The German Micro Masters was THE main event for every German 1:18 micro racer in the 2008 winter season. Some call it the unofficial German Championships for 1/18 racing. The race was held in Alten-Buseck, a small town close to GieĂźen.
MAC Lahntal and MSC Kirchhain organized the event in cooperation with a small local collector and hobby museum, who offered a part of his exhibition space for two separate race tracks in one big room (on- and off-road) and the large pit area with prepared tables for each driver.
The layout for both tracks seemed to be very challenging. The on-road track had a very tricky infield which called for a good setup and calm driving. The off-road track amongst others combined a triple jump with a so called â wallâ™ which separated the good from the best.
(click to enlarge)
There were five categories:
⢠1/18 On-road Standard
Car: every 1:18 car apart from the M18 PRO
Completely controlled electronics (ESC, motor and Batteries from X-Ray)
⢠1/18 On-road Modified
Car: every 1/18 car allowed, M18 Pro recommended
Controlled brushed motor, 6-cell batteries
⢠1/18 On-road Super-Modified
Car: every 1/18 car allowed, M18 Pro recommended
Brushless motors allowed, 6-cell batteries
⢠1/18 Off-road Standard
Car: only 2wd cars allowed (4wd cars converted to 2 wd also allowed)
Controlled brushed motor, only rubber tires allowed
⢠1/18, 1/16 Off-road Modified
Car: every off-road 1/18 car allowed
Brushless allowed, foam tires allowed
Dirk Wischnewski in pits (click to enlarge)
Friday
The race began with free practice for on- and off-road drivers on their nicely-prepared tracks. First of all each driver had to register at race control to receive a small bag with the entrance card and a coupon for the large buffet on Saturday evening. It was very impressive that although up to 20 drivers trained on the two tracks at the same time, nobody had to fight with frequency problems! In the later hours nearly everybody had found a good setup and we were optimistic for the upcoming race.
Saturday
Saturday morning nearly every driver had arrived at the track and prepared his car for 2 minutes of controlled practice and 3 rounds of qualifying. This year the German Micro Masters got into the 2nd round after a successful premiere in 2007. As an effect there were many well-known names on the entry list from other race categories. This in combination with a perfectly-organized location and a proven race control team promised professional racing.
XRAY M18T PRO in action (click to enlarge)
After a long day of racing the classifications for the finals were extended.
1/18 On-road Standard A-Final Qualifying Results
1. Tim Bauer
2. Alexander Stocker
3. Eric GĂĽnther
4. Manuel Miksche
5. Oliver GĂĽnther
6. Frank Schmitz
7. David Drewanz
8. Hartmut Rose
1/18 On-road Modified A-Final Qualifying Results
1. Alexander Stocker
2. Daniel Sartorius
3. Michal Nemecek
4. Martin Hersina
5. Matthias Lang
6. Achim Leder
7. Sascha Hengen
8. Joachim Peukert
1/18 On-road Super-Modified A-Final Qualifying Results
1. Dirk Wischnewski
2. Ronald Völker
3. Benjamin Schumann
4. Andreas Myrberg
5. Bernd Haas
6. Peter Schulte-Batenbrock
7. Michal Nemecek
8. Nobuhiro Kanabe
1/18 Off-road Standard A-Final Qualifying Results
1. Frank Peppler
2. Felix Wiessmann
3. Tim Walther
4. Thomas Hallaschka
5. Christian Königer
6. Stefan BrĂĽck
7. David Ranft
8. Lutz Draheim
1/18, 1/16 Off-road Modified A-Final Qualifying Results
1. Marcus LĂĽbke
2. Steffen Leinburger
3. Andreas Rauch
4. Moritz Gaul
5. Andreas Schuch
6. Robert Hart
7. Mirco Thalheimer
8. Martin Achter
In the qualifying rounds we watched the close but very fair competition in each class which promised an interesting Sunday with exciting finals. Saturday evening ended very well. Nearly every driver attended the very nicely prepared buffet dinner with â Schnitzel und Spätzle.â™
Felix Wiessmann's XRAY M18T PRO (click to enlarge)
Sunday
Sunday morning the show went on and the drivers waited patiently and concentrated for their final heats. Each final (except the A-final) was driven two times; the A-final was driven three times. Each final was 7 minutes long, whereas the qualifying rounds were only 5 minutes long.
