Miniature Auto Racing Club Race Report – May 10, 2025

The Miniature Auto Racing Club (MARC) kicked off the 10th and final race of the 2024-2025 season with three electrifying races at the famous LenJet raceway in Ashland, Mass. The morning featured a drizzly start with  temperatures in the 50s. A dedicated group of 11 racers gathered to test their skills using their meticulously tuned slot cars on LenJet’s tracks.  The event featured three races:  IROC on the Python using vintage LifeLike M chassis with NASCAR bodies, Super Stock chassis on the Bear and the extremely fast Modified and CMPM classes on the Viper.  Around noon the members were surprised by Peter Lentros joining us to make 12 racers for the day.  Peter entertained us all day with his library of jokes.

IROC

The day began with IROC using LifeLike M chassis supplied by Terry Ayer.  The warm ups showed the unwillingness of the LifeLike chassis to retain their bodies in a crash.  We all agreed to use “track calls” to reassemble the cars. This decision made for a very long first race.   Also, there was mass confusion after the first heat since the race director had written down the IROC sequence for a track starting on the red lane.  The Python starts on the yellow lane.  OOPs.  The Python, features a very long straightaway, tight hairpins, an overhead section and  sweeping esses section, demanding smooth throttle control and careful cornering—especially with cars unfamiliar to the racers.

Heat racing kicked off at 10:00 AM, with each driver running 3-minute stints across all four lanes. Driving was intense as the drivers pushed these vintage cars to their limit.  Two of the cars had to be replaced during the race.  Hakin Harris was the first to complete all four lanes with a blistering 144 laps.  Terry Ayer matched Hakim in the 7th heat.  Tom Jahl took the lead in the 8th heat with an impressive 146 laps.  John Pileggi finished with 146 laps in the last heat.  Despite all the delays the first race was extremely competitive.  The entire field was separated by only 20 laps.  Fastest lap honors go to Hakim Harris with 3.803 seconds in the white lane.  Most of the racers ran in the mid 4 second range.

After eleven heats, the final standings were tight. Tom Jahl took first with 146 laps, edging out John Pileggi by 33 sections. Third place went to Terry Ayer with 144 laps beating Hakim Harris by 11 sections.  Fifth place went to Tom Bussman with 139 laps.  Sixth went to Hal Pierce with 138 laps.

Terry promised to glue the bodies onto the chassis if we use these for IROC again.  It seems that LifeLike used to ship their new cars with a type of glue to hold the bodies on.

Pizza was delivered after the IROC race and we broke for lunch.  As usual the pizza was excellent.

Super Stock Class

The afternoon shifted gears to the Super Stock class, where ceramic magnets repel 5.8 ohm armatures driving silicone over foam tires and held to the track by traction magnets.  These cars sport aerodynamic polycarbonate bodies painted in bright colors to differentiate them from the other cars at the higher speeds.  Drivers face the challenge of adjusting their car to provide the optimum distance off the track rails.  Too high makes the car difficult to handle in the corners, too low and the friction from the rails may cause the car to overheat.  This is a delicate balance and the drivers were allowed time to test and tune their cars to gain the best performance, turning LenJet’s Bear into a high-speed battleground for the checkered flag.  The Bear challenges racers with quick direction changes, sweeping curves, an overhead section, esses and a sweeping curve that widens out before the straightaway.  Each racer was required to navigate the race course for four heats of three minutes each.

As mentioned earlier Peter Lentros joined the racers to make the field 12 racers.  Peter demonstrated his keen awareness of the track and consistent performance in all four heats.  Tom Gray set the bar for this race with 173 laps.  Terry Ayer took the lead from Tom with 202 laps.  Bruce Olsen ran the course with 197 laps, very impressive.  John Pileggi logged 213 laps with a commanding performance through the course, showcasing a mix of precision driving, mechanical build finesse, and competitive spirit.  Hakim logged 201 laps in the next to last heat.

Concluding 12 heats for this race, John Pileggi took first, Terry Ayer second, Hakim Harris third and Tom Jahl fourth for the pros.  In the Sportsman category, Bruce Olsen took first, Hal Pierce was second with 175 laps, Third place went to Tom Bussman running for 171 laps.  Fourth was John Esposito, but John is not a member of MARC, so fourth place goes to Dave Muse with 147 laps. 

With the second race in the record book, MARC members demonstrated why the Super Sport class is a favorite with slot car racers.  The racing was close with well tuned cars on a terrific track.

Modified and CMPM class

The final race of the day featured the second fastest cars in the MARC club.  This class features level 10 compression molded motor and traction magnets, armatures in the two ohm range. The Modified class is a Sportsman class and the CMPM is a Pro class.  Both classes are run on the track at the same time.  The differentiation between the two classes are Modified uses slip on tires and CMPM can use silicone over foam.  CMPM is also allowed to use bearings in place of bushings.  The result is blazing fast chassis that are difficult to see as they traverse twists and turns of the course.  Body color becomes important to avoid losing track of your car in a tight pack as each car becomes a blur at high speed.  The last race of the day was held on the Viper, one of the larger tracks at LenJet, featuring a long straight, three short straights, two tight clustered turns, hairpins and esses.  The Viper has six lanes but we only used four lanes since some racers left early, leaving 10 racers to compete in this very fast class.

Racers used practice time to fine tune the ride height and pick up shoe tension on these screaming beasts.  Peter Lentros blew up the comm on the car he was using for practice.  As with the Super Stock class, distance off the rails is critical.  With this class motor burn outs are common.

Race highlights, the last event occurred with lane rotations every three minutes. Five of the field had lap totals of 200 laps and higher.  Tom Jahl ran the first heat and had to sit out while everyone else tested their skill on this very demanding track.  Bruce Olsen set the pace for the race. Tom Gray pulled ahead with lap times dipping below 2.7 seconds.  Tom Bussman showed exceptional skill guiding his car to three heats in the mid fifties lap count, only to have mechanical problems in the red lane.  Jim Macartney had an exceptional heat in the orange lane, but experienced problems with his car immediately after that heat.   John Pileggi’s consistent driving kept him in running for the checkered flag.  A late-race run by Tom Jahl, recording the highest lap totals for his remaining three heats, clinched the win.  Results:  First place Pros: Tom Jahl 227 laps, John Pileggi 209 laps, third Tom Bussman 207, fourth Tom Gray 202.  First place Sportsman:  Bruce Olsen 200 laps, second Hal Pierce 172 laps.   Fastest lap honours went to Tom Gray with 2.786 seconds in the green lane.

Wrap-Up and Awards

The last race of the season we were without our leader Paul Ryer,  we missed you Paul!  We didn’t hand out ribbons. (Since we didn’t have any.)   Paul will likely present ribbons at the next MARC rules meeting.  I would like to take this opportunity to thank Paul for his efforts as director of MARC.  MARC is a unique group, racing the latest technology HO cars, exchanging building and driving ideas, and sharing a competitive racing environment with a great group of folks.  Paul schedules races, keeps up with the rules and technology changes, maintains the website, takes and publishes photos of the races, sets up the races on the computer and schedules the rules meeting.  Paul is primarily responsible for keeping the wheels on the MARC club.  So a BIG “Thank You” to Paul, your efforts are much appreciated.

We end the season with a quote from Peter Lentros “It’s days like this that remind us why we love slot car racing—great competition and even better camaraderie.”