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All XRAY drivers at EC 2003
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A report from the European Championship can be found at either the XRAY or Orion website.
Here are a few interesting âśXRAY factsâť and behind-the-scenes information to give you a hint how a professional company and highly-active factory team has to do their best to prepare for such a highly competitive racing environment like the European Championship. You can also read the most important XRAY moments at the EC down below. |
| Euros Warm-up: |
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⢠Jilles Groskamp was quick enough to be TQ and win all three finals of the Euros Warm-up, a good solid background to work from
⢠all possible insert+wheel+additive combinations were tested (an unbelievably huge number of different combinations)
⢠prototypes of short suspension arms were tested to gain tenths of seconds in the two chicanes; the results of the tests were simply amazing and gave a solid advantage to all XRAY cars in the two chicanes
⢠more from the warm-up in this report |
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Martin working on his car
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⢠almost a dozen XRAY workers in the manufacturing area and office worked to prepare all the parts and arrange everything for the Euros
⢠Joel Myrberg, younger brother of Andreas Myrberg, decided to race for XRAY only two weeks prior to the to Euros⦠he built the car and had only a practice session right before leaving for the Euros |
| Wednesday: |
XRAY pits were crowded all the time
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⢠almost all XRAY factory drivers were at the track early in the morning
⢠every driver or spectator at the Euros racing an XRAY car received a gift from the factory ⓠa set of still-warm new suspension arms, new low-ratio pulley set and drive belts, pit towel, stickers, and a Hudy tool. Everybody was very surprised to receive such attention directly from a factory
⢠the flies were everywhere⦠you had to keep checking what you ate and drank
⢠the pit tents were really crowded, and temperatures were really high |
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⢠Ben Cosgrove had a new mobile with a camera, so it was fun to walk around to take photos without Ben knowing about it (Ben, check your mobile for photos).
⢠most teams were almost complete during the day
⢠an Austrian XRAY importer was present at the track with a car loaded with all XRAY spare parts, option parts, and kits to provide the best service to all drivers racing XRAY |
| Thursday: |
XRAY party
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⢠timed practice was on schedule for the whole day
⢠Markus Mobers arrived at the track, along with Andy Moore and his father
⢠Andy had hardly any practice at this track before his qualifiers
⢠Anders Myrberg, father of Joel and Andreas, was giving regular relaxation massages to his sons
⢠Jilles had serious troubles with interference, wrenched the whole day, and didnâ™t have a clear run⦠at the end every piece of electronics was exchanged⦠problem solved! |
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All XRAY drivers at XRAY party
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⢠XRAY PARTY was on the schedule for the evening ⓠevery XRAY driver with his mechanic was invited and present at this party - over 65 people for the whole Team XRAY!!!
⢠the local pizzeria that catered the XRAY PARTY was really busy preparing all the food, fortunately the food was reserved a day before
⢠it was great to see all the XRAY drivers at this Euros together ⓠit cheers up the Team spirit and drivers were happy about the team support |
| Friday: |
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⢠two timed practices were on the schedule, with qualifiers in the afternoon
⢠Jilles dominated the timed practice with the overall best result of the EC 2003 - 16 laps and 5:17.30!!!
⢠in the first qualifier Jilles was on a TQ run for the whole 5 minutes but on his last lap (16) he went off the track and lost 1.5sec⦠but still finished 5:19.49!!!
