THE Retired Report – 2025 Off To A Great Start!
Hello there rc fanatics, I am Cubby and this is THE Retired Report. It’s been a hot minute since the last one, so let’s jump right on in.
Yes folks, it’s April 1st, but this Retired Report has nothing to do with any of that wackiness. What I want to touch on is how the year of 2025 is off to a super hot start in the rc world. I say this because a couple of weeks ago Traxxas dropped their all new Sand Car, plus Team Associated fully sent it with their upcoming RC10 American Custom Semitruck 6×6.
While some people looked at the Traxxas Sand Car and were not digging it, I sit on the other side of that fence. The Sand Car is a radical departure from anything else Traxxas has released, with a huge footprint, crazy power, front disc brakes, and big paddle tires on the rear. While I personally don’t have anywhere close to drive the Sand Car, I was stoked to see it released. My local options for a Sand Car would be a couple of beach volleyball pits or riverbeds, all of which are at least a 15 minute drive for me. And no, I’d rather not burn those paddles off on pavement, although it looks like an amazing drag machine if you were to put belted slicks on it. 🙂
The Sand Car has some pretty incredible scale realism, no matter if you are on a sandy local river bank, or it’s sitting on display in your man cave, it just looks amazing. The partnership between Traxxas and Funco Motorsports is a great one that resulted in one of the best looking rigs to ever come out of the Traxxas factory. And no, the Sand Car isn’t for everyone, but our hobby NEEDS vehicles from outside the box, as variety is truly the spice of life.
Speaking of different, I know you’ve already seen the Associated Custom 6×6. Some of you might not know my background, but I bled AE from the 80’s through around the year 2000. I was NOT a Losi guy, or Schumacher, or any of the others, I was diehard AE. Several of my “hardcore racer” type friends were not happy about seeing a 6×6 Associated on-road “vehicle”, especially one with no class to race in, but I saw it much differently. I love how the AE 6×6 has a “vintage style” gold chassis. I love how it has 6 wheel drive. I love how it’s just different from any other AE release, Ever. I was digging it so much I had to get one on the way. Not to race “formally”, but to build and run against other friends that I’ve talking into getting the AE 6×6, or one of the Tamiya semi style trucks.
While a lot of the hardcore racer types will simply dismiss the AE 6×6, I see it as a bunch of fun just waiting to happen. As this is a new platform, everyone will be trying to dial it in, and with it being laid out as it is, that should actually be a new challenge for most drivers. Something all new, something all different, is exactly what our hobby needs a big injection of right now. Scale trucks are a dime a dozen now days, and they’ve been carrying our hobby for over a decade. It’s indeed time for some crazy new ideas to start seeing the light of day. Not every release can be a T-Maxx, but I’m glad to see some manufacturers building super trick vehicles, full well knowing they won’t be the next big thing, but they can certainly be crazy fun, while also adding some much needed diversity into their product catalogs.
Welp, that’s it folks! Until next time, go fast, never let off, and try to support your local hobby shops as much as ya can!
YOUR Cub Reporter
