# Old school check in.



## Gary (May 21, 2004)

I started racing 18 years ago at I&I and Houston RC. Car was a gold tub RC10CE with 1400 mAh Duratrax batteries and a green machine motor.

Your story...


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## YNOT3D (Feb 16, 2011)

80ish. At Roadrunner and Issacs. Had a Frog and still have the OG Futaba radio with a wheel.


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## team420! (Apr 30, 2010)

Roadrunner North (off Veteran's Memorial). Had a Subaru Brat tricked out!


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## Damien (Jul 25, 2011)

Raced a Losi lxt and original RC10 at Houston RC and Checkered Raceway back in the day.


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## fishermanX (Jun 23, 2005)

Tamiya Grasshopper @ checkered flag.


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## DeanSpeed (Aug 20, 2007)

I started racing 1/12 scale in the early 80's in Southern California with the local RC club called the "Ventura Roadrunners". My first car was an Associated RC12i.


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## YNOT3D (Feb 16, 2011)

Was checkered flag the track off Kirkwood and maybe belaire? Raced there too. Don't remember the year. Zman has my old RC 10 graphite.


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## DeanSpeed (Aug 20, 2007)

Hey Tony, it looks like the Pro Bros are taking over the car world now. Hahaha. I see that you, Z-man and ProBroAndy have been racing off-road lately. I've been racing on-road and now I'm about ready to jump back in to off-road.

PB "Roadrunner" Dean


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## tebone626 (Apr 25, 2010)

i raced at k&m, and houston rc, also oasis, and I&I, and checkered flag. ran rc10, and rc10t.


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## Courtney Vaughan (Apr 11, 2007)

Started with THRC at K&M, Area 51, and Fastrak. Started with an Ofna Hyper 7


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## jasonwipf (Feb 23, 2009)

started in 86 with a tamiya Wild one. Then got a Fox. Then an RC10 Gold pan. Raced in indoor warehouse tracks in the Chicago area.


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## Tol Thomas (Feb 18, 2005)

Started late 80's with a Blackfoot(firt races were in COrpus), then RC10 Graphite(first RC10 with long front arms) at Roadrunner off Balaire Blvd, Oasis off 1960, Next cars were LOSI only till I got into nitro 1/8 in early 2000's.


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## Jorge T (Jul 14, 2011)

Hey BIFF,

Old timer checking in, first car was a AE-TQ10,got it at I&I May '89. Raced at Road Runners on Post Oak south!, Oasis, I&I , Checkered flag, RR Bellaire, Houston RC etc....

Current cars: AE TC6, B4.1, SC10 2w and 4x4


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

Jorge T said:


> Hey BIFF,
> 
> Old timer checking in, first car was a AE-TQ10,got it at I&I May '89. Raced at Road Runners on Post Oak south!, Oasis, I&I , Checkered flag, RR Bellaire, Houston RC etc....
> 
> Current cars: AE TC6, B4.1, SC10 2w and 4x4


Well Ill be danged. Howdy Jorge! :doowapsta


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## Labrat99 (May 6, 2009)

Does anybody remember the track in Friendswood? It was off of 2351. I thought it was called Roadrunner? Anyway, I raced 2wd stock there for a couple of years in the late 80's. I had a gold tub RC10. I also ventured into town a few times to I&I and once or twice to an indoor track off of South Post Oak.

After a while the track in Friendswood went oval and I thought that was incredibly boring compared to off road so after a few more races in town, I decided I didn't have the time for racing and sold all my stuff.


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## killerkustoms (Nov 6, 2008)

Started back 23 years ago with the RC10 gold tub, converted to graphite chassis, then added the Schumacher trailing arms and shaft. Also raced Optima mid and Schumacher Cat at Roadrunner and a little at I&I hobby. Also got a chance to race in the Astrodome during the Mickey Thompson offroad truck race, just got back into RC about 3 years ago.


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## TX_Punisher (Jul 16, 2011)

Labrat99 said:


> Does anybody remember the track in Friendswood? It was off of 2351.


Yes. I mentioned that place in another thread. Although I didn't go there until about '94. They had an oval but a small track within the oval. Raced Losi LST's. We called it Pop's because the guy that ran it was a bit older. Don't know if that was the actual name of the track, though. :rotfl:

That was the last time I drove an r/c car, until about 3 months ago.