⢠Andreas was doing exceptionally well, finishing 2nd with a time of 16 laps in 5:19.20
⢠as the first set of tires was used up, there was a great strategy debate on whether to use the second set of new tires for the second run, or gamble and see what Saturdayâ™s weather would be like⦠Jilles and Andreas ran their old tires, Drescher and Kaerup opted for new tires |
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Official ceremony
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⢠the second qualifier had good track conditions and new tires helped a lot, moving Drescher and Kaerup to 2nd and 3rd positions
⢠Ben and Andy were doing exceptionally well ⓠachieving 8th and 9th A final positions
⢠Four XRAY cars in the A final
⢠Juraj was constantly changing parts and testing different things, changing his T1 EVO2 and T1R all the time and looking for optimal parts that could be used by the team drivers |
| Saturday: |
Flag holders
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⢠the track started off wet in the morning with huge clouds in the sky⦠it was expected that there would be no racing during the day and results from Friday qualifying would be used
⢠round 3 was on a wet track, round 4 and 5 on a dry but low grip track⦠almost nobody improved
⢠round 6 was the pivotal round, as it was sunny the whole afternoon and in the evening (for the last run) the track had optimal conditions
⢠round 6 completely mixed up the A final standings
⢠Andreas again set the same time as his best run in the first run
⢠Ben and Andy were not quick enough to improve, dropping out of the A final to be 2nd and 3rd starting positions in the B final |
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Martin really liked the Slovak flag holder
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⢠Joel set a time of 16 laps in 5:00.16 and moved to the 10th (last) position in the A final - the third XRAY in the A final
⢠during the last round, Jilles was the fastest ever at this track
⢠after the start, the car in front of Jilles suddenly went very slow on the straight and Jilles came close behind⦠in the next corner that car went into a slide and stopped⦠Jilles crashed into it and lost 4.5 seconds
⢠Jilles was still clicking off fastest lap times, good enough for TQ but he could not regain the 4.5 seconds that he lost⦠but he still finished with 16 laps in 5:19.49!!!
⢠at the end Andreas finished 5th, Jilles 6th, Joel 10th |
| Sunday: |
Andreas, Joel, Juraj, Jilles
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⢠Jilles Groskamp won the first practice final, starting from 6th position
⢠Andreas crashed with the car in front of him, right at the start |
| First final: |
XRAY A finalists
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⢠in the first official final, Jilles and Andreas got behind the leading Juho after only a few laps
⢠Juho, followed by Jilles and Andreas, were cruising the entire race in a close, tight line
⢠Andreas was extremely fast in this final run
⢠two laps before the end of the run, Jilles passed Juho in the chicane and went into the lead
⢠in the last lap, Andreas passed Juho and finished 2nd overall
⢠the impossible happened⦠Jilles and Andreas started from 6th and 5th positions and finished 1st and 2nd
⢠Joel started from 10th position and finished 5th ⓠvery nice driving! |
| Second final: |
A final podium
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⢠everybody thought it would be impossible for Jilles and Andreas to repeat their success from the first final
⢠Andreas was crashed right after the start and fell to 9th position
⢠Jilles went into the lead again ⓠincredible racing style and extremely quick and responsive car
⢠the crowd was astonished and applauded ⓠthe impossible had happened again!
⢠Andreas, not to be left behind, drove in style from 9th position to 2nd position in only a few laps ⓠa great drive through the entire field
⢠Andreas was definitely the fastest car in this final run ⓠunbelievable driving style!
⢠Jilles and Andreas again cruised 1st and 2nd the entire race, followed closely by Hubert Honigl⦠all three leading cars cruised in a tight line only a few centimetres apart |
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B final podium
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⢠this was the closest, most competitive and thrilling run at this race
⢠three laps before the end Jilles experienced interference that made him slow down and drive very carefully while still in the lead
⢠after five minutes, in the last lap 16 it was already known that Jilles and Andreas again achieved the impossible and were going to take âśdoubleâť win
⢠in the last long corner, Jilles again got hit by interference, putting him off his ideal line and into the side of Andreas♠car⦠this gave enough room for Honigl to slip by in the final corner for the win
⢠it was sad that Jilles and Andreas, who went from 6th and 5th positions in both finals into the lead, lost their already secured titles in the last corner, just because of interference
⢠there were four potential winners⦠the last final would decide the winner |
| Third final: |
Champagne celebration
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⢠Andreas and Jilles were in a good mood, fully relaxed and supremely confident in their cars to go for the 3rd for their win, even racing on old tires
⢠Juho was the only driver who had a set of new tires for last final
⢠the track had the most optimal conditions, so it was no surprise to see a car with new tires excel
⢠Drescher let Juho into the lead and tucked in close behind him, giving no chance for other cars to pass
⢠Jilles was crashed right after the start, putting him out of the race
⢠Andreas was able to get into the 3rd right behind Drescher and remained there to the end of the race |
| Final result: |
Champagne all over!
