Dustin Richards at the 4th Round of the FTMS at Dirt Diggers in Clio, MI
 
This weekend I was off to another round of the Factory Tracks Midwest Series in Clio MI to do battle with the nation’s best talent. The FTMS is arguably the most prestigious RC Series in the country. With names like Dakotah “Phenom” Phend, Al Horne, JP Richards and factory reps from Losi, Excelaron, Spektrum, Kyosho, Orion, AKA, Airtronics, Associated, LRP, Reedy, J-Concpets, Hot Bodies, Speed Passion and more, you must be on top of your game if you hope to do well at this event.
 
Because it was a 5 hour drive, I took off on Friday to get settled in our hotel, relax and turn in early. The sleep was surely needed to get through the next day's grueling schedule. At the hotel there were rumors of a rough and blown out track. This excited me because I knew I had the perfect package with a "consistent" chassis in the Hot Bodies Cyclone D4 4WD, the best “blown out track” tire in the J-Concpets Goosebumps, and the fully adjustable power with the Speed Passion electronics.
 
Arriving at the track at dawn the next day I got out the "outdoor" pit setup with tables, chairs, canopy, power generator and fans. Fans you say? With temperatures reaching the mid 90s and what felt like 400% humidity, you would just sweat constantly even in the shade. The extreme heat caused many electronics to thermal and “release the magic smoke”. I had no problems with my equipment and was glad that I had the best with the Speed Passion equipment.
 
I got some practice in the early morning with both my 2WD and my Hot Bodies 4WD. I had confidence in all my equipment. Qualifying would be done with the Qual Points System, with the best 2 of 3 rounds counting. In 4WD I had a 3-4- and a 6. Final qualifying position would be 4th in 4WD and 9th in 2WD. When the dust settled I was on the podium with 3rd overall in 4WD and 5th overall in 2WD.
 
I would like to thank the following people who assisted me in making my success possible this weekend.
 
Hot Bodies USA
HPI Racing
Speed Passion
Airtronics
J-Concepts
Avid RC
707Paint.net
BC1 Graphics
Pacific Coast Hobbies
Factory Tracks Raceway
 
JP Richards: Teammate helped me with whatever was needed.
 
Luke Richards: Professional car setter downer J and great at whatever else I needed.
 
The entire Hpi Racing - Hot Bodies Crew: Andy Hillman, Rodney Wills, and Kaz. These guys are the best.
 
The Speed Passion Crew: Shaun Palmer and Adam Bailey for all their support with the Speed Passion product.
 
LukeDawg Photography: Great pics courtesy of LukeDawg Photography..
 
All in all it was a great weekend with great people and some of the best racing action around. Coming up in the first week of September I have the 5th and final round of the FTMS at Dirt Burner Racing operated by the legendary, long time Losi driver, Bill Bridges. Then September 18-20 I have the ROAR Region 5 Champs at Pheasant Run. Look for me at both of these premier events.
 
See you at the races

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