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## VanPelt (Mar 20, 2008)

late 80's, early 90's lived in Temple, TX.
*1/10 elec oval at Pea Ridge Raceway - Temple
*1/10 elec oval at El Mott - North of Waco
*1/10 oval and off-road in Austin
*1/10 oval at Round Rock

-Oval car was an off-set chassis with Losi JRX gearbox and RC-10 front-end. Dominator body with large lexan air dam.
-Off-Road was RC-10 and Losi JRX-T.
-Also had a 1/10 sprint car based on RC-10 parts. We ran 12 turn quads with 1700 mah SCE batteries... was crazy fast. 3 minute mains.

I sold the sprint car and oval car. Still have my off-road cars, Turbo Charger, and Shinwa motor dyno. That motor dyno was soooo handy for the motors back then.


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

Tuning brushed motors was an art back then. Trinity copied a design of mine with the diagonal serrations.


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## Labrat99 (May 6, 2009)

killerkustoms said:


> Also got a chance to race in the Astrodome during the Mickey Thompson offroad truck race, just got back into RC about 3 years ago.


I ran the Astrodome race one year too Rubine. I think it was '88 or '89. I've even got some pictures from that race somewhere.


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## Guffinator (Aug 27, 2005)

I bought a Tamiya Blackfoot in '89. Started racing oval in Conroe at B&C Raceway with an Losi LXT in about '93.


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## Ronborsk (Jan 28, 2006)

Recent racing limited to College Station 2wd SC10. Now have 4wd SC10. But...

Started in early 80's. Played with grasshoper, started racing after getting RC10 gold pan Roadrunner Bellaire. From there went to Friendswood, Market Street, Fuqua? (indoor oval), some other indoor track south side, Roadrunner Veterans, K & M, HIRC 1/18th on and off road.

Favorite times were early years when I had no responsibilities and money to burn.

Favorite more recent years was club style racing at K & M. 

Just now getting back in along with little brother, who is like 41, a friend, and nephew. All with SC10 2wd's and two of us with 4wd's. Hope to race in Houston soon. I was never much of a winner but had a blast.


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## ProBroAndy (May 2, 2011)

I had a blackfoot too.. ran it for fun at roadrunner in bellaire. my brother raced a gold pan rc10 at I&I.. then got back into it when the local goodwill started selling toys-r-us's leftovers. my brother-in-law and i got a 10th nikko buggy from there with a mabuchi 540 in it.. then had the wild idea to take my brothers trinity mod motor and replace it with the mabuchi. ill be danged if the car didnt burn up off the bat. sure was fast, and actually lasted a few months before the internal esc went poof.

after that, i got a losi xxt-cr for christmas in the mid 90's.. then ran it at performance on thursday/saturday nights for 3-4 years. that was a blast!


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## insaneracin2003 (Feb 22, 2006)

Started racing in 82 or 83...somewhere aroung that time. Started with Tamiya Falcon, graduated to the rc10 gold pan, then team, then graphite chassis. Eventually bought the Truck conversion kit for the rc10. Then AE came out the the stadium truck. rc10T.
Was racing at Performance Hobby in Chalmette, La. Then at T&M Pro Hobbies in Chalmette, La. Ponchatrain Hobbies in Slidelle, La.
Moved to Houston in 98 and started racing @ K&M around 2004. Moved on to Mike's after K&M closed down....Now i just can't find the time to race **** anymore....


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## wily (Oct 14, 2005)

Started in 89 working and racing @ I and I. Raced oval in conroe and some place in Spring with a round house for a shop.

Gold pan rc10 with the swiper speed control. I remember when the first esc came out.


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## ProBroAndy (May 2, 2011)

ahh, resistor bars. i remember those lol


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## DeanSpeed (Aug 20, 2007)

ProBroAndy said:


> ahh, resistor bars. i remember those lol


And they were always hot as hell and would inevitably crack and stop working at the worst possible time.

Remember the "suicide charger" (that's what we called it) that came with the original gold chassis RC10? It was a pair of alligator clips with some resistance wire that you plugged directly from a car battery to your race pack. There was no timer or anything. It seemed like every week at the track, someone would have a meltdown of the battery or the wiring with that setup.


