Building A Backyard RC Track

[SpeedRacer5873]

Hey Guys,
Currently i am in the process of making an RC Track in my backyard, we are currently killing the grass, and i was wondering if i should put a topper/top layer of some other substance over the top. we were thinking crusher dust as we have that on the side are next to the patio where i used to drive, although the downside is it gets everywhere and occasionally jams up the ESC fan and you have to tip it out of the car every now and again. so i was wondering if any of you know the best thing to put down or if i should even put anything down anything at all, i was wondering clay but i don't know if that will be hard to work with. Any help would be appreciated
Thanks!

 

[tntpoof]

looks intence.. kind of a sketchy drivers perch

 

[Greywolf74]

Perch looks pretty solid to me. Looks like a good start to the track

 

[WickedFog]

Sweet!

@Smilinbri is the man to talk to about backyard tracks.

My dad was a gardener, and he tried a few things like weed barriers and such to put down to keep the weeds from growing. Nothing seemed to stop them.

Clay will stop a lot of stuff from growing too, but you'll still have regular maintenance. All those trees around it will drop seeds. Birds and squirrels will be in the trees dropping seeds on it. So you'll just have to stay on top of it. Keep sharing progress pics and info. Looks like a fun project!

 

[Greywolf74]

Sweet!

@Smilinbri is the man to talk to about backyard tracks.

My dad was a gardener, and he tried a few things like weed barriers and such to put down to keep the weeds from growing. Nothing seemed to stop them.

Clay will stop a lot of stuff from growing too well, but you'll still have regular maintenance. All those trees around it will drop seeds. Birds and squirrels will be in the trees dropping seeds on it. So you'll just have to stay on top of it. Keep sharing progress pics and info. Looks like a fun project!

When I put pavers down in my backyard to replace the old brick walkway that was out there, I put down 3 layers of heavy-duty weed barrier stuff, but as soon as a miniscule amount of dirt gets blown on anything on top of it, weeds will start growing in it. It's almost useless.

 

[ahr43]

Laying down a couple of spray days with Round-Up weed killer before using weed barrier discourages re-emergence. Lot of controversy surrounding use of Round-Up. But, hey, it works.

SpeedRacer, surface looks fairly level so you'll get more puddling than run-off and the canopy the trees offer will protect the track from erosion as well. So running it bare may be an option. Were it me, I'd leave a thin growth of grass to help hold the dirt in place. But then I'm a grass track guy.

The track you are constructing looks a lot like one I had in Augusta, Georgia 2000-2002. Should give you lots of run time with minimal maintenance. Good luck. Keep posting up pix on progress. Cheers. -AC

 

[9x19]

Yeah, top layer is really dependent on how manicured you want the surface to be, and how much time you want to invest keeping it that way.

I run on mixed surfaces all the time, (outdoor basher) so I'm good with grass, pebbles, sand and mud.

 

[Smilinbri]

My advice, skip the weed barrier. Don't add anything, unless you can afford clay. With the size of your track, I wouldn't worry about clay.

Just kill the grass (or don't, On my 2nd track extension, I weedwacked mine down to dirt then used a tiller. I have no patience ), till it up, build your berms, your side-rails (drainage pipe, old fire hose, just paint, etc), and ramps and have a blast!!!

There will be lots of maintenance, but a good push broom, electric weed sprayer, weedwacker, propane torch, etc will all be your best friends.

Just gotta stay on it. If you have a winter off-season, the spring clean up is the worst. But after that, as long as you stay on top of the weed spraying/pulling/killing...even if you aren't running on it a lot, it's pretty easy.

Good luck and reach out if you have more questions. Share progress pics.

https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/smilinbris-rc-track-build-ridin-dirty-raceway.52483/

 

[Tunedfrog]

You could also put down a 5-year sterilant.

 

[Littlemotor]

Concentrated white vinegar from Amazon to kill the grass. As far as topping/adding to your dirt-it’s most cost/time/work effective to just make do with what you’ve got on site to be honest. The last track I did-we brought in at least 40 15yd trucks of red clay, as we were pretty serious with 1/8 *uggies. That requires literally HALF your time maintaining, and half driving.. Softer dirt will also save you a TON of money on tires. Gotta always keep the balance of work/fun in mind.

Also, with clay, you’re gonna need proper irrigation… we plumbed in to a pump at a pond we had on site. Again; lots of work, and time, and money..

 

[SpeedRacer5873]

Thanks for all the comments!
I will definitely keep posting with updates either in this thread or a different one, based on what i have heard I'm most likely to just use the dirt that's under the grass. hopefully the grass killer will kick in around halfway through next week or so. ill keep sending pics of how its going. as far as the "Drivers stand/perch" i haven't gotten round yet but am planning to put a sheet of ply down and make some railings as it is like the most terrifying thing trying to turn around when the car is up the other end lol. and we are locating some ag pipe to line it as well.

Thanks!!!

 

[Xraycer]

Thanks for all the comments!
I will definitely keep posting with updates either in this thread or a different one, based on what i have heard I'm most likely to just use the dirt that's under the grass. hopefully the grass killer will kick in around halfway through next week or so. ill keep sending pics of how its going. as far as the "Drivers stand/perch" i haven't gotten round yet but am planning to put a sheet of ply down and make some railings as it is like the most terrifying thing trying to turn around when the car is up the other end lol. and we are locating some ag pipe to line it as well.

Thanks!!!

I would lay down weed barrier cloth which would later help limit the size of the weed that will eventually grow there. I recommend a mixture of regular household vinegar and salt to control the weeds. Buy a 1 or 2 gallon garden pump sprayer to have plenty of this mixture on hand. The mixture will kill the green sprouts, but not the roots. It will keep new green sprouts from reemerging for at least a month. Most importantly, it's a non-toxic mixture to people or animals.