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Race Report – Speed Circuit 2017 Indy Oval

Racing at Indy is like playing a chess game while moving at 220 miles per hour.  Fuel strategy played a key role in this years race.  Three drivers (Gavin, Copper, and Mchaven) started the race with two fuel while the rest started with three.  Gavin pulled ahead of the pack and picked up a bonus point for lap 1, but pitted before crossing the start/finish line during lap 2.  The pack raced by the three cars that pitted at the end of lap-2 and continued a positional battle.  During the race, Surtees, Bell and Beltoise gained bonus points for leading laps.

At the end of lap-3, seven cars pitted.  Gavin, Copper, and Mchaven pushed to pass the pitted cars but could not catch them in time.  Their “start the race low on fuel” strategy did not payoff.

Six of the Seven cars that pitted on lap-3 took on two fuel except Beltoise who took one.  Beltoise lead going down the back strait on lap-4 with McLaren on his heels.  McLaren spun going into the fourth corner.  Beltoise spent his remaining fuel, but was able to finish lap-5 and garner the win.

As a result of the win, Beltoise gained a considerable lead in the drivers championship.  McLaren and Andretti are tied for second while Gavin and Surtees are tied for third.  Hahne is fourth just a point behind the third place drivers.

Matra extended its lead in the constructors championship.  Lotus was not represented at Indy, but was able to remain in second.  McLaren passed Owen for third place.

Click here for detailed race results and here for season standings.

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Race Report – Speed Circuit 2017 Sarthe Lemans

Team manager John guided McLaren to its first win of the season.  Matra driver Gavin started on pole, but started slow and quickly fell back.  Lotus driver Jochem Rindt shot to the front and lead the first lap.  Bruce McLaren charged forward during lap 2 and held the lead.  McLaren and Matra Driver J. Beltoise finished side-by-side with  McLaren securing the win.  Rindt finished 3rd in his first race since recovering from injuries.

Race results:
1st John (B. McLaren) 60/40/40/160/6
2nd Den (J. Beltoise) 80/40/40/160/5
3rd Steve (J. Rindt) 80/40/20/160/5
4th Den (J. Gavin) 40/60/40/160/4
5th Steve (M. Andretti) 80/40/20/160/5
6th John (D. Bell) 40/40/40/140/6

Follow this link for season details.

Next race is on the Big oval in May!

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Race Report – Speed Circuit 2017 Spa

Matra wins two in a row!  Matra driver Beltoise started on pole.  Lotus driver Mario Andretti took the lead on the second lap, but dropped out of the race due to tire failure.  Beltoise finished first followed by Owen driver G. Eaton and BMW driver H. Hauhne.

Beltoise moves to first place in the individual championship and Matra now leads the manufacturers.

Race results:
1st Den (J. Beltoise) 80/40/40/160/5*
2nd Terry (G. Eaton) 80/40/40/160/4
3rd Ray G. (H. Hauhne) 80/40/40/160/5
4th Den (J. Gavin) 60/40/20/160/5
5th Steve (Attwood) 60/40/20/160/5
6th Ray G. (G. Mitter) 60/40/40/160/4
7th Terry (J. Surtees) 60/40/40/160/5
DNF Steve (M. Andretti) 80/40/20/160/6*

Click here for Season standings.

Next race is Lemans on 19 April 2017.

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Race Report – Speed Circuit 2017 Monaco

Lotus driver Jochem Rindt lead the first three laps of the race, but crashed on the last lap.  Jack Brabham also crashed.  Both drivers suffered minor injuries.  Matra driver Beltoise worked his way from 7th to finish first.  Bruce McLaren finished second followed by Johny Gavin.  Season points leader Mario Andretti finished fourth.

Race Results:
1st Den (J. Beltoise) 80/40/40/140/5
2nd John (B. McLaren) 60/40/40/160/6
3rd Den (J. Gavin) 60/40/40/160/5
4th Steve (M. Andretti) 80/40/20/140/6
5th Tom (J. Ickx) 60/60/40/140/5
6th Terry (J. Surtees) 80/40/40/160/5
7th Terry (G. Eaton) 60/40/40/140/5
8th John (D. Bell) 40/40/40/140/6
CR1 Steve (J. Rindt) 80/40/20/140/6
CR1 Tom (J. Brabham) 60/60/40/140/5

Visit the season standings page for more details.

 

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Race Report – Speed Circuit 2017 Kyalami

Lotus driver Mario Andretti led the field of 14 drivers for all three laps securing the win.  John Surtees finished 2nd followed by Jochem Rindt.  In his debut outing, Rich’s driver, Sam Tingle finished in 4th place.

Jackie Stewart Before Wing Callapsed

Wing failures caused Ferrari driver Chris Amon and Brabham driver Jack Brabham to drop out of the race.  Jackie Stewart crashed when his front wing collapsed.  Severely injured, Jackie Stewart is not expected to race again.  Wings are not allowed in the next race.

Race results:
1st Steve (M. Andretti) 80/40/20/160/5**
2nd Terry (J. Surtees) 60/40/40/160/5
3rd Steve (J. Rindt) 80/40/20/160/5
4th Rich (S. Tingle)  60/40/40/160/5
5th Ray G. (H. Hauhne) 80/40/40/160/5
6th Terry (G. Eaton) 80/60/40/160/4
7th Adam (P. Rodriguez) 60/40/40/160/4
8th Den (J. Beltoise) 40/40/40/160/5
9th Tom (J. Ickx) 40/60/40/160/5
10th Ray G. (G. Mitter) 60/40/40/160/4
11th Rich (J. Love) 80/20/40/140/6
DNF Tom (J. Brabham) 40/60/40/160/5 – Wing Failure
DNF Adam (C. Amon) 80/60/40/160/4 – Wing Failure
CRS Den (J. Stewart) 80/60/40/160/4 – Career Ending Injury

Click here for season standings.

