ASK Cubby, Version- Your Letters, My Gibberish

“Trophy trucks

Hey Cubby,

Just wondering if you had any insight as to why nobody sells a 1/10 trophy truck? I enjoy scale looking models but crawlers are just too slow for my taste. Short course trucks are fun and can be made to look pretty realistic but lack a solid rear axle. I think the new thunder tiger jackel you just reviewed would be cool looking with a full fender body. I can’t help but think if buggies like the yeti/twin hammers sell then a truck based on the same platform would too. Just putting it out there. Thanks and keep up the good work.

Luke F.”

Cubby- Yo hey ya Luke, congrats on making the big time. Shoot me your snail mail for a free BSRC sticker pack.

Oh and… I received your letter a few days before Axial made the big announcement on their Yeti SCORE Trophy Truck. So ya, you are right on point with your, I expect consumers to really latch on to the Axial Trophy Truck as it offers the best of both worlds- great scale detailing with plenty of basher type speed. And luckily for all of us, it should hit stores for the Christmas season, so we shouldn’t have to wait too long to try one out.

Why has it not been done by a major manufacturer before? Well, it is a big risk, something that most companies don’t like taking when sales are soft. Once again luckily for us, the guys at Axial have a set and are willing to go big with their ideas.

Peace and love, peace and love…

“Mother FOFFers

Hey Cubby,

First off – great site! I waste an inordinate amount of taxpayer dollars every day surfing around on BSRC.

I am relatively new to the hobby, and recently upgraded both mine and my sons RCs. I did quite a bit of research before dropping many, many hard earned ducats on a machine for myself, and opted for a Kyosho FO-XX VE since we live in the Florida Panhandle and run mostly on sand. It is an awesome rig, and I find myself searching out bigger and bigger dunes just to watch this thing claw its way to the top. I have also been doing a lot of research on RC FOFF, and can’t believe that there isn’t more interest in it here in the states. It seems that FOFF offers a lot of advantages over traditional track racing:

– No track needed, just a big ‘ol pile of dirt
– Basher friendly — lots of power, paddle tire roosts, and spectacular cartwheeling-down-a-mountain crashes
– No need for a purpose-built racer — grab your rig of choice, slap some paddles on it and see if you can get through the cones to the top of the hill
– If it rains — hydroplane competition! The day goes from good to f’n awesome!
– The no-kidding scale FOFF machines are some of the most bad-ass RCs on the planet, IMO

So here’s my question to you: do you think the industry would support a FOFF movement? There is already a strong interest overseas, specifically in Finland. Axial could make a killer factory FOFFer with very little R&D, much like Kyosho did by turning the Mad Force into the FO-XX, and I’m sure that Traxxas wouldn’t miss the chance to paddle-up a truck and make more money. I’m really interested in your take on this.

Flash Gordon”

Cubby- Yo to the yo yo Flash, thanks for the email and feel free to shoot me your snail mail for the hook-up on a BSRC sticker pack. Should look pretty trick on your Kyosho.

First off, for readers not familiar with the “FOFF” movement, it is Formula Offroad. To really over simplify it, it is where guys build radical looking vehicles equipped with 4wd and paddle tires to get up, down, and around, a hill as quickly as possible ( Like This ). And ya, it’s huge in Finland, not so much elsewhere.

Btw, the Kyosho FO-XX VE looks like a fine FOFF machine, but we never got one for testing, nor have I actually seen one in person. Anyways, I must digress…

Do I think the industry will/can/would support a FOFF movement? Absolutely, it is makes them enough money to keep food on their tables. Unfortunately, right now FOFF is such a small genre of rc it is highly unlikely you’ll be seeing any more big players (besides Kyosho) jump in. However, with people like you Flash helping to raise awareness, you just never know (hint hint Axial, Vaterra, Thunder Tiger!). It is a segment of our hobby that definitely could take off, it is easy and relatively cheap to convert a crawler over and it is certainly a blast to fly up a sand hill while throwing a 20 foot rooster tail behind you.

Well there ya go, yet another edition of ASK Cubby is in the bank. Don’t be shy, my email is thecubreportrc at gmail dot com. Make the big time and win a BSRC sticker pack, or if your letter is proclaimed “Letter of the Month” you’ll get a free BSRC t-shirt.

YOUR Cub Reporter