Are we the NASCAR/NHRA/SCCA/ESPN of die cast racing?
I stumbled upon y'all after seeing 3d. I am forever hooked, like many here.
I have searched the internet for others doing what we do (build, share and race), and this place is dominate result
so, the question above, are we the pro's? (I am a rookie, but many of y'all are the DEI, Childress racing of die cast)
Also, we have on the channel guide over 100 places to watch almost any kind of racing possible,
those are all track owners, and race production groups
aka NHRA/NASCAR/ESPN
I really like the idea of being able to tell people I race professsionally, (pro/am??)
anyways, what do y'all think?
dr
Discussion
Are you considering every channel a FIA of their racing, or Redline Derby like the sanctioning body. Anyways, I consider 3dbotmaker a sanctioning body of his own, having different tracks annual seasons and a relatively similar set of rules for each year..
Just my opinion.
I appreciate your opinion. I think you are right on target. Each track is different, so from a "car builder" standpoint it's no different than "runnin' the circuit", what ever style race, but all "different circuits", none the less. You chose your circiut, and go to work
I would like to say, as a serious rookie, standing here, and see what y'all have is amazing.
It is in my opinion a very professional operation, of small indpendents, all working together.
Thats as close to being professional die cast racers as there seems to be right now.
Y'all are an international community, viewed globally, to the enjoyment of many.
what do y'all think?
- Hurrah for diecast racing! Hurrah for Redline Derby! — GT_Diecast
- I love that it's international. ... and your point about prize money is spot on... I won a best of show w, a $25 merch prize.... I made it! Have a couple fans too after GTR3... Not as many as a lot of others I'm sure... But what fun!!! — G_ForceRacing
I think there are a few different considerations to be considered "Pro"...this is a hobby for us...it's something we enjoy doing and for the most part we dont expect any reward aside from the accolades of the win and the noteriety of our fellow racers. That being said, I'm my opinion, if you want to have a criteria for classifying pro vs am's...I think you need to be able to answer 3 questions: 1) has said racer won a major tournament? 2) does the racer have a familiar name? 3) can you recognize a racers car/livery by just looking at it...
answer yea to those questions and consider yourself a pro Diecast racer.
in terms of RLD being a sanctioning body of Diecast...sure...we'll go with that. Although there are no set rules, the template to host a race has been crafted over time to make hosting an event as easy and straightforward as possible.
and ya...I've searched for other sources of info regarding Diecast racing...and nothing comes close to how complete RLD is
Kinda off topic, but we should honestly find a way to get Redline Derby some exposure in the 3D Bot Maker videos. Would be the best way to to attract new fans interested in learning more about diecast racing.
- good idea, how do we do this, though? — dr_dodge
- Monster Motorsports has an RLD billboard, which he shows at the end of nearly every race. Maybe …..? — SpyDude
- Thanks, man. I got some 3DBM love when he started out but he's moved on to big time now. I've considered asking him about advertising but I have zero budget and no goals shy of people posting, so I can't justify the investment. — redlinederby
The National Die-cast Racing Association or "NaDRA"...has a nice 'ring' to it. Other competitive hobbies have national governing bodies that set rules and regulations and collect annual dues from members, why not us?
I think we really need to ask ourselves how much we want to rock the proverbial boat before diving in. I mean, think about how we do things right now. We already have a pretty fair and free-spirited system where you can build any track that you want to and race on it..."You build the track, you set the rules". A national association usually means more rules, more restrictions, and more money to 'play'. While such an organization might bring more legitimacy to the hobby and increase participation, it also might drive away many of its pioneers.
GspeedR
- an org does not need to write rules, but could publish guideline books, "how to run a proxy race" "minimum space for a ??? track" etc — dr_dodge
- an org could also help target ads, sponsers, supporters that are more in line with the sport, which could grow it more — dr_dodge
- we are actually international, so consider that, but nascar runs event over the world — dr_dodge
- IGRA (international Gravity Racing Assoc.) — dr_dodge
- Or IFaTDiRA (International Fat Track Diecast Racing Association) or maybe IDDRA (International Diecast Drag Racing Association) — GT_Diecast
- Or even just IDRA (International Diecast Racing Association) — GT_Diecast
- I agree with GSR completely. I'm not against a governing body but it will change the whole dynamic. The hobby has matured enough to support both, me thinks. — redlinederby
- Another option: NADR (National Association for Diecast Racing) — GT_Diecast
About GspeedR's comment. I think there could be two sides of the hobby; there could be the competitive side (NaDRA) and the hobby side (Redline Derby, etc.). I think there is some support for both sides and that both could thrive. I think having both sides could augment to the hobby right now.