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Speed Circuit Series 7 Begins 25 Jan 2017 – First Race Kyalami!

The seventh season of Speed Circuit starts on 25 Jan 2017 with the South African Grand Prix at Kyalami.  This year, we will be using teams from the 1969 Grand Prix season.  Our reigning Champion, Steve, gets first pick from the teams, but after that it is first come first served.

Here is a link to the wiki on the real 1969 F1 Season:  1969 F1.

Remember to review the Kyalami track guide.

See you at the race!

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Race Report – Speed Circuit Season 2016 Finale at Mexico City

PKT3244-228879 GRAHAM HILL British driving ace Graham Hill proudly holds up the trophy he was awarded after winning the 150mile aintree '200'. In the race of formula one cars, Hill was followed by second place Innes Ireland in a Lotus BRM and third place Jim Clarke in a Lotus Climax.
Graham Hill Wins Speed Circuit Championship

S. Moser started on pole ahead of 11 other drivers during the Mexican Grand Prix, but was unable to finish the race due to a suspension failure.  Hahne bolted into lead on the first lap.  Graham Hill battle his way to front and led the second and third laps winning the race and securing the championship.  Denny Hulme finished one space behind Hill and was followed by Hahne.  Hulme and Hahne also finished 2nd and 3rd in the championship.

Despite finishing second in the individual championship, Hulme’s team, McLaren, won the constructor’s title 4 points ahead of Lotus.

Click here for season details.

Speed Circuit Season 2017 starts in January.

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Race Report – Speed Circuit 2016 Watkins Glen

watkinsglen1968

10 drivers lined up 3 wide at the start of this year’s race a Watkins Glen.  Brian Redman held pole position in his Cooper T86B.  He attempted to hold off Mclaren, Attwood, and Hahne, but Hahne gained the upper-hand and passed the finish line in the lead on the first lap.

Hulme worked his way through the pack from 8th place and linked-up with his team-mate.  The Mclaren’s worked together using slip streaming to minimize wear use and maximize speed.  Hulme completed the second lap ahead of Hahne taking the lead.

The fierce battles for position occurring throughout the race began to take its toll on the final lap.  In an attempt to take the lead, Scarfiotti made a daring move, but his rear axle gave way and he crashed leaving one Cooper in the race.  Unser pushed his car too hard and his transmission failed in the last corner.

Hulme held the lead during final lap winning the race.  Graham Hill started in 7th position and finished in 3rd place retaining his lead in the championship.  Securing 1st and 2nd place allowed McLaren to move to the top of the constructor’s competition for the first time this season.  Race results follow:

1st (8) Den (D. Hulme) 80/40/40/160/5*
2nd (3) Den (B. McLaren) 40/40/40/160/5
3rd (7) Steve (G. Hill) 80/40/20/160/5
4th (5) Ray (H. Hahne) 80/40/40/160/5*
5th (2) Terry (Attwood) 60/40/40/160/5
6th (1) John H. (Redman) 80/40/20/180/5
7th (10) Steve (J. Clark) 60/40/20/160/6
8th (4) Ray (J. Biden) 40/40/40/160/5
DNF Terry (B. Unser) 60/40/40/160/5
CR1 (6) John H. (Scarfiotti) 40/40/20/160/6

Click here for SEASON STANDINGS.

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Regatta A 3M Sports Game

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Regatta A 3M Sports Game

Recently got a nice copy of 3M’s 1968 version of Regatta.  It’s a yacht racing game.  Once again 3M’s production values are impressive.  The game’s map is integrated into the box cover and folds open into a large plastic/vinyl coated playing surface.  The yacht miniatures are metal.  This version of the game comes with three islands.

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3M Regatta Game Components

The rules are elegant.  Movement is based on wind direction.  A die is used to determine if the wind changes direction and the number of legs (movement phases) per turn.  Other elements, like use of a spinnaker, add additional strategy without making play too complex.  Should be fun with a group of players.

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Six Boats Fight for Position in Regatta!

Since I don’t own the Avalon Hill version of the game or even seen the Avalon Hill rules, I can’t compare the two.

Note:  I plan on holding a round of Regatta in December and will post it on the schedule.

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3M Speed Circuit vs Avalon Hill Speed Circuit

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3M Sports Game Speed Circuit

Just got hold of the 1971 3M version of Speed Circuit.  Like the Avalon Hill version, the 3M game comes with three tracks (Monza, Monaco, and Watkins Glen) and six metal cars.  Unlike Avalon Hill’s version of the game, the tracks are not printed on map boards, instead they are integrated into the plastic/vinyl box cover.   The cover is wrapped around an internal box that holds the other game components.  Monza and Monaco are on one side of the map and Watkins Glen is on the other.  The map looks fantastic.

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3M Speed Circuit’s Watkins Glen

The game also includes thin cardboard dials to track speed, cards with per-generated cars, a laminated sheet to track cars and a grease pencil.  Although the dials are a bit flimsy, the game has an over all deluxe feel.

20160917-img_3414The basic rules use pre-generated cars printed on the cards.  Players pick cards randomly.  It is a good way to get new players into the game.  The rest of the rules are similar to Avalon Hill’s version except for one key factor.

3M’s Speed Circuit does not use dice.  That’s right!  Surpass a corner’s speed limit you pay wear (no option to roll on the chance table).  Exceeding a car’s top speed or start speed is not possible.  Nothing is left to chance.  The game focuses on skill.

Which is a better game?  The 3M game’s production value is better than Avalon Hill’s.  The addition of chance in the Avalon Hill rules adds an element excitement to the game while maintaining a fine balance between luck and skill.  Highly recommend both versions of the game, they are classics.