1/18 On-road Standard A-Final
This category had interesting finals between Tim Alex and Erik. They had very close and tough battles for the victory. No final had a clear start-to-finish winner. In the end Alex demonstrated his racing skills and ended up first.
1. Alexander Stocker XRAY M18
2. Tim Bauer XRAY M18
3. Eric GĂĽnther XRAY M18
4. Manuel Miksche XRAY M18
5. Oliver GĂĽnther XRAY M18
6. Frank Schmitz XRAY M18
7. Hartmut Rose XRAY M18
8. David Drewanz XRAY M18
9. Rüdiger Römling XRAY M18
10. Carsten Seewald XRAY M18
podium 1/18 On-road Standard (click to enlarge)
1/18 On-road Modified A-Final
In this category it was Alex Stocker who secured the overall win. He was clearly the dominant driver in the finals and lead the first and second finals from start-to-finish.
1. Alexander Stocker XRAY M18 PRO
2. Michal Nemecek XRAY M18 PRO
3. Daniel Sartorius XRAY M18 PRO
4. Matthias Lang XRAY M18 PRO
5. Martin Hersina XRAY M18 PRO
6. Achim Leder XRAY M18 PRO
7. Sascha Hengen XRAY M18 PRO
8. Joachim Peuckert XRAY M18 PRO
9. Frank Blumenhofen XRAY M18 PRO
10. Andre Kweseleit XRAY M18 PRO
podium 1/18 On-road Modified (click to enlarge)
1/18 On-road Super-Modified A-Final
âśSuper-Modifiedâťâ¦ absolutely correct description for this amazing category! The speed and precision of the driving impressed every spectator. Each final was highly competitive and the lead changed many times. In the end it was Peter Schulte-Batenbrock who took the win with his M18 PRO in the first and second finals. A very strong effort starting from 6th position against some TC 1:10 top drivers of Europe. Congratulations!
1. Peter Schulte-Batenbrock XRAY M18 PRO
2. Bernd Haas XRAY M18 PRO
3. Dirk Wischnewski XRAY M18 PRO
4. Benjamin Schumann XRAY M18 PRO
5. Andreas Myrberg 6. Nobuhiro Kanabe XRAY M18 PRO
7. Ronald Völker 8. Michal Nemecek XRAY M18 PRO
9. Björn Christiansen XRAY M18 PRO
10. Norbert Forster XRAY M18 PRO
podium 1/18 On-road Super-Modified (click to enlarge)
1/18 Off-road Standard A-Final
In this category it was youngster Felix Wiessmann who won all 3 finals with his M18T PRO! This was a very strong achievement in such a competitive race.
1. Felix Wiessmann XRAY M18T PRO
2. Frank Peppler 3. Thomas Hallaschka XRAY M18T PRO
4. Tim Walther XRAY M18T PRO
5. Christian Königer XRAY M18T PRO
6. Lutz Draheim XRAY M18T PRO
7. David Ranft XRAY M18T PRO
8. Stefan BrĂĽck XRAY M18T
podium 1/18 Off-road Standard (click to enlarge)
1/18, 1/16 Off-road Modified A-Final
This very demanding category had very strong battles. To be one of the fastest drivers you had to take the triple jump all-at-once and then end up in the â wallâ™ with very smooth speed. Steffen Leinburger (who won the first final) and Marcus LĂĽbke (who won the second final) had the best chances to take the win this day. The two drivers showed fantastic racing skill and either of them would deserve the overall win. But there can only be one winner and this day it was Marcus who defended his title and finished first after Steffen unluckily crashed into the foot of a marshal.
1. Marcus LĂĽbke XRAY M18T PRO
2. Steffen Leinburger 3. Andreas Schuch XRAY M18T PRO
4. Robert Hart 5. Andreas Rauch XRAY M18T PRO
6. Moritz Gaul
7. Artin Achter
8. Mirko Thalheimer
podium 1/18, 1/16 Off-road Modified A-Final (click to enlarge)
All-in-all it was a very interesting and fun weekend and everybody was happy with the race and its organization. Congratulations to all winners and thank you to all supporters and sponsors of this nice indoor race.
Overall I noticed something very special and interesting in this 1:18 championship. The whole event was very respectable and challenging and every driver kept in mind that we were there to have a fun time!
Regards Daniel Sartorius
winners (click to enlarge)
XRAY stand (click to enlarge)
(click to enlarge)
Felix Wiessmann (click to enlarge)
Dirk Wischnewski & Bertram Kessler (click to enlarge)