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## TX_Punisher (Jul 16, 2011)

wily said:


> Gold pan rc10 with the swiper speed control.


Yes. I remember that. The kits came with a balloon to put over the speed controller lol


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

wily said:


> Started in 89 working and racing @ I and I. Raced oval in conroe and some place in Spring with a round house for a shop.
> 
> Gold pan rc10 with the swiper speed control. I remember when the first esc came out.


That was Oasis on Treshwig.

Had the same controller and it came with my RC10CE. :work:

My first RC car/truck.


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## clarktg (Nov 18, 2010)

Aaaaaaah!!! Come to me my Old School Brethren (LOL)!!! I don't feel so old now...
Started somewhere in '88 in LA with a bone stock RC10 gold pan with Andy's front A-arms (uh-huh). A Reedy stock motor with 1/12th scale onroad cut brushes (wrong I know - couldn't find offroad cut brushes). Only 1 day of tranny break-in....for those that remember having to file the 6 gears in the transmission, toothpaste on the gears with motor connected breaking it in for an hour, raced the following day....and won! My secret....the thing was so friggin slow I couldn't wreck it.....early keys to success! And Paul, my brother and I used to own the Performance Hobby indoor offroad track on Paris Road in Chalmette. Bubbie Q said you were out this way...waasszzzup?

Traig


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## YNOT3D (Feb 16, 2011)

Wow, yall are stimulating some brain cells here. After reading thought all the post so far, I am trying to put time lines to cars and tracks, however it is all jumbled up.

My folks opened up Trains & Planes Hobbies on Westheimer and Gessner in 77. I was 9. I had about every r/c car that came on the market. Some that come to mind: Bolink cars, had a bunch of those. Every Tamiya car, on and off road. Several Kyosho's, I remember this bettle with the battery pack in the back and it would do wheelies all day long. 

Raced Tamiya cars, Frogs, Fox and Boomarang is what I remember. Begged my dad for a RC10 and would not get me one, because we didn't sell them. Got one in 85 I think. Gold pan, didn't tell dad. Got a graphite a few years later at a Toledo. 

The first time I raced, 4 min heats, number on the car, hand count and had to stop on the track at 4 minutes and then they would determine your finishing spot. Most, if not everyone was driving a radio with sticks and I had the wheel radio. I was awesome. Track on Bellaire and Chimney Rock, not Issacs. That was the other place. Dad didn't allow me to race there.

Hot wire Dean. Wow, I burnt a hole in my moms car seat with one of those. She still gives me grief about that, to this day. Maybe did it more than once.

Dad made me this cheater battery pack. 1/2 sub C NiCads. Half the size of a regular sub C. I was running like 12 volts, but the battery pack looked like a 7.2 volt. 

When I started driving in about 85, I did more racing. Issacs/I&I and this place on Kirkwood and something. Belaire, maybe. Henry Lee?

I got kicked out and threatened with arrest if I ever returned to Issacs after I showed up with a jacket with Trains & Planes on the back of it. 

Got out of racing for a bit, returned in 92ish racing outlaw. Me a bunch of other guys ran oval in a school parking lot off 290 and Telge maybe. RC10GT, RS2's and 4's. Dood showed up with a 2 speed tranny WOW!!!

Between 77 and 88, I had so many different cars, radios, chargers, battery packs, motors, 18 wheels, 2WD, 4WD, an orignal nitro optima? maybe, tanks (Still have the tank), that tamyia 4wd truck that was built like a real truck (Ibeam frames, 4 ch radio with a shift gate). Sold them all in the shop, when "I gotta have that" person came in. Wish I had some of those old ones, just for fun. 

SportMaxx then a T-Maxx got me running in Pearland when my buddy Eron Clark open the track there. What year was that? 02? Ran with the THRC crew for a while, became the RD and when Area 51 shut down and Pearland was gone, dropped out. It became work and not alot of fun.

Mom and Dad retired and closed the shop a few years ago now. Dam I miss that discount.

Z Man got me back into it, this year. Having fun pitting my boy and running once and a while.


