Calandra Racing Concepts (CRC) Double T.Q. and Double Victory in Las Vegas!
Team CRC rolled into the 2008 International Indoor Championships (IIC) in Las Vegas with hopes of winning, both on the gambling casino floor and the racing carpet floor. Again this year, the event organizers put down a fast layout on CRC’s latest Fasttrak Racing carpet. However, unlike the unfavorable odds on the casino slot machines, the CRC Generation X racing machines had the the deck stacked in their favor. Great drivers, fast cars and superior tires had all the odds in CRC driver’s favor!
The track was super smooth, very high grip and high speed. Even with a good number of rubber-tire touring cars, the CRC Fasttrak carpet stayed fuzz free and the groove built up quickly. In addition, this event was the first “all brushless” race with many competitors running brushless for the first time.
1/12th Modified
CRC’s Hupo Hönigl - T.Q. + 1st Place!
In the competitive 1:12th modified class, CRC driver Hupo Hönigl from Austria was the T.Q. and winner driving the CRC Generation-X 1/ 12th car (#3200). His teammate, Jilles Groskamp from Holland, qualified second with his CRC Gen-X car. Both drivers used CRC Pro-Cut tires on their cars .
CRC dominated the modified class with Jilles Groskamp on provisional pole for round 1 and 3. Hupo and Jilles battled very hard in round four with Hupo putting in a great run for Top Qualifier, Jilles ended up second making an all CRC front row!. Young Alexander Hagberg joined his CRC teammates in the A-final.
In the main, Hupo took off from pole position leading every lap. During the middle of the race, Hupo was under pressure but remained smooth and consistent to drive home for the win. Simply one of the best drives ever in 1:12th modified. This result marks Hupo’s first big win in 1:12th scale, a great performance, dominating the event and the A-main leading every lap. Hupo used the Gen-X 1/12th car with CRC’s Magenta front (2172) and CRC’s new rear tire, new Yellow compound rear tires (2181).
World GT – 1/10th scale 200 mm Pan Cars
CRC’s Mark Smyka – 1st Place
In the new World GT class featuring the new spec 200 mm 1/10th pan cars, CRC’s new Gen-X 10 (1710) took the win in the hands of Mark Smyka. This new pan-car class used 200 mm sports car bodies with brushless motors and 4-cell NiMH batteries. The revolutionary Gen-X 10 finished 1st, 4th and 10th, taking the first ever win in this new class.
Joining Mark in the A-main were CRC Gen-X 10 drivers Frank Calandra Jr. (4th) and (10th). The Gen-X 10 from CRC represents a breakthrough in pan cars, the only World GT car to come stock with provisions for Lipo batteries, true-center brushless motor placement and multiple adjustments for width and length. The Gen-X 10 has it all and now owns the first ever World GT title!
1/12th Stock (17.5 BL Handout)
CRC’s Pete D’Agnolo – T.Q.
In 1:12th stock, the CRC Gen-X 1/12th car was T.Q. with driver Pete D’Agnolo winning every round of qualifying. Pete’s 11.1 second lap time was the fastest lap in 1:12th stock all weekend. A number of CRC teammates joined Pete in the A-main with CRC cars and tires representing 50% of the field, placing 5 cars in the A-final.
Representing the female racers was Team CRC’s Carissa Figelski, the Connecticut racer making the A-main with a clutch 4th round performance! Speaking of Carissa, and her husband, Mark Smyka, were in the Riviera gift shop well before racing started when they all saw this unique pink and purple cowboy hat. A joke was made downplaying Carissa’s ability to drive well and go fast. The joke turned into a dare with and Mark telling Carissa that they were so confident she couldn’t make the A-main that if indeed she did, they would buy and wear these hats during their main. Well, that clutch fourth round performance cost and Mark not only their pride, but 20 bucks for the hat as well. True to their dare, they both wore their hats with a smile! Scotty Ernst, the race announcer, presented the Brokeback RC Boyz with their hats right before the A-main started! Awesome Carissa, good job!!
Team CRC’s own Frank Calandra Jr. used the new CRC/Black Art Audi R8C (4167) to qualify 3rd at the event. Frank reported smooth handling and stability with plenty of steering response. The new body is ROAR legal and comes dimpled for easy mounting on Associated, CRC and Corally 1:12th cars.
Also at the event, the organizers scheduled a “Meet and Greet” with many of the manufactures setting up small booths to display their products. With the “Meet and Greet” display room across the hall and during heated practice and tuning time, we were concerned that the turnout would be light and many racers would opt to work on their cars. Then it was announced that there would be free Tacos and FREE BEER! Needless to say, the “Meet and Greet” was highly attended and a BIG success. It was great meeting many of you and thanks to all for stopping by the CRC table
In the end, an excellent event and a great result for Team CRC! Congratulations to all the participants, and special thanks to Hupo, Mark and Pete, nice job!
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