The Bourne RacewayI got into Scalextric Digital when I designed and built a large permanent race track at my office. We wanted a circuit that colleagues could use in their lunch hour to hold races against each other. The two lane digital system with six cars offered the opportunity for more people to be involved at one time and takes up less space than a four or six lane circuit.
Like many Scalextric tracks it has evolved over time, particularly as I've learnt more abut the system, what works well and what doesn't. The current design is an anticlockwise circuit based upon an original design called the Flying Cow. The track was design using software called TrackPower. There is a very long thread on SlotForum.com covering my entire track build here. |
Design PrincipalsThe basic design principals were to build a track that would run cars without magnets. All corners had to have borders, however I don't like the plastic Scalextric track borders to I used 10mm black foamboard to construct my own borders instead. The table is 3.5m x 1.5m in size and constructed from 9mm MDF. I used cork tiles for the gravel traps and artifical grass carpet for the grass. Buildings are classic 90's Scalexric buildings.
I only use XLC and In/Out CLC lane changers. In/Out CLCs provide the smoothest lane transition. Out/In CLCs tend to be too short and sharp, cause de-slots and you loose too much speed trying to make sure you don't crash. |
Figure 8 DesignThe circuit is essentially a figure of eight with equal lane lengths of 14.46m / 47' 5". However the 'inside' lane, i.e. the lane adjacent to the pit lane, is the fast lane overall and therefore is the racing line.
Typically drivers race on this lane and then switch out to the other lane to try and make an overtake, usually up the bridge section. It takes skill to get ahead on the other lane and cut back in after the overtake without hitting your opponent. |
Pits and Race Management SystemOur pit lane starts with an Out / In CLC in the last corner. The pit lane is long enough to fit all six cars in at once, however drivers try to time their pit stops so that they are not sitting behind another car. Some drivers like to make one or two long stops and run a full tank of fuel, others prefer to run a maximum of half a tank as it keeps the car speed up. It's a tactical decision you have to make and you often change tactics during the race to try and beat your opponents.
We use Scalextric Sport Digital Console (SSDC) Race Management System (RMS) running on a Windows 7 laptop with a secondary 26" monitor at the end of the table to display the current leaderboard. |