Track Focus – Tamiya Raceway

Track Name – Tamiya Raceway
Country – USA
Location – Aliso Viejo, California
Surface – Asphalt
Direction – Anti-Clockwise
Previous Reedy Races hosted – 10

Unfortunately 2018 will go down in the history books as the last year the Reedy Race of Champions took place at the world famous Tamiya Raceway in California, USA.  Covering an area of only 170 ft wide by 70 ft deep, it might be small in size but when it comes to driving on it it has one of the biggest respects of drivers from around the world with it widely regarded as one of the greatest tracks ever on which to race and overtake.  It is for this reason it has become the spiritual home of Mike Reedy’s famed race format with this the 11th time for it to host the race. Built in 1994 as part of Tamiya’s then US headquarters, when the building was sold a number of years ago the Reedy Race had to find a new home but after a separate deal to sell the plot of land on which the track is built fell through the race returned in 2014 immediately rejuvenating interest in the race, the track’s simple but entertaining layout the key draw for the heads up racing format.  After years of the land remaining for sale, anyone who has experienced the track hoping the sale of the land would never happen unfortunately it has and now along with celebrating the 21st anniversary of the Reedy Race this weekend will also be a final farewell to an iconic track.  While not the final race it will host, that honour going to it’s creators Tamiya and their Tamiya Championship Series in August, as of September 1st the track will be no more and instead the site will become a self storage facility, so winning the 2018 RROC will be one drivers will want more than ever.

Such is the draw of the track, the last chance to race the RROC at Tamiya Raceway has even brought Barry Baker out of retirement for the weekend.  The ‘Fabulous One’ won the first RROC at the track in 2002 and repeated that again the following year.  As a four time Reedy Race Champion, Barry said, ‘I just love it. When I arrived here it felt like home. Myself and Jilles (Groskamp) were standing next to each other and we both said ‘we love this place’.’  He continued, ‘I was not missing the last race at Tamiya track and if Mike was alive he would have wanted me to race. That’s why I came out of retirement’.  With a food storage container as a toolbox, he said, ‘I have nothing left just my radio and when I turned it on and it read 7.4Volts I said we are good to go racing. I have to thank Randy from 1UP Racing for building me a car and Eric from Protoform for stepping in with bodies’.  Asked what the draw of the track was, he replied, ‘there is something about the track that is magnetic. Everyone wants to come here. There are guys from Europe who are paying their own way to get here because their sponsors wont send them, thats how much they love this place’.

Reigning Champion Marc Rheinard, the race’s most crowned champion with 4 of 6 wins coming at Tamiya Raceway, said, ‘for racing this is for sure my of my favourite tracks.  You have the world famous kick and its size makes very close racing. Even you have a bad start you can come back.  He concluded, ‘I think it will be hard to find a new home that can match this track in terms of suiting the Reedy Race format.  It is going to be extra important to win it this year’.

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