Jeff did run a 53.7 last year, Greg ran a 53.6 this year. We regularly run in the high 53s with a 2 year old shifter chassis. If we used a newer 100 cc kart, low 53s here we come. It was posted here on this site this spring that if a sealed engine were to be torn down, all measures possible to rembusing the racer for re-sealing costs, including a fee equal to the costs of re-sealing the engine would be assessed. Was this done?
It should not be surprising to anyone who has half a brain that a Rotax will be the fastest TaG package at IMI. When compared to the other engines, the Rotax develops more hp. This is well documented by both Tag USA and WKA on several ocasions. However, the Rotax has a very limited total power band, less than 6,000 rpm. The other engines have at least an 8,000 rpm band with some upwards of 10,000 to 11,000 rpm.
What this means is that if the track has a slow corner relative to the longest straight, those engines with a wide power band will have the advantage. When we were at New Castle, it wan’t even close between the Sonics and the rest of us. They had us (Rotax and Leopard) by over 1 second. We were 1,000 rpm below our power band off the slow corners yet we were out of gear 3/4 down the straights. We lost 20 kart lengths every lap. Greg was able to run very close (.1 and passing him at one point) to the track owner in his Leopard (Mark Dismore Jr, multi time WKA national champion). Give us as much time on that track as the owner has, I think we could run dead even with him. However, all the karts in the front will be Sonics.
IMI is the exact opposite, it has no slow corners relative to the straight. The Rotax uses only 4,000 rpm of its band. At IMI, we can run the Rotax in its sweet spot all the way around. Since we run less weight and have more power, the Rotax is king there. Given the nature of IMI, the Rotax will always be the fastest engine there under the current rules and it will be fastest by a lot.
At Grand Junction, its much closer in that the Rotax has to use all its power band plus a little over rev. That is why the Rotax is still quickest, but its much closer. The other engines are only a few tenths back. This spring, the top 6 were covered by only a few tenths. Of all the tracks we have raced at, GJ is the most fair to the various engine packages.
Bandimere is the exact opposite. It has two very slow corners and two long straights. The Rotax will be .5 a second behind a Leopard there. If a quality Sonic showed up, it would crush us all by a full second.
I was at Badger raceway this past weekend. While completely different from any thing we have around here (but it did remind me a bit of CRE) It was all Sonic. With the light weights WKA runs, the Sonics put on a show. The two Rotaxes were dead last, a full second off the pace and it had nothing to do with driver. There was a Leopard keeping up with them, but it had a really good driver and the two Sonics kept screwing up trying to take the point from each other.
The point of all this is that if a person gets out and does a little investigation, looks at other tracks and other races, they will see not every engine will be competitve at every track. The engines are too different in their basic power delivery characteristics. To come up with a single set of weights that work eveyrwhere is impossible.
I am dissapointed to see SKUSA take such a negative attitude toward its racers. I would have hoped that they would try to work with various sanctioning bodies to help Tag move forward. After all, it has so few members and by far their largest group is right here in Colorado. Since most are recreational type racers working on a very limited budget, I would think they would try to find a way to minimize costs for the racer, not increase them. If they had $350-$500 to stuff in their engines every weekend, they would race ICC shifters. I know we would.
I don’t have a basic problem with them wanting to break a seal, for either Rotax, Biland or EasyKart, it’s just they should make an effort to minimize a racers expense to put it back together. The CSC earlier announced they would this year. Having a certifed dealer on hand to re-seal, or sending it off to a certified center would be appropreate. To do other wise SKUSA is sending a simple message, if you have a sealed motor, don’t race with us.
However, with all the political BS I see going on now, TaG is doomed after this year, if not already. WKA will come out with rules next year to blueprint the engines. That will split the TaG world right down the middle. WKA will become a two engine, high costs class, Sonic and Leopard. SKUSA has yet to give a clear direction of what its going to do and IKF wants to work with TagUSA but that may be tough once WKA breaks off.
Bottom line, RMax will rise again for all the reasons it became the most popular Tag package. Especially since there will be very positive changes in the Rotax challange format next year. Look for the Rotax guys to drop the Tag crap and do Rotax only events. I know thats where we will end up if things go as I think they will.