[Harry_the_Spider]

We've got a house full of kids one day over Christmas (ages 4 to 69) for a Scalextric Party.

The track will be either of these two (one shamelessly pinched off here, from Ember I think

). I thought it would be better to work it out on paper first rather than make it up as I go along with a load of impatient kids getting in the way.

The cars will be my ebay specials. 2x Audi TTs, 4x Escort & Fiesta rally cars, 4x NASCARs including the new ones that I found whilst hunting for my presents last night

, a Beemer and a realistically ****e Alfa 155. My five year old nephew will be bringing his new cars too and a mate of mine will be searching his attic for some Minis and Mk1 Escorts that haven't moved in 25 years.

There will be crisps, mince pies and Vimto (It's a Northern thing).

Anyone else doing it too? Carpet tracks and cheap cars or MDF works of art and scratch built masterpieces. Just as long as there are people having a laugh. If so post your pictures and the winner gets a tangerine, or any bits that fall off my Alfa.

 

[Keeto]

Jeeeeeeeez I had a good laugh now! Thanks Harry!

This is down on the rugs - errrr hardwood floor - right now and will stay down till next year - what is funny is to see my wife and I prancing round like we are in a cheap rendition of the Nutcracker so to not step on anything, as it's fills the lounge and dining room.

No nephews or cousins around this one though!

 

[Martyn_]

I've got a houseful on boxing day. It will degenerate into the usual sibling fighting etc.
Pics to follow the hangover. Extra points for every racer wearing a hat out of crackers shown in the pics? I reckon so.

 

[Mark Newt]

Harry, sounds like a right laugh.

I had no plans until reading this but now i'm gonna invite everyone I can..except we'll have plenty of alcohol! oh, and some cream soda & dandelion & burdock for the oldies (if you can still buy it?).

Right, gotta go design the track now!!

Mark

 

[Martyn_]

You can still D&B at my local chippy.

 

[Si.]

Hi Harry old chap.

That 1st circuit looks suspiciously like my current MRW Motor Speedway layout.
Not QUITE the same though.

You realise old bean, I shall have to get the MRW lawyer's in on breach of copyright straight away.

Probably take you for a million...
...unless you can get away in that Aston of yours, with the forward firing machine-guns.

Have a good Crimbo, & don't let the kids drink the winners bubbly, they can up-chuck.

Cheers

Si.

 

[Harry_the_Spider]

Ah... you've got me there. I've pinched your long sweeping right hander.

[edit]and some other bits[/edit]

To be honest one of the best things about this place is taking ideas from other people's layouts... and ripping them off.

You should take it as a compliment.

Doesn't matter, I'm going to build option 2 anyway as it better suits the shape of the room.

 

[Si.]

I hope that Aston's FAST old boy................................

 

[Ember]

Yup. That second one looks sort of familiar. With all the corners evened out a little. Looks like you'll be having fun times.

My older brother will probably be visiting over Xmas holidays this year. Which means I'll probably have some repair work to run on cars by New Year. Still, it won't be as bad as it was with 2 brothers running on the track for 5 hours a few years ago. I don't think any car survived unscathed. These are two fellows who used to drop bricks on their Matchbox and Dinky cars so that the tow trucks had proper wrecks to tow.

Embs

 

[Si.]

^ Little blighters !!!

Oh Harry...

...Lock up your die-casts old boy...

...My mates yung 'en put one of them on the grid & throttled it till the Power-Base BLEW-UP !!!

Hard to get a new PB on Crimbo day, what !

Cheers

Si.

(just pulling yer leg old bean; wouldn't really set the MRW legal mob on a good-fella like you !)

 

[Dopamine]

I can't match your circuit diagram for pretty colours, Harry, but this is what I'm putting up in the village hall the day after boxing day.

Nice and simple without too many corners, designed to be novice, child and drunk friendly as we're running a race meeting for 30 or so friends, 90% of whom have no slotting experience.

Format is tried and tested: No magnets, crash-and-burn, teams of four drivers, 1 hour free practice followed by enough 5 lap heats so that every driver and team races against all the others, scoring 4,3,2,1 points (4 for a win) and 0 for failing to finish. The 16 highest scoring drivers go forward to the Driver's Championship of quarter-finals (5 laps), 7 lap semis and a 10 lap final. Winner gets nothing except a nice warm feeling, although as it's Christmas this time, maybe we'll stretch to a bottle of bubbly and a mince pie.

In the past, the first heats have often had only one or two finishers, sometimes even none, due to the crash-and-burn rules, but it's amazing how quickly those rules make everyone slow down and take care to finish, with the result that damage to cars is usually low. Just as well, as I only have a finite number of cars available in each class.

My car choice is similar to Harry's. For the heats, early version in-line Scalextric Nascar, Scalextric BTCC, Scalextric Japanese GTs and Ninco Raid for something a little different. Drivers Champ quarters use Carrera Ferrari 512BBs, semis use SCX Audi R8s and the final uses Ninco F1.

 

[Harry_the_Spider]

Brilliant!

You have to post some pictures of that!

 

[Si.]

Sorry.
I can't.
I don't have any pictures of the Power-Base blowing-up.

Si

 

[Harry_the_Spider]

Well, that went off quite well!

3 hours of racing and picking cars up from under the sideboard. We carried on until the transformer got too hot to cope with the track and everything ground to a halt.

 

[Martyn_]

Looks like you all had great fun! Isn't m'laddo a bit young for fosters though?

Like a divot, totally forgot to photgraph my lot. They enjoyed themselves too.

 

[Si.]

Stunning job Harry...

...what I wouldn't give, to have those analogue controllers & lap counter, back from the ex-girlfriends garden-shed !

Her darn Tifosi dad's, got the lot by now if I'm not wrong.

Seem's like the mini driver's had a good 'en for Crimbo, What !

Cheers

Si.

P.S. posting your version of the MRW circuit soon, hope there's no copyright issues old-boy ( just kiddin' ! ).