What do I need to get started? Well firstly you need a car! If you visit your local model shop you will find many different types, and sizes, of car available, from Tamiya saloon touring cars to Off-Road Buggies. The type of model we run at NWSMS are the Mardave Mini-Stox (of which there are two types), and the Mardave V12 series (also known as M-class or V-Dub models). These are well proven, reliable models which have been available for many years and have a wide following around the country. The basic kit comprises of the chassis, front axle and steering gear, rear axle, motor mount, 540 style motor, mechanical speed controller, wheels and tyres, and finally, an unpainted body shell. As mentioned above there are two types of Mini-Stox; the earlier model which comes with a set of bumpers and can be described as a "traditional" Mini-Stox, and the new style Mini which is more like a model of a circuit racing car. Both of these models race together as "Mini-Stox".   Do I need any special tools? All you need to assemble one of these models is a flat blade screwdriver, a pair of pliers, a sharp modelling knife and a 5.5mm socket spanner (for the wheel nuts). You’ll also need access to a soldering iron to connect the speed controller wires to the motor.   What other parts do I need? In addition to the kit, you will need a rechargeable battery pack, a charger for this, a power supply for the charger and a two channel radio control system. The battery pack must be a four sub-C cell 1.4Amp/hour Ni-Cad with a nominal voltage of 4.8 Volts. For those of you who reckon that this is "double-Dutch", Mardave supply a suitable pack made up with leads and connector already fitted that fits the kit perfectly! To charge this battery you will also need a charger! Mardave once again to the rescue with a simple but effective charger which enables you to charge the Ni-Cad battery from a normal 12Volt car battery. You can also get more sophisticated chargers that can be plugged into a 240Volt household supply as well, but of course these are more expensive. The final item of equipment you must have is a radio-control set. There are several suitable cheap two channel systems that you can purchase. Futaba, Acoms and Sanwa are the most common, although there are also others available. The only restriction is that the radio set must operate on either the 27Mhz or 40MHz frequency band. Other frequencies are for other types of models and should not be used by model cars. The most common range is the 27Mhz frequency and there are six colour "spot" channels available. If possible we would recommend that you purchase an additional set of crystals when you get your radio set so you can swap to another channel if required. As always your local model shop can give you advice.   Is that it? Yes! Just about! The final thing you need is a can of car spray paint so you can finish off your car with a first class paint job; then you’re ready to hit the track! NWSMS run a grading system for drivers. What this means to you as a new driver is that the roof of your car must be painted white until you have been re-graded. When you go along to watch or take part for the first time you will see people apparently surrounded by boxes of spare parts, spare wheels and other stuff you don’t recognise; Don’t worry! Your just finished car is every bit a winner as all the others. Of course as you get more involved you will build up a stock of spare parts and other stuff yourself, but leave that for the future. Just get on the track and enjoy yourself!   One more thing, how much will this cost me? Ah, yes the $64000 dollar question! The formula has been designed to provide low cost, fun racing and the cost of cars, spares and other equipment is kept down to a minimum. We would expect you to be able to purchase all the basic components mentioned above (car, rechargeable battery, battery charger and radio-control) for around œ100. Ask your model shop for their best price for a complete package.   What about buying a second hand car? Very, very occasionally you might find that a second-hand car will become available at the club, but this is very rare; once they start people tend to race forever! However, keep your eyes open because you might be lucky if someone is upgrading their car, or take a look in the adverts in the radio-control car magazines.   Ok, I’ve got my car, now what? Come along to one of our club meetings, which are held every week. Book yourself in at Race Control, making sure that you tell them which class you’re racing in and your radio-control channel colour. After all the drivers for the meeting have been booked in they will be divided up into heats. You should expect that there will be around 4-6 heats for each round with either 3 or 4 rounds. This tends to vary from club to club with some running a different format. If you are lucky you should find that there will be an opportunity to try out your car in a practice session before the real racing starts; but before you turn on your car and radio-control check to see if anyone else is using the same colour radio channel as you. Some clubs run a "peg board" system, which is exactly what it sounds like! Look at other peoples radio-control transmitter; if they have a coloured "clothes" peg clipped on somewhere then a "peg board" system is being used. It means that you can only turn your transmitter on when you have the colour peg that matches your frequency. Ask at Race Control or another driver if you are unsure. When the heats have been worked out a list of who is racing in each heat will be posted. Make a note of which heat you’re in and what you race number is for that heat. It is important that you get your race number from Race Control before you start racing; if you don’t then your laps will not be recorded for your races. You race number should be clearly displayed on the car, the best place is on the front windscreen.   I know which heat I’m in and the race number is on the car; what happens next? If you are racing in the first heat get ready to be called for your race! Time for final checks; is the car battery charged? is the radio transmitter on? is the car receiver turned on? Right you’re ready to go racing! Most races will be started by a audible sounder, like a bell or siren. This may be preceded by a “get ready” tone a few seconds before the race starts, you’ll get a chance to see how things work if there are races before yours, otherwise ask. When the race starts remember that you are racing against the clock rather that directly against the other drivers. Races are usually of 4 minutes duration, not for a set number of laps. Places are worked out by taking the number of laps completed in the allotted time; the winner is the driver who has completed most laps. As with the start of the race, when the race is over a tone or siren will be sounded; what ever you do don’t stop racing! You can still finish the lap you are currently on! So keep going until you have crossed the finishing line! Go and collect your car and return it to the pits area; don’t forget to turn off your radio-control transmitter and car. Now comes the next part of your race! Do you remember that when you crashed your car over in the far corner somebody picked it up and put it back on the track? That wasn’t just a kind hearted onlooker, that was a "race marshal". Each driver has to marshal the race immediately after their heat, so by all means take your car back to your pit area, but don’t forget to return to the track straight away to do your bit of marshalling! Just a word of warning! Some clubs take this sort of thing very seriously, you might find that you will lose your fastest heat result if your fail to marshal when it’s your turn! After the next race is over you can return to your car and get it ready for the next race; if there are only 4 heats per round this could be only 10 or 12 minutes away, so get your battery on charge, check all your fixings, and grab a cup of tea. It’s all very hectic on race night!   Well I enjoyed that! When’s the next race meeting? NWSMS will be running meetings every other Saturday evening so your next meeting is in two weeks time. Don’t forget that if you haven’t yet joined the club now is a good time to do so. You won’t be eligible for any finals or re-grading until you do; and you can’t race more that three meetings if you’re not already a BRCA member.