Introducing THOR (Trackside HO Racing)

THOR is a new 1/64 HO slot car racing organization that’s inspired to create a level playing field for competitors of every skill level.

For those that have been involved in this hobby for years and have a chest full of exotic unobtainable parts at their disposal, this is a problem for the NEW HO hobbyist or future hard-core racers. The SPEC rules THOR has come up with are based off availability of the parts needed to be competitive in the SPEC classes we offer.

We at THOR asked ourselves the following question:

• What is the history of slot cars?
• The current state 1/64 HO slot cars are in.
• Who are the 1/64 HO companies that manufacture the parts we consume today?
• How do these 1/64 HO manufacturing companies’ network of distribution perform?
• Is it easy or difficult to find and purchase their parts?
• How usable are the websites from these 1/64 HO manufacturing companies?
• Are these companies helping this hobby grow?
• How are the current racing organizations class rules set up?
• What is the best way to keep growing 1/64 HO slot car racing?

The answers to those questions have helped THOR create racing classes that can help this hobby grow. These SPEC rules will make it easier to build & maintain a high-performance slot car. These SPEC rules will make the learning curve quicker for a new slot car racer to be competitive.

THOR has put together SPEC racing classes that are based off the ease of finding and purchasing the parts needed to build these SPEC cars.

THOR will change the rules if we see a product that has been difficult to get become readily available to the public.

If you’re a long time slot car racer or enthusiast, you already know the difficulty of finding some of the parts listed below with the performance needed to compete at a local level and national level. These are 3 parts that can play a huge roll on how competitive your slot car may be, they are:

• Sponge Rear tires
• Armatures
• Magnets

Most of the bigger racing organizations have a set of rules in place catering to the long-time hard-core racer. That racer most likely has an inside connection with a manufacture who produces these parts at a high level but are only available in low quantities. This can be a good thing and a bad thing. If you’re a new enthusiast coming into this hobby it most likely has been a frustrating experience finding the correct products out there to build a competitive car. Finding the information about the superior parts needed to build a car to the rules set by some of the high-profile racing organizations is not going to be easy either.

For the hard-core racers, please understand why THOR has created classes not allowing sponge tires. Sponge tires on a Super Stock class-built car have a huge advantage over a slip-on tire. Plus, the sponge tires force the competitor to find a great armature. 4 key things about the sponge tires in today’s current marketplace.

• Difficulty in finding sponge tires for sale.
• They are expensive, $12.00 TO $15.00 a set.
• Durability, some brands wear out very fast, 8 to 12 heat races toast.
• A great 5.8-ohm armature is needed to power the extra traction from a silicon sponge tire.

We at THOR look forward to meeting you and helping us all enjoy this great hobby.