Race report by Singer Manuel |
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After warm words of welcome from Ewald “Ed’ť Prohaska, long-time chairman of Morac Graz, my father and I were chomping at the bit to start our XRAY NT1 and race it along the 300m course. In addition to the regular strong competition, newcomers were able to prove themselves as worthy rivals. |
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Saturday:
After unloading our XRAY and firing up the RB motor, I could hardly wait to hit the course. From the very start, my XRAY NT1 performed consistently fast and thanks to the set-up from the year before, I was able to keep up with the competition.
During the course of the day, we made adjustments here and there to continually improve the set-up. By 7:15PM it was time for the first preliminary race. Manuel Huber’s (MOD) strong motor enabled him to quickly pull ahead and set himself apart from the rest of the pack, thereby winning the first preliminary race. I also had a good start and crossed the finish line with a 10sec ahead of 3rd place Martin Pittner (XRAY).
Sunday:
After an enjoyable breakfast, my father and I were looking forward to getting back to the racing event. Following the warm-up phase and before the second preliminary race, we were suddenly ordered to return to the pit for a fuel tank inspection; inspection results led to the disqualification of Manuel Huber from the event. Gerhard Kandelhart (Serpent) won the second preliminary race whereas I was eliminated due to a few small driving errors on my part. During the third preliminary race I was able to race without any grave mistakes, however, I was not able to improve my racing time from the day before.
Ranking after the preliminary races:
1. Kandelhart Gerhart
2. Singer Manuel XRAY NT1
3. Mayerhofer Stefan
4. Tomaschko Daniel
5. Pittner Martin XRAY NT1
6. Ernst Horst-Reinhardt
7. Klausner Michael
8. Spannbruckner Werner
9. Berger Hermann
10. Katzmayer Jochen |
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After the semi-finals, the following racers qualified for the finale: Kandelhart, Tomaschko, Pittner, Klausner, Ernst, Mayrhofer, Berger, Spannbruckner, Baumgartner, and myself.
Final:
After the start, Pittner, Tomaschko and Kandelhart were able to quickly pull ahead of the main pack whereas I − due to a driving mistake − stood in the green field and waited for the next marshal. However, with the power of my RB motor and the stability of my well-tuned XRAY NT1, I began a feverish pursuit to catch up. Within the next 45 minutes, I was able to fight my way back up to the top. Martin Pittner, who from the beginning was able to maintain his lead, surprisingly placed 2nd after his rise to the top group.
Final results:
1. Singer Manuel XRAY NT1
2. Pittner Martin XRAY NT1
3. Tomaschko Daniel
4. Klausner Michael
5. Spannbruckner Werner
6. Berger Hermann
7. Baumgartner Gernot
8. Ernst Horst-Reinhardt
9. Kandelhart Gerhard
10. Mayrhofer Stefan |
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