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⢠Jilles, Andreas and Juho, had the same number of points ⓠextremely close final runs
⢠Jilles was 1st and 3rd, Juho was 3rd and 1st, and Andreas was 2nd and 2nd
⢠the fastest final run was the deciding run, and it was Juho who won at the end
⢠Jilles started from 6th and finished 2nd, Andreas started from 5th and finished 3rd, Joel started from 10th and finished 7th ⓠTeam XRAY team definitely the most successful in the final runs |
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A final result:
1. Juho Levanen â“ Asso
2. Jilles Groskamp â“ XRAY
3. Andreas Myrberg â“ XRAY
B final result:
1. Steen Graversen â“ Tamiya
2. Ben Cosgrove â“ XRAY
3. Andy Moore - XRAY
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| Final thoughts: |
A finalists with their prizes
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⢠this was definitely the most competitive EC race
⢠plenty of last years♠A finalists were in the B, C and even D finals
⢠Joel Myrberg finished 7th and was really amazing ⓠconsidering this was only his 5th race and his 1st race with XRAY
⢠the XRAYâ™s belt drivetrain along with the new Low Ratio Pulleys was excellent at the start⦠the acceleration was just unbelievable and gave such a huge competitive advantage for Jilles and Andreas starting from the back of the field, getting them to the front right after the start
⢠specially-made short arms were a huge advantage for all XRAY drivers in the chicanes⦠they gained much ground over most of the other cars |
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Nice body work of XRAY drivers
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⢠Jilles car was so free, smooth, and quick that if he wasnâ™t taken out in the last qualifier, his times were good enough for an absolute TQ and new record
⢠the Myrberg brothers (for whom this was a first race with XRAY) were extremely happy with the car and team support⦠confirming that they made the best choice moving to Team XRAY
⢠this is second vice-champion title for Jilles in a row, and this year he was so close to the title as never before
⢠Andreas and Jilles had one of the fastest cars on the track |
| Some statistics: |
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⢠146 drivers
⢠15 nations
⢠8 factory teams
⢠2 new cars
⢠3 sets of tires allowed + 1 set for A finalists
⢠2 A finalists finished the same as last year
⢠49% of all cars were XRAY and Asso (21% XRAY, 28% Asso)
⢠51% of all remaining cars were Losi, Schumacher, Tamiya, Yokomo, Corally, GM, and Robitronic
⢠2 largest factory teams and the highest competitors for the title: XRAY and Asso
⢠3 different cars in the A final: Asso, XRAY, Losi
⢠3 different drivetrains in the A final: shaft, dual belt, single belt
⢠2 XRAYs on the podium in the A final
⢠2 XRAYs on the podium in the B final
⢠5 XRAYs and 5 Asso in the top 13
⢠5:17.30 ⓠthe best result of the EC 2003 achieved by Jilles in timed practice
⢠65 people at the XRAY Party
⢠3 Myrbergs, 2 of them racing, both A finalists |
| XRAY wants to thank: |
Ben, Andy, Jilles, Andreas, Joel
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All the organisers for preparing this event, all drivers from all the teams for such a great event and high competitionâ¦and excellent and thrilling EC!
Thanks to all XRAY drivers, special thanks to Jilles Groskamp, Andreas Myrberg, Joel Myrberg, Andy Moore, Ben Cosgrove, Timo Rinne, Markus Mobers, Tony Vredenberg, Andy Childs, Pekka Koivula, Soren Boy-Holst, Ronny Nyhus. Thanks to Oscar (Orion) for the motor work and the unbelievable power, as well as to LRP for the Myrbergâ™s power. Thanks to Juraj and the entire XRAY factory for such highly professional team support and dedicated work to provide only the best.
XRAY â“ your licence to win. |
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