ABOUT specifically the health R/C "NITRO"boating and NITRO OUTBOARD RACING in North America......Once again don't anybody get your panties in a knot.....I am not trying to start a war.... I am not suggesting getting rid of classes or adding new classes , I am only suggesting possibly a way to promote the RC nitro outboard boating discipline for your "FOOD FOR THOUGHT".....
This post may well be too little to late , I honestly do not know , lets throw it out there and dam the torpedos....full speed ahead..........
FACTS:
[1] Nitro RC boat racing is experiencing a steady decline.....How far it will decline , who knows , but it is definitely not what I would say healthy.....
[2] Another influence is the rapid rising costs of getting involved in the hobby of "nitro" RC boat racing .....it has risen exponentially in the past 30 years.....
[4] Another fact , the basic knowledge required or best said the learning curve required to compete in "nitro" RC boat racing is steep and involved .....
[5] Another influence is the basic industrial arts or building skills required to successfully build and compete in RC "nitro" boating....
[6] I would estimate that nitro "OUTBOARD" RC boat racing in North America" has fallen by at least 70% in the past 15 years.....
[7] A large contingent of current veteran RC nitro racers have migrated to gas and F.E.......did you ever give a thought to why that is ???......
Is there an answer to stop this nitro outboard decline?....I believe there is a chance but it will require the RC "nitro" boating community becoming very pro-active in the future of RC "nitro" boating.....
I am not throwing rocks at Gas & FE......Those are [2] RC boating disciplines that are very easy to join and enjoy........
Take gas as an example....You can buy [2+] Zenoah PUM-260's for the cost of a .21 nitro outboard ..... fuel costs are $2.00 a gallon .....you set the needle
in January and don't worry about setting it again until December....a piston and jug costs $45.00....Now....You take it to the pond , pull on the recoil recoil to start it , you pull the trigger and go....You do a few laps and assuming you don't hit anything it comes back to the beach.....Shazaam....now that's a successful day at the pond.....
You don't have to learn to read a plug or have a box full of $7.00 glo-plugs,have a $50.00 gallon of fuel , have a $250.00 box to flow a needle or even learn how to set a needle valve .....
You don't need a high dollar starter , worry about the head clearance ..you get the idea here???...."Nitro is not easy to run".....It takes perseverance to learn the basic skills to
successfully compete in RC nitro boating...and...why would anyone do that and pay big $$$$ to do it....That is the definition of fiscal insanity.......
If "Nitro" expects to maintain what competitors we now have we need to become pro-active and make nitro easier and cheaper to run.....
Stock OPC outboard classes in NAMBA have lost at least 80% of the outboard OPC stock classes in the past 15/20 years due to big rising costs & loss of competitive motors ready to run.....
IMPBA Sport .21 class is a bit better because the current rules made it a reasonably easy class to run but it is still comparatively expensive....
The IMPBA .21 boat is essentially a Sport class not a "stock" class ....no inspections and easier to run.......
Here is another fact.....Do your own research....the speeds of all Sport or Stock nitro outboard [non-piped] "heat racing boats " are virtually all on top of each other....
Why does RC nitro boat racing require inspections anymore??? Nitro Outboard heat racing no longer requires detailed inspections and the protectionist K&B rules compiled
40+ years ago.....The Sport .21 rules in IMPBA have proven that inspections are not necessary....I would guess the average age of "nitro" RC boat racers is probably somewhere between 50 and 60 years old....That age group grew up when you had to learn the basic skills or we had no where else to go to race RC boats.......
The following suggestions are not a proposal they are nothing more than just "FOOD FOR THOUGHT"......I AM DOING NOTHING MORE THAN SITTING IN MY RECLINER THINKING OF A POSSIBLE WAY TO IMPROVE RC NITRO OUTBOARD BOATING....
This is a possible rules package for "Sport Outboard Tunnel" racing classes....These rules are for "motors" only...IMPBA , NAMBA & APBA existing tunnel "boat" rules remain the same....
[1] Displacement..... Class I up to .28 CI [4.6CC]
Class II .29 CI to 1.00 CI
[2] Minimum boat weights Class I...6 pounds 8 Oz with fuel....
Class II..minimum 9 pounds with fuel.... Note : theses are only suggested weights....do your own research and see what you get....
[3] 15% fuel only - A good reputable easy to acquire fuel could be supplied at the race by the host club and included in the entry fee.......
[4] No custom fuel tanks allowed....clear or opaque tanks I.E Sullivan only....we would want the ability to visually inspect fuel levels......
[5]No tuned pipes....car silencers [pipes] ok......
[6] No 3rd channel needles not allowed....[more boats are left on the course with 3rd channels than return to the beach and it encourages you to learn how to set a needle]
[7] Last but most important rule.....Build it , bring it and race it.....
Disadvantages:You tell me.....none that I can see.......all suggestions are inclusive .....nothing is exclusive.......Advantages: All current boats and engines stay in play and reduces costs substantially......it also levels the playing field considerably......
We know if RC nitro boat racing is to maintain or possibly flourish.IMO the RC nitro boat racing community has to become pro-active and attempt to determine the future of RC nitro outboard racing ...This type of rules package is would be very user friendly , reduces costs substantially ,and requires no inspections....If you want to run the high dollar motors be my guest,
but it won't be necessary to be competitive.....There are about 15 different '21/.28 car motors available that that set up properly will run with an O.S. 21 ....priced from $75 to $150....
With minimum weights and 15% fuel , the playing field is virtually leveled....We have physically tested this approach with these results...the earlier mentioned performance figures are what know through our empirical testing .......and...... with the 15% fuel and the minimum boat weights the playing field is leveled very quickly......
The very best of luck to all of you who choose to continue the hobby of RC nitro boat racing..... i am pullin' for ya.......After doing this for 45+ years the one thing I have acquired is some hard learned "emperical wisdom"..... I am far from smart..... I am just an average experienced nitro boater that has watched RC nitro boating and how it has evolved over the past 45 years.....That is where this word "emperical wisdom" comes from....
If all of RC nitro outboard boat "racing" was just to only limit fuel to15% a substansial cost savings would be realized....The AMA [pylon racing] and car organizations did this years ago and it has served them well......
Just more food for thought.....No longer would the loss of a manufacturer determine the direction or health of the RC nitro boating hobby.....and costs would be reduced considerably....