Current QSAC News

8/31/2010
Please remember that your bid package for a 2011 NCS race is due by October 1st 2010. The document will be available ASAP and downloadable from the "Forms" tab.

Mike Sadler is now officially the competition director as well as a Co-chair.

8/4/2010
Been a while since I've posted anything. Well here are a few tid bits. We have a new distributor Jon Smith. Please see the Manufactures tab and then select the Distributors tab. Over the winter I'll try to make this more appealing and give our distributors more room.

There has been a change in the QSAC official lineup. Check out the Contact Us tab for details.

The NorthWest RC Complex has a new photo under the Tracks tab.

The Lansing Tri-State race has concluded, please contact Fred Murry for details or check out Hobby Talk.

6/24/2010
The member list has been updated and is located under the forms tab. It includes all applications received as of 6/23/10. If you mailed your application prior to 6/7 and your name is not listed, please call me at (517) 410-3754. If you paid at a track, please contact the track. Doreen Brown

5/29/2010
The points as of 5/16/2010 are posted under the NCS Info Tab and 2010 Ponits section.

5/14/2010
Please review the current member list shown on the "Forms" tab. It includes all applications received as of 5/12/10. If your membership was paid at a track and you are not on the list, please contact the track operator.

I continue to receive calls and e-mails indicating some members have not received their 2010 membership cards. To ensure everyone has a card, we decided to resend all cards. Replacement cards were mailed Wed, May 12, to all members except those in Arizona, California, Nevada and Michigan. Those for AZ, CA, and NV members will be available at the NCS race in Boulder on May 15. If you are not at the race, I will mail your cards as soon as I return to Michigan.

For Michigan members, Randy Brown will have cards at the Lansing track on Saturday, May 22. There are 5 other replacement cards that have not yet been mailed: Steve Ballew, Bubba Coker, John Foster, Steve Phillips, and David Prather. These will be mailed May 19th. I again apologize for the mixup with the cards. If your name is on the member list and your card was mailed May 12 as described above, I would like a phone call from you if you have not received a card by Wed, May 19. In this case, I need to verify that I have your correct address in the database.

We will be mailing co-chair ballots to all members in September and we don't want to miss anyone. Please understand that sometimes I just can't type and other times I can't read your handwriting!

Several members have asked about the coding at the bottom of the cards. If you were a member in the prior year you will have an "R" indicating returning/renewal. If you were not a member the prior year, this will show N (new.) The next letter indicates whether you paid for "Electronic" membership (electronic delivery of newsletters and rulebook) or "Printed" newsletters and rulebook. Most of your cards will show R/E.

On another subject: QSAC membership numbers and car numbers. Membership information is maintained in a relational database and member numbers are automatically assigned in consecutive order. I do not (or at least should not) assign these numbers! When I took over the database in 2003, a few unnamed persons asked that I change their membership numbers to their car numbers. This sounded like an easy, reasonable request so I did it. The result was not pretty - I created a major programming error because the database contains linked tables and requires the member number to be unique. While I now know how to change numbers without crashing the database, it takes 30 - 45 minutes per member to make the changes for just one member.

In fairness to everyone, and since I don't have 24 hours a day to do this volunteer job, I am no longer able to do this for anyone - so please don't ask. As a compromise, I have started putting race car numbers on the membership cards. The current application does not indicate this is available so you had to read about it in a previous posting. If you missed it for this year, we will make certain it is listed as an option on the 2011 membership form.

Meanwhile, if you haven't yet submitted a 2010 membership form and you want your car number on the card, put the following in the top left corner of your application: Car Number _____. The database will hold up to 6 characters for the car number so you may list 2 car numbers if you want. (Example: 22 / 27 or 22 & 27).

The best way to reach me is by leaving a message on my cell phone at: (517) 410-3754. I will try to return all calls within 48 hours. Again, thank you for your patience.

Doreen Brown, Secretary/Treasurer

4/26/2010
We are sad to report that long-time QSAC member Ron Pipgras passed away in his sleep on Saturday, 4/17/2010, in Burleson TX. Doing what he loved, Ron had competed Friday in the QSAC NCS race. A quiet, gentle, man, Ron was happy to be able to compete and was proud to show off his new car body. When racing, sometimes he was right there with the front-runners, other times he was just happy to finish the race.