- a bit like a pro/am group — dr_dodge
- Yes, exactly — GT_Diecast
- I think we're already there, right? The drag folks are the serious competitors, the fat trackers are more hobby and performance. — redlinederby
So, as I have thought about this question, as many have it seems, another queston
Are we an E-sport? or at least a variation of it?
People log on to watch race vids, not much different than watching people play video games,
but our sport is in the car build/game pre prep, rather than a driver/gamer doing the action.
I like to think that we are on the edge of something bigger than all of us. World wide.
Could the sport eventually support a brick and mortar facility?
We will see when the drag strip goes live in Houston this spring, but from the responses we have had so far, it has the posibility of actually supporting the slot car facility significantly.
Still building on the off road track, but it will be available during the drag events.
additonally, a non-profit may yield added benefits.
being able to write off a portion of the considerable investment in track construction and assoc video recording requirements.
Imagine if we could lobby gopro, or some other camera mfgr to give discounts in return for ad time.
- I think it would be a great idea to have that non-profit. — GT_Diecast
- It's not eSport because the sport itself is not digital like video games are. But having physical locations? Sure, I think that's possible but very unlikely. Think about all the hobby shops that had on-site slot car tracks. It'll work but be tough to make money. — redlinederby
One thing I think could really help the hobby is if there were annual state meet-ups, kind of like RC crawler meet-ups. the only barrier I can really think of is if there are enough people in the state that are available. Other than that I think it would be a great idea.
- I like that idea, and possibly in person races, too maybe a rough on cars event where pit work may be needed, "is dr gonna be able to re-attach the spoiler and front axle before the 5th race" "his glue may not be cured" kinda thing, a special race that would make people tune in — dr_dodge
- Yeah — GT_Diecast
This is a topic that has popped up many times in past, once every couple years it seems. Always happy to discuss it too.
Are we pros? Ha, no. Like Patrick said, until we're paid, we're not pros. Maybe if you're winning cash in live tournaments but even then I think we're just VERY serious hobbyists :)
Having an official governing body is the next step for our hobby. Period. Doing so might change this from hobby into something else...dunno...but the diecast racing hobby has certainly matured enough over the past decade to support it.
RLD has played a quasi-governing role a few times in the past in the form coordinating events and tracking records for it, but there's never been any sort of standardization of rules or membership or anything like that, which would have to happen.
I would love for RLD to play that part but it's way more than I can (or want) to do by myself. There are many, many things to consider when you start marching down that path and I'm just not the best qualified person to do everything required. And it seems most folks are swamped with their own channels and races that supporting such an effort would be challenging even if they want to see it happen.
Is Redline Derby the ESPN of diecast racing? I don't think so but it's probably the closest thing there is. It's certainly a hub for the hobby but I'd hesitate to call it much more than that now. The brand just doesn't generate enough first-party content.
IMO, being an ESPN-like operation requires people to report on happenings, events, give hot takes, and so on...you know, news! And you need people that are dedicated to playing those types of roles.
Would I love for there to be an RLD reporter? Absolutely.
A talk show or podcast discussing the trending topics? For sure.
The options for content and coverage are many and I think there is plenty of racing happening around the world to report on and have regular interest. It just requires people with the skills, time, and motivation to make it all happen under one banner like RLD.
And it'd be great to see Redline Derby be that banner (slightly biased). And if there are folks here that have ideas and want to try to make that happen, I'm happy to join/lead the team and lend my skills to make it a reality. But it really needs to be a team.
- I guess it should go without saying but a governing body also means enforcement, which could be very challenging. — redlinederby
- I like the idea of Redline derby as the ESPN of diecast racing — GT_Diecast
- I do too, ha! I think it'd be great to see...just need a team that can make it happen. — redlinederby
- Exactly — GT_Diecast
- when espn was young, speed weeks was wonderfully raw, and felt genuine because of it, just look at the truck race I posted under truckin', simple, low commentary, just racing, wonderful — dr_dodge
As a Nascar fan myself I would compare this cite to modern day JGR or HMS.
On the topic of taking this "international", I think that would be biting off way more than we can chew. Such an endeavor is riddled with obstacles, basic communication being a primary one. And then we'd have to address the fact that diecast racing is vastly different from continent to continent. In my personal experience in other competitive hobbies (rocketry, R/C vehicles), domestic competitions were operated under the rules and guidelines of the national org.. International events were sanctioned under a different (usually foreign) body. (Example: National Association of Rocketry sanctioned domestic, FAI Space Modeling sanctioned international...yes, the rules were different and the Soviets owned the `80s...lol)
As a semi-retired graphic designer, my definition of "pro" is when you first get paid. ;)