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## TX_Punisher (Jul 16, 2011)

I keep seeing people mention Issac's. Is this the Issac's Hobby Shop that was on NASA Rd 1 and El Camino in Webster? I bought my first car from him as there were no real hobby shops anywhere south of his location. I know he had a little track when he moved to his location off the feeder of 45N near El Dorado but that track didn't last long. 

First real "kit" car was the Lunchbox. I remember Victory had one on the box a few months ago!


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## YNOT3D (Feb 16, 2011)

Yes and no. Same guy, different location. He moved a couple of times on chimney rock, you know it as M&M now.


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

YNOT3D said:


> Yes and no. Same guy, different location. He moved a couple of times on chimney rock, you know it as M&M now.


That's Meir. Issac is his brother.


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

YNOT3D said:


> My folks opened up Trains & Planes Hobbies on Westheimer and Gessner in 77.


That's where I bought my first RC plane from. 92-93... I worked with a guy who worked there part time. Norman Gross ring a bell?

For the rest of yall old timers. Who remembers Bill Stein? I think he quit in 89 but I see him 5-10 times a day. He works on the other side of my wall and have known him since 1981.


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## YNOT3D (Feb 16, 2011)

Yep. Norman Gross he worked for us. The year doesn't seem right. I think he was there in the 80's.


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## fishermanX (Jun 23, 2005)

What was the bald dude's name that worked at trains and plains?


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## YNOT3D (Feb 16, 2011)

fishermanX said:


> What was the bald dude's name that worked at trains and plains?


Jerry Bills. Wow, I am surprised I remember that name.


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## Z-Man. (Mar 20, 2011)

Stared in somewhere around 2002 (5 years old) with a sport max, then upgraded to a revo until about 2006 when I took about a 3.5 year break. Came back in with my dads old MBX-5, by 2011 I was a proud owner of a brand new MBX-6T. And I'm still going, and hoping to upgrade to sportsman buggy by 2012, and Expert buggy by end of 2012.


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## Calcote (Jun 21, 2011)

Started sometime in the mid 90's at Mike's in New Caney (before it became K&M), then K&M, raced a little at Houston RC and I&I (which i think is now M&M). First car was a gold chassis RC10 with the wiper arm speedo and the gold "knob box" radio with the 6' antenna on it. I thought it was a serious advancement when holes got drilled in the aluminum tub to make it lighter. I think the last car I had was the RC10B3.

I haven't raced since about 2005 right before I got married and had kids. Maybe one day I will get back into it with the kiddos.


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## 4merstatechamp (Jan 9, 2010)

O the glory days, first race was April 11, 1987, RoadRunner R/C North, dirt oval wedge RC10 J/G conversion, first r/c car was a Mauri Big Bear, what a piece of ****, I found some relics in my closet, and my first car of course! DB


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

Calcote said:


> Started sometime in the mid 90's at Mike's in New Caney (before it became K&M), then K&M, raced a little at Houston RC and I&I (which i think is now M&M). First car was a gold chassis RC10 with the wiper arm speedo and the gold "knob box" radio with the 6' antenna on it. I thought it was a serious advancement when holes got drilled in the aluminum tub to make it lighter. I think the last car I had was the RC10B3.
> 
> I haven't raced since about 2005 right before I got married and had kids. Maybe one day I will get back into it with the kiddos.


Remember the day's when I used to mill down the sides of the tub chassis's" ? lol

I think the last time I saw you, you were running a B3 at K&M during the charity race.


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

4merstatechamp said:


> O the glory days, first race was April 11, 1987, RoadRunner R/C North, dirt oval wedge RC10 J/G conversion, first r/c car was a Mauri Big Bear, what a piece of ****, I found some relics in my closet, and my first car of course! DB


Hey Buster! Loaded 3 pounds of tools on Fro's car latetly? :rotfl:


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

YNOT3D said:


> Yep. Norman Gross he worked for us. The year doesn't seem right. I think he was there in the 80's.


Yea it was in the 80s'. He didn't work there when I started RC in the 90s. He retired from where I work at prolly about 15 years ago and last I heard he is still kicking and doing well.


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## TX_Punisher (Jul 16, 2011)

So I guess the Friendswood track was known as Southside Raceway lol. 

Guess that settles it.


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