Having starred in several of our more recent event videos Lee Martin is enjoying his higher profile celeb status in the slightly surreal world that is Pro RC Racing, we caught up with the Jet Set playboy himself having just returned after a special trip to Hong Kong…
Lee Martin writes,
In December last year I was invited to visit Hong Kong to share my RC knowledge and experience with a number of local guys in Hong Kong (HK) that wanted to improve their skills and understanding of set ups and driving techniques. It was a wonderful opportunity not only visiting somewhere new and exciting, but also to help others like people have helped me in the past. In early March, this trip went ahead.
The head honchos in ‘Operation LMR to HK’ go by the name of Frankie Tang and Nelson, but along the way I would try to help any one of their friends that asked for advice. Upon arriving in HK I was instantly in awe of the city itself. Everything built upwards, apartment blocks cover every available inch of land and the docks are a hive of activity 24 hours a day. It was a bit of a culture shock, even for the nomadic RC traveler that I am.
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The next day and for the following 6 days, we would visit the track every day, running a tight ship of RC inspired teaching. The track we went to was Hong Kong’s only off road track at Lali Warehouse and what a facility it was. A large indoor clay track surrounded by fully air conditioned portacabins – where you pit with your friends. You can hire the pit spaces and even the full cabin for a fee, so basically you can make it your home away from home and it was clear that some of the guys did!
The track was a little simple in terms of layout, but the surface was good and driving the track was fun! It was hard enough so that you could learn to go faster, but not difficult for the lesser experienced drivers to learn.
The first thing I would do is have a drive of Nelsons car so that I could learn the track myself before teaching others. Nelson is an RC fanatic, although in real life he trades in supercars, his true passion lies with RC cars, it’s that inner child that gets us all! His new MBX7 felt ok going around the track, but I knew we could improve it, but I thought first we should work on helping the guys with the driving side of things.
Lap after lap I would watch Nelson, Frankie and Eddie (Frankie’s friend) and try to teach them, corner at a time, different ways in which they should position their car and the amount of throttle and input they need to make. Teaching them to ‘feel’ the track rather than just driving round it without thinking. With each session I would add a new line around a different corner that I would want them to change a little. Until eventually we were hitting the right markers and the right points and stringing together not only fast laps, but consistent ones. In order to go fast you have to feel comfortable doing so, and this is what I was trying to achieve with the guys.
Then we started to work on set ups. I would firstly help to change the cars to suit their needs and requirements. Simple changes can go a long way and by just driving a few laps I could maybe notice things that they couldn’t like for example servo savers being too loose. So once we got the cars mechanically sound we worked on teaching the guys about changes and what they do.
Changing shocks, diff oils, slippers, weights, ride heights… you name it and we did it on a full range of cars from 1/8th gas all the way to 2WD buggies. Also I would help to show them simple mechanics of a car and how to get the most out of your rebuilds. We spent 1 full day in the workshop of Nelsons garage running over the prep work and set ups of the new MBX7.
Our evenings consisted of fine dining and great times! During the week, Neil Round flew out to join the party. People who know the infamous Roundy will know the type of character he is and he was in his element in HK! I had some fantastic nights consisting of, amazing drinks, beautiful food and even the occasional trip out to sea!
Back to the track and after a week of helping these guys out the standard of driving had massively improved. I was extremely impressed with the way the guys were getting around the track and you could visually see that they didn’t have to ‘think’ so much about trying to do the right lines and that they would just come naturally. This was my main goal! They all had huge smiles on their faces and were enjoying driving a lot more without being scared or worried to push the limits of the car or the track. We all do this hobby to enjoy ourselves and by making them enjoy racing a lot more than they did, well I consider that a job well done!
I arrived at Hong Kong knowing I had to teach a group of guys about RC cars….. I left with a new group of friends for life and a fantastic new outlook on a great country & city! I advise anyone to visit Hong Kong, They have great food, Great RC Shops, A Great RC track and most of all, Great people!
A Special Thanks to Nelson and Frankie for making this trip possible.
Lee Martin