A former Wisconsin boy, Ron served in the U.S. Army. He also sometimes road railroad box cars and was a bronco rider. Ron was retired from a local L.P. gas company. Four or five years ago, he met close friends Bubba Coker and Raymond Johnson while racing 1/4 scale at the Sugar Bowl. Bubba and Raymond enjoyed having Ron join them on out-of- state race trips and Ron appreciated the opportunity.

Ron, age 68, lived in White, GA and is survived by his wife, Marie, and daughters Rhonda and Lisa. Special thanks to Bubba Coker and his company, Central EMS, and to Raymond Johnson for assisting the family. If you are interested in making a donation in Ron’s memory, arrangements were handled by Sosebee Funeral Home in Canton, GA
(www.sosebeefuneralhome.com).

Ron will be missed by his QSAC friends!

www.sosebeefuneralhome.com
Services were handled by ________________ of Georgia. Internment was held Wednesday, 4/21/2010. According to the Cherokee Tribune, donations may be made to the charity of your choice in Ron’s memory.

4/20/2010
The whole quarter Scale community has lost a wonderful human being. It is with a heavy heart that we inform you that Ron Pipgras has passed away. Ron was doing what he loved, racing quarter scale cars with all of his friends.

Ron passed away friday night in his hotel room. He set an example for all of us never forgeting that this was grown men racing toy cars. We all will miss Ron!

As I was writing this, I found out that another racer who has had a very hard year had lost his brother to a 10 year battle with cancer. Our condolences go to you and your family as well Will Landers. The family asks that you donate to the cancer society.

God Bless both of you and Rest In Peace.

As I recieve more information I will post it here.

JB

3/13/2010
Ok everyone, the March newsletter is posted on qsac.org under newsletters I hope all is ok, please let me know if there is anything I missed or that needs to be changed for the next one its fairly basic, but I will jazz it up a bit more as we go and as I learn thanks for all your help!!!!!!!!!

Mike

A Bit O' History

    In late 1984, after a year or so of R&D, a gentleman from the little town of Buffalo, Texas took several examples of a Quarter Scale, Radio/Controlled replica of a World of Outlaws-type Sprint Car to the annual Hobby show in Pasadena, CA. There, he found his display inundated by folks fascinated with the concept of such a large R/C car. Further, they were even more interested when he "fired-one-up" and they were treated to the sound of the big (relatively) two-stroke single that powered the car. A quick, on-the-floor demo of the car's response to inputs from the radio in his hand convinced many in the audience that "these should sell like hot-cakes"-- and Carroll Cheek, now known as the "Grandfather" of Quarter Scale, returned to Texas with orders in hand, and the new, largest scale of R/C race cars was born!

The new company

   Known as Winner's Circle Manufacturing or WCM, grew and prospered, and was soon joined by a new California entrepreneur, Jon Rahe, and his RACO Modelcraft. Quarter Scale was off and running! Growth of the sport continued from that time with new manufacturers popping-up on the scene, but there was a problem....... Buyers were scattered all over, sometimes only one or two in a particular area, and didn't know where other potential racers were located. The manufacturers, particularly WCM and RACO, could see that they needed to find a way to organize the racers into a group who knew and communicated with each other. An attempt was made to get ROAR, the major R/C car racing organization in the US, to sanction Quarter Scale racing under their auspices, but Roar was primarily an "electric-car" group, concentrating on 1/12th and 1/10th scales, and wasn't really interested in bothering with what was, at that time, a small group of racers who were scattered all over the map!

    With no apparent help forthcoming from that direction, the manufacturers decided to take the "bull-by-the-horns" and form a National Organization which would also be an entity that would organize and sanction Quarter Scale racing events, establish a cogent Rules package controlling the specifications for cars in different classes, set up race formats for the various classes, establish safety-standards, and last, but not least, provide a liability insurance program to protect both the racer and the viewing public. After much research and headaches, the organization was chartered and the Quarter Scale Auto Club began!

The QSAC of the Present

    In late 1992, management of the Quarter Scale Auto Club was turned over to the membership, and, following a complete reorganization, during which the Club was incorporated as a not-for-profit Corporation, officers elected, committees formed for the purpose of setting the standards for Rules, Competition, Special Projects, and Long-Range Planning. In addition, there is a field organization in place at the District, Region, and Area levels, staffed with directors who are local focal-points for members and racing facilities all over the country. The organization belongs to and is run by (on a no-pay, volunteer basis) the membership.