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Scott Kimbrow report on the NovaRossi Challenge in Califormia (26/01/2010)

By:: Reporter
Linked to:: Serpent 733-EVO 1/10 scale 4wd, Serpent 733-TE 1/10 scale 4wd

Novarossi Challenge

Crystal Park Raceway – California
January 22nd-24th, 2010

Even though there was no victory this past weekend, I don’t think we could have asked for a better start to being part of Team Serpent……

   When myself, Jim Adkins, and Rich Browne decided to head south to the Novarossi Challenge, we made sure to not expect too much since we had just joined the team two weeks before! We decided that I would race only the 733 in preparation of the upcoming Pre-Worlds and Jim would put the 966 through the paces.
   We arrived at the track Friday for some practice, but alas, it rained all day and there was no practice to be had. We checked into our hotel around noon, and spent the rest of the day going through the cars, making setup adjustments, and making sure everything was as prepared as possible before hitting the track on Saturday. This proved to be an incredibly valuable day as Paolo Morganti spent most of his afternoon looking over our cars, offering expert tips on the cars, and getting his hands dirty assisting us…Thanks Paolo!!
   Since Friday was washed away, the race program was shortened to about 3 hours of practice, 3 rounds of qualifying, and the finals. Both Jim and I got two practice runs, then it was already time to qualify!! During qualifying, Paolo continued to offer his support with the 733 and helped bring the car near the top of the class in just 3 qualifiers, as I qualified 2nd in a field of 50 cars! We have lots of experience with 1/8, but I have only raced a nitro touring car twice before, and our knowledge of the cars is very limited. At this point, I was already very excited about the potential of the 733.
   In 1/8, Jim used his knowledge and experience, along with suggestions from Paolo, to get the 966 very competitive in quick fashion as Jim qualified 6th for the Final. In the 30 minute A-main, Jim drove a very smart, clean race to work his way through the field and come home with a 3rd place finish on the podium. The 966 is already showing its potential, as it was very fast in a short period of time, and Jim had no hint of any mechanical issues.

My A-main with the 733 was just as good, as I led the race early, but we had an unfortunate flame-out in the pit lane at mid-race. This put me in 4th nearly a lap down, with only 15 minutes remaining. This was no worry for my new orange machine though, as the car just kept getting faster and faster as the race progressed. I made my way back up through the field, and with just 30 seconds left in the race, I was right on the bumper of the leader. Unfortunately, I drove just a bit too hard, and the car got loose coming onto the straightaway, giving the leader just about 20 feet of breathing room to make it one more lap to the finish. I crossed less than a second behind him, but in reality we had completed a very victorious first weekend as part of the Serpent Team. Many thanks again to Paolo, Joaquin Desoto, and Sam Sim from Kamikaze Racing for all their help and support throughout the weekend.
We will follow-up with our set-ups for both cars, and we are already looking forward to our next event which will be the 1/10 Pre-Worlds in Houston, Texas on March 3rd. We will do our best to give status reports while at the event…. Stay Tuned!

Scott Kimbrow

We will follow-up with our set-ups for both cars, and we are already looking forward to our next event which will be the 1/10 Pre-Worlds in Houston, Texas on March 3rd. We will do our best to give status reports while at the event…. Stay Tuned!

Scott Kimbrow