In this edition of the JConcepts Friday5 we talk to the reigning 2wd Electric Off-Road IFMAR World Champion, Spencer Rivkin!
1. When and how did you get started in RC?
My neighbor had an RC10 driving around in the street and I was about 8 or 9 and I asked to get an RC car for my upcoming birthday. I ended up getting a Jato 3.3 and I’ve been hooked ever since. It eventually escalated quickly on going more into the competitive side, as I’ve been obsessed with competition since I was 5.
2. In your opinion, what classes have you noticed that seem to be in a decline? And how would you try to resolve this so there is more participation in them?
It seems that the short course class is been on the decline. I’ve talked with a lot of our industry leaders on what can be done to spark up the class, and what we’re seeing is more of the scaled stuff is more and more popular and making it spec rules so it’s the same for everyone will gain more interest.
3. On many indoor dirt off-road tracks it seems like the hot ticket is to run slicks. Do you prefer slightly treaded tires or slicks? And why do you think things have moved this way?
I actually prefer slicks, and I’ve been around both styles of racing. To me it’s easy to just say slicks work and not have to figure out which pin height is working the best. When I ran pins, I had 3 or 4 different tread heights ready for the track conditions and it made it hard to pick the right one.
4. Obviously, you compete in electric and nitro off-road racing at the highest level in our industry. A few other genres of RC that are fairly popular right now are dirt oval, drag racing, and scale trucks. If you had to switch over to one of those disciplines to compete in professionally full time, which one would you choose and why?
If I had to switch, I’d pick drag racing. I’m definitely a hobbyist and I like the fine tuning stuff and figuring things out that many don’t care for. I feel that the drag racing side has a lot of things to be figured out and I find that appealing.
5. Name one thing people might be surprised to know about you.
When I was younger I had really bad anxiety and being in the R/C hobby has been the biggest solution in helping me.