how it all began for you?

[styleone]

I thought this a valuable and inspiring discussion to spark guys. I always love to hear the stories of how the racers I meet got into RC. They range from the classic "My Dad got me a Tamiya in the 80's" to the unusual "I wanted to race karts but was too tall"

I like the fact that we all share a common interest but our introduction to the world of model car racing can be so diverse. It goes without saying that most of the people who I speak to can easily remember their first contact with a hobby that nearly always becomes a life-long love affair. As far as my story, well if it hadn't been for a Father with a love for Tamiya models and an over enthusiastic scout leader, I would never have found the hobby so easily when I was 11 years old. I used to attend an outdoor flat grass track in a place called Hurst Green in the West Midlands and get battered every week lol...some things never change ey!

Share the story of how you found your first experiences with our wonderful sport folks...and over to you all

[stegger]

My dad is a crown green bowls fanatic "never got it myself !!! Lol" each to there own. Anyway every Sunday he would drag me and my sister to a pub or park so he could play. On this particular day we arrived at this pub just outside of Liverpool i was sat there bored out of my skull ! When i heard a noise and somebody shouting "MARSHAL" That was it HOOKED, that was early 80s. Kyosho scorpions and Tamiya roughriders It took me a good 18months of paper rounds etc to get myself enough money to get myself my first car. ( Kyosho Tomahawk )

[PaulUpton]

I blame Schumacher

They had a track set up at the Northampton balloon festival must be about 16/17 years ago. Think it was on the school gym mats, was just a oval too I think. After my dad spending about £20 with me having goes (£1 a go so I as there a lot) they got me a Schumacher nitro 10 for Xmas and that was it.

Think I then got a Schumacher cat was it SE? Before the 98? For my birthday.

[reg]

i was about 26 when i started,I asked a mate if he would let me know the next time he went racing,thought it would be interesting to go and watch,when we got there he got 2 cars out his bag,one was an HPI sprint,"thats yours" he said,
no clue what i was doing,i got booked in,as i was the first heat i got on the rostrum early so claim my space,i did a few dodgy laps and felt quite good,but the end of the old 27mg arial was showing how nervose i was,
then as i sat on the start line,looking at my race car,the "race 1 will start it 30 sec" shout came over the mic,to which i was suddenly surounded by a rostrum full of 8 year old

[dazzlerr6]

Hi guys I was 13/14 at school and a mate of mine bought his car to school and was playing with it at lunch time and I was hooked , so for Xmas that year I had nothing but a brand new hotshot 2 . Then I swapped it for a optima mid, and now in almost 40 and used my stepson as an excuse to buy to cat sx,s to racing again haha once it's in the blood it never goes away .

[snail speed]

I remember there was a thunder tiger nitro with a cossie sbell on it bussing up the road from where i lived. Just had to get one. Where we were on holiday road trip down to edinburgh we went in past the modelshops and i liked the look of the hpi rush. Got it runing in a layby near stirling. But brakes seized. Instead of going to fort william next day. We went back the next. Got it sorted and cant rember what happened after that. We heard there was a model shop in inverurie and when in there there was a poster for inverurie district model club.on a sunday. Poped along and was amazed at the racing. Got my self a hobbytech ht1 that i still have. Cant rember if it was gti models or a place on george street in aberdeen. Had a few cars since then.

[nites]

Originally Posted by dazzlerr6

Hi guys I was 13/14 at school and a mate of mine bought his car to school and was playing with it at lunch time and I was hooked , so for Xmas that year I had nothing but a brand new hotshot 2 . Then I swapped it for a optima mid, and now in almost 40 and used my stepson as an excuse to buy to cat sx,s to racing again haha once it's in the blood it never goes away .

hi dazzler. ive got to ask..... which scool was this at and what yar because I had a very bad habit of taking my super sabre to school when I wasnt allowed to lol ooooh those were the days

[bigred5765]

got bought a tamiya kit (holiday buggy if i remember right long long time ago)
for Xmas i think it was,must have been around 14-15
4.8 volts, charging lead was a length of wire that clipped to car battery
wiper speed controller,lol omg they were rubbish
then found out a group of people raced at my local school, on gravel
that was it i was hooked

[kaylon]

Back in 1980 my brother who was 13 at the time got a Tamiya Sand Scorcher for his birthday, it was in August and the weather was fantastic. I was totally in awe of this thing so we took it outside and drove it around a huge amount. My bro's best friend at the time David had the Rough Rider so he joined us a lot and after school evenings were great fun...I ran around chasing the cars like a headless idiot...today they would say I had ADHD or something...bah...I was just 10!

Being 10 I was of course a little upset that I could not have my own, but my brother being who he was teased me mercilessly all the time but did let me drive his buggy from time to time, bless him.

That Christmas though it all changed... I got the Tamiya Lamborghini Cheetah. And what an epic thing it was...I still remember sitting at my dinning room table building it with the help of my bro...took us all day but wow.. A few days later and a trip to our local model shop for some paint it was ready, I had painted the body satin black with a gold stripe running along the sides and up the front...

I loved it so much. That next few months I drove that car to destruction...every evening I was out running at least a pack through it.

By early summer we had a small group of friends who all had cars, the two super buggies (sand scorcher and rough rider) and now there was also a ford in the mix...it was amazing. My Cheetah was so out classed by them all I had to upgrade.. Could not afford much, but got a brand new Holiday Buggy for my 11th birthday...

We all raced and bashed around for a few years...During the 80's I had a Hornet and a Wild Willy... my bro's last car back then was a Manta Ray...By 1985 there were at least 10 of us racing around...We had Brats, and frogs...and a couple of Wild Willy's...

The 80's really was the time of Tamiya...and some of the best days of my life.

J

[SimonW]

1985 ( i think) i used to walk past a model shop every Sat morning on my way to town. One day there was a promo video playing of the soon to be released 'Hotshot' in the window, I always used to stop and watch. Quite by accident I found out one Friday night that a club ran on the BMX track behind my local youth club. My Parents bought me a Hotshot that Christmas (after much begging) and my first race was @ a winter series with lots of good drivers and watching/racing there that day got me hooked the track was amazing, the old W-S-Mare club next to the Football ground. If i remember rightly a guy called Andy Butt was S-West regional champ that year.