Euro Touring Series » Eoghain O Briain

March 3, 2013

Chassis Focus – Viktor Wilck

Chassis Name – Tamiya TRF417X
Motor – Thunder Power
ESC – Speed Passion Reventon
Batteries – Thunder Power
Tires – Ride (handout)
Radio/Servos – Sanwa
Remarks – Top qualifier and race winner here in Gran Canaria, Viktor Wilck, is running a modified version of the Tamiya TRF417X. Featuring some new parts from Raceberry, they appear to have worked with the Tamiya team having their best result in some time. The new parts include a top deck with different flex characteristics to the standard part as well as a new chassis plate. The car sports some other modifications to help provide flex and we are told that Tamiya will be coming out with their own official parts soon. Viktor was also running the latest Reventon speed controller from Speed Passion which includes new power profiles as well as a new cooling fan.

Image Gallery

March 3, 2013

Video – Mod & Pro Stock A-main Leg 2

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2ZTI115NTw[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WM2W3xdWvA[/youtube]

March 3, 2013

Chassis Focus – Ronald Volker

Chassis Name – Yokomo BD7
Motor – LRP
ESC – LRP
Batteries – LRP
Tires – Ride (handout)
Radio/Servos – Sanwa
Remarks – Ronald Volker has come to the island of Gran Canaria with some new parts on his Yokomo BD7. A new thinner top deck for more flex there is also new lower shock towers to compliment the new shorter shock absorbers. The new shocks have a shorter body and shorter shafts for a lower centre of gravity and more reactive feel to the car. There are no concrete plans to release these new parts as the team are just testing different options.

Image Gallery

March 3, 2013

Video – Mod & Pro Stock A-main Leg 1

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVL1Ha0jH4U[/youtube]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nq3P1cBxcvQ[/youtube]

February 27, 2013

Gran Canaria takes ETS season outdoors

This weekend (March 1-3) the Yokomo Euro Touring Series marks its 30th event traveling to the popular Spanish holiday island of Gran Canaria for the first outdoor race of the 2012/13 season. Making its debut on the ETS calendar 12-months ago, the race produced one of the most popular wins of the season when Kyosho’s Christopher Krapp notched up his first victory in the World famous electric touring car championship.

In contrast the 3rd round of the series would be an event to forget for champion Ronald Volker, the German forced to withdraw from the finals due to issues with his then prototype speed controllers. The winner of the opening two races of this season, Volker will be looking to make it three in a row & rectify last year’s drama while Krapp will be hoping the event will be the turning point in what has so far been a disappointing start to the 6th season of the Euro Touring Series for the German.

Team Yokomo will have an expanded team this weekend with Volker and 2011/12 season finale winner Yannic Prümper being joined by Nitro Touring Car World Champion Meen Vejrak and fellow Thai talent Charlee Phutiyothin. A-Main Finalists at last weekend’s TITC race in Bangkok, of which half the grid have an elusive ETS win to their credit, the pair will be looking
to impress on their debut in the series.

Having secured his best ever ETS result at Round 2 in the Czech Republic where he finished 2nd, the battle for the win going to the third A-Main, factory Serpent driver Marc Fischer will be looking for a repeat performance on his first visit to the Island. Fischer won’t be the only driver looking to go one better in Gran Canaria. Awesomatix’s Viljami Kutvonen lost out on a podium finish at the second round after a tie break with team-mate Freddy Sudhoff. With Sudhoff unable to attend this weekend, Kutvonen will lead the Russian team’s challenge and the talented Finn is sure to be one to watch.

With the switch from carpet to asphalt a number of drivers will be hoping the surface change helps bring them more competitive foam. Runner-up to Krapp at the event last year, Team Xray’s Alexander Hagberg has had a tough beginning to his ETS campaign. A title contender last season, the Swede was only 10th at Round 2 and needs a good result this weekend. Team-mate Adrian Berntsen had terrible luck at Round 2 but there is no doubting the Norwegian’s talent and he should be a podium contender. Also hoping the move to outdoor racing brings improvement is HB’s Andy Moore. Yet to make the A-Main this season, the former World Champion enjoyed his best result of last season in Gran Canaria taking 5th.

Tamiya is enduring a long run of non-podium finishes but Marc Rheinard & Viktor Wilck are confident that on asphalt they have a car that is capable of winning. Former champion Rheinard has a best finish of 4th while Wilck has missed the cut on both occasions ending up in the B-Main. Elsewhere, having made the A-Main with Chris Grainger on the island last year, the factory Schumacher squad make a welcomed return to the premiere RIDE Modified class this weekend.

In the Xray Pro Stock class, Zdenko Kunák, who did not contest the event last year, will make his ETS debut for the race winners Yokomo. The Slovak driver has made a surprise switch to the Japanese manufacturer having started out the year with Xray, a team for whom he had raced for many years. Marek Cerny who took his & Yokomo’s first win in Gran Canaria has gone the opposite direction switching to Xray for the 2013 season already bagging a win with the Slovak manufacturer at his home round in the Czech Republic. In the Speed Passion Formula class Jan Amser will be chasing his third straight win but faces strong opposition in Marc Rheinard who made his class debut at Round 2 finishing 2nd.

Round 3 of the Yokomo Euro Touring Series officially gets underway with practice on Friday and culminates with triple mains for all drivers on Sunday. All the action from Gran Canaria can be followed on RedRC where regular updates and video action will be published throughout the weekend.

January 20, 2013