On The Track: 3DBotMaker

by Christopher Kidder-Mostrom

The past fortnight has been a busy one in the 3DBotMaker Diecast Racing League. The Camaro Summer Tournament has come to a close, three King of the Mountain qualifiers were held, and the Diecast Rally Championship has just started it’s fourth and final event of 2020.

First off, let’s congratulate Mad4Robots who became the newest champion crowned at Race Mountain. For much of the final round it appeared that Maya Bailey was in line to become Race Mountain’s first-ever female champion. But it wasn’t to be. Mad4Robots beat her in a head-tohead Camaro showdown, as well as in claiming the title of first female champ. Most, if not all, viewers assumed Mad4Robots’ identity to be male, but that led to a very satisfying reveal at the very end of the series.

The after-hours races in the KotM qualifying rounds have recently been competing for the fifth place in the rankings. That means that the times have been average, at best. First up was the Hot Rod race, which featured two ‘57 Chevys, and a 1940’s Woody. But, none of those cars carried the day. Instead, it was CJ in “Jerry Rigged” who took a gasser station wagon all the way to a berth in the second King of the Mountain

Tournament. CJ bumped That Van Guy out of the 5 th place ranking, which the Limelight van had just claimed in the previous qualifier.

EQUAL EVOS -- Quite possibly the closest photo-finish of 2020, the outcome of this race determined the overall winner.

The next qualifier featured four 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolutions. Longtime viewers will know that the Evo is a very popular car for modders. King of the Mountain legend Terry Hill drove a James Kleman Customs built Evo to the title in the last KotM tourney. The casting has a lot of interior room for adding weight, a wide stance, and a pretty long wheelbase. It’s almost a perfect racing machine for this sport.

So, one might be forgiven for being a little gleeful about the prospects of only one Evo advancing thanks to them facing off against each other prior to the actual tournament. Surely these were some fast cars that were only going to be knocked out by others of their ilk. But... Surprise! These were not the speedy Lancers we are used to. With some very close racing between two of the four cars, Bobby Padgett eventually came out on top, and like the two winners before him, took over the fifth seeded spot for the tournament.

Now, I know. Fifth place isn’t bad at all. In a field of 16, fifth is a great place to be, but these cars that we’ve been talking about so far are fifth out of 8, 9, and 10. That’s pretty much exactly in the middle of the pack.

It is possible that the cars that have yet to qualify will run slower times, and that Bobby Padgett will hold on to the number 5 spot, but... Padgett’s ride, “Spider King”, posted a time of 17.502, which is slower than the entire field’s average from the first tournament (17.423). It stands to reason that there are some faster cars out there that will soon be taking over the top spots in the upcoming tournament bracket.

Then again...

The most recent qualifying race was touted as a battle of the nations. Italy, Germany, the USA, and Australia were all represented by cars built in their respective countries. And when all was said and done, Australia’s Holden, driven by Valareos Draconrouge, was on top. But not really. Holden On, as the car is named, managed to claim the lowest spot on the chart--11 th place so far. Draconrouge’s over-20- second lap time is significantly slower than all those who went before. That doesn’t bode well for the auto from Down Under.

KING IN HIS CASTLE -- Can Steven King win a fourth DRC title in one year?

Finally, the DRC has returned to our screens, and with it so too has “Superman” Steven King. The question on everyone’s minds is “Can Steven King be a four-time champion?”

Well, if the first round of the event is any indication, the answer is probably “Yes!”

The seven new challengers include a familiar name among them. But, let’s put that off for a little bit. First, let’s look at the vehicles. There’s a Ford Fiesta, a car that is currently active in the real life WRC circuit.

The Volvo 850 Wagon is a long car that has a lot of its length out in front of its front wheels, which may make maneuvering difficult as races move into the multi-car stages.

There are two Renault cars: the Mégane and the Alpine. These are my two picks to have the best chance at knocking off Steven King’s crown, or at least to tug on his cape a little.

The Pikes Peak Celica is based on Rod Millen’s record-setting 1994 Celica GT that dominated the Pikes Peak Hill Climb back in the day. But, while the real car was an awesome machine, the low and protruding front spoiler will work to this car’s disadvantage at Race Canyon.

Many people had predicted the arrival of a can on the roster of vehicles, and though everyone’s guess about the driver being Granny D (perhaps 2D’s grandmother), the driver for the Chrysler Pacifica was chosen by random lot just like all the previously mentioned cars. Prediction: It’s a van on a course designed to through you for a loop. This is not going to be pretty.

And so... we’ve reached the inevitable. Fans had been clamoring for Crazy Jimmy and his Fiero to make an appearance in the DRC. And now the dubious Ferrari champion has once again entered a Pontiac Fiero where it doesn’t belong.

Over the decades, all sorts of cars have been rally cars. And yet, not once has a Pontiac of any sort been on the various rally racing circuits. And, as Crazy Jimmy’s performance in the first round would indicate, the 1:64 scale version of the car fares just how one might expect a full-sized Fiero to do against precision driving machines. I do wonder how much roof damage is caused by Race Canyon’s rough terrain. I suppose Crazy Jimmy will be able to give us an answer shortly after his inevitable elimination at the end of the next round.

So, while a couple of the current stable of cars might be able to dethrone Steven King, it seems to still be the safe bet for King to remain in the champion’s seat.

Not willing to relinquish the “Superman” appellation just yet, King landed the round’s only perfect score to start the competition exactly where he’s ended each of the others